A week across the most remote part of the Japan and the oldest original shinto shrines in the nation. Come on a highly Nature-Oriented and Off-The-Beaten-Path true Backwater travel itinerary in Japan.
Day 1: Meet at Ise Station in Mie prefecture, and we will first visit the old shinto shrine of Ise, the most gorgeous shinto shrine in Japan branded in the Meiji era to be marketed as and associated with the emperor and the authority that governed Japan at the time. Repurposed and co-opted to represent the government, Meiji era incorporated Shinto and revised the education of Japan to purport synchronicity between the shrines and the ruling entities.
Ise is served by a river, the common theme you'll see in all prestigious old shinto shrines in the nation. Shinto shrines are always in honor of beautiful or atmospheric natural sites with peaceful scenery, special views, rivers and clean waters, or eery feeling corners of the nation. Ise Jingu feels special in its scenery, and the shrine masters move the grand shrine every few years and allow nobody into photograph the main and most important part.
We head up into the mountains and over to the Yokoyama View Point and tower above the entirety of Ise Shima, the fjords and waterworlds of the national park, and overnight at the seaside there.
Day 2: We head into the countryside of the Yoshino Kumano Park and Kumano Kodo and the mountains which insulated the Shogunates and lords of Kansai and Edo ends from having to deal with the bandits and warriors in the middle of the country. In order to avoid embarrassment, 1500s to 1700s Japan saw potentates taking the long way around Wakayama in order to dodge skirmishes and encounters in the valleys of current day Nara and Takasaki on the way to and through current day Aichi and Mie. We head to Nachi waterfall and the gorgeous temple that overlooks the waterfall.
We visit the 3 foot crow shrine another shinto shrine on the river at Kumano Hongu Taisha to walk the grounds, but we also do part of the Kumano Kodo today (as much as you'd like, 15 minutes or a few hours of the mountain trek.)
Day 3: We head down the Wakayama coast to the oldest Shinto Shrine in Japan and the most stunning scenery and rock seascapes, including the sacred stoic shinto rock the shrine was built around. We walk more trails of the Kumano Kodo or relax on the beaches. This afternoon and evening you'll stay at Shirahama to take in the same beachlife that draw Japanese since the 70s. today is mostly focused on mountain forest and coast sweeping remote wilderness scenery.
Day 4: Today we head deeper and higher up into the mountains, pick up a few more trails of the KK for breathtaking walks, and arrive over the mountain passes finally at Koya San where there are scores of strange shrines and fun shrines to people, companies, groups, and a sort of giant gachapon of Japanese statues and themes. It is generally one of all visitors' favorite shrine complexes in Japan. We head finally to the grave of the first emperor in Japan, at Kashihara. Probably from the Korean peninsula, most of the history prior to Shimbu in order to justify his lineage and pedigree was probably made up, and he was likely genuinely the first real emperor in Japan. We continue through to Uji.
Day 5: Today we drive the birthplace of matcha tea and gorgeous farms of Uji, Ujitawara, Wazuka, and Kumiyama, tasting matcha and learning about the tale of Genji. The old town of Uji and the classic street and riverside mark a relaxing contrast to the tourist crowds and crushes of mainstream Japan tourism. Optional stop if interested at the Nintendo Museum. We leave you at the end of the day on the 20 minute train to Kyoto.
