Think of a place when I say there's white sandy beaches. Krabi? Nope! With clear waters and you can still see your toes even when you're waist deep! Bali? Nope! And the sea is dotted with expensive yachts with bikini girls sun bathing? Maldives? Nope! It is in fact in Singapore! It is none other than one of Singapore's best kept secret, Lazarus Island!
Everyone's talking about Lazarus Island these days & how it is Singapore's best kept secret.
It is part of 8 islands (Kusu Island, Lazarus Island, Pulau Seringat, Pulau Tekukor, Saint John's Island, Sentosa and the two Sisters' Islands) which make up The Southern Islands. Lazarus is almost entirely undeveloped, with little more than a bit of jungle and a beach. If you thought St John's was quiet, wait till you come here!
To get to Lazarus Island, you first have to take a ferry from Marina South Pier. Purchase a ticket from the small orange booth of Singapore Island Cruise & Ferry Services. A round trip ticket will cost you $18 (only cash or NETS! So bring enough).
I would suggest you go on either a Sunday or a Public Holiday as the ferries are more regular and departs every 2 hours. If possible, try to take the first ferry to St John's Island, because the ferries tend to get very crowded.
The ferry ride will take 30mins to St John's Island than 15mins more to Kusu Island.
Turn left after you alight from the ferry
Once you disembark from the ferry, turn left and walk along the pathway next to the jetty.
Just a straight road
At the end of the path, turn left again and you will see this sign pointing out the direction of Lazarus Island. This is the ONLY sign you will see.
Signage of Lazarus Island
Once you turn left, you will see a straight dam/causeway to lead you to another island. This is also a favorite fishing spot of many anglers.
causeway to link St John & Lazarus
The causeway: another straight path
Continue taking the path and soon you'll be surround by vegetation. Just walk along the path.
continue walking!
and walking
After walking for about 10-15 mins from the causeway, you'll see a clearing just like this and a 'path' in the grass from many people walking through it.
I see the sea!
Be brave and bash through the grassland! You can start to see the sea, the beach and many yachts!
be brave!
Finally! The beach! It is quite an effort walking/finding the beach. & even though it is claimed as Singapore's best kept secret, it is a secret no more. Groups of families and friends are seen everywhere on the beach!
The beach of Lazarus Island
No doubt there's spots of clean areas on the beach, majority of the beach is actually quite dirty, littered with trash and plastic bottles. At first I was disheartened and I thought that Lazarus was really becoming popular, as people bring their trash and tend to just leave them behind, but as we were walking down the beach, in search of a clean spot, we saw many bottles/brands that only Indonesia has. The current brought them in.
Not very clean either
We eventually found a clean spot, settled down, and had our lunch!
picnic!
I felt that the beach was too narrow. At one point when the tide was coming in, we were running out of sand to sit on, and had to put our stuff on the grass.
Swimming time!
As you can see, there are no shelters, no benches, and definitely, no toilets. It is as natural as you can imagine. Gilbert and I are both very fuss free, we didn't really cared, as long as we had our picnic cooler!
yachts behind me!
Do not expect corals and fishes, this is still Singapore. Just be thankful for the white sand and clear waters in Lazarus. Once in a while, the sea bug will bit me and it will itch/hurt, but other than that, I thoroughly enjoyed myself!
Clear Waters!
I am still undecided if Lazarus Island and it's beach is worth all the hassle of finding parking, packing and carrying the cooler, taking the ferry, and walking for almost 25mins in search of the beach. Maybe I'll come back when I have enough money to rent a yacht!
Date of travel: 8-11 March 2014
Location: Krabi, Thailand
Occasion: My 25th Birthday! Yay!
If you've read my previous post about Krabi, you'd know this is not my first time there. In fact, it is my THIRD time in Krabi. I love how the streets are so clean (as compared to other parts of Thailand), its pretty quiet (as compared to Phuket) and THAI FOOD!
