Page 15 - FlipBook

STAY
RCI AFFILIATED RESORTS IN JAPAN INCLUDE:
Neo Oriental Resort Yatsugatake Kogen DE38
Hot-spring baths and saunas await at this tranquil resort. 8741 Yato, Oizumi-cho, Hokuto- shi, Yamanashi-ken
Hotel Ambient Izukogen Annex DE39 When not lounging in the studio-style units you can lie out on nearby Jogasaki Beach. 8 Ohmuro Kogen, Ito-Shi, Shizuoka-Ken
Big Week Tateshina DA04
Consider taking a walk among the Japanese larch trees that surround the resort. Tokyu Resort Town 4026-1926, Aza Shikayama Kitayama, Chino-shi, Nagano Prefecture
Big Week Izukogen DA01 Floor-to-ceiling windows in each unit afford views of the Izukogen highlands. 614-91 Aza Nakano, Ike Ito-shi, Shizuoka Prefecture
For additional resort listings, visit RCI.com or call your country’s local toll-free number
ENDLESS VACATION 15
Grilled scallops at Ichiba Market
Okonomiyaki chef at work
Hiroshima Castle
Where Locals Go:
Osaka’s ever-vibrant Kuromon Ichiba Market (1 Chome Nipponbashi, Chuo) serves up a smorgasbord of street food, including okonomiyaki (savoury pancakes), takoyaki, kushikatsu (skewered and fried meat
and vegetables) and the city’s ubiquitous kitsune udon-noodle soup, with its trademark thick dashi broth and slab of fried tofu.
You’d Be Surprised:
The city’s Shin Osaka Train Station (Yodogawa) is a veritable mall of flavours, with dozens of restaurants offering everything from all-you-can-eat fugu (puffer fish) banquets and raucous oyster bars to tiny yakisoba (fried noodle) stands and chankonabe houses (the tofu, noodle and meat stew eaten by sumo wrestlers). To try the carb-rich latter, head to Algo7 (1-15 Kamisucho, 2nd floor, Toyonaka).
Hiroshima Tried-and-True: Hiroshima’s sights define the city. The Atomic Bomb Dome (1-10 Otemachi, Naka), the Peace Memorial Museum (1-2 Nakajimacho, Naka) and the looming Hiroshima Castle (21-1 Moto-machi), a replica of the 16th- century castle destroyed by the atom bomb, are all especially moving. But
the city’s culinary heritage, while not as sophisticated or international as Kyoto’s or Tokyo’s, does have its merits. Hiroshima
is famed for its okonomiyaki, a savory pancake made with batter, cabbage and yakisoba noodles and popularized after World War II, when rations were short. Okonomimura (5-13 Shintenchi, Naka), near Hiroshima Station, is a cooperation of over 20 okonomiyaki vendors on three floors all cooking variations of the dish. You can sit right at the grill and watch them make it; one vendor, Sonia, on the fourth floor, garnishes its iteration with fresh mint leaves.
Where Locals Go:
The city’s sprawling Peace Memorial Park (1-2 Nakajimacho, Naka) marks part of the area destroyed by the atomic bomb. A walk here is a solemn reminder of the cost of war.
You’d Be Surprised:
Unbeknownst to most travellers, Hiroshima is famous for its plump oysters. Kakifune Kanawa (1 Otemachi, Naka is a boat that has been dry-docked on the shores of the Motoyasu River opposite the Peace Park and converted into an elegant restaurant.