Japan Trip Update/Report

[Haley R]

This made me smile. . Really enjoying your trip reports, Haley. I'm glad you're having such a good time!

Thank you for following along! We’re having a great time and seeing lots!

 

[LovesTimone]

I have had some last minute company and been busy with them... I just caught up with your report... You guys look like your having a amazing trip... sounds like you guys got the trains figured out... YAY ....

Lots of good info...

 

[Limes96]

I’m enjoying the reports too, Haley. I’ve never been to Japan but my DH lived there as a teen (his dad was Air Force) and he’s been there several times on business. We don’t have a trip planned but he’s always talking about how we should go someday.

 

[amalone1013]

So most European destinations have always been higher on my list than Asian destinations (minus the Disney parks ) just for my personal interest but your TR is really really really making me want to go to Japan!

We got wagyu beef for $18!

If I tell DH this it might be what convinces him

 

[Mopedmom1]

That food looks amazing and I REALLY want that skillet! Thanks for taking the time to do a trip report, I am really enjoying following along.

 

[AngelDisney]

Trip Report-Day 7

This morning, Syth went to 7-11 for some breakfast while I got ready. We woke up at 7:30 am to make sure we got to our Shinkansen on time. We had to take a small train to get to the station but finding and getting on our Shinkansen was really easy. We bought food to take on the train. I wasn’t prepared for just how fast these things go. When we were sitting at the station they kept driving passed and they’re so fast!! One thing I want to mention is that these trains leave on the dot so if you’re late, you’re not getting on. I think it’s funny that the outside of it looks like a plane. The actual train ride was very relaxing and our car was completely silent which I loved. We were nervous just opening our food because we didn’t want to be too loud.

The Shinkansen took us to Kyoto station and we are staying by fushimi Inari so we took a JR train there and they let us drop our backpacks off. Our luggage had arrived at the hotel before us even though we said 6-9 pm so that was awesome! I highly recommend the luggage free travel company. They emailed me every time the status of our luggage changed (shipping, delivery).

We then walked to the fushimi inari shrine. It was busy but we knew it would be at 12:30 pm. We went all the way to the summit but the crossroads has the best view. We got some ice cream there that was expensive but refreshing. We plan to go back one morning to get some good pictures and take some paths off of the main path. There were some food stalls on the way out so we got a chicken skewer and a lemon soda. One thing I noticed about this area is there are a LOT of foreigners and tour groups (some of them not as polite as the Japanese). So that can put somewhat of a damper on things.

We walked back to our hotel at 3 pm to check in and take showers. Our room is a king studio and we booked it with points (so it was free). It’s MUCH bigger than I thought it would be! The bedroom has a big closet, there’s a balcony outside, and a long hallway with a washer/dryer and kitchen.

The last thing we did was go to Gion to see the geisha district and eat dinner. We tried some snacks along the main street that were really good. The shirakawa area is much less busy and it’s older so it’s pretty cool. We ate dinner at Teppan Tavern Tenamonya which was delicious. It’s a tiny little place in the basement of a building. The staff were amazing and the food was so good. We got wagyu beef for $18! I highly recommend if you’re in the area but you have to have a reservation. They had to turn people away while we were there.

One thing we both noticed about Kyoto is it’s way more busy and we aren’t sure we like that. There are a lot more tourists (not speaking English or Japanese) and some of them are pretty rude. There is also a lot more traffic with cars. We hardly worried about cars in tokyo but here they almost run you over. It’s not ruining our trip but just something I thought I’d mention.

ETA: I forgot to mention that we ended up using bug spray at fushimi inari because there were mosquitoes and I did get some bites

Did you get to see Mt. Fuji on the Shinkansen? I am trying to reserve seats on the Mt. Fuji side. Is it the side with D/E seats?

Thanks for the trip report and the heads up on the mosquitos! Kyoto looks amazing!! I will make sure DD wears bug spray on the day of our Kyoto tour. Can’t wait to read your next report!!

 

[CanoeRower]

I took the Shinkansen from Kyoto to Tokyo on May 20 and on the reserved cars the only available seats were the "B" seats -- the middle seats, which are closer to the window that doesn't face Mt Fuji. The train was already mostly full with riders coming from Osaka.

 

[Haley R]

I’m enjoying the reports too, Haley. I’ve never been to Japan but my DH lived there as a teen (his dad was Air Force) and he’s been there several times on business. We don’t have a trip planned but he’s always talking about how we should go someday.

The main reason we chose japan is because of how safe it is here. We don’t feel unsafe at all walking around at night. I was Skyping with my dad last night in Gion and we were on a dimly lit street and he said “you guys be careful, that looks like a really badly lit street”. I was like “dad, this is Japan” lol.

 

[Haley R]

So most European destinations have always been higher on my list than Asian destinations (minus the Disney parks ) just for my personal interest but your TR is really really really making me want to go to Japan!


If I tell DH this it might be what convinces him

We mainly chose japan because we knew how safe it is. One thing I need to add to my last post was that Tokyo was SO clean. We could hardly find any trash on the streets. Kyoto is the opposite: we’ve seen lots of trash and cigarette butts on the streets. We also didn’t see very many people smoking in Tokyo because some places had signs saying no smoking on the street/sidewalk.

 

[Haley R]

Did you get to see Mt. Fuji on the Shinkansen? I am trying to reserve seats on the Mt. Fuji side. Is it the side with D/E seats?

Thanks for the trip report and the heads up on the mosquitos! Kyoto looks amazing!! I will make sure DD wears bug spray on the day of our Kyoto tour. Can’t wait to read your next report!!

No we couldn’t see Fuji because it was too cloudy. This really isn’t the best time of year to see it. If you’re going to Kyoto then yes, D and E are what