Narai-Juku - Japan's Most Beautiful Post Town

*Gallery of pictures is at the bottom of the page.*

It has always been my dream to visit Japan and I'm so blessed to have been granted this desire to this very beautiful country.

One of the main reasons why I wanted to visit this beautiful country, despite having had multiple reasons to really visit Japan, was when I saw the beautiful post towns of Narai, Magome and Tsumago.

Houses looking so old, yet are so preserved that they don't seem to more than a hundred years old. There's something so captivating about looking at those timeless houses.

Thus, I made it a point that the first country that I'm gonna visit is Japan and I thought if this ever comes true, those post towns will be part of my itinerary.

God has blessed me to have visited these places and I'm so happy and with how things turned out.

I believe that God granted me these things and nobody else. It was through His grace that these dreams that I wanted to achieve were achieved. As God loves to make his people be part on how His grace is manifested in each and every individual, certain people were instrumental with how these dreams were realized.

What do I mean by this? How God's blessings came to me for this dream of me wanting to visit Japan was a collaboration of different and multiple happenings, not random; but, it was very intention on God's part. Me leaving my job at Amazon and applying for a job in Japan; but, was offered a work from home job by the same company with a much bigger compensation were ways for God to shower me with His blessings and graces - which during those moments when they were happening, I didn't see how it will fit the puzzle of realizing my dream of going to Japan.

I see this in hindsight, I did not read nor see it during those present moments. God revealed this to me when I was reflecting and thanking God for the blessing and graces He has showered me with.

Back to Narai.

Coming from our hotel in Ueno, we walked 500 meters going to Ueno Station and hopped on a train going to Shinjuku Station. It was a very cold morning. This was the second part of trip in Japan. we spent the first one in Kyoto.

Narai is considerably far from Tokyo. Nestled deep within the beautiful and idyllic mountains of Nagano, thus the train going to Narai-juku is quite long which can take up to almost four hours of train ride.

We didn't take the Hokuriku Shinkansen going to Nagano Station as it was more expensive compared to the regular train, and considering that the views on the Shinkansen will be a blur, we thought that taking the regular train as it was passes through the country side is a lot more idea.

It was a very quiet train ride. Occasionally, the train gets stuffed as students hop on going to their schools.

From Shinjuku Station, we then arrived in Shiojiri Station - take note, there's no train that goes straight from Tokyo to Narai-Juku. The station that connects from Tokyo to Narai-Juku is Shiojiri Station or Matsumoto Station.

We waited for around forty minutes for the train that will take us to Narai-Juku, a Chuo Line train. I was happy that I asked the attendant in the train station which platform the train that goes to Narai-juku is on, because through this interaction I learned that for me to board the train, I need to buy a ticket as IC Transportation Cards, in my case a Suica, are not accepted in Narai Station.

The ride from Shiojiri Station to Narai-Juku was more than 20 minutes; but, less than 30 minutes. The view I saw through the train window was something that was almost out of a fantasy world. Tall pine trees that line up so perfect, almost as if they talk to each other and agree which queue one tree lines up to.

It was a Studio Ghibli kind of view, even the vibe. The quietness of the train ride and the occasional rhythmic clickety-clack when the train wheel hit rail joints.

It was a moment when I found myself immersed in the wonders and beauty that lays before me, I felt a sense of peace as if the only thing that matters happened in the very seconds that I was in, and a deep appreciation in that very present moment and there, I wished the ride was longer.

When the train stopped in Narai Station, I was amazed that most of the passengers of the train got off. These people has the very same interest as I had in wanting to visit a place that brings a vibe of the past yet exists in our very present time.

Countless steps passed by the very ground that I was stepping on. Walls of those ancient houses hold the memories of samurais who stopped by Narai-juku for a well-earned rest.

What did they talk about when they lodged? What did they think? What were their worries, is it the same as ours in today's world - how to keep on forward?

Narai-juku holds a very special place in my heart. Even though I do not live there, I feel a very strong sense of connection of Narai.

I don't just feel tranquility, I SEE it in Narai. The smell of the air, the coldness of the wind, the sound of birds and leaves as it brushes and dances with the blow of the wind.

An explicable sense of exhilaration and wonder and happiness all combined into one. A feeling that is inexpressible with words and just to have an idea and understanding - it was beautiful.