Rollin' Across Japan Part 2: Nagoya

I rolled into Nagoya that evening.  Having been on the move since 5 that morning, you'd think that I'd be pretty run down by then.  But here's the thing about big Japanese cities: they wake you up.  Dodging through the crowds, blinking through the searing the neon as you try to find a quiet spot to stop and get your bearings...it's all part of the experience, and Nagoya is no exception, but after this trip, I put the city in a group along with Osaka and Kanazawa; lively, fun cities with a more welcoming feel to them.

First pleasant surprise of the day was the fact that the dorm room I booked was completely empty: it was only me in this vast tatami room, complete with it's own toilet, cupboard and common room.  All for 2500 yen per night, possibly the best accidental bargain I've ever had in Japan.

That evening I went for a meal in a fancy underground street called 'umai dori' (tasty street), lined with plenty of great restaurants.  When in Nagoya, though, there is only one dish to try: Miso Katsu.  I had mine 'nabe' style, but needless to say it was so tasty it was borderline criminal.  If I could learn how to cook that, I'd be set for life.


That night, I wandered around the city, with no real aim: sometimes it's nice to just follow the crowds and soak up the atmosphere.  I started the Osu temple right outside the hotel, and I ended up at a bus station in a building called Oasis 21.  If calling it a bus station makes it sound drab, then you'd be massively mistaken.  This a bus station with a lit-up courtyard on several layers, topped off with a raised plaform filled with water.  If it sounds wlike something from a Bond movie, then that's exactly what it was like, complete with great views of Nagoya TV Tower and downtown.

The next day I headed for the Tokugawa Art Museum.  The Tokugawa Dynasty was undoubtedly the most influential of Japan's history, with the first Shogun, Tokugawa Ieyasu, standing head and shoulders over any other figure in it's past.  The museum was brimming with rich treasures of the era.  You really got a sense of the wealth and power of the Tokugawas, not just as a warrior class but also in the arts and crafts.  The adjoining park was a pleasant stroll afterwards, even though being followed around by a school of hungry-looking carp fish as I circled the lake was a little unnerving.

Next was Nagoya castle.  It's a strange quirk of Japanese castles, it seems to me, they they remain cunningly hidden from view right until the last minute, making a sudden appearance as you round the corner of the main gate and the donjon keep throws itself into full view.  Nagoya castle is impressively big, with every floor full of musuem artifacts, but the main attraction of every castle is the simplest: the view.  Nagoya Castle didn't disappoint, though sadly there was no balcony to walk out onto.  On the flipside, they had wonderully cool air-con: a fitting reward after the gruelling stairs.

Stairs would be no issue at the next destination: Midland Square, the tallest building in Nagoya.  An elevator whips you up to the 43rd floor, giving you a stomach-churning view of the world shrinking away below through it's glass walls.  This led out onto the steely, open-air Sky Promenade, an elevated walkway with epic views of the city below.  To see skyscrapers below you is a strangely dizzying experience.

That evening led me to Atsuta Shrine, one of the most important shrines in Japan.  It is believed to house one of the three great treasures of the Japanese Imperial Family: a sacred sword.  It has never been seen though, kept hidden away from the public eye.  It's existence is often disputed, but if you've ever been to a shrine, the atmosphere and mystery of the place, complete with it's prohibited areas, lends well to the rumour.

I slumped down that evening exhausted but satisfied.  I have to mention that inbetween all these destinations I often had a great time just going from one place to another, wandering into friendly little craft shops and having great food.  I left Nagoya the next day, thoroughly satisfied and delighted with my experience there.  Just one full day, and 'd fallen in love with the place: and what's more, it's a place you could definitely live in.

Next stop, Inuyama...