48 ............... Saturday, April 29, 2017 1SM

JAPANESE HONEYMOON IS THE PERFECT WAY TO INTRODUCE HUBBY TO NEW WAY OF LIFE

Kyoto my

heart

IN ASSOCIATION WITH

Edited by LISA MINOT & HEATHER LOWRIE See more at lthescottishsun.co.uk

TAKE THE BOAT TO THE ISLES

THIS SUMMER

GETTING THERE: Turkish Airlines operates daily services from Edinburgh to Istanbul with connection to more than 290 destinations. Starting price from Edinburgh to Japan is £464. Book at thy.com or call 0844 800 6666.STAYING THERE: Rooms at the Daiwa Roynet Hotel start from £54 a night. See daiwaroynet.jp/english/kyoto-hachi and rooms at the Benkei Ryokanstart from £290 a night. See benkei.biz/en/MORE INFO: Check out Kyoto at kyoto.travel/en and for details on travel-ling by rail go to seejapan.co.uk

GO: KYOTO

I HAVE always lovedJapan, so when it came tothe biggest holiday of mylifetime – the honeymoon –there was only one choice.

And thankfully my newhubby was just as sold onthe idea as me.

Being somewhere with a cul-ture and language that’s aliento all we know in the westmay seem daunting. But Ipromise, once you get over thelong flight, it will be the besttrip you’ll ever have.

We flew economy on TurkishAirlines — but this was farfrom budget. The seats arecomfy, there’s a huge list offilms, TV and games and thefood is top notch.

Our stopover in Istanbul wasalso fantastic. It was a bit of await at seven hours, but thatflew in thanks to the amazingTurkish Airlines lounge.

Japan is a pretty big countryand there are many wonderfulplaces to visit. But for a firsttrip, stay on the main island ofHonshu, choosing a handful oflocations and spending a fewdays at each.

The best way to get aroundis by train and you can buy aJR Rail pass ahead of yourtrip. This gives you access tothe speedy bullet trains at afraction of their usual price.

Wandered wide-eyedand open-mouthed

As part of our tour westayed in Kyoto, the country’sold capital.

This city perfectly capturesJapan in miniature as it’s acomplete mix of old and new,traditional and futuristic.

From the moment you arriveat Kyoto train station youknow you’re somewhere special— eleven floors of restaurantsand shops in a spectacularmodern hub.

We stayed at the DaiwaRyonet Hotel, which is near thestation. The rooms here arespacious and, like all Japanesehotels, include a hi-tech loolike you’ve never seen.

Heated seats, buttons whichprovide all sorts of personalcleaning water jets and anoption to play the sound ofrunning water to hide yourlavvy noises.

Having lived in Japan for afew years in my 20s I wasn’tsurprised by the futuristicfacilities — but it was Ryan’sfirst time in the country, andhe LOVED them.

There is so much good foodto choose from in Kyoto.

We both love noodles and,on our first night, we discov-ered Ramen Koji — a ‘street’ ofnoodle bars on the station’s topfloor.

Most have vending machinesat the door where you chooseyour food and drinks. Theygive out little receipts whichyou hand over to the chef andyour bowl of noodles is deliv-ered shortly after.

We later indulged in anothermust, karaoke. This is totallydifferent in Japan, as you booka room to sing with your palsrather than embarrass yourselfin a bar full of strangers.

Kyoto is full of stunning

temples for those seeking cul-ture. We hopped on the trainto Fushimi Inari to see one ofthe most stunning, made fam-ous by the movie Memoirs of aGeisha.

Temples are usually rammedwith tourists so the best timeto visit is early morning or lateevening. It’s quite an experi-ence to see one of these exqui-site structures.

Inari has a pathway throughhundreds of red, wooden gates— and walking underneaththem transports you to anothertime. It’s breath-taking. Hun-gry, we next headed to Nishiki

food market. Even if not fam-ished, this is still worth a visit.

We wandered wide-eyed andopen-mouthed at the sightsand smells of the hundreds ofstalls, laden with dried fish,octopus on sticks and piles ofunidentifiable herbs and spices.

My hubby and I nibbled ourway around the market tryingcurry-filled doughnuts, sweetpotato croquettes and grilledsquid. Despite a day of grazingwe were peckish come dinnertime and chose Miho near ourhotel which specialised in thefood of Okiniawa, a southernJapanese island. We sampled

some amazing steak, spare ribsand sashimi.

And we were treated to somemusic when the waiter broughtout his shansin — a three-stringed instrument similar toa banjo — and sang us a tradi-tional Okinawan tune. It was anever-forget moment. The nextday we were booked in for awedding photoshoot — with adifference.

The friendly and amazingstaff at Kyoto’s Yumeyakata(en-kyoto.yumeyakata.com) kit-ted us out in traditional mar-riage outfits. My new hubbywore a very cool black hak-ama, complete with a Samuraisword, and I was in a stunningred Iro-uchikake, the styleworn by a Samurai’s wife. Myhair and make-up were alsoexpertly done.

We were taken out in Gion,an area with traditional teahouses where Geisha still work,for our pictures.

We didn’t get proper posedpics for our actual wedding sothis was a real treat — strutting

PICTURE PERFECT . . . Ryan & Lynn in

traditional Japanese wedding outfits and

taiko drumming

By RACHEL MacPHERSON

WITH eight different destinations to explore anddiscover, the Outer Hebrides is the perfect placefor a summer getaway.

CalMac Ferries makes holidays easy, with roundtrips starting at just £12.20 per person to Harrisfrom the beautiful Isle of Skye. Destinations includeBarra, Benbecula, Berneray, Eriskay, Harris, Lewis,North Uist and South Uist.

