JAPAN- The land of utmost discipline

Everyone says Japan is 'The land of Rising Sun', but our trip there showed us the many faces of Japan, the most prominent of them all being - 'The land of utmost discipline'. This was something that we had never seen or experienced anywhere else in our entire travel history!

**Our international travels always include a good service apartment for our stay, home-cooked meals( I carry all basic groceries from India), a planned itinerary to cover tourist destinations and unseen places by most tourists, a cycling/boating/walking tour and a lot of free time to explore, rest and shop!**

ITINERARY

Day 1: Arrive in Tokyo, Check into JJ Shinjuku House, Akebonobashi; Evening- leisure

Day 2: Yodobashi- Akihabara ; Senso-ji temple ; Tokyo Imperial palace

Day 3: Tokyo - Kyoto; Kyoto at leisure

Day 4: Kyoto - Nara 

Day 5: Kyoto day tour (Klook)

Day 6: Kyoto Aquarium; Teramachi street shopping 

Day 7: Kyoto - Kobe

Day 8: Kyoto - Arashiyama

Day 9: Leisure

Day 10: Universal Studios - Osaka / Nagoya

Day 11: Kyoto - Tokyo 

Day 12: Govinda's ; Kamakura beach ; Ginza street

Day 13: Mt. Fuji, Hakone tour (klook)  

Day 14: Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden, Yoyogi Park, Harajuku shopping

Day 15: Goodbye Japan!

We booked Thai Airways to Japan for our 14-day travel starting May 15 to May 28, 2023. We bought our JR passes for 14 days at Scenic Japan Tours, Shivajinagar.

Tip: Never book a cheap airline on international travel as it may get cancelled or delayed without prior notice. 

May 15, 2023

Bangalore to Bangkok was a 3-hour 55-minute journey and Bangkok to Japan was a 6-hour journey. We had booked a Jain meal for ourselves to be on the safer side. We boarded the flight. It was on time, no hassles. The hospitality was at its best as always. After looking at our seats, we thought it was best to have better legroom for a comfortable journey, so we booked the reserved seats in the front for 1920 baht each. ( If reserved seats are empty and if you are lucky, air hostesses offer them for free; we were lucky on our Bangkok-Japan flight; Best to book in advance for better comfort on long journeys).

 

                               

The first view of 'Green Japan' mesmerised us! We landed in Tokyo at 3:45pm local time. 

Although we had bought JR passes in Bangalore, we somehow misplaced them and couldn't carry them along. So we had to buy JR passes again at the airport in Japan. (We found it later and got a refund). The immigration line was long, the formalities took about 4 hours and we got super tired. Recommended buy: SUICA card for local bus and train travel. Card is free, but needs to be loaded with cash. Buses only accept cash or SUICA card.

 

It is best to carry a lot of yen, because most of the places are still not advanced and accept only cash-- no card also. Also, many still dont speak English. So if you have other currencies, best to exchange there only. Buses also accept only cash- exact change.

We took a taxi to our service apartment - JJ Shinjuku house, Akebonobashi (Shinjuku) - A decent apartment with a separate kitchen area.. but not greatly designed rooms- just a bifurcation with a glass door. Since this was a central location, close to the train station, we managed, because we only had to spend 2 days here.

It was already late in the night. We went to Seven 11 - down the road (the popular supermarket chain), picked some munchies, milk etc and decided to see the famous Shinjuku crossing. We took the Shinjuku line. At Shinjuku station, we were just lost! It was huge, with multiple entries, a cave-like structure and no visible exit points!! For about half an hour we encircled inside and finally got an exit. Thanks to my dad who spoke fluent Japanese, having lived in Japan for a long time during his working days. If you don't have a Japanese-speaking person with you, it is difficult to figure out what is what for the first two days. Anyway, at 12:30 am, the sight was.. 

After 'awe-ing' Shinjuku streets, we got home at about 2am. 

