Today's adventures were fueled by another large and complicated and delicious, many-course, Japanese breakfast here at FUFU Nikko. First we enjoyed a morning soak and wrote yesterday's blog post. It's great having the onsen right in your room!
Breakfast was delightful and we enjoyed many things but our favorites were the hi-mitsu pork (a play on the kanji for Nikko, which the characters can also be spelled out to mean "secret"), fresh Nikko rice that has been enjoyed by the Emperor and Empress of Japan, a green curry which is #1 according to both Jeff and I, some mentaiko (that only I enjoyed), rolled yuba in dashi (that again, only I enjoyed) and some grilled flatfish.
Powered by a good breakfast and a good soak, we were ready to take on today's adventure: Toshogu shrine. While in Nikko, there are MANY shrines. Think of it as Kyoto 2.0. Toshogu is the #1 most visited though because of it's eye-popping amount of colorful decorations on the shrine's gates and grounds. Everything is carved and brightly colored.
It's all because of our favorite MF: Tokugawa Ieyasu. Even his HORSE has a special house that they SAY is plain, but the "sacred stable" is one of the most popular icons there because it holds the famous "see, hear speak no evil" monkeys. These monkeys, and more, decorate the stable with illustrations for lessons to teach the children. So children, don't you go using your senses on evil! You can smell evil, and taste it, though. That's okay.
Oh, backtracking a bit, getting to the temple is very easy from our ryokan as it's right by the Tobu bus line and only 3 stops away! On the advice of our favorite concierge, Sakura-san, I bought tickets ahead of time on KKDay. The ticket line honestly wasn't that crowded, but I'd hate to be here on a day when it IS really crowded! There are many many tour groups (most of them Italians in packs of 15 or more just standing in the middle of the walkways, blocking everything) and many many people. It is very much like the popular shrines in Kyoto, which I'm sure is even worse now with the tourism boom Japan has been experiencing since reopening after COVID in 2022.
Also, before getting to Toshogu, there is Rinnoji shrine, which we didn't get to experience, but I got a goshuin from there. It looked pretty from the back part, and apparently there is a fire ritual that goes on there. (Future note: we do visit Rinnoji the next day)
We decided we had seen most of what we wanted to see in Toshogu as it was around 1:00 and the crowds were getting crowdier. We grabbed a gashapon souvenir, watched an Italian man just NOT GET IT that he needed 1 ticket per person to get into the shrine and tell the officer at the entrance, "You remember me? I am not happy! No."
To the left of the shrine is a pathway up to another shrine: Futarasan-jinja. Futarasan-jinja was a fun shrine with many spots around with gimmick-y blessings. Frogs to ward away evil or grant a wish, Daikokuten, the main god of luck, rabbits to promote easy childbirth, a money-washing spot to promote wealth, and even a spring for people who make sake to get blessed water from to use in their sake-making! That and many more that I didn't even understand because a lot of these spots didn't have english translations on their signage.
Me and my ankle definitely didn't want to hike up the "most prominent peak in Nikko", but I did want to visit the shrine which houses the floats for the springtime Yayoi Festival, which is going on this week! The actual festival will be starting on the 17th, but they have been getting out the floats used in the festival, and we were lucky to see them moving one out! It was quite the big production and not many people seemed to know it was happening so there wasn't a terrible blockade of people.
After this and watching the procession, we took the back way, away from the crowd, to get back down to the main street where we wandered downhill, ducking into shops to buy some souvenirs, and eventually ran into the other popular site: Shinkyou Bridge. We took many pictures, Jeff got frustrated by tourists with no manners (Folks, it is *not* *hard* to walk single file and to not stand in the middle of the picturesque bridge durdling around on your phone. Move with purpose! Be aware of your surroundings!), and we continued on our way down the main street.
I kept seeing signs for a thing called "haafu-purin-sofuto" or soft serve ice cream served on top of a jar of pudding, but all the signs kept saying they were sold out at each shop. But that shrine must have been lucky because we found a really adorable cafe called Nikko Pudding Tei and I got the literal last one! As soon as I ordered mine they put up the "sold out" sign! Ha ha! Thanks Daikokuten! We relaxed in a nice room and watched the street below while we shared the haafu purin.
Then we walked a little bit more downhill to find a bus stop and sat and relaxed and people-watched for about 10 minutes while waiting for the bus. (Jeff Edit: I got on the bus with an open can of Melon Soda, sipping it as I passed the bus driver. He didn't say anything. About two stops later, another group of foreigners got on. Within moments, one of them cracked open a can of something and the bus driver lost his mind about "no drink!". A very odd experience. Maybe because I am pure of heart and spirit? Am I better than them? Yes.)
Upon our return to the hotel, it was time for another thorough soak in the in-room onsen before heading to dinner. Tonight's fare is Kaiseki-style (lots of little plates and dishes of small portions), which means Style Is Paramount.
(I will insert photos if we remembered to take them. Some courses we just dug right in.)
- Spring Vegetable Salad
- Duck loin with Yuba Jelly
- Smoked Firefly Squid
Soup:
- Mozuku Dumpling in pea puree with rice cracker bits and Kinome.
Sashimi:
- Bluefin Tuna, Spring Bonito, and Giant Squid.
Irodori:
- Foie Gras Terrine with Raspberry Sauce
- Sping Cabbage Soup
- Trout Sushi
- Sauteed Guinea Fowl
- Spring Rolls with Secret Nikko Pork
Special surprise course: some sorta fresh montain vegetable plant that looked like a hairy fern sprout the size of a celery stalk and tasted like carrot. Miso or ume dip. Pretty tasty!
Meat:
- Nasunogahara Beef Loin
- A5 Wagyu Fillet
Rice:
- Clay pot cooked rice with Sakura Shrimp and Butterbur Buds
Dessert:
- Matcha Tart
- Tochiaika Strawberry Sorbet with Blueberry Sauce
- Sakura Mochi
When I tell you that this was somehow even more food than the Tepanyaki yesterday, I am not kidding. It was a frankly ostentatious amount of stuff going on, which is kinda the point of Kaiseki at a hotel of this caliber and all, but still. Damn.
During one of our between-course interactions with the waiter, Angie mentioned that this trip was for her birthday. The waiter became more than a little excited about this and rushed off. I was worried, in my heart of hearts, that this would somehow end in the most dreaded of American Restaurant Behaviors: The Birthday Song Sung By All The Staff, Embarrassing Everyone At The Table Being Sung To And The Closest 10 Tables To Them By Proxy. Thankfully, it did not! The chef wrote a very nice Happy Birthday in chocolate sauce on her plate and brought out a rose. Very thoughtful!
There were a few things that didn't get high marks for flavor (because I have an unrefined American palate, and am best described as "a big baby with money"), but overall it was a very enjoyable experience. The wagyu fillet from the Tepanyaki menu was the allstar of the entire stay, though the A5 Wagyu from the Kaiseki course was a close second.
After dinner, we were tuckered out, so it was back to the room and off to bed to get ready for the day ahead of us.
Next up, traveling to Tokyo!
Happy Birthday, Angie ! What a beautiful way to celebrate your birthday. Love you, Mum and Daddoo
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