BARRA has plenty of history to explore in theform of Kisimul Castle in Castlebay and thedeserted village of Boldnabodach. Halaman Bay isthe perfect spot to go on a guided sea kayak tour tosee the island, the beautiful beaches and discoverthe island’s beautiful marine wildlife.

You can explore Borve Castle on BENBECULAon the west side of the isle or climb Reuval Hill forstunning views of the island and its surroundings.

The Uist Community Riding School offers ridesalong the beautiful beaches of Benbecula, cateringto families and all ages. You can also explore thewhole island by horseback.

BERNERAY was made for walking with around30 small islands easily spotted from its gloriousbeaches — keep your eyes peeled for the nativeseals and otters.

Inside the Nurse’s Cottage museum you can finda collection of the island’s history. On the southside of Berneray, you’ll see the Giant MacaskillMonument – in memory of Aonghas MorMacAsgaill, the world’s tallest man at 7ft 9in.

On ERISKAY, walk the white sands of Coileag a’Phrionnsa where Bonnie Prince Charlie first setfoot on Scottish soil in 1745 or visit Am PoliticianBar where the last original bottle of Whisky Galore!resides. And keep an eye out for the protected rarebreed of Eriskay Ponies with their distinctive greycoat. There’s more to HARRIS than tweed, withlovely coves, turquoise waters and puffin colonies

to discover on Tripadvisor’s best island in Europe.Head out on a boat trip to see basking sharks,minke and killer whales or enjoy CalMac’s morerelaxing non-landing sail around the isle. Stop by inSeptember for The Isle of Harris Mountain Festival— a week-long celebration packed full of guidedwalks, workshops and outdoor sports.

The Callanish Standing Stones on the ISLE OFLEWIS are well worth a visit. These Neolithic struc-tures are up to 9.2 metres high and were one ofScotland’s first protected monuments.

If culture is what you crave, then the literary trailfor Peter May’s bestselling Lewis trilogy or theannual HebCelt festival in Stornoway will be rightup your street.

A round of Stornoway Black Pudding is recom-mended to keep you going on your travels.

NORTH UIST is the perfect spot for nature lovers— with plenty of vantage points for birdwatchers atthe RSPB nature reserve at Balnarad and guidedotter walks for all ages. For a touch of history, youcan visit Barpa Langass — a 5,000-year-old burialchamber of a great chieftain — or stop by themuseum and arts centre Taigh Chearsabhagh.Don’t miss a trip to the Hebridean Smokehouse fora taste of real seafood cooked the traditional way.

SOUTH UIST is one of the only places in Scot-land where prehistoric mummies have been foundbut its current wildlife is the highlight of the island.

Its nature reserve has one of the UK’s mostimportant breeding population of waders and thethree hour self-guided walk of the island will show-case some its rarer species. South Uist also holds atraditional Highland Games every July.

ACTIVITIES. . . cyclingon Harris, above, and

puffins on Lunga

1SM Saturday, April 29, 2017 ............... 49

JAPANESE HONEYMOON IS THE PERFECT WAY TO INTRODUCE HUBBY TO NEW WAY OF LIFE

Edited by LISA MINOT & HEATHER LOWRIE See more at lthescottishsun.co.uk

round the stunning streets intraditional attire. The snaps werea fantastic memento of thisexperience of a lifetime.

Later in the day an English-speaking City of Kyoto Visitors’Host, Haruna, took us to NijoCastle, the lavish home of theTokugawa Shoguns.

Our favourite thing were the‘nightingale floors’ — the floor-boards were made purposelysqueaky to warn of unfriendlyintruders.

Next we headed for the city’sTaiko Centre for a drum lesson.Our teacher Isamu took usthrough the basic rhythms of thetraditional Japanese instrument— and it was brilliant fun.

I was not bad, but Ryanabsolutely smashed it. Wehad to confess later thathe’d been a professionalmusician for most of his 20s.

That night we were stayingat Benkei Ryokan in Arashi-yama, on the outskirts ofKyoto. The ryokan — a tradi-tional Japanese guest house —was out of this world. Our

suite was made up of two roomswith tatami mat floors and slid-ing doors. And we even had ourown indoor onsen — a hot bathoverlooking a lake.

Most ryokans also have maleand female public baths — whereguests bathe naked together —but our blushes were sparedwith our private version.

After a steaming bath, wechanged into our yukatas, cottonkimonos for wearing around theguest house, and a sumptuouseight-course meal was delivereddish-by-dish to the room by akimono-clad lady. It really was

one of the best meals we’ve everhad — each delicately arrangedcourse was better than the last,even if we didn’t know exactlywhat we were eating!

The following day, we headedout to explore. A 15-minute walkfrom the guest house is a stun-ning bamboo forest.

Despite being packed withpeople, it felt like we were inthe middle of a movie.

On the other side of the groveis a street lined with little shopsand cafes, ideal for picking uptraditional souvenirs.

It was soon time for us tohead off on our next adventure

in Japan — but we snuck inone last visit to Ramen Kojifor some lunch-time noodlesbefore hopping on the train.

If you only have a few daysin the country and want toexplore the futuristic specta-cle of modern Japan andsoak up the culture and tra-dition of old-world Japan,Kyoto is the place to go.

LYNN KERNAN

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cruisenews

CRUISE TRIP IS MED IN HEAVEN

TASTE OF THE TRADITIONAL . . . Benkai

Ryokan, top, Daiwa Ryonet

Hotel, and Ramen Koji

What costs what?

DoDon’t

Noodles for two with side

dishes and a drink each

costs around £16.

try a kimono photoshoot at

Yumeyakata.worry about slurping your ramen – it’s the done thing!