Schmidt clan: Shimoda

We had a wonderful wonderful time in Shimoda. It's on the Izu Peninsula which is about 2.5hrs drive from Tokyo.
For those who don't have time to read the whole long blog, here's the answer to the stone bed pending question: It was a bit of an anticlimax for me....I swung the door open, eyes darting around in search of stone....but, well, in all honesty there were no stone beds. Which I guess was a relief. Just tatami mats to sleep on (Japanese style beds which are very thin straw/bamboo mats on the floor with a lovely thick feather douvet on top for warmth). Anyway, these tatami mats were a bit hard, that's true, but not stone. I don't know what "stone beds" he was referring to. Probably a language mix up!

Anyway, we had a lovely time. Our highlights were:
1) the amazing scenery
2) lots of bays - little coves (like natural harbours) with crystal clear sea - turquoise and you can see to the bottom. Like out of a James Bond film!
3) the Pacific here was like a duck's pond, but surely it can get much bigger waves when there are storms
4) the weather was gorgeous (about 14 degrees....a glimpse of coming Spring)
5) Japanese narcissuses were flowering (yellow and white bulbs growing wildly with a beautiful scent), palm trees, aloes, very tropical plants
6) our hotel: very lovely owners (friends of my Japanese teacher) who could speak English very well and gave us great tips
7) Evie, in particular, is a beach lover. She LOVES the sand, and LOVES the waves. She just sunk her teeny weeny toes into the wet sand and let the waves roll over her legs. She hollered and cried inconsolably when we had to go.
8) the water was actually quite warm! Definitely swimable.
9) Japanese dinner in the hotel - very Japanese with LOTS of tiny bowls with tiny servings of everything you can imagine (mostly veg & seafood), very high quality of food. Might not be our taste for every day, but the experience was superb.
10) lots of fishing villages; fishermen risking life on slippery rocks and islands to catch the best
11) lots of islands to see
12) a lovely walk to a lighthouse
13) a historic walk through an older village with traditional Japanese architecture
14) just the fresh salty air...beautiful views....a real breather for us.
15) white sandy beaches, protected bays, perfect for us
16) not a soul (except us) on the beach. Wonderful!!

I would say, at this stage, that we're starting to see Tokyo separately from the rest of Japan. Tokyo is never sleeping, a massive blob of concrete, always busy, expensive, yuppy, people always dressing to impress, lots of shops, cafes, restaurants, lots to do!, etc. It's also the place where obviously there are jobs for many and in that way it attracts masses. The rest of Japan on the other hand has natural beauty. The mountains are so unusual for me: they look like triangles - very steep, very forested, uninhabitable. There are lots of rivers, waterfalls. The coastline is dramatic, but peaceful. A worthwhile visit.

Here are some photos:

awesome view from our room! Can see big island in background and the water was turquoise.

our room. There is the Japanese table with an electrically heated blanket over it (to keep your legs and feet warm underneath as you sit on the tatami mats) On this side of the room (where I took the picture from, were also 2 single western style beds. But all 4 of us ended up on the tatami mats - the raised part of the room which is wooden "deck" with special "straw-type" mats on top. A bit like camping I think!)

Guess whose sexy feet these are! Michael's!! These are standard shoes you get everywhere as you have to take street shoes off. We got these at reception. Awful stuff, but at least we "blend" in as everyone has them on and nobody stares or thinks they're wierd. That helps, a lot! But in any other country, we wouldn't be caught dead in them. Not even an Ouma would wear those.