Atsuta Shrine: Famous for a reason

Japanese required: Moderate
Cost: Transportation
Good for: Everyone

Atsuta Shrine is an expansive place with a lot of beautiful things - both natural and man-made. I've been there several times, both with friends and alone, and they were very relaxing trips. One entrance to the shrine is located just outside of Jingumae station. The entire shrine is dotted with different places that are considered sacred, which range from being special trees to actual man made prayer spots to honor certain deities.

The gates leading to the main shrine are impressive in size, but the most interesting things are on the way to the main section. One of these things is a majestic tree. The tree itself has been around for a really long time, and priests used to feed eggs to snakes that lived in the upper branches. The tree has a very old feel about it, which adds to the sense of calm that the entire shrine has. In addition to the tree, a member of the group I went with explained that a bridge we saw was actually one of the oldest in Nagoya. The bridge itself wasn't much to look at, but the history of the location made it a good place to take a picture.

The place has a large number of trees and other plants which fill all the space not taken up by path or buildings. This created the feeling of being completely and totally immersed in the shrine itself - as if I had left Japan behind. There were practically no sounds aside from people walking and softly talking, and even children that were brought to the shrine were quiet. To add to the feeling of timelessness, there were stone lanterns in different places that looked as if they had been in the shrine for hundreds of years.

I'd say Atsuta Shrine has one of the best atmospheres out of all the temples and shrines that I've visited. It's definitely a place that I would recommend to everyone that visits Nagoya. It's a pleasant and relaxing walk, which makes it good for small groups or going alone. There's even a cafe to stop at for a small snack or some coffee.

A restaurant for specific tastes: Bistrot Labourer

Japanese Required: A lot
Cost:  2000 or more per person
Good for: Single people, couples, small groups

Bistrot Labourer is a restaurant near Jingumae station. The restaurant is a bit out of the way, but it is very cozy. It had enough space to intimately seat roughly twenty people and then seating for another five people at the bar. I went with a group of friends. The restaurant had three lunch sets: hamburger with miso sauce, fried oyster, and an omelet filled with rice (called omuraisu). I had never had omuraisu, so I went with that. All of the lunch sets came with a salad and corn soup, and the first two options also had bread or rice as a side. The omuraisu came with a desert instead (vanilla ice cream).

Taken from Bistrot's website

The omuraisu was pretty good at first, but the novelty wasn't enough to enjoy the dish. The experience of egg, rice, and ketchup together gave me mixed feelings. On the one hand, I liked the rice's texture and taste. On the other hand, I feel that the flavor of the ketchup overpowered the flavor of the egg, and I prefer the taste of egg. While this isn't something I'd eat again if I had other options, I'd say it's worth trying if you like egg and ketchup. The ice cream was soft enough to eat easily with a spoon without dripping everywhere. A few of my friends had the fried oysters, and they looked rather good. If I were to go again, I'd probably go for the oysters.

The restaurant had an overall pleasant atmosphere. Everyone was talking and laughing, and the servers were very nice. I would probably go there again for lunch if I was in the area with a couple of friends. It seems to be a very local-only restaurant, so I doubt it gets particularly busy in the afternoon. For anybody interested in visiting Bistrot Labourer, more information can be found in their website: http://www.nagoya-labourer.jp/