Author: shillifully

Tokyo to Gora

shillifullyLeave a comment

Gora is about 120 km south west of Tokyo and reached by three trains. The first is the famous bullet train (Shinkansen) which first came into service in 1964. It has a maximum speed of 320 km per hour, is the most punctual service in the world and has never had a fatality.

The train is in each station for only a couple of minutes with the passengers already in orderly queues in designated parts of the platform depending on your carriage. Getting on and off the train is helped considerably by the absence of steps or gaps – platform and trains are at the same level with only a few cm between the two.

The next two trains run on the Hakone Tozan Line, with the section from Hakone to Gora being a spectacular mountain railway including three switchbacks.

Tokyo

shillifullyLeave a comment

Tokyo became the capital of Japan, replacing Kyoto, following the resignation of the Tokyo based Shogun and the Emperor moving to the new capital. With a population of 37 million it is the world’s largest city.

Much of Tokyo was destroyed in World War II and few buildings remain from prior. From the 1950s many Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines were rebuilt along historic lines but with modern materials.

The city does not have a major problem with traffic as most locals do not own cars due to the lack of parking, so use public transport. We avoided rush hour and found it easy to get around by metro or taxi. The metro introduced more English signage and announcements in preparation for the recent Olympics which then sadly could not host spectators.

Tokyo metro, outside rush hour
Pedestrian crossing- very organised and disciplined- at about 9pm
The same crossing less than a minute later
Typical city centre street (this one features in the film Lost in Translation)
Tokyo National Museum
Merchants house that survived World War II (now an excellent bakery)
Shinto shrine with Tokyo tower in the background
Sake barrels outside a Shinto Shrine
Buddhist temple and pagoda
We visited the above on a busy public holiday- luckily Tim stands out in a crowd in Japan!

Japan

shillifullyLeave a comment

Japan was a feudal country with an Emperor at its head but controlled by the Shogun until 1868, when pressure to industrialise and have greater involvement from the outside world led to major change. The last Shogun gave up his position to leave the Emperor with political power and modernisation began.

After defeat in World War II, Japan became a democracy with the Emperor as figurehead. The population is approximately 125 million with only 3 million non Japanese nationals. Japanese citizens are not permitted to hold a passport for another country. Japan is approximately 20% larger than the British Isles.

It is the fourth largest economy in the world but has suffered from shrinking populations with low birth rates and an ageing population. However more women have been entering the workforce and growth in per capita GDP has been better than most developed countries.

The country is volcanic with Mount Fuji, an active volcano its highest mountain. It has regularly suffered from natural disasters- earthquakes, tsunami and volcanic eruptions.

We timed our trip in the hope of seeing the famous cherry blossom- we were not disappointed, it came into bloom just as we arrived
Samurai armour
Grave of the last Shogun

South Africa Winelands

shillifullyLeave a comment

Our final stop was staying on a vineyard, garden and farm in the South African Winelands. It was 30 minutes by car from each of Franschhoek, Paarl and Stellenbosch. As well as wine, the whole area is a foodie heaven based on local seasonal produce. The quality of the fruit was particularly good as it was the height of the summer harvest.

It was great to catch up with some “old” friends who live locally, Mary and Hywel and to coincide our visit with London friends, Helen and Sam.

Many of the vineyards have art, sculpture or gardens as well as great restaurants and wine

Wildlife of the Okavango Delta

shillifullyLeave a comment

The Okavango Delta has its peak floods during the winter (June to August) which is the dry season, hence attracting animals from great distances. The summer is hot and wet giving rise to tall grasses, making some animals more difficult to see and is therefore the low season for tourism. In addition to land and water dwelling animals, the delta hosts approximately 400 species of birds during the year.

Sunrise from our game drive – reward for the 5am alarm

Okavango Delta

shillifullyLeave a comment

The Okavango is the largest of only a very few inland delta systems. It is created by highland waters from Angola reaching shifting tectonic plates. Each year approximately 11 cubic km of water spreads over an area around the size of Wales. The high temperature of the delta causes rapid transpiration and evaporation resulting in three cycles of rising and falling water levels.

The nature of the geography is such that many lodges are best reached by air as they are on “islands” surrounded by water and marshes. Flights between islands might only be 10 minutes long with the schedule being determined the day before, depending on arrivals/departures from the logdes. Our first flight had five stops, of which ours was the third. There are dirt roads in the region, but the land distances are not indicative of the time it would take nor the feasibility at a particualr time of year.

The traditional mode of transport is the mokoro, a canoe dug out from a tree trunk and propelled through the shallow water and vegitation using a pole. The ones used by the lodges are made of fibreglass to prevent unnecessary tree felling in the area.

Zebras by the runway at one of the pick-up stops
The bar
View from the bar

Chobe National Park

shillifullyLeave a comment

Chobe National Park lies in the north of Botswana and covers 11,700 square km, larger than Devon and Somerset combined. It was created a national park in 1967 and is known for its large population of elephants estimated to be over 45,000. The destruction caused by elephants is such that culls may be considered. We stayed at a lodge just outside the park with views across the Chobe River to Namibia. Our activities were consequently both land and water based.

Shortly after a curious elephant approached our boat !
Hippos – what seemed to be a vicious fight was, our guide told us, a mother telling her sons it was time to leave home and make their own way in the world

Victoria Falls

shillifullyLeave a comment

Our first lodge in Botswana was only a 20 minute drive from the border with Zimbabwe, one hour from Victoria Falls. The border crossing is very close to the world’s only quadripoint where Botswana, Namibia, Zimbabwe and Zambia all meet – some locals refer to it as BoNaZaZi. We could see Namibia from our lodge and during our trip to Victoria Falls we walked across the bridge to Zambia. This could be done on a “day pass” used by locals for shopping/trade and tourists to avoid the need to pay for a second Zimbabwe visa.

The first European to discover the falls was Doctor David Livingstone who first saw the falls on 16 November 1855. He named it in honour of Queen Victoria, its local name being Mosi-oa-Tunya – the smoke that thunders. It sits between Zimbabwe and Zambia on the Zambezi River and is classified as the worlds largest falls, based on combined width (1,708 m) and height (108 m), with other falls claiming the spot based on different combinations of measures ! The volume of water varies considerably by time of year; when we visited it was considered around a mid point.

As part of the grand, but unfulffilled, vision of Cecil Rhodes to build a railway from Cape Town to Cairo a bridge was built over the outlet gorge of the falls. The bridge was prefabricated in Darlington and completed on site in 1905. It consists of a single lane road, railway and two footpaths and has only ever needed minor repairs and painting since its construction.

Botswana

shillifullyLeave a comment

Botswana is a country, approximately the size of France but with less than 2.5 million people making it one of the world’s least densely populated countries; 70 % of its land falls within the Kalahari.

Botswana became independent in 1966 and is the longest uninterrupted democracy in Africa, although until the 2024 elections it was governed by the same party. In 2024 a major change in politics resulted in the election of a left of centre coalition, promising to better distribute the country’s wealth.

Botswana has one of the fastest growing and highest GDP per capita in Africa derived from its natural resources and tourism. The country’s largest diamond mine is 50 % owned by the government.