This article is reposted from the WeChat public account of a reader in our WeChat group, 懒人 33 的吃喝玩乐. Original link. Some subheadings were added by editor ymlulu

From Itami Airport to Nara

There is a direct airport bus from Osaka Itami Airport to the JW Marriott Nara where we were staying in Nara, and the ride takes about 1 hour 10 minutes. However, the bus only runs about once an hour. We picked up our luggage at Itami Airport right at 8:00 AM, and the next direct bus was at 8:37. After discussing it with my travel companion, we decided to take a taxi to Nara instead.

The taxi stand at Itami Airport is divided into several areas after you come down the elevator. Just follow the markings on the ground toward Nara, and you’ll get directly to the section for taxi drivers willing to go to Nara. There was staff at the taxi stand directing people, and they were very helpful.

Because it was right during the morning rush, traffic was a bit heavy, and it took us about 50 minutes to get to the hotel. I promptly passed out and took another nap on the way.

JW Marriott Nara check-in

The bell staff at the hotel were very warm and welcoming. As soon as our taxi pulled up, they came right out to greet us and help with our luggage and so on. Check-in was done on the sofa in the waiting area, so there was no need to go to the front desk. The hotel also had Chinese-speaking front desk staff, which was very convenient.

We stayed at this hotel for two nights. One night was booked with my travel companion’s 35,000 FN + 15,000 points, and the other was booked with my points. My travel companion has Marriott Silver, while I’m Platinum. This property was fairly generous: both nights were put under my name, and breakfast for both days was included.

That said, the upgrade didn’t go as smoothly. We were told that on the day we checked in, all room types eligible for an upgrade were already full, so we asked to have an extra bed added instead.

After we finished check-in, the room still wasn’t ready, so we asked the hotel to call us a taxi and headed out sightseeing.

Kofuku-ji

On the taxi ride, we also passed by the famous mochi shop Nakatanidou. It was a little after 9 AM, so there weren’t many people yet. This place is known for its freshly pounded mochi, and watching the mochi pounding might actually be even more fun than eating the mochi. But we zoomed right past it in the taxi and missed it. Maybe next time.

During the Heian period, Kasuga Taisha held the real political power. But at that time, Kofuku-ji controlled Kasuga Taisha and became the true ruler of Yamato Province. Its history rose and fell dramatically over time.

The temple itself isn’t very large, and aside from the long staircase at the main entrance, it’s fairly stroller -friendly. If you’re not especially interested in history or architecture, this is a sight you could skip.

Nara Park

After leaving Kofuku-ji, our next stop was Todai-ji, which we regretted missing on our last trip because we ran out of time. It was an easy walk over. Along the way, we passed through Nara Park. Deer crackers are now 250 yen; I think the price may have gone up?

During cherry blossom season, there are lots of people, and the deer in the park aren’t very hungry, so they’re not especially aggressive. That makes them great for feeding. Our kid also learned this year how to get the deer to bow, and is no longer just a little baby sleeping in a stroller, so feeding the deer along the way was very exciting.

We also saw our first cherry blossoms of the year in Nara Park. The day we went was two days before full bloom, so it was already very close. Deer and cherry blossoms together were still beautiful.

This variety of weeping cherry was also just starting out. I’m not sure what attraction this was; we only looked at it briefly from the parking lot by the entrance.

Japanese cherry blossoms themselves don’t necessarily look better on their own, but when paired with other elements, they really complement each other beautifully.

Even the little scenes we stumbled across on the way were very photogenic.

We had eaten breakfast early, so by then we were hungry again. We came across a wagashi shop and went in to buy a few things. Wagashi are the kind of sweets that always look like you want to buy everything, but taste pretty ordinary once you eat them.

Even though I’ve said this many times already, I still have to say it again: the Japanese are really good at marketing. Regional exclusives, date-limited items, all kinds of limited editions—they completely kill any thought of “I’ll just buy it next time.” You end up obediently pulling out your wallet right then and there.

Todai-ji

We made it to Todai-ji! Cherry blossom season really is crowded.

At the entrance, we bought a combo ticket for Todai-ji and the museum. After walking quite a while and finally getting inside, we realized the museum was right next to the ticket office. Since we were already low on energy, there was no way we were going to walk all the way back to the museum, so the combo ticket was basically wasted.

The photo below is Todai-ji’s Great Buddha Hall, the largest wooden building in the world.

We also offered incense.

The Buddha statues in the temple cannot be photographed from the front. Side-angle photos are allowed in the Great Buddha Hall.

On the way to Nigatsu-do, we got hungry again. My kid said they wanted ramen, but the two small ramen shops we passed both had lines, so we reluctantly joined one. The line wasn’t long and we were the first party waiting, but the shop was not very efficient, so it still took 10 to 20 minutes before we were seated.

The deer outside the ramen shop were definitely not as well-fed as the ones in Nara Park, and they were pretty aggressive.

The ramen was all very light in flavor, but also on the salty side. I wouldn’t really recommend it.

