Cherry Blossom Time
Like a diligent spinner, Japan winds the thread of time onto the spindle of eternity, connecting the past with the future. The country where the sun begins its journey is filled with treasures and secrets, like an empress's casket. The carved lid opens, cherry blossoms bloom, gentle geishas smile - and tired dragons fall asleep on the roofs of skyscrapers, having turned off their laptops. One wants to speak of this country in verse or without words at all, to blow its images from a bamboo flute or draw them with black ink on thin rice paper.
Travel to the Land of the Rising Sun falls into the category of 'luxury and prestige', even if it is a group tour. Most often, tourists come here to see the country of the future with super-skyscrapers, super-highways, the world's fastest train, high technology and other attributes. But a trip to Japan is always a journey through time. In the modern districts of Tokyo, the distant future shines, but just turn off a busy avenue into a side street - and deep antiquity comes to life around you. The narrow streets of Tokyo's Azabu-Juban district seem rural, in the Zenpuku-ji temple the smoke of incense sticks lingers, in a nameless eatery visitors sit on the floor eating rice and octopus noodles. The city seems to exist in two different layers of time: in the distant future and in the distant past.
In spring, a trip to Japan takes on special meaning: it is the time when cherry blossoms bloom. The whole empire awaits this event, and TV news bulletins begin with it. People take time off to come to the park every day, lie under the trees - and contemplate the beauty of the blossoming flowers. Europeans find it hard to understand such an attitude towards nature, but it is in the blood of the Japanese. The ancient Japanese religion of Shinto venerates nature and its elements, and nature becomes the main protagonist of the cult of beauty. Despite the eternal shortage of living space, two-thirds of the country's area is covered by forests that no one even thinks of cutting down. In the town of Fujisawa, there are 229 legally protected parks, in which 1,576 trees grow - no more, no less.
To go from the future to the past, you need to ride the world's fastest train - the Nozomi. It runs from Tokyo to Kyoto, the ancient capital of the empire. Kyoto is the second city included in tour programs. You can wander around old Kyoto with a map drawn in the Edo period, three hundred years ago: little has changed since then. Even the famous Golden Pavilion, burned down by a local Herostratus, was rebuilt in all its splendor. Imperial palaces are still located in Kyoto. Besides the palaces, in Kyoto you can see amazing temples. There are many of them: 1,600 Buddhist and 400 Shinto. In the Gion entertainment district, you can still meet real geishas and watch a Kabuki performance - the famous theater originated here about five hundred years ago. Its performances have not changed over the centuries: each show lasts six hours, and the text is spoken in old Japanese.
Tour programs also include other trips from Tokyo: to the temple complex in Kamakura, to the majestic temple in Nikko. You can go to the fashionable Japanese-style resort of Sagami, which is called the Azure Coast. See the world's longest bridge connecting the islands of Shikoku and Honshu, and on Honshu see Himeji Castle, nicknamed the 'White Heron'.
In 2006, the Japanese authorities celebrated a triumph: the country was visited by more than 7 million tourists for the first time. Compared to 2005, the number of guests increased by 9%. Most travelers came from South Korea, followed by residents of Taiwan, then Americans and Chinese. South Korean guests most often come to Japan for shopping and hot spring resorts, while Chinese have flocked here because the procedure for obtaining group tourist visas was recently simplified for them. At the same time, the Japanese themselves still strive to see the world. In 2006, 17.5 million Japanese tourists traveled abroad.
Japan has a special program to attract tourists called 'Welcome to Japan!'. It has gotten to the point that Japanese prime ministers appear in promotional films about the country. A very recent video featuring the current head of government, Shinzo Abe, has just appeared.
Most Interesting Places in Japan
* In Tokyo, be sure to see the central district of Ginza, relax in Ueno Park, visit the Imperial Palace parks, which house museums of modern art, science and technology, the parliamentary museum, and a gallery of traditional crafts. Nearby are the Imperial Theatre, the Nissei Theatre, and the Kabukiza Theatre.
* The Nikko temple complex is located 150 km from Tokyo. The Japanese call it 'a diamond in a setting of beautiful nature'.
* The Kamakura temple complex is the largest pilgrimage center. There are 65 Buddhist and 20 Shinto temples.
* The famous Himeji Castle ('White Heron') is located in the south of Honshu Island, on the coast of the Inland Sea. It is one of the largest ancient palaces.
* In the north of Honshu Island, in Bandai-Asahi National Park, is the sacred Mount Haguro. A paved path leads there, and pagodas stand among the trees. The yamabushi sect members make a ritual ascent there.
* Kyoto is a must-see. If only to understand something about Japanese culture, about the world and about yourself. The city has 1,600 Buddhist and 400 Shinto temples.
