Map of the month - October: Japan

With the Rugby World Cup 2019 well underway in Japan, I thought what better country to choose for October’s map of the month and blog post!?

Japan is one of my favourite countries I have ever visited. Everything seems to be done well and with a huge sense of pride. Public areas and amenities are immaculately clean and well designed, from the trains that run on time, to the public toilets that go above and beyond any toilet you have ever had to use.

The culture of this beautiful country has been protected and preserved throughout the centuries, enabling unadulterated access to a heritage rich with temples, shrines and traditional practices. The old meets new seamlessly in a society where technology and innovation are embraced and implemented in a way that improves quality of life.

We visited Japan in 2016 for two weeks and only scratched the surface in terms of what there is to see and do. Our schedule was full and we started the days early and finished them late to cram in as much as possible. You can sleep on the plane ride home, right?! Below is our itinerary for the fortnight we spent on Honshu, which is the largest and most populous Japanese island. We travelled between cities by train, making the most of the high-speed Shinkansen whenever possible. We purchased a Japan Rail pass before the trip, which made the travel very economical. The trains are amazing but make sure you book your journey in advance to ensure you get the times and seats you want. You can do this at the station, and the day before the journey seemed to be adequate.

Days 1 - 4 - Tokyo.
If you need to allow for jet lag 4 days isn’t quite enough to really get to know Tokyo. However, with some commitment and plenty of large cold brews (they have Starbucks in Japan), it is enough to drag your tired self around a good amount of the popular sights. For us, this included the Shibuya district, which with its bright colours, neon lights, shops and karaoke bars, is probably the image that you would conjure in your mind when thinking of Tokyo. It is also where you will find the Shibuya crossing, the alleged busiest pedestrian crossing in the world. We visited the shopping district Ginza, where you will find all seven of the Omega/Swatch brands housed in one beautiful building. One wall is a vertical garden, whilst the opposite wall is the glass shop fronts of the various brands, with the most expensive and prestigious on the top floor, right down to swatch in the basement. To access each brand’s shop, all of which have their own floor, there is an individual bubble-shaped elevator, which also doubles as a mini shop/ display area for that particular watch brand.

We also saw the Tokyo Tower, had a drink at a cat café, checked out the view at night from the Tokyo Skytree, walked around Ueno Park and Zoo, and indulged our inner geek in the Akihabara district, famous for its manga and gaming arcades.

Our hotel the Richmond Hotel Premier Asakusa International was right next to Asakusa which gave us our first taste of Japanese temples, that could be seen from our hotel room. Tokyo is currently the world’s largest city, so it would be foolish to think you will be able to tick off everything. However, the above sights definitely gave us a good and varied taster!

Day 5 and 6 - Takayama and the Shirakawa Village.
Tokyo blew our minds and was a sensory overload, which made our next destination Takayama a heritage town, a very stark contrast. Located in the mountainous Hida region of the Gifu Prefecture, Takayama’s old town is made up of wooden merchant’s houses, built in the Edo period. It takes about 4 to 5 hours to reach the town from Tokyo by train, so we arrived at about midday. This gave us enough time to explore the Sanmachi Suji historic district and go for dinner. Ironically it was a lot easier to find vegetarian food here than it was in Tokyo. Having eaten a lot of snacks since arriving in Japan this is where I enjoyed my first proper Japanese meal, whilst my partner tucked into Hida beef.

For our second day in this area, we embraced our inner tourists and did a bus tour to the Shirakawa, which is a traditional village made up of buildings built in the gasshō-zukuri style. Basically the houses were built in an almost triangle shape with roofs that point at the top and go low to the ground. The steep peak of the roof allows rain and snow to fall straight off, protecting the house somewhat from the weather. Although I’m not normally one for group tours this day out was extremely enjoyable and our tour guide was a super host and very forthcoming when it came to taking our photo! In Takayama we stayed in Hotel Hana a less western hotel compared to the others, complete with bean bag pillow!

Day 6 - Kanazawa.
On day 6 we forwent a lie in and got up super early to make the two-hour train journey to Kanazawa (changing briefly in Toyama), giving us almost a full day to explore, which was just enough to see the main sights of this beautiful city. The weather was glorious that day, which is perhaps why I have such fond memories of this city, one of my favourites out of those we visited in Japan. Apart from a couple of bus rides, we mainly walked in Kanazawa. On foot, we managed to see the most beautiful garden I have ever experienced- Kenrokuen Garden, Kanazawa Castle, Nagamachi Samurai District and the Omicho Market where I tried the famous gold leaf ice cream, which is basically a mister whippy with a sheet of gold leaf on top.