Nigatsu-do gets its name from the Shuni-e ceremony held every year in the second month of the lunar calendar. Part of Nigatsu-do was burned in warfare in 1180 and again in 1567, and it was completely destroyed in a fire during the Shuni-e ceremony in 1667. The current structure was rebuilt in 1669. The building was designated a National Treasure in December 2005. According to legend, the Shuni-e ceremony at Nigatsu-do was first established in 752 by the monk Jitchu, a distinguished disciple of Ryoben, the founding patriarch of Todai-ji. Since then, it has been held once a year without interruption; in 2013, it was set to be held for the 1,262nd time.

                                                                      Mount Wakakusa

After leaving Nigatsu-do, it only took a few more steps to reach Mount Wakakusa. We didn’t realize until we got there that Mount Wakakusa also requires an admission ticket.

As someone who is not exactly strong at hiking, I thought sitting on this slope and enjoying the view was good enough. Climbing higher was actually pretty tiring.

We randomly came across a blue Beetle.

By the time we were out of breath and made it to the first level, we realized you could keep climbing. The jet lag probably didn’t help, and we really weren’t full of energy that day. Either way, we decided not to climb any farther.

Under the cherry blossoms, one little deer kept licking another one. It was such a warm, sweet scene.

Looking out from here, the view was honestly a bit ordinary.

We sat on the mountain for a while and talked about how hard it was to adjust to the jet lag. That was the end of the day’s itinerary, so we headed back to the hotel to rest a bit before dinner.

We sat on the hillside a little longer and tried to call a ride with a taxi app to go back, but there were too many tourists and we couldn’t get a car.

We couldn’t get a taxi, so we had to take the bus back. The nearest stop was the Kasuga Taisha bus stop, which meant we were about to revisit an old haunt.

Our first stop on this return visit was the restaurant by the Kasuga Taisha bus stop where we had lunch last year. Deer-shaped ice cream was still everywhere in Nara.

The deer at Kasuga Taisha were just as aggressive as last year. After our child fed them the last deer cracker, holding both hands out in surrender was the universal sign that we were out. The deer didn’t keep pestering us too much after that.

Last year, we walked all the way from Kasuga Taisha back to the Kintetsu station, and this park left a deep impression on us. Seeing it again from the bus, it was still just as lovely.

Honda new car launch.

JW Marriott Nara

The hotel’s location isn’t great, since it’s some distance from all the main sights. Fortunately, transportation is fairly convenient, and there’s a bus stop right outside. The hotel only opened during the pandemic, so everything still feels very new. After we got back, we told the front desk that we had already checked in, and they quickly handed us our room keys. Our luggage was already in the room.

We got the base-level room, so there wasn’t much of a view. Everything else was quite good, though. The rollaway bed had already been set up.

The bathroom had this triangular layout, which was pretty distinctive.

That “little nap” was basically on track to last until the next morning. The two of us had to rely on alarms to wake ourselves up, but there was no waking the kid. So we headed out for dinner pushing the stroller.

As luck would have it, the restaurant we booked for the first night was near the hotel. Nara really doesn’t have many good restaurants that are kid-friendly. The small river near the hotel was also lined with cherry blossoms on both banks.

The gently flowing water was a pleasure to look at.

The restaurant was right next to the train tracks.

                                                         すぎ乃 新大宮店

On the first day, we had pork shabu-shabu. Last year’s spring break trip to Japan ended with pork shabu-shabu, and this year’s started with it.

This was a restaurant I found a bit unfortunate. You could tell every dish was fundamentally tasty, but almost everything was on the salty side.

There was counter seating on the first floor, while we sat in the main dining area on the second floor. Our child slept the whole time in the stroller. Thankfully, I learned my lesson from last year and didn’t order any food for the kid on the first night.

This was a preparation of firefly squid I hadn’t tried before. It was interesting, though not especially amazing.

The broth was very flavorful, but unfortunately a bit too salty as well.

The shabu-shabu was the only thing that felt relatively light. After all, you can control how much dipping sauce to use. The dipping sauce for the pork shabu-shabu paired perfectly with the cabbage and pork, balancing the cabbage’s mildness and the pork’s richness.

This also seemed to be a standard pairing—shabu-shabu restaurants all seem to sell oden. But I think this was my first time having oden-style shumai. My travel companion then asked the soul-searching question: why is there oden in Kansai too if it’s called “Kanto-ni”?

The earlier dishes came out quickly, but for some reason service slowed down dramatically starting with this one. This was stuffed lotus root.

Grilled fish, which I can never quite get used to.

The ramen was salty too.

Dessert was fairly ordinary.

This extra-long day was still a pretty great start to the trip. But if you’re anything like me and not especially fit, don’t go hiking on day one. That was definitely rash. I was already wiped out very early on the second day.

Next up: a day trip to Uji. Stay tuned.

About the Author

This article is reprinted from the WeChat public account "懒人 33 的吃喝玩乐," run by a reader from our WeChat group. The pieces are all original and well worth reading if you’re interested.