The Black Dragon's Deep Pool
China is one of the most enticing destinations for travelers. The great country of ancient temples and mysterious traditions has always intrigued and attracted foreigners. With the easing of its isolation, China is becoming increasingly popular among tourists. It can offer a huge variety of routes: from mysterious Tibet to enigmatic Hong Kong, from mind-blowing sightseeing tours to resorts with magnificent ancient healing methods and the tropical fragrance of Hainan Island.
China is the oldest state, where a huge number of interesting architectural monuments have been preserved. Among them is the Great Wall of China, the only man-made structure visible from space. More than 30 Chinese landmarks are on the UNESCO World Heritage list: the Forbidden City and Temple of Heaven in Beijing, the Terracotta Army in Xi'an, the Huangshan and Taishan mountains, the Potala Palace in Tibet, traditional villages in southern Anhui Province, the Ming and Qing imperial tombs... Add Beijing itself, the Shaolin Monastery, Shanghai - the most colorful and largest megalopolis in the country, Suzhou - where the Great Silk Road began, Hangzhou called the Chinese Venice - all these are colossal magnets for sightseeing lovers.
Beach lovers also go to China - though mostly in winter. Hainan Island is meant for them, this standard of ecology and illustration of feng shui philosophy. Recently, it has become fashionable to get treatment on Hainan - there are thermal springs and traditional Chinese medicine clinics.
Trips to Tibet are also becoming more frequent. They have become easier since last year when the Qinghai-Tibet railway opened. More than 50 groups travel this route per month. Mostly tourists from Japan, France, Germany, and Southeast Asian countries. But compatriots have also tried this easy path to the heavenly peaks of Tibet.
The fashion for feng shui and Chinese cuisine has sparked thematic trips around China. For example, gastronomic tours or routes like 'Ethnic Splendor of the Southern Provinces' with visits to Sichuan and Yunnan provinces. On such a journey, you can see all the colors and feel the overwhelming exoticism of South China, get acquainted with the rituals, costumes, and lifestyle of local ethnic groups.
A classic Chinese route, moderately tiring and moderately rich in excursions - a journey from Beijing to Tibet through the terracotta wonders of Xi'an, along the Great Silk Road, along the Yangtze River, through the amazing landscapes of Guangxi Province. On this journey, you can see how the imperial palaces and imperial ruins, sacred mountains and steppes fill the vast space.
Travel agencies offer approximately the following sightseeing tours: 'Imperial Palaces of the Celestial Empire', 'Grand Tour', 'Beijing - Heritage of the Celestial Empire', 'Amazing China', 'Mysterious Tibet', 'Cruise on the Great Yangtze River'. The most advanced travelers are interested in off-the-beaten-path routes, and most importantly - the eternal truths and mysteries of the universe that Chinese monks and sages keep. These journeys into the depths of the country, depths of time and depths of spirit belong to the category of 'deep tourism'. This term very accurately defines the essence of such trips - with immersion in monastic life, into the very essence, into the very core of that great and not entirely understandable thing called the word 'China'.
Chinese deep tourism is expeditions to real places, not restored and not painted, not like cardboard scenery. For example, the expedition 'Spirit Journey, or Contemplating the Multifaceted Celestial Empire'. It passes through the sacred places of Taoists - the temples of Yunnan, the Qingcheng Mountains, where Taoist hermits live and one of the ten 'great heavenly caves' is located. Buddhist shrines are also visited - monasteries near Leshan, the largest statue of a seated Buddha that protects the world from a river monster. People go on such a journey to make a three-day pilgrimage to Mount Emeishan - the sacred Mountains of Enlightenment, one of the four sacred mountains of Buddhists, to immerse themselves as much as possible in the life of monks. That is, they go not only to see some beauties but also to feel - to feel the spirit and energy of the places where immortals strengthened their spirit and cultivated the 'golden pill'.
Most Interesting Places in China
* In Beijing you can see: Yonghegong - the largest lamaist monastery outside Tibet; Baiyunguan - the main abode of the 'Quanzhen Dao' ('Way of Complete Truth'); Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City; the famous Taoist monastery Baiyunguan (Temple of the White Clouds); performances of Peking Opera; the 'antique streets' Liulichang and Wangfujing, 'food rows' with delicacies of Chinese cuisine.
* In Chengdu, they see the city, the Buddhist monastery Wenshu Yuan, the cottage of poet Du Fu, the sacred mountains with the Qingcheng Shan monastery. Mount Emeishan - Buddhist monasteries. You can stay in a guesthouse at the Temple of Ten Thousand Lives.
* Leshan - the largest seated Buddha in the world (71 m), terraces and sanctuaries.
* Kunming - an interesting ancient city. From there you can go to Shilin to see the mystical stone sculptures (Stone Forest).