In the evening we had pre-booked to see a geisha tea ceremony, in the Higashi Chaya district, which was a lovely and interesting way to end the day, before a well earned sleep at Hotel MyStays, Kanazawa.

Day 7 and 8 - Hiroshima and Miyajima Island.
Another early start to make the 4 hours 30-minute journey from Kanazawa to Hiroshima. Having had a full-on schedule up until this point of our trip we decided Hiroshima would be where we would have some downtime, relax and familiarise ourselves with the Japanese spas known as onsen. We chose our hotel, the Grand Prince Hotel, based on this. Although the hotel and spa were relatively modern the onsen did just the job as a place to relax and pamper ourselves. The hotel is located about a half-hour drive outside Hiroshima, which actually worked out really well, as it was right next to the ferry port to take us to the Mijajima Island. We had intended to visit the island in the afternoon on the day we arrived, however, we missed the boat, so decided to take the hotel shuttle bus into Hiroshima instead. As it happened, we found that a few hours was all we needed to visit the harrowing Hiroshima Peace Memorial Museum and Park and the Atomic Bomb Dome. The visit was informative and sombre, yet I would 100% recommend it as it really brought home the devastating consequences of nuclear weaponry. The hotel had a rooftop bar, with amazing views, so back at the hotel, we managed to get back into the holiday mindset after a few ‘sake lady’ cocktails. The next day we made it to Miyajima. The weather was grey and wet but this actually made a very striking backdrop to the deep orange Itsukushima Shrine, which borders the water and is absolutely enchanting. The shrine is well worth a look around - we stumbled across it whilst trying to escape one of the many deer that roam the island, who had taken a fancy to some crackers I had in my pocket (as I said vegetarian food wasn’t easy to find!).

Day 9, 10 and 11 - Kyoto and Nara.
Our next stop was Kyoto, about a 3-hour bullet train ride from Hiroshima. We knew we wanted to visit nearby Nara, which is also famous for its sacred deer and giant Buddha statues. After dumping our luggage we took the train straight back out of Kyoto to Nara, which then left us two full days to explore Kyoto. Unlike Tokyo where the subway is the easiest way to get yourself around the city, in Kyoto we found it was easier to use the bus system. That being said we did spend a lot of time in the very impressive Kyoto train station as our hotel the Daiwa Roynet Hotel Kyoto-Hachijoguchi was located nearby by and it housed some good shops and restaurants, including a sushi restaurant called Sushi no Musashi that my partner was happy to return to multiple times. There is a lot to see in Kyoto and by this point in our trip we had become quite blasé to the many extraordinary temples that we had encountered. The landmarks Kyoto has to offer definitely jolted us back to our original appreciation of the uniqueness and beauty of Japanese temples, gardens and shrines. In the two days we spent in Kyoto we managed to visit; Kinkaku-ji a golden temple very literally, Arashiyama a forest comprised entirely of beautiful swaying bamboo, Nishiki market, an indoor market, Ryoan-ji temple and rock garden, Nijo castle, Kiyomizu-dera, a temple with beautiful views, the Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine, hundreds of orange gates lining the path up a mountain to a Shinto Shrine (to do it all is quite an uphill walk so I recommend going early to beat the crowds.)

I won’t go into detail about each one, but I would recommend trying to see them all if you are lucky enough to have a few days in Kyoto. There is a lot to see in this marvellous city, but I felt everywhere we chose to visit was worthwhile.

Day 12 and 13 - Hakone.
If I’m honest I don’t think I would wholeheartedly recommend Hakone as a place to visit, especially when comparing it to the other cities we saw. I don’t regret our last stop as we got to see Mount Fuji (even if just ever so briefly due to fog) and it was here we stayed in a more traditional Japanese hotel. The Yoshiike Ryokan was complete with futon beds, bamboo flooring, onsen and a traditional meal (which was way too fishy for my liking!) Apart from chilling in the onsen whilst there we did what I would call the tourist loop, which seemed to include taking one type of public transport after another, including a cable car, bus, funicular train and a boat which crosses lake Ashi at the base of Mount Fuji with the only real objective to look at the view. The day we visited wasn’t particularly clear weather-wise so maybe I missed what all the fuss is about. From Kyoto the journey to Hakone took about 3 hours by Shinkansen and a local train. Being in Hakone put us close by (1 hour 30mins) to Tokyo where we spent our last evening having dinner and staying in Hotel MyStays Haneda, a hotel close to Haneda airport, with a shuttle service.