I will not go into details like where I stayed at (the same place) or what I ate (the same things), but I would like to tell my story of how my friends and I almost drowned.
Unlike my 2nd trip, we went white water rafting and 1 hour of ATV ride. Now, this is not my first time rafting. I did it during my first trip to Krabi and once more in Bali (down a mini waterfall no less!). Of course, it is not those hardcore ones you see in Nat Geo Adventure or what, this is just a guided rafting experience (probably half or a third of the thrill as those on Nat Geo) led and controlled by two highly skilled Thai Rafters.
My bf brought along his Polariod Action Camera and although the video is super shaky (no thanks so his lousy filming) and super low quality (cos my computer kept crashing when I tried to edit the HD clips!), I hope you're able to see our fun and what we did!
In Singapore/Asia, we're experiencing a 'drought' and it hasn't rained in 1.5 months. I'm pretty sure Krabi is experiencing the same thing. For white water rafting, someone somewhere up the river is collecting all the water in a dam and releasing it according to a time schedule, and people wait till those time to raft down the river. My theory is that because it was the dry season, the dam is not collecting enough water as expected, the current and water flow is slower than usual. Also, due to the high peak season, there's actually a lot of rafts on the river! About twice as much as the first time round!
White Water Rafting in Krabi!
Anyhow, If you watched the clip, at one point at 1:46, you can see how jam packed the whole river is. We had to climb out the raft several times, push the raft past some rocks and continue our way.
There were 5 of us on the raft, excluding the two Thai Raft Guides. We met this Filipino American and he too, experienced the same thing as us.
To cut the story short, we were basically stuck between a rock and other rafts, probably due to the high number of rafts on the river, and the weak current/flow of the river water. This other raft comes charging at us at high speed and knocks into the side of our raft. Naturally, the raft flipped sideways.
The last thing I saw was Russell's shorts. Yes. The bright blue one with flowers!
I immediately panicked in the water, trying desperately to resurface. I've seen enough Nat Geo & Discovery & whatever nonsense to know that it's no joke to be thrown into a river with strong currents. I remember during the previous rafting sessions, the guides were saying that if you fall into the water, just stop fighting the current and try to float on your back (because you're wearing a life vest) till you're able to swim to the river bank. I tried to. Really, I tried.
I then realized something or someone was on me. When I stretched out my arms, I couldn't even break the water surface! I decided there and then that I wasn't going to die that day. I used all my strength to push that thing/person away, steady and shoved my feet into the ground and used my entire body strength to push myself up. The river wasn't deep. I was just stuck.
I managed to push that thing/person away. Than I realized to my horror, there was something else on top of me. It was the capsized raft.
River jam packed with rafters!
Again, I shoved my feet into the rocks and tried desperately to shove the raft away. I think at that point, someone saw the raft moving (or I succeeded in shoving the raft away) because the guide and tourists from another nearby raft grabbed onto my life vest and pulled me up their raft.
While I was gasping for air and getting my bearings, I turned to look at my saviors. The guide looked calm, while the group of Russian girls on board looked totally freaked out. They probably looked more scared than I actually was. They kept asking if I was ok, kept holding onto my arm and kept asking me to hold on to the rope on their raft.
I looked around and with a sigh of relief, I saw all my friends alive and on other rafts and the river bank. Again, the first person I saw was Russell (thanks to his bright blue shorts) on the river bank, than Yuyi who was behind me on the same raft, than the other guy (who's name I forgot! Sorry!), and finally, Gilbert who was on another raft meters away!
After we got back to our hotel, we were talking about the incident and let me recount my friend's experiences to the best of my abilities.
White Water Rafting
Yuyi:
Hers was pretty straightforward and less scary. I think she was one of the first ones to get pulled out of the water. She said that after she fell into the water, she just froze. Naturally, she floated up (I think face forward though) and she got pulled up onto the same raft as I did.
