Cherry blossoms and cool mountains made up the ingredients for santoor player Rahul Sharma and his wife Barkha’s holiday in Japan.
If postcards are pretty then the ones that might be taken from Rahul Sharma and his wife Barkha’s holiday to Japan make for a beautiful memory, for the couple say it was one of their most enjoyable moments. There last month for a series of concerts, they made time to tour the cherry blossom country and came away charmed. “Wasn’t too easy though,” smiles Barkha. “A musician’s journey is a packed itinerary and it entails
carrying around a 100-string instrument too!”
Out and about
Their 20-day stay saw them visit Tokyo, Shibuya, Gihu and Kyoto. “Rahul has been there before but it was the first time for me and I have to say Japan was a nice surprise. On one hand, Tokyo was very fast and sort of tech-savvy and then after the next stop you were in the cold, serene mountains, so there were two sides to it.” At Tokyo, like the in the other places, they stayed where they could get the best view of the city. “And we saw the most trendy hairstyles too,” laughs Rahul.
After his concert in Tokyo, they went to watch the Kabuki performance at one of the best theaters in Shibuya. “The normal ticket price was Rs 8,000! Just shows how much respect they give their art forms there,” adds Barkha.
Sushi and tea
Rahul and Barkha travelled by car or the Bullet train. “I had never been in that train, it was almost like a robotic spider!” she laughs. The next stop was Shizuoka for Rahul’s next concert. They also enjoyed a great Japanese vegetarian sushi meal there. “I loved it. It’s normally a hard task to find the food you want, but I have to say Rahul can find vegetarian food anywhere in the world,” she laughs. They also bought green tea for friends and family back home.
Shrine in the mountains
The third place they went to was Gihu. “It was most beautiful. There was a lovely shrine, almost hidden to the eye, up in the mountains surrounded by greenery. It almost felt like the scene from The Last Samurai. A very old Shinto priest did a ceremony for us. Later we went to a spa nearby, which was lush and green, with a beautiful river flowing through, which reminded us of Pahalgam in Kashmir,” she informs.
At Kyoto, they saw the Sanjusangen-Do, with its 1001 Buddhist statues. “It is said that one can find their face within one of the statues of Lord Buddha,” she adds. They also made a halt at Kobe — a now modern city, resurrected after the earthquake. “We had dinner with Vikas Swarup (the author) who hosted a party for us,” he says.
At the end of their break, Barkha managed to pick up some Japanese too. “Like dou-itashimashite, which means you’re welcome,” she smiles.
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