Japan is such a diverse, unique and interesting country that I think you would have to basically live there for years to truly see and experience all the wonders and oddities it has to offer. In the two weeks we spent exploring this amazing country we only scratched the surface, but what we did see and in turn the itinerary detailed in this blog post I believe provides a great introduction to Japan and it’s culture.

Maps and prints are all dated 1891 - email for prices, sizes and more information.

PS. Good luck England!

Map of the month - September: New York

Before I visited New York I was dubious as to whether I would actually like it. I imagined it would feel threatening and overcrowded. Despite my sister living there on a work placement and absolutely loving it I really went with low expectations. Maybe this was a good thing, as not only were my expectations most certainly exceeded, I fell in love with this city big time and I often think back on our trip and long to return. We visited New York for five days, which we maximised by squeezing in every iconic New York attraction we had ever heard of! I won’t go into much detail about each landmark as that would be boring, so this blog post details our itinerary for each day and the order we did it to make this achievable.

Firstly the background information - we flew from London Heathrow to JFK on a Wednesday evening, arriving at about midnight in New York. We took a fixed price yellow cab into the city, to our hotel, the YOTEL just behind Times Square, the closest Subway being Port Authority. Although the room was on the small side, it suited us perfectly, it was clean, modern, well located and reasonably priced. The hotel provides the start and end point for each of our days in NYC. Our return flight was the early evening the following Monday, which gave us 4.5 days in the Big Apple. We walked lots and crammed so much into the days, coming back very tired but feeling that we could well and truly say ‘We’ve done New York!’. We visited in November, and whilst the weather was on the nippy side, we packed (faux) fur lined coats and layers, and we were fine. We purchased three day New York City passes, which we used for days 2, 3 and 4, and included unlimited rides on the very informative red tourist buses plus two boat rides, as well as entry into our choice of six of the main NYC attractions. This I have to say was well worth it and the open topped bus meant we got to cover a large area over ground.

NEW YORK 5 Day Itinerary.

Day 1 - Thursday - 19km 27159 steps walked.

Walk the high line eating breakfast bagels. Walk to and around the Meat Packing District and then Chelsea Market. Carry on walking to Greenwich village where you can check out the exterior of the apartment block from the TV series Friends and Carrie’s house from Sex and the city. Get a cupcake at the Magnolia bakery. Continue by foot to Washington Square Park and then walk up Fifth Avenue from the start, stopping to admire the Empire State Building (from the base). Stop at Eataly for a late and well deserved lunch, which is opposite the Flat Iron Building. From there have a look around Macy’s world’s largest department store and then the spectacular New York City Central library.
We then had 99c pizza slices from a very basic and grubby looking place near our hotel, they were delicious, cheap and so stereotypically New York, that we didn’t care! When in Rome and all! Finish the evening looking around Times Square and Madame Tussaud’s, followed by dinner at nearby Counter Burger.

Day 2 - Friday - 12.3km 17573 steps

Take the Sight Seeing Bus down Fifth Avenue through TriBeCa, Soho and Wall Street to South Sea Port. Walk to Stock Exchange and the Wall Street Bull. Go through the Financial District to the 9/11 Memorial and One World Observatory, which we entered using the city pass, and after looking around we enjoyed the view over a glass of champagne in the bar. Take the tourist boat included in the city pass, from the pier near the One World Observatory. The boat passes the Statue of Liberty and you can get off it, the other side of the Hudson in Brooklyn. Stop for pizza at Grimaldi’s (not far from the pier). Walk back to Manhattan via the Brooklyn Bridge. Take the subway back to the hotel. Visit the famous Plaza Hotel on the edge of Central Park for dinner and cocktails in The Palm Court.

