Smith College presents INSIDER’S JAPAN May 20-June 1, 2015 13 days from $5,686 total price from Los Angeles, San Francisco ($4,995 air & land inclusive plus $691 airline taxes and departure fees) This tour is provided by Odysseys Unlimited, six-time honoree Travel & Leisure’s World’s Best Tour Operators award. An Exclusive Small Group Tour for Smith Travel Featuring Professors Jamie Hubbard & Maki Hirano Hubbard Tour membership limited to 24 alumnae and friends of Smith College INSIDER’S JAPAN 13 days from $5,686 total price from Los Angeles, San Francisco ($4,995 air & land inclusive plus $691 airline taxes and departure fees) t’s a land of delicate art and bustling commerce, of rich traditions and I dizzying modernity; a jumble of sights, sounds, and tastes that for visitors are truly foreign — and truly fascinating. This well-crafted tour features the highlights of Tokyo and Kyoto, engages us in local life, and takes us off the beaten path to the lovely historic cities of Takayama and Kanazawa. Day 1: Depart U.S. for Tokyo, Japan JAPAN Day 2: Arrive in Tokyo After arriving in Sea of Japan Japan’s financial, commercial, and political capital Lake Suwa this evening, we transfer to our hotel where we learn about the journey ahead at a briefing with Kyoto our Odysseys Unlimited Tour Director. Osaka Hiroshima Day 3: Tokyo We spend the morning tour- Destination ing this amazing city that comprises 23 wards Motorcoach and covers a staggering 840 miles. We focus on Train Pacific Ocean a smaller area as we visit some of Tokyo’s top Extension (train) Entry/Departure sights, including Shinto Meiji Shrine, a peace- ful enclave of temples and gardens; and historic Avg. High (°F) May Jun Imperial Palace, surrounded by moats and ram- Tokyo 72 75 parts, and home of the Imperial Family. Next we Kyoto 75 82 visit Tokyo’s oldest temple, Buddhist Asakusa Kannon, followed by the Nakamise Shopping arcade. This afternoon is at leisure; tonight we enjoy a welcome dinner at a local restaurant. B,D Your Small Group Tour Highlights Day 4: Tokyo Our day begins with a motor- Tokyo touring, including Imperial Palace District coach tour of Ginza, Tokyo’s famed shopping, and Meiji Shrine ... Stunning scenery of Mt. Fuji and dining, and entertainment district boasting the Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Park ... Overnight stay in most expensive real estate in all of Japan. We visit traditional ryokan ... Historic Takayama’s ancient the gallery of preeminent calligrapher Koshun streets and houses ... Culturally-rich Kanazawa ... Tour Masunaga, where we learn about this ancient art of famed Kenrokuen Garden in Kanawaza ... Full-day and browse the collection. Then the remainder tour of Kyoto, Japan’s cultural capital ... Cycling tour of the day is at leisure to visit some of Ginza’s of Kyoto’s Gion district ... Traditional tea ceremony department stores, boutiques, or galleries; or to Day Itinerary Hotel Rating set off in a new direction, perhaps to a kabuki 1 Depart U.S. for Tokyo performance or judo demonstration. B 2-4 Tokyo Park Hotel Tokyo Sup. First Class Day 5: Tokyo/Mt. Fuji-Hakone-Izu National Nunohan Hotel 5 Lake Suwa Not Rated (ryokan) Park/Suwa Japan’s pastoral side is on tap as we leave Tokyo for Mt. Fuji-Hakone-Izu National 6 Takayama Hida Hotel Plaza First Class Park. Here sits imposing Mt. Fuji, a dormant Hotel Nikko 7-8 Kanazawa First Class Kanazawa volcano (it last erupted in 1707) with a perfectly symmetrical cone that rises to 12,388 feet. The ANA Crowne 9-12 Kyoto First Class Plaza Kyoto mountain’s majesty is breathtaking, as artists and 13 Depart Kyoto for U.S. writers have attested for centuries. We take a coach ride where, weather permitting, we’ll enjoy Ratings are based on the Hotel & Travel Index, the travel industry standard reference. Unrated hotels may be too small, too new, breathtaking panoramic views; then we descend or too remote to be listed. for a relaxing cruise on scenic Ashi Lake. Leaving Cover photo: Legendary Mt. Fuji and cherry blossoms: two potent symbols of Japan Japan is well-known for its beautiful gardens. the park, we travel to the town of Suwa where we craft of gold leaf technology; and the Higashi spend the night at a ryokan, a traditional Japanese Chayagai teahouse and geisha area. Our last stop inn where we take off our shoes upon entering is the Nagamachi Samurai district, where the rul- and sleep on a futon. B,D ing family’s samurai warriors lived. B,D Day 6: Suwa/Takayama Today we travel to Day 9: Kanazawa/Kyoto This morning we lovely Takayama in the Japanese Alps, considered visit the Kutani Ceramics Museum celebrating one of the country’s most attractive towns with this quintessential Japanese art form; and the its 16th-century castle and old-style buildings. Asakusra Isokichi Art Museum. Then we board Our explorations