Gilbert:
Now, his story was pretty scary and amazing at the same time. He said after he fell into the water, he was also caught under the raft, just like I did. He kept floating upwards, but he couldn't surface. After pushing and kicking, he manged to get out under one raft, resurface for a second, and he was under the next raft again. He said he didn't know how long he was under, or how may rafts he was stuck under, but it felt like forever. After a while when he resurfaced, a rafter pulled him up their raft. Apparently, he said that the first thing he looked for was sadly, not me, his girlfriend of 7 years. It was his slippers. Which was also locked in the lockers back on shore. When he finally realized that we didn't even bring our slippers along, he started looking for us. That explains why he was so far away.
Russell:
I think Russ's story was pretty simple too. As I've mentioned, the last thing I saw was his shorts flying towards my face (thank God, no broken nose). So I think that the thing/person on top of me may or may not be him. If I am not wrong, he said he was near the surface and he just swam towards the river bank.
Although it was totally not the guide's fault, I mean, they can't really control if another person steers their raft towards us right? They kept apologizing and and even helped us apply medication to our wounds once we were back to base. I nearly cried when he applied the alcohol to my wounds.
I got a long and big wound on my lower back from scraping the rocks and my foot had a big graze from the rocks too. It was only the next day I found an angry bruise on my right thigh. Gilbert said he was still holding onto the ore when he fell into the water and it pulled his shoulder because it was yanked in a different direction. Yikes!
I was actually very surprised the camera made it out alive too. I guess when the raft flipped, the camera flew in between my body and my life vest and got lodged there. Thank God I clipped it to my vest.
ATV!
After all that ordeal, we went back for lunch and finally to the ATV! Apprently, they only have 3 ATVs for us to play and wanted to separate us into two groups. But because I was so tired and drained from the rafting experience, I just told them that I didn't mind being just the pillion and entertained myself by filming and taking pictures!
So I hopped onto Gilbert's ATV, and off we went! We did a small loop around the base camp to familiarize ourselves to the ATV. When we finally did leave the base, we went down this slope which was pretty scary. At the end of the slope, was this barb wire fence with rubber tires lining the side of the dirt road. Because Gilbert's right shoulder was injured, he didn't had the strength to steer left (by pushing it using his right arm), we kindda crashed into the fence.
That wasn't the bad part. The bad part was that the ATV continued moving and the front right wheel of the ATV went up the 'curb'. Gilbert managed to jump off, while I just... fell off.
ATV
I know, I am a klutz. I would love to tell you about the story of how I fell off a snow mobile in Hokkaido, but that's a story for another time.
My Dad called me a watermelon. :(
The fence we crashed into.
Gilbert said he managed to stop the ATV, turned around expecting to see me on the ATV, but I wasn't there. This time he panicked when he saw me on the ground. He said that most people would injure their palms or hands because they would break their fall by sticking our their arms. That is actually also how people break their arms. But he said I fell nicely and was in a fetal position, rocking....?
What do you mean rocking? I still have no idea until today.
But anyway, my ass hurt cos that was where it broke the fall. That actually resulted in a smiley face bruise on my ass cheek. My elbow and ankle was cut and bleeding, but I was gung-ho. I didn't care.
I just dusted myself off, and I just walked over to Russell's ATV and rode with him. HAHAHA. That made Gilbert super guilty. But hey! I managed to weasel out lots of pancakes from him!
Snorkeling!
What an adventure just for one day! The next day, we went snorkeling! Just imagine what all the salt water would do to my injured and bleeding body. I just tried to snorkel once, endured the pain, than tried again, trying to stick my elbow and ankle out of the water, than I gave up and just went up the beach to take a nap. I was sleeping so soundly, I was even dreaming. Imagine the feeling of waking from a deep slumber on the beach! LOVEEEE IT!
Double dating in Krabi!
After reading my experiences with White Water Rafting, please do not deter from trying it out yourself! No doubt, there will be some risk and danger involved, but that is also where the thrill comes from. The guides will do their very best to keep you safe. After all, your safety is of utmost importance to them and their business. Trust me. It is worth a try!
