On part of our 3 month cruise in Asia-Pacific, we had 8 days in Japan. The first two stops were smaller islands in the south, Ishigaki and Okinawa.
In Ishigaki we did a tour to a cave. There was not much more to do in this small city, but it was pretty. In Okinawa, we visited the palace area. Unfortunately burned down a few years prior, we still visited the grounds, and then the “summer home” for the king. It was interesting to note that this prefecture only joined Japan in 1972! The gardens at the summer home were spectacular.
After a few days of visiting other countries (South Korea and China), we went back to Japan to visit Nagasaki, Kagoshima, Tokyo & Yokohama (overnight stop), Mount Fuji, and Osaka.
In Nagasaki, we visited the Peace park and the atomic bomb museum. These are worthwhile visits and a reminder of the level of destruction of this technology. The city is also very walkable to explore close to the port.
In Kagoshima, we took the local tram\buses to a Japanese gardens. It was a ways by tram\bus, but the gardens were very nice to visit. This city is also very commutable by local tram\bus. There are signs from the port to show you were the tram is, and a sign at the tram to tell you what side to get on in to go into the town. They really think about tourists!
In Yokohama, we were overnight (this is the port city close to Tokyo that can accommodate larger ships). We did a tour into Tokyo and were able to visit the large shrine, and see the cherry blossoms in full bloom by the river. It was spectacular.
The next day we stayed in Yokohama and went to a Japanese garden by bus. This is by far the best Japanese garden we saw, and it had many shrines, and many homes to see.
Finally, we went to Mount Fuji. We were so blessed that this mountain was visible even from the ship. It is normally only visible about 100 days a year. This port is also very walkable.
Finally we were in Osaka, where we toured the Castle and the Dontonbori market. This city is very easy to walk to close shopping, but also to grab a subway or cab to the sites.
8 days in Japan is not enough. It was spectacular. The hospitality of the Japanese people are first rate. Hopefully we return again someday
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Nanook's Travels 
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