**Japan is the safest country in the world** 

May 16, 2023

We visited Yodobashi-Akiba ( Akihabara),  the world-famous multi-storeyed store where you get the best electronic goods.. from cameras to phones to toys to home decor to everything literally! Anime characters and toys are cheaper here, compared to manga stores elsewhere. We were captivated by the choices and almost disarrayed looking at the colours and goods! 

We spent about 4 hours, then went to the billing counter with all our shopped stuff. To our dismay, any billing that exceeded a particular amount required Passports for tax exemption. So we had to drop everything and come back again :(.

Tip: Carry your passports at all times that you plan to shop a lot)

The next destination was Senso-ji temple. (Akihabara Station to Asakusa station)

It was a beautiful temple. Kimono-lad women were swinging by and the path to the temple swanked with souvenirs, cotton candies, flowers and so on; a lot of colourful flowers and a pond with fish - something that is unique to Japanese temples, that you'll love. 

  

Next up, our plan was to visit Tokyo Imperial Palace. But, when we reached there, we got to know that prior booking was required. They offer slots for tourists and the palace closes by 4pm or so. Disappointed with that, we just wandered along the huge compound of the palace and walked back to see the government buildings. We took a taxi back to the station and booked our Shinkansen seats for Kyoto. Although you may have a JR pass, it is important to reserve your seats on the Shinkansen (the super fast bullet train) the previous day to avoid occupying someone else's seats or having to sit separately with all your luggage. Just go to the station, give your passes and select the train time and seats. That's all. Normal JR Hikari trains don't need reservations.

Tip: Book your slot for Tokyo Imperial Palace beforehand on klook. (klook is the most trusted app for guided tours and buying entry tickets across the world).

May 17, 2023

We took the Shinkansen to Kyoto. Shinkansen and most other inter-city trains are covered in the JR pass. Look for JR in the train timetable to know if the train allows JR pass. Else, you may have to take a separate ticket.  Kyoto is closer to most tourist destinations in Japan, hence, we had planned to stay longer here. Kyoto is one of the oldest cities and the old capital, quieter and less populated than Tokyo. 

We spent 3000 yen for the taxi to our service apartment - Stay Sakura, Tambaguchi (close to grocery shops, Kyoto aquarium and 5 minutes to Kyoto station). We set up all our stuff and walked 1 minute to the bus stop - Nanajo Senbon. Took bus number 205 and went to Kyoto station. We just wanted to explore Kyoto by bus to get familiar with the city. With the JR pass, you can even travel on some buses, so we hopped on to a JR bus just like how we did in other countries, thinking it would come back to the original stop. Little did we know that Japan's buses don't operate that way! We sat through the last stop. It was 7:30pm and the bus stopped in the middle of a mountainous forest area, with absolutely no one on the road for kilometres! The bus driver asked us to get down and, we were clueless. But, he was kind enough to tell us that there was another bus stop close by and we could catch another bus back to Kyoto station. It was pitch dark, and we only heard sounds from a waterfall located in a nearby shrine. We felt like we were filmed in a horror movie.. the only difference being, we were in the safest country in the world! A little panicky, we glanced through the bus timings and felt relieved that a bus was arriving at 7:59pm. It arrived on time. We hopped onto it, and alighted at Senbon Marutomachi stop - sighted a New Delhi restaurant because we were super hungry. He charged a whooping 6030 yen for 6 rotis, 1 naan, 2 sabzis and Jeera rice- all in minimal quantities. Moreover, it was a cramped restaurant with a smelly atmosphere and not recommended for vegetarians. Finally, we went home and got good sleep.

**Stay Sakura is a very popular service apartment chain in Japan, offering service assistance, front reception, a pantry and a kitchenette**

May 18, 2023

Boarded the 205 bus from our stop- Nanajo Senbon; Reached Kyoto station; Took Miyakoji Rapid JR line on platform 8, to Nara. This is the fastest train from Kyoto to Nara, although there are many stops in between. It was a 45-minute ride amidst the suburbs of Japan. It was a beautiful journey. 