Dates of stay: 22-23 November 2013 Category: Two bedroom seaview villa Price: Advance purchase S$460.75++ inclusive of 4 breakfast Additional S$100 for 5th person Includes complimentary WiFi, Minibar & Transfer from ferry terminal So my girlfriends and I went to Batam last weekend and rented the two bedroom seaview villa for the night. There were a total of 5 of us, as I couldn't make it initially, and my friend got her boyfriend to replace me, and some sort of miracle happened, I could go again! The villa in Singapore's context, is not really a villa. It's a freaking manor/bungalow! If you know where I work, this is as good as a 3-Bdrm Manor at my workplace. It is has three levels and it's humongous, even for 5 people.
The first level is the kitchen, living room, dining area, and the outdoor pool. The second level consists of the 2 bedrooms, and the third level is a roof top chillax area, suitable for a BBQ out under the stars! Pardon the mess in the InstaVideo, we were eating and drinking before the idea of taking a video occurred to me. It would be such a waste not to take a video of it.
Let me break the post down into three parts: Warm Welcome, Anticipation of Needs, Fond Farewell. If you're a true blue hotelier, you'd know that this is the service process we use at most hotel establishments. (Now, I feel like I'm working again!)
Warm Welcome
We arrived at Nongsapura Ferry Terminal and there was a gentleman who picked us up. He had a list of all the guests who are arriving today and checked us off before asking us if we wanted to wait in the bus or do a bit of tidbit buying, while we wait for others to arrive. Now, as a hotelier point of view, I think this is a smart move. He is able to call up before hand (maybe 15-20mins) and inform the Front Desk who is arriving and they better get the Villas ready. I mean, the Villa is humongous! They would probably need 3 hours to clean it!
Shuttle bus from Nongsapura to Montigo
The arrival at the resort was a wow factor! Not just the iced-tea and cold towels (come on, my hotel does that too!) or even the warm greetings and assistance with luggage; it was the spectacular view of the vast ocean which weren't dotted with oil tankers like Singapore's! The lobby is spacious and it doesn't have any walls to obstruct the view! Perhaps this is one of the tactics they use to distract you and try to weasel some money out of you (just kidding!).
Montigo Resort Lobby
The receptionists were walking around the lobby, ensuring everyone is being taken care of. They seated everyone down and brought the registration cards, and other things which were essential to the check in. Everything was in a controlled, calm and organized manner! Impressive, considering that they just unloaded a bus full of excited Singaporeans. They have a system in place!
I wasn't around when the receptionist was registering us, as I was too comfortable and my stomach decided to act up and give me a bad case of tummy ache! I was however around when my friends demanded for my credit card because they forgot to bring theirs.
I know. Seriously?
Pardon my girlfriends, for what will they ever do without me!
The receptionist then went through all the inclusions that we had, maps she pulled out and even explained where the socket to place the key for electricity was! It was a thorough check in, and although it was a tad bit long, I enjoyed it very much as I know what I have and what to expect!
Buggy!
She than handed over our keys to the bellman who brought us to our room in the buggy and even explained where everything in the villa was! But I wasn't listening much, very distracted by the view and the size of the manor, I mean, Villa.
Exterior of the villas
Anticipation of Needs
So, after a great welcome and arrival, I was looking forward to the rest of the stay being as awesome as my first impression. However...
We paid an extra of S$100 for the 5th person. So technically, I was expecting an extra bed, with extra towels, toiletries, bathrobe and slippers. Nope.
Bedrooms
I was kind of hoping they'd stock everything in 5s. Like 5 cookies/snacks which they provided. Now, that will really blow me away. But, nope! I was a bit disappointed already at this point, because we're trained to pay so much attention to detail back at my workplace, and I guess I am expecting too much, or really am pampered to expect such service. I had to call the reception to request for extra bathrobes and slippers, which they brought promptly. I didn't really mind not having an extra bed too anyway, because 3 of us can squeeze onto a King sized bed.
