[Music]
with a mountainous interior that makes
up the japan alps and bordered by the
sea of japan and the pacific ocean
in the north and south respectively
central japan which is sandwiched
between tokyo in the east
and osaka and kyoto in the west offers
spectacular vistas that include
rustic and traditional landscapes not
only that
the region is also home to many
important cultural and historical sites
in this four episode series we're going
on a four-day driving trip
through central japan visiting some of
the best and scenic spots in nagoya
and the surrounding prefectures my name
is rayna ong
staff writer for japanguy.com and over
the next four days
i'm gonna take you on a scenic four-day
road trip from the coast
to the peaks of central japan so sit
back relax
and enjoy the ride
[Music]
day one
our trip begins at chubu centre
international airport where we pick up
our trusty seed for the rest of the trip
from there we drive to nagoya castle
have lunch
before going to the ise shrines and
spend our first
night at an accommodation in ago bay
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about 40 minutes away from the airport
is the city of nagoya where we make our
first stop
for the day one of the most popular
attractions in the city
is nagoya castle the former seat of one
of the three branches of the tokugawa
family which ruled japan for about 250
years
from the early 17th century
the palace buildings that you can see
behind me are excellent replicas of its
original
they feature excellent traditional craft
and artwork let's go inside and take a
look
[Applause]
one thing that visitors may not realize
is that not only were the castle grounds
for defence purposes
there were also palace buildings where
the local lords lived and
entertained their guests
many of these palace buildings have been
lost over time
and few remain today nagoya castle is
one of the very few castles
whose palace has been reconstructed
[Music]
a few steps away from nagoya castle is
kinshasi yokocho
made up of two restaurant areas filled
with trendy and local specialties
and we are headed for lunch after
visiting the castle
one of the local dishes not to be missed
when in nagoya
is misokatsu which is deep fried pork
cutlets
dipped in a savory blend of miso and
dashi broth
and my choice for lunch this gold
misokatsu is only available at the
outlet closest to nagaya castle
and it looks super shiny
[Music]
our trip continues with a drive down
south to the shimmer peninsula
where the ise shrines or isejingu as
they're known in japanese are located
the ise shrines are the most sacred
shinto shrines in japan
and they have a history dating back a
couple of millennia
[Music]
i'm at geku the outer shrine which is
dedicated to the goddess of food
clothing and water and this building
behind me is the main shrine
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the shrine architecture here is also
said to show almost
no influence from the asian mainland and
the buildings on the grounds are
reconstructed once
every 20 years in a tradition that has
been carried out for over a thousand
years
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while there no specific order to visit
the shrines
it is tradition to visit geku the outer
shrine
before going to naiku the inner shrine
one of the highlights on the way to
naiku is walking through oharaimaji
the traditional and lively approach to
the inner shrine
shops offering traditional and local
foods and souvenirs
flank the street and visitors can enjoy
the traditional atmosphere before
reaching naiku
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beyond these steps is the main shrine
building where the sun goddess is
enshrined
now cameras are not allowed beyond this
point so i'll see you guys in a bit
[Music]
after that visit to the simple yet
stately ese shrines
i get back in my car and make my way to
ago bay
at the southern end of the shema
peninsula where my accommodation for the
night is located
[Music]
it's seafood on the menu for tonight and
i've got two of the shima peninsula's
local delicacies abalone
and isaiah
[Music]
so fresh
[Music]
and that was day one of our four-day
road trip through central japan
be sure to join us on episode two as we
continue on the second day of our trip
participating in some exciting
activities and going stargazing
[Music]
for more information about this trip or
to watch another video
click the links on the screen now or
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