center on three narrow streets the train for Kyoto, once Japan’s Imperial Capital in the San-machi-suji district where, in feudal and now the country’s cultural and artistic capi- times, merchants lived amidst the authentically tal. With more than 1,600 temples, hundreds preserved small inns, teahouses, and sake brewer- of shrines, artful gardens, and well-preserved ies that we see here. We enjoy a sake tasting and then have free time to visit local shops that sell the region’s unique lacquerware and yew carvings. B,D Post-Tour Extension Day 7: Takayama/Shirakawago/Kanazawa June 1-3, 2015 We pay an early visit to the riverside Miyagawa HIROSHIMA: CITY OF PEACE Morning Market selling flowers, fruit, and veg- 3 days/2 nights for $895 total price etables, a blaze of dazzling colors and exotic foodstuffs. Then we leave Takayama for the Single Supplement: $95 UNESCO World Heritage site of Shirakawago Discover the city reborn from the Gassho-zukuri Village. Comprising buildings atomic des truction of World War II, relocated from authentic villages nearby that were a modern and cosmopolitan urban razed for a dam, the village is also a vibrant com- center whose residents warmly munity whose residents work together to preserve welcome American visitors. the unique traditional architecture here known as Gassho style. Next we visit that dam – Miboro – the largest dam constructed using “rock-fill Your Tour Price Includes technology” of stones and clay. Late afternoon • Rail transportation Kyoto/Hiroshima; Hiroshima/ Osaka we reach the castle town of Kanazawa, an alluring • 2 nights’ accommodations at Hotel Granvia coastal city that survived the ravages of World Hiroshima (First Class) War II. B,L • 3 meals: 2 breakfasts, 1 lunch • Extensive included sightseeing: Itsukushima Day 8: Kanazawa Today’s tour of this cul- Shrine; Hiroshima touring by local “Hiroden” turally-rich city features renowned Kenrokuen train; visit to Peace Memorial Park and Museum; Garden, a national landmark whose origins date Japan Maritime Service School to 1676. We also see Ishikawa Gate, the only • Services of an Odysseys Unlimited Tour Director remaining section of the town’s original castle; • Gratuities for dining room servers, hotel porters, Hakukokan, a museum celebrating the art and and all drivers “TRAVELING Meet Your Faculty Lecturers THIS HIGH MOUNTAIN TRAIL, Jamie Hubbard is the Yehan Numata Professor of Buddhist DELIGHTED BY VIOLETS.” Studies and Jill Kerr Conway – MATSUO BASHO Professor of Religion and East Asian Studies in the Smith College Religion Department wooden architecture, Kyoto embodies Japan’s and Director of the Buddhist rich culture and complex history. B,D Studies Concentration. Jamie graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Madison with a Ph.D. Day 10: Kyoto Today’s tour reveals the high- in Buddhist studies, and has been teaching at lights of Kyoto, which was spared destruction Smith College since 1985. Jamie will be joined during World War II. Highlights include 16th- by wife Maki Hirano Hubbard who is a Professor of Japanese at Smith College, where she teach- century Ryoan-ji Temple, where we see the dry es courses in Japanese Language and Culture, garden of sand and rocks (kare-sansui), a marvel designed for students to critically investigate the of classic Japanese design; and Kinkaku-ji, the historical and social background of the language. lakeside Temple of the Golden Pavilion set on Maki earned a bachelor of arts in Japanese art his- pillars suspended over the water. We also visit tory from Waseda University, Tokyo, and a master ostentatious Nijo Castle (c. 1603), where the sho- of arts in Japanese literature and language as gun asserted control over the city and its people. well as a doctorate in Japanese linguistics from And we attend a traditional Japanese tea ceremo- the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Maki has ny, a historic, ritualized ceremony of form, grace, lived and traveled all over Japan, including places and spirituality. B like Osaka, Kyoto, and Tokyo. During her time in Japan, she directed the AKP (Associated Kyoto Program) and has studied Japanese tea ceremo- Day 11: Kyoto ny for several years. Today is free to explore as we wish. Possibilities the geishas live; and Machiya, a neighborhood of abound in Kyoto, traditional townhouses. Our afternoon is at leisure; or we can join in tonight we enjoy a farewell dinner at a local an optional excur- restaurant. B,D sion to Nara, Japan’s ancient Day 13: Depart Kyoto for U.S. This morning capital. B we travel by motorcoach to Osaka, where we board our return flight to the United States. B Day 12: Kyoto We see the sights today from a Tour Departs: May 20, 2015 slightly differ- ent perspective Prices include international airfare and all taxes, as we embark on surcharges, and fees.