Day 3 - Saturday - 22.7km 32885 steps

Walk to the Rockefeller Center, stopping to look at Radio City. Check out the views from the Top of the Rock. Then walk to Fifth Avenue, joining the road by St Patrick’s Cathedral, which you can enter. Check out the iconic Saks Fifth Avenue, before walking to the end of Fifth Avenue where it becomes Central Park. Look at The Plaza in the daylight from the outside before entering Central Park. If you’re a fan of Home Alone 2, find the bridges / various spots where it was filmed, along with other attractions in the park such as Belvedere Castle. Exit the park for the Natural History Museum, then re-enter to walk across to the Guggenheim. We then went to Serendipity in a cab, but didn’t manage to get a table so had a look around Bloomingdales instead before heading back to the hotel for a rest and to get ready for the evening. Included in the city pass we took a night cruise around Manhattan and Statue of Liberty. The city looked magical in the dark. We then had a wander around the Grand Central Terminal (the station) admiring the architecture, before going up the Empire State Building. We decided to visit at night as it opens late, so we avoided the crowds. As we had already been to the Top of the Rock and One World Observatory, it was nice to see the city that never sleeps under the cover of darkness. As romantic as it could have been it was windy and cold at the top!!

Day 4 - Sunday 10.6km 15204 steps

On our last full day we took the subway to back to ground zero area. Have a look to see if any designer bargains take your fancy in Century 21, and then go to the shopping mall in the Oculus Building to admire the full price versions, whilst soaking in the beauty of the building. We then picked up the Downtown Bus tour from Battery Park which was just before where we had previously got off a few days before. We took the bus from the Lower East Side to Rockefeller. From there walk to the MOMA. Whilst we were visiting there was a really interesting exhibit about modern fashion and its influences. Late afternoon, take the Uptown Bus Tour from the starting point, doing the full route around Central Park and through Harlem. This is a great way to see another area of NYC without devoting too much time or energy. On our last night, we went to the renowned chef, Dan Barber’s restaurant Blue Hill, which is located in a Townhouse close to Washington Square. The ingredients are sourced from local farms just outside the city and it’s certainly telling in the delicious dishes served. Make sure to reserve in advance, you won’t be disappointed.

Day 5 - Monday - 10.2km 14266 steps

For the final half day in the city take the subway to Canal Street. From there explore Chinatown and Little Italy by foot. At this point we weren’t hungry for any of New York’s Chinese or Italian food offerings, so we worked up an appetite by walking back to Washington Square Park, then up Fifth Avenue back to the Flat Iron building where we had a lunch in Eataly - there’s so much choice we just had to revisit! From there, we bought cannolis to go and ate them walking back to the hotel to collect our luggage and meet our airport car.

By this point we were totally exhausted after walking so much but felt very satisfied at how thoroughly we had explored this amazing city!

Maps - Letts’s maps of North and South of New York, showing grid system road network.

Two highly detailed late 19th Century plan of the city of New York on two separate sheets - New York (South) and New York (North). They depict the entire city in remarkable detail, noting individual streets, important public buildings, rivers, squares, piers and neighbourhoods. A key lists the various locations marked on the map. The plan is colour coded into wards. Original outline colouring, in very good condition, one original fold with wide margins. Each sheet measures approximately 430mm x 365mm and has one original fold. Email for prices and more information.

A glimpse into Zoological Geography.

l’ve spent the morning marvelling at is this print and map showing Zoological Geography. Not only are they both beautiful, they are so interesting and informative too! Both pieces would be amazing additions to a room with a grey, green or yellow colour palette.

The print is an instructive chart, created to correct mathematical scale. As organic life is infinitely varied between the Equator and Poles, so is it in different stages of altitude. For example in tropical countries by ascending mountains we can transport ourselves in a few hours to polar like regions. This print represents graphically the substance of all important observations on the distribution of Organic Life in ascending regions. The different ‘cones’ represent the various mountain regions named at the bottom of the diagram, and are placed in juxta-position, in order to quickly and easily compare tropical and northern countries.

The map represents the distribution throughout the world of the principal Quadrupeds or Mammals. In cases where they have a very wide range, the figures are either repeated or coloured lines are drawn to show the extreme limits to which these animals are found.

Both by Augustus Petermann, 1851.

Map 28cm x 21cm plus wide margins
Print 21cm x 33cm plus wide margins

Email for prices and more information.

Maps of the month - August: Firenze (Pisa and Lucca)

Firenze or Florence as it is known in English speaking countries has to be one of my favourite European cities. Small enough to feel friendly and intimate, but large enough that there is plenty to do and see, I would happily return to Florence again and again.

For the tick box tourist the central square, Piazza del Duomo is a must-see. As soon as you round the corner to the main square, you are struck by the overwhelming presence and beauty of the Duomo di Firenze, dominating the square. The Duomo itself is open to the public to climb (if heights, small spaces and walking up lots of steps are your thing) along with its neighbours, the baptistry and Giotto’s Campanile. If visiting in high season (from about April to October) I recommend booking your tickets for the attractions in the Piazza in advance to avoid disappointment. That’s not to say you won’t still have to queue to enter, however, whilst you do there is always the beautiful pink and green marble exteriors to marvel at.

