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Art, temples, music and more!

An illustrated itinerary of our Japanese travel adventures. This information supplements our
shorter Overview of Song of Japan.

From colorful kimonos to delicate calligraphy, glorious temples to perfectly prim gardens, indelible images of Japan will remain imprinted in your memory once you experience the real Japan. Our tour will take in some off-the-beaten-track delights as well as major sights. We can enjoy Kyoto’s abundance before our Nagasaki concert and relax on Naoshima Island surrounded by sublime art after the concert. Enhance your musical experience on this journey by exploring more of Japan!

1: Arrival Day

Most passengers joining the pre-concert tour of Kyoto will depart North America on September 3 and arrive in Kyoto via Osaka on September 4 for the four-night stay. We will give instructions about the most convenient way to get from the airport to our hotel, then our Hanns Ebensten Travel tour director will be at the hotel to greet you and offer suggestions for your first day in Kyoto. After the long flight, the rest of the day is at leisure to relax or begin to adjust your internal clock by taking a walk or getting some rest. The upcoming days will be very exciting.

For those with extra time, to further enhance your visit to Japan, an economical tour extension in Tokyo is available prior to the Kyoto extension. One of our tour managers is a former Tokyo resident. He plans to arrive in Tokyo several days prior to the Kyoto pre-tour and is pleased to either guide or assist with your independent touring in the Tokyo region. This program could be viewed as visiting a friend who resides in Tokyo. Each day an outing to one or more attractions will be offered, and/or you can choose to visit specific places on your own. Cost for the Tokyo program will consist of your hotel room (about $200 per night per room, single or double occupancy), your meals at about $75, and transportation and admission charges of about $25 per person. The Tokyo stay is offered starting on September 1, but you may arrive any day prior to September 4 to participate, then take the bullet train to Kyoto together. Tokyo is one of the most interesting and most complicated cities in the world. Enjoy this unique opportunity to see it like a local at a most reasonable cost.

2: Kyoto Highlights

After breakfast, (you might want to try a traditional Japanese breakfast, perhaps with miso soup!) we will begin a full day of sightseeing. Kyoto has so much to see, so we will explore the highlights together the first day, then allow free time on another day to follow your own interests. Our tour will include a visit to Kinkakuji Temple, a sacred site originally built in 1393 as a retirement home for the Shogun Ashikaga. Although it has been burned down several times, it has been restored to its former beauty, a three-story, gold-covered pavilion. Situated partly over a tranquil lake, this celebrated and widely-recognized sight is one of the most splendid views in all of Japan. A great photography opportunity from the shoreline is the image of the classic architecture of the Golden Pavilion reflected in the tranquil waters of the lake. In addition to its worldly treasure, Kinkakuji is also highly valuable because it is a shariden, a place that houses relics of the Buddha.

We will also visit the Ryoanji Temple with its famous Zen rock garden. Covering 120 acres, the Ryoanji site is also known for its pond which attracts large populations of water fowl. Our next temple stop is the Tenryuji Temple. Tenryuji, a UNESCO World Heritage site, is famous for its gardens, thought to be the oldest in all of Kyoto, dating back to the 14th century. It is also one of most important Zen temples in existence.

3: Miho Museum

Today we take a train and bus into the countryside north of Kyoto to visit the exquisite Miho Museum. The building was commissioned by a Japanese religious group and designed by I.M. Pei. The museum blends into its forest preserve surroundings by being built mostly inside a mountain. One approaches the museum through a graceful pedestrian tunnel and an extraordinary suspension bridge. The museum displays a permanent collection of statues and artifacts from several ancient civilizations along with seasonal exhibits of Japanese art. Following our visit and lunch at the Miho Museum we return to Kyoto in mid-afternoon.

4: Kyoto: Free Day

After two days of savoring a great variety of sights and experiences together, we offer the next day free to explore Kyoto at your leisure. Wander the streets and sample everything, from quaint shops to ultramodern department stores, to see how tradition and progress intermingle in this fascinating city.

5: Train to Nagasaki

This morning our group will be transferred to the railway station for our bullet and express train rides to Nagasaki where our Nagasaki hosts and Kyoto University friends will welcome us as we prepare for our concert.

6-10: Nagasaki Touring and Concert

Our hosts in Nagasaki will arrange for some local touring in and near Nagasaki, and the Harvard Glee Club Alumni Chorus and Kyoto University Glee Club Old Boys will announce the rehearsal schedule for the main concert on September 13 and other activities. There will also be special celebrations as Nagasaki celebrates the 150th anniversary of Japan's opening up to the world through the trading port of Nagasaki.

11: Yufuin Hot Springs

The morning after the Nagasaki concert, we will take the train along a scenic mountain route from Nagasaki to Yufuin for the beginning of our post-concert tour. The mountain village of Yufuin is located on Lake Kinrin and is known for its hot springs. Hot water gushes from the bottom of the lake, and hot steam rises from its surface on colder days. It will be warm when we visit but you can almost sense the energy of the spring bubbling beneath the surface. We will take a brief tour of the town and perhaps you can try one of the spas known for its restorative powers. We will spend the night at a Japanese ryokan in Yufuin.

12-13: Benesse Art Site on Naoshima Island

This morning we take local and bullet trains from Yufuin to the city of Okayama in the western part of the main Japanese island of Honshu. Then we take a local train to Uno port and a ferry to Naoshima Island and the Benesse Art Site. We will spend two nights in the Park rooms of the Benesse House complex, a unique museum/hotel that is part of the larger Art Site. The Benesse Art Site is an extraordinary mecca of traditional and contemporary Japanese art. It combines actual living space and art in a marriage attempting to achieve a feeling of “wellness.”

The Washington Post ran an article about Benesse in 2006.

According to the President of Benesse Art Site, "Because contemporary society is overflowing with products and information, I wanted to create a site removed from the noise of the city; a place where people could truly reflect on the meaning of living well.....I want individuals to have a direct connection with art while forming their own notions and appreciation."

For the next two days, we will contemplate the success of his vision, while enjoying an extraordinary undertaking. Part museum, part park, part experiment, Benesse offers everything from the unusual to the sublime. Charming gardens, giant sculptures, special architecture and quiet spaces make this site a once in a lifetime experience. Since there are few options for independent dining on Naoshima, we’ll have our dinners together in two unique restaurants.

While at Benesse, we will also visit the neighboring Chichu Art Museum which was established in 2004 as a site to rethink the relationship between nature and people. The museum displays the artworks of Claude Monet, Walter De Maria and James Turrell, which are installed permanently within the building that Tadao Ando designed.

14: Naoshima to Osaka

After two days on the placid island of Naoshima, we head back to the hustle of 21st century urban culture for an overnight stay at the Swiss Hotel Nankai in the heart of Osaka. The hotel is in the Namba district, famous for its shopping, neon lights and musical entertainment and you'll have the late afternoon and evening to explore Osaka.

15: Farewell to Japan

Departure Day: Most travelers will catch flights from Osaka to their final connection home.

For information or to reserve a space: Print out the registration form below or contact Phil Sheldon of Hanns Ebensten Travel at 1-866-294-8174 (toll-free from US and Canada) or 1-305-294-8174 or send an email to hetravel@gmail.com or a fax to 1-305-292-9665.

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