Living Room
Technically, we paid the extra S$100 is just for the 5th person's breakfast, because everything else in the villa is set for four! Now, at this point, I told myself not to expect too much! This is Batam! Not some world class hotel with lots of awards (cheyyyy!).
Rooftop
The property is so beautiful! The architecture and layout is simple yet somewhat luxurious. However, I felt that they could put in more efforts to maintain the property. Maybe paint the Villas at least once a year to cover up all the stains they cannot remove. Or varnish the wood to remove scratches and stains, also, at least once a year. Or actually, just vacuum or mop the floor because it was just damn dusty. I'm not sure if it's a culture in Indonesia not to clean the floors or what, because my friend who has been to Montigo before said that her previous Villa's floor felt dusty too.
Or... Are we, Singaporeans, too clean and pampered?
Well, I like my floors clean!
I'm not sure if all the packages include complimentary mini bar and snacks, but ours certainly did. There's 8 cans of soft drinks inside the fridge and two packets of dried crisp fruits. In every washroom, there's also two small bottles of mineral water.
Complimentary Snacks
My girlfriend signed up for some iPrefer membership (which was free anyway), and we received some VIP amenity! We had a VIP fruit basket, bottle of red wine (which was surprisingly easy to drink, considering I am not a wine person) and two plates of cookies and kueh-kuehs. We were definitely happy about that! Girlfriend was so overjoyed at the prospect of being a VIP, she kept reminding us not to finish all her cookies!
VIP Amenity
At the balcony of the living room on the first floor, we had our own private infinity pool overlooking the sea. We were soaking in the pool in the evening when we realized we needed more towels as we didn't want to use the same towels we were going to use after our shower. I mean, the towels would contain chlorine water, and than what's the point of showering right?
Infinity Pool
So, I called the operator asking for five more towels. Twice. Within the span of about 40mins. It didn't turn up until room attendants came over for turndown service and we requested more, which they complied. I know it may seem 'on the way' for them, but, really?
Anyway, the towel dog they left on our bed to 'welcome' us back was really cute though!
Towel art
Did I mention there's Wii console in the Villa as well? Well, we were trying to cramp a lot of activities (or not) into just a short 1 night's stay, and by the time we actually got down to play the Wii, we realized the only game they had to offer us is some NBA game. It didn't fly well with us. Again, called up the reception asking if we can go down to take a look at the other games, but the area/department that handles all the Wii games are closed and we have to get back tomorrow. Oh well, just our luck. We decided to just go out to the balcony and laze by the pool, sipping our wine like adults.
Tiigo Bar
Just chilling by Tiigo Bar
After dinner, we headed to Tiigo bar for some drinks. They have an indoor and outdoor sitting areas, as well as cabana beds dotting side of the the infinity pool. It is truly beautiful. We walked in at about 9.30pm and it was empty, except for 2 couples who were having some fun with the fooseball.
The lady who attended to us actually checked the condition of the cabana to see if it was wet or not. Though it was just a small gesture which she may casually over look, it truly impressed me. After looking through the menu, my friends saw that they served Jaggermeister. She asked the lady if they had redbull, and she said, yes. So my friends wanted to order two portions of each. The lady looked at us blankly, nodded and walked away.
If you're a drinker, you'd know we just ordered a Jaggerbomb.
Tiigo Bar in the day
Shortly, a gentleman walked over to clarify our order. Again, my friend repeated for a glass of redbull and a shot of Jaggermeister, fearing they didn't know what a Jaggerbomb is. This gentleman, however, promptly clarified if we wanted a Jaggerbomb. Yes! Success! This guy knows his cocktails!
I had this strawberry peach cocktail thing which wasn't that fantastic. It brought back some memories of cough syrup. Other than that, we had a really good time just chilling by the pool and counting stars.
Despite the minor hiccups in the day, we were having such a good time, we didn't want to leave!
Tadd's
Breakfast at Tadd's
In the morning, I woke up with a pounding headache! We got ready and went to breakfast nonetheless!