Florence is a Swiss watch lover’s dream. Panerai originates from the city and at the edge of the square, you will find their impressive boutique. Not far away, the iconic bridge, the Ponte Vecchio also hosts a vast array of watch brands and jewellery shops.

Back in the Piazza, there are many lunch options some more touristy than others. ‘Panini Toscani ’ a short walk down the left-hand side of the Duomo (if you are looking from the front) has to be the most understated gem. With a tiny façade, you will probably first notice it because of the queue out the door into the square. Only offering paninis, choose your bread and fillings from a delicious selection of fresh local meats, cheeses and marinated vegetables, and wash it down with a glass of local wine. The winning combination of a fresh panini and wine feels authentic in the very heart of the city, whilst also being excellent value and quality.

Beyond the main square, Florence is culturally rich. As with most Italian cities, there are numerous cathedrals, and it is also home to Michelangelo's famous statue David. It is easy to spend a morning wandering around the Uffizi gallery - even more so if you’re a fan of Italian Renaissance artwork!

For me, however, I visit Florence to eat! You don’t need to spend a lot in Florence to enjoy a truly delicious meal. If you opt for something from the ‘Primi’ section of the menu you are only looking at 10 to 15 euros, for a dish that is no doubt tasty and superb quality. With such good food on offer, there is no time to waste eating in a bad restaurant. My top pick has to be Il Santo Bevitore (www.ilsantobevitore.com). Located one road back from the river Arno, on the less-touristy side where you will also find the Boboli Gardens, this cavernous restaurant, with wine lined walls has a cool vibe and serves dishes that make you want to savour every bite. A short walk from the restaurant is it’s sister bakery S. Forno Panificio. Go there for breakfast and you are guaranteed a delicious selection of baked goods, plus deli produce and probably a photo for your Instagram feed!

If you fancy something more decadent, head to Gucci Osteria at Gucci Gardens. Yes, that’s Gucci, as in the handbags- another brand that was born in Florence. This beautifully decorated pea-green panelled restaurant, with its waiting staff in their enviable outfits, is located at the top of Piazza Della Signoria next to the Gucci Garden shop and Museum. The tasting menu is traditional Italian with international influences, overseen by three Michelin star awarded chef, Massimo Bottura, it won’t leave you disappointed. Each diner is given a free entrance voucher to the Gucci museum which is well worth a look, with Gucci clothes and luggage dating right back to the 1930s.

Any Italian vacation would not be complete without at least one gelato per day! I personally avoid the brightly coloured mountains of ice cream, with fruit and kinder eggs perched on top in favour of the more artisanal silver lidded vats of gelato. I try to go for the most unusual flavours and I found these at Gelateria Artigianale La Strega Nocciola (www.lastreganocciola.it). The frozen yoghurt with balsamic vinegar was surprisingly delicious and the Buontalenti, a traditional Fiorentina flavour tasted like cake mix but better! Nestled between the Ponte Vecchio and the Boboli Gardens this Gelateria is definitely worth crossing the river!

If you want to explore beyond Florence, Pisa is within easy reach via train. A few hours is more than enough to check out the leaning tower and the Piazza that it is in.

Slightly further afield is Lucca, a renaissance walled city. It’s about 1 hour 30 minutes from Florence by train and is small enough that you can see most of the sights on foot in a day. Piazza del’ Anfiteatro is an oval-shaped square so to say. This is a great spot for lunch in one of the many restaurants that line the edge.

As the capital of Tuscany, Florence hits the spot when it comes to the perfect Italian getaway, and also provides a great base to explore more of this beautiful region. One thing is for sure you won’t go hungry!

Maps (from left to right) - email for more information and prices.

Firenze - By Wagner and Debes. Leipzig 1907. 34cm x 23cm

Central Florence - By McLagan and Cumming. Edinburgh 1958. 21cm x 15.5cm

Large Florence Map - Author and date unknown, estimated mid 18th Century. 65cm x 63cm

Pisa - By McLagan and Cumming. Edinburgh 1958. 14cm x 15.5cm

Lucca - By Wagner and Debes. Leipzig 1907. 15.5cm x 11cm

Italy - By Edward Stamford. 35cm x 28cm