Upon reaching Nara, we took bus no 77 to the deer park like everyone else. (78 also goes there). Throughout, we could see that it was actually a deer town because there were deer on the road, inside the park, and literally everywhere :). We fed the deer, petted them and obviously took loads of pictures.

Most people just go to the deer park and come back. But I would recommend Mt. Wakakusayama, a must climb! It has an entrance fee but the climb is worth it!

I did not miss Japan's popular softee - Matcha as well!!

Back from Nara, I cooked a sumptuous meal - Anna, Bendekai huli!! 

May 19, 2023

We had booked a Kyoto day tour through klook. This was our first klook booking. I have to say.. it was such a pain to find their tour desk. We had actually done our homework the previous night also but in vain. We left home at 7 am, hired a taxi, got off at their given location and searched like crazy. Google Maps didn't help much. It was called Avanti's Sunrise Tours desk, located on the opposite side of Kyoto station Hachijo exit. There was a small underground escalator near the klook bus stop. We went one level down, and took a left - there it was.. first block here! Important info : All tour operators and sightseeing buses are available only in the morning when the tour is scheduled. We had to ask each one of them for this idiotic klook desk!

Anyway, our tour covered Nijo Castle, Kyoto Imperial Palace, Kinkaku-ji Zen Garden, Kitano Tenmangu, Fushimi-Inari Taisha, Sanjusangendo temple, Kiyomizu-Dera temple. This was totally worth it. Although it was pouring heavily that day, we enjoyed the tour with our umbrellas! We covered almost all of the important tourist destinations and our guide gave us valuable information about the culture of Japan throughout the tour. I recommend this for first-timers. So, he said that there are shrines and temples in Japan. Shrines are for Shintoism and temples for Buddhism. Shrines have Torii gates and temples have Sanmon gates. 

May 20, 2023

After a full-day tour the previous day, we wanted a relaxed sightseeing, so we chose to go to Kyoto Aquarium and the park in its premises. This was at a walkable distance. We saw the penguins, the dolphin show, and just everything that any other aquarium would have. And, yet again, the garden in the park was a sight to see. By this time, we had visited many gardens and saw how beautifully Japan was blushing in its greenery, ponds and lakes. 

After lunch, we set out on a shopping spree to Teramachi Street. From Kyoto Aquarium stop(Umekoji Kyoto Nishi), we took bus no 205 to Shijo Kawaramachi (a 17-minute ride),  and there we were.. on the happening streets of Kyoto. From international brands to local products, they had it all. You need big fat cash and loads of luggage space.. Thats all!! We found out that products in Kyoto were cheaper than in Tokyo. So, if you want to shop, do it in Kyoto. (But, Yodobashi is the place for buying anime characters). Souvenirs and ceramic wares are cheaper on temple streets. A beautiful Disney store caught our attention and we saw a huge range of products there. Of course, I did buy something for my niece! 

When you are spoilt with choices, it becomes difficult to buy specific items. I stood there confused, for a couple of minutes because there was so much miniature stuff, so interesting and nicely made, I was placing them in my mind about placing them at home. 😂 After a satisfying shopping spree, we went back and slept peacefully. 

May 21, 2023

We set off to Kobe- the harbour land of Japan. The shinkansen from Kyoto station to Shin- Kobe was about 20 minutes or so. ** I recommend that you leave early in the morning, say 7 am,  so you can sulk in Kobe's beauty for a longer time** We could not see all of Kobe. It required at least 2 days to experience those wonders, but we did get immersed in the tranquillity, while there. Upon arrival at Kobe, we went to Meriken Park and wandered for a while. It got too hot, so we proceeded to the bus stop, hopped on to a City Loop bus and headed to Boh Boh Kobe cruise. The cruise was fabulous; we obviously had another round of soft serve and enjoyed the sea view.

After the cruise, we hopped onto the Loop bus again and alighted at one of the most unique locations of our entire trip - Kitano - Cho: Japan's largest collection of Western-style mansions.  In my opinion, this is a must-visit, because you would not get to see this elsewhere. Each home was an experience in itself. Buses offered hop on hop off. Each house had an entrance ticket and we saw as many as we could, along with the trick eye museum. My recommendation: Visit as many houses as possible... you'll be mesmerised!

                                                                                             

We were hungry by now. Since we had packed lunch from home(our temporary home), we sat down somewhere there and gobbled up to proceed to another beautiful and unique destination. (I had researched before flying to Japan). We went back to Kobe station. We checked with someone for the route to Nunobiki Herb Garden. It was just one stop on the city Loop bus. We alighted at the Nunobiki ropeway stop. We were delighted to get onto the cable car. 

The ride was scenic. We were excited. With a gentle breeze and clear skies, the weather was pleasant. We got off the cable car. Suddenly, we entered an enchanted theme park-like place. It was beyond our imagination! The fragrance that engulfed the place was scintillating! It was a premium place. We did the garden tour entirely, sipped on a wonderful cup of herbed tea and visited the attached store. The perfumes and fragranced products were just awesome, but premium-priced. We picked a couple of them as souvenirs and left the place with wonderful memories.

**Japan is an expensive vacation**

May 22, 2023

We took the JR San-in line from Umekoji Kyoto Nishi station to Saga Arashiyama station. It took about 20 minutes to reach Arashiyama. Upon reaching there, we saw that rickshaw tours and cycling tours were available. But we had downloaded the Pippa app before reaching there, so we could just rent cycles and tour Arashiyama by ourselves. (My son had researched this extensively). Covered with bamboo forests, this place was just like in a fairy tale! We loaded cash into the Pippa app, tracked the cycle stand, rented them and had loads of fun cycling on those streets. We stopped by a cute little cafe and had a lovely ride to see the houses and mansions in the surroundings. We took a boat ride - which was close to the closing time - 4:30 pm, ate salted cucumbers - very popular, visited a beautiful temple - Tenryu-ji Zen temple, a UNESCO world heritage site and finally bid goodbye to Arashiyama, carrying pleasant memories. 

** There were a couple of vegan and vegetarian restaurants. If you wish to try local vegetarian food, this is the place **

May 23, 2023

It was a leisurely day for all of us. We just wanted to be on our own, and go to places where we had unfinished business 😁. My son and I, the usual tag.., went to Shijo Kawaramachi to pick up gifts and souvenirs for everyone back home. The men folk went their way to parks, boat rides and walk across Kyoto streets.

May 24, 2023

That day, we decided to split up and go to places of our choice. My son and I had booked tickets to Universal Studios - Osaka from India. Tickets to some attractions close sooner than you expect, hence it is advised that you book tickets much in advance, to select rides of your choice without having to stand in the queue. The men folk planned to go to Nagoya, the automobile city of Japan.

We took the JR train from Kyoto Station to Osaka. If you are travelling on Shinkansen, be careful to sit in the unreserved seat compartment, unless you have reserved seats in advance. Shinkansen requires you to reserve seats always. But, you can also choose the unreserved compartment, but the guarantee of seats is not possible. For short distances, it is fine, but if you are travelling inter-city with luggage, it is strongly advised that you reserve beforehand. Hikari is included in JR passes, but Nozomi trains aren't.

At Osaka station, we changed to the Osaka Loop Line, alighted at Nishikujo Station and walked a bit to catch JR Yumesaki Line to Universal City Station. It was quite a task to get there, because of the crowded platforms and trains! Finally, we reached and slid in because of our already booked tickets! As always, the atmosphere was celebrative, musical, colourful, filled with chatter and happening.

May 25, 2023

As planned, we travelled back to Tokyo. We had 3 more days in Japan to explore this city. It had remained an uncharted territory for us yet. We had booked our stay in Ulu, Tokyo (Koto City). By far, this was the best service apartment with a marvellous view, of the river. The travel was a little strenuous because of the luggage transfers. However, the moment we stepped into the apartment, our moods swung to the happier side  We unpacked and freshened up. I was so motivated looking at the lovely kitchen that I made Masala dosas for brunch! Throughout the trip, my dad brought home vegetables and groceries, so I could cook without any pressure. 💖

We had access to paid washing and drying - clothes. So, we did some laundry stuff after brunch. We rested for a while and then hired a taxi to go to Shibuya Crossing - the most famous pedestrian scramble crossing. We also walked along Takeshita Street and came back. We walked into a 7-Eleven store to buy chips. We had not eaten junk food throughout our trip. We wanted to try it out, but luckily, my brain positively worked at the right time and we never ventured to buy again. 

** Always google translate and see the contents before you eat**

May 26, 2023

We had a late morning. I made some sandwiches, cleaned and reorganised our suitcases and left for Govinda's Edogawa - an ISCKON restaurant for brunch. (a few minutes from Funabori Station)

 

**It is actually not possible to wake up early every day, cook 3 meals, leave for sightseeing, walk great distances, come back late in the evening and again leave early the next morning. That's why we always have a balanced vacation with a good amount of rest, leisure, experiencing the culture of the place and seeing places, and it certainly doesn't involve covering all places. We generally don't go to a place just to put a tick on our bucket list. :) **

It was still very difficult to locate a train line in Tokyo, even after spending so many days in Japan, because there were just too many boards, too many train lines and too many exits! ( Kyoto was much simpler;  Tokyo was huge)

After a not-so-great brunch, my son wanted to go to a beach. I skimmed through Google for the nearest beaches and found Kamakura to be a 50-minute JR ride from Tokyo Station. That was the closest to where we were. Coincidentally, Kamakura was also a popular tourist destination. We boarded the JR Sobu line to Kamakura. Unfortunately, with all the walking to stations, the JR timing etc, we reached there at 5pm and it was super cold. We had to check the bus schedule to Yuigahama Beach, which took about 15 minutes because the place was scarcely populated at that time and most of the boards were in Japanese. Finally, we reached the beach and all our efforts to reach there went into the waters, because it was extremely chilly that day. We were barely in the water for 10 minutes. 

Another tragedy was, we had to walk back 20 minutes to Kamakura station in that chilly weather because there weren't any bus stops there on the reverse route. It was not a great plan that day! Anyway, while on our way back, we decided to go to Ginza - the upmarket of Tokyo which never sleeps (to cover up for the beach disappointment). It was 9pm. The streets of Ginza danced in the merry of lights and colours, with the huge Seiko clock tower striking sounds at every hour.

May 27, 2023

After Kamakura's experience, we didn't want to waste another day, so I booked a tour to Mt. Fuji and Hakone through klook. Mt. Fuji is an active volcano and is considered sacred and a source of inspiration. We had to report to a building in Shinjuku at 7am, so we took a taxi to go there, considering the Shinjuku station confusion we underwent the other day. This was easily locateable because the taxi driver knew the location. Our trip included a Japanese vegetarian meal. This was the first and last time we ate local food on our trip! 

We excitedly hopped onto our bus. We were greeted by our guide, a Thai national, working there in Japan as a tour guide. We were going to see 'Fuji-san' - the respectable name given to the mighty mountain of hot sulphur springs and volcanic activity. The route to Fuji was breathtaking, green all along, and silky smooth hairpin bends. When we reached our destination, we almost had tears in our eyes, looking at the affection people had for their Fuji-san. We witnessed hot springs for the first time on the trip. ( We had not considered going to a common hot springs bath place, although it was a must visit)

We spent a good amount of time there and proceeded to Hakone ropeway. 

