The next meeting will be on January 18th at the the Woodsworth Co-op : Ann Dohler will talk about her recent trip to Peru, the Galapagos and the Amazon.

For further information on Ontario meetings, please contact: Svatka Hermanek: shermanek@schulich.yorku.ca or Bruce Weber: tel. 416-203-0911 or Paul Webb: tel. 416-694-8259.

Toronto GT Meetings are held on the third Friday of January, March, May, September and November. Usually at the Woodsworth Co-op, Penthouse, 133, Wilton Street in downtown Toronto at 8.00 p.m.

In general travel and accommodation are expensive whilst food can vary hugely in price from noodle bars both cheaper and considerably more nutritious than MacDonald’s to city restaurant where the prices would flex anyone’s credit to the limit. Most other activities are pretty reasonably priced.

Firstly, Japan is a country where the infrastructure works, if the timetable says a train or bus will arrive at a given time, it will. Transport is effective though expensive, buses and trains are clean, safe and regular though mountainous terrain in many areas can still make journeys lengthy. The language may be intimidating but most younger people can speak some English and it is not difficult to learn a few important signs (numbers, entrance, exit, toilet, place names etc.) or indeed the syllabary alphabets (hirogana and katakana) which are widely used on signs for place names (so are romaji in Tokyo and some major towns)

Tokyo: Like most large towns, expensive, cosmopolitan, polluted and overcrowded Tokyo still retains a number of small temples and a few other small historical buildings wedged between the skyscrapers. It is worth visiting a few for the paintings and statuary, interesting architecture and some insight into Japanese culture and rituals. I particularly like the traditional Japanese and Chinese gardens, which are cheap to visit and charming and beautiful to see, the imperial palace and gardens around it are also a must see.

Kyoto and Nara, easily reachable from Tokyo, preserve a lot more in the way of historic buildings, a reconstructed old castle and a herd of tame, fat and diabetic deer at Nara are good places to visit.

Onsen: blessed or cursed with a great deal of geothermal energy there are a large number of hot springs in Japan, these can definitely be worth a visit, whilst I didn’t notice any health benefit I had the rather beautiful experience of lying outside in a hot bath able to look up at the moon and the stars between the clouds during a gentle snowfall. Getting out was a little on the cool side however.

Kyushu: less developed than Honshu thus preserving more tradition and a few pieces of undeveloped countryside. Also warmer if that interests you and with much volcanic activity, some stunning crater lakes with brightly coloured poisonous looking water and a number of opportunities to breath some pretty poisonous air near the volcanoes. Pity the concession holders at these places, I can stand breathing sulphuric acid for an hour or so but how they manage it all the time I don’t now. Down at the Southern tip of the island, at Sakurajima ash from the volcano can be taken home in a small phial if you wish to relive the experience of grit with everything. The other thing which is omnipresent here is daikon, these giant white radishes are apparently very important to the locals’ diet being a major source of vitamin C, and accordingly they make a remarkable range of products from them, from simple shredded radish (OK), to Daikon Schochu (a sort of whisky) and daikon jam, both of which are best avoided.

One of the most beautiful sights I remember from Japan is Takachiho gorge. A slot canyon deep enough that the sun can rarely or never is seen from the bottom. You can walk down to the river that flows through it, hire a rowing boat and paddle up to the head of the gorge where a waterfall enters. The water is crystal clear and the sides of the canyon are stunningly vertical hexagonal columns of black basalt.

The Beetle says if you are thinking of travelling to Japan, you should investigate buying a rail pass in your own country that gives you a considerable discount. They are only available outside Japan.

To get in touch with the Travelling Stoat, Then e-mail them to: the Beetle