Breakfast was at Tadd's, the all day dining restaurant which is located between the main swimming pool & Tiigo Bar. There was a wide selection of food, and I would say the spread is really good! (Not sure if it's worth S$100 though.)
Main swimming pool
They had the usual, egg station, fruits, cereal, bakery, hot food. They also had a Ayam Soto & Roti Prata station which I enjoyed very much! After breakfast, we went back to Tiigo Bar's infinity pool to swim and relax. Even though the bar is not open, no one cared if we were swimming there. One staff even helped us take a photo!
Fond Farewell
After swimming, we went back to shower and get ready to leave Batam. As I was taking a ferry from a terminal different from my friends and also a 20min taxi ride away, I went and got ready first. I called for a buggy at 12.20pm. And again at 12.40pm. Time was running out as I had plan to leave the property latest by 12.45pm. at 12.45pm, I decided to walk up to the lobby instead as I didn't want to miss my ferry.
On my way out, I saw two staff on buggies just chilling outside a villa, about halfway up the lobby. I knew the slope up to the lobby was really steep and I didn't have the energy to walk up or want to perspire (I was working night shift that evening). So, I stopped their chatter and got one of them to send me up to the lobby.
Boy, was I irritated.
I went to check out first, and the receptionist was asking if I have any luggages in the villa. I replied saying I waited for 30 mins for a buggy, so I walked up because I didn't want to miss my ferry! My friends are still inside waiting for a buggy! To which she just replied, "Oh, we're sorry about that."
No, she didn't look sorry, nor did she attempt to find out more or get a buggy over immediately. To me, she just shrugged it off.
I choose not to do anything about it because I understand her position. It wasn't her fault there are high demands for buggies. But at least she could have empathize a little more? Find out what went wrong? Explained why it took freaking 30 mins (or more) for a buggy to arrive?
I just kept quiet and asked for a taxi to be prepared immediately while she process my check out, so I didn't have to wait too long. Guess what, she only called for the taxi AFTER she processed my check out.
Not efficient at all.
I still had to wait for them to get a taxi over, and by then my friends finally made it to the lobby.
When I finally got into the cab, it was already 1.05pm. My ferry was at 2.10pm. I was trying my best not to panic. Then, I sat inside the taxi for another 5-8 mins which their bellboys wrote a receipt and tell the taxi driver where my destination was. Why couldn't they arrange it when I was doing my check out?
Anyway.
I made it to the ferry terminal at 1.45pm. Thank goodness I didn't miss my ferry.
Overall
I like the property a lot. I like the contemporary design, the spacious layout and all the amenities and facilities. I just feel that should put more heart into maintaining the property, if not, it's just going to be another old property with nothing much to offer anymore in 10 years time.
However, what I liked about Montigo was just the tangible stuff. Stuff I can see and touch and feel.
The service staff needs to learn how to be more empathizing and need to improve on their anticipation of needs skill. They are friendly and nice, but they have no sense of urgency. When I was panicking about missing my ferry, they just took their time with my check out and ordering a taxi for me.
I don't know. Is this a Batam style? Or are Singaporeans too anxious about everything?
Will I be back? Yes, of course. I will give it a second chance. On a weekday probably, so I don't have to wait 30 mins for a buggy pick up.
To celebrate my mother turning 49 this year, my family and I traveled to the Kansai Region of Japan. The whole trip was a free and easy tour, where I sat down at the computer and planned for months before the big trip. We visited Kobe, Kyoto, Nara, Himeji & Osaka over 10 days. Please click the link to get my itinerary around the Kansai region. I have to stress that we did not follow the itinerary strictly (sometimes not at all) because I was travelling with my parents and sometimes we were tired from travelling and skipped some attractions to have a rest/nap. ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ Date of travel: 28 September 2013 Mount Shosha
While my parents were away at Golf, my sister and I took a train to Himeji. I really wanted to visit the temple where The Last Samurai was filmed. I watched it just a few months before I went to Japan and I was so intrigued by the whole way of the Samurai thing. The location of the film was just beautiful!
It was filmed up Mount Shosha, which is the site of Engyoji Temple, an atmospheric temple complex with a history of over 1000 years. Located at the edge of Himeji City, the mountain can be accessed in only 30 minutes from the city center by bus and cable-car.
Directions:
Take Shinki Bus number 8 from either Himeji Station or Himeji Castle to the terminal stop "Mount Shosha Ropeway" (書写山ロープウェイ, 30 minutes, 260 yen one way, departures every 15-20 minutes).
Then, take the Mount Shosha Ropeway up the mountain (500 yen one way, 900 yen round trip, departures every 15 minutes).
A convenient ticket to use is the "Shoshazan Ropeway" combination ticket, which includes a round trip by bus from Himeji Station to the ropeway station and the ropeway round trip for 1,300 yen. It is available at the ticket counter of the Shinki Bus Terminal in front of Himeji Station.
Round trip ticket for bus and ropeway
Note that there are two bus terminals in front of Himeji Station, one for the white Himeji City Buses (on the right side of the main road when exiting JR Himeji Station), and one for the orange Shinki Buses (on the left side of the main road when exiting JR Himeji Station). You need to take a Shinki Bus.
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Up to Mt Shosha via Ropeway
As we headed up the ropeway, I noticed there were a lot of farms in Himeji despite the concrete jungle you see in the background. It was still a quiet and peaceful town.
If memory serves me well, the entrance ticket to visit the temples costs us 500Yen per person. You'll end up at the base of the mountain. if you want to hitch a ride up the mountain to the entrance of the temples with the buses they've provided, you need to top up another 500Yen per person!
My sister and I decided to save the money for lunch instead and hiked up!
Strolling up Mt. Shosha
It was quite an alright walk. The weather was cooling and it was very shady with all the trees blocking out the nasty sunlight and heat. The only problem we faced was that the path up was very sandy. We were not complaining though, because we rather it be sandy than muddy!
Finally we're here!
There are about 5 temples within the Engyoji Temple vacinity. Most of which are within 5-10 mins walking distance and are accessible by paths through the trees or 'secret stone paths' behind the temples.
Walking to the next temple
We spent about 5 hours here just taking our own leisurely stroll through the woods, admiring all the beautiful trees and scenery.
The temples reminded me vaguely about the 'Last Samurai' movie, but there isn't one particular place which reminded me of a scene, as you can see from the photos below.
Corridors outside the temple.
Inside the temple
Temple Grounds
The Last Samurai Movie
Himeji City
After spending a few hours up the mountain, we went down to the city to grab a bite. It was almost 5pm and most of the shops and restaurants (affordable ones) were closing and did not want to serve us. :(
Himeji city
We walked around the area opposite the Himeji Castle, there were plenty of shops and restaurants, however they were all closing. We just continue to walk nonetheless. We did not visit Himeji Castle though, as it was under renovation and we couldn't see much also anyway.
Beautiful sunset
Eventually, we found a shop that sells all those souvenir sweets and snacks which were way more affordable than in Osaka, or all the other cities we've been. We bought about 10 boxes each!
Himeji streets
We basically roamed the streets hungry as most of the restaurants were closing. We went into the supermarkets and bought ourselves ice cream instead.
Sunset outside the station
Himeji is a very quiet and peaceful town, with lots of sights to offer. It can be visited in one day and you can just take a train out from Osaka, Nara or Kyoto. Bear in mind that Shinkansen will cost double the amount as compared if you take a JR Train, but will get you there at half the time.
We visited Himeji on a day visit as well. We took a JR train that took us about 1 hour. If you're visiting Himeji on a day trip, I'd advice you to purchase a 1 day JR Pass at the airport (the only place you can purchase a JR pass without visiting a Travel Agent). It will cost you about 2000 yen for 1 day pass, and your return trip if you purchase it at the JR Train station will cost you about 2400yen.