    

** Hakone is a mountainous town, best known for its hot springs. **

The ropeway took us to a beautiful lake-side. We hopped onto a pirate ship for a scenic ride on Lake Ashi. (included in our tour)

Tea ceremonies are very common in Hakone. If we had had some more time at our disposal, we wanted to compulsorily do that, but we couldn't, as it was a conducted tour and it required prior booking. We did see many people booking their slots and waiting, though. We were almost done with the tour of the day.. at least that's what we thought. We were given a short loo break and, to our surprise, we were taken to Gotemba Premium outlets on our way back. This was like a huge amazement for us. Gotemba is 'the place' to buy branded products at dead cheap prices. Tory Burch, Under Armour, Gucci, Fendi ...all at almost half the original price. But, you need a day to browse through the huge complex. In the minimal time we had, we managed to pick some of our favourite brands and my son was super happy that he finally had his hands on his favourite brand- UA.

May 28, 2023

This was our last day in Japan. We still had many places to see ..like, Tokyo Skytree (we were not very keen on this because we had visited such towers in every other country, so we had kept this one volatile), Teamlabs Planet(bookings were full for the next three months), Ueno Zoo, Geisha streets, Nikko, Kobe animal kingdom, Osaka day tour, Osaka aquarium, Hiroshima (too far and just the memorial), Takayama (snowy place but couldn't plan), Hokkaido (of course, Northern Japan needs a separate trip altogether) and many many more!!

**Unless you have a fixed early morning - to - evening scheduled tour daily, it is impossible to cover all of Japan**

We decided to come back to Japan another time and cover these places :)

For the day, we had brunch -  a complete meal - mixed veg palya, rasam and curd rice, with a lovely view in front of us. Indeed, that was the last time we had this view while having food! 

We set off to Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden (the best place to view the cherry blossoms in that season) and Yoyogi Park.

       

 

On our way back, we went to Harajuku by chance and stumbled upon this store called UNIQLO. We had visited this store on Kawaramachi Street and Ginza earlier, but the clothes were expensive, so we had chucked it. Surprisingly, this Harajuku store was so reasonable, that we ended up picking a bundle of Anime t-shirts, Marvel tops and many more. So, Uniqlo, Harajuku is the place to buy trendy, chic clothes. 

Our 14-day JR pass was invalid now. We spent 14 amazing days in this beautiful country. So we bought separate JR tickets to Narita International Airport at the Tokyo Station, with reserved seats. 

May 29,2023

We took separate taxis to reach the Tokyo station. Tokyo Station had multiple entrances, the one we always used, being Yaesu Central Entrance. The driver messed up and dropped us at another entrance. We had exactly 6 minutes to catch our JR train to the airport. The station was unimaginably huge. If we had missed this train, we would have missed our flight. In the nick of time, when I was tensed and clueless, my son, like a rock solid figure, decided that we take another taxi to the actual entrance ..and the rest of the story.. happily ever after ending 😁

Our trip to Japan was truly memorable. We were pleasantly surprised by the unexpected kindness we received at every turn. Exploring Japan was a joyful experience, as we immersed ourselves in its rich history and vibrant culture. The beauty of Japan was enchanting, and it left an indelible mark on our hearts. Japan's charm was fragrant, captivating us with its unique blend of tradition and innovation. But above all, the discipline of the Japanese people left a strong imprint on our hearts.

• Nobody talked loudly at any time irrespective of age.
• Children behaved their best when they were outside; We never saw tantrums, fights or anything of that sort. It felt like the children were brought up really well.
• Nobody ate while walking. There were no trash cans on the roads. Everybody gathered at restaurants only during meal time. All restaurants would be full during this time.
• Nobody ate on train rides. All places were perfectly clean and dustless at all times.
• People treated each other with utmost respect. 
• Old people also went out of their way to help us when needed.
• Everything ran on time and they were very courteous to outsiders.
• Japanese don't boast, they don't have attitude problems and they are never rude.
• Most importantly, they are united, and they respect their culture and traditions. Hence people respect them. Youngsters don't have extreme views, they are simple and respect everyone.
• They always made sure they or their actions didn't disturb the other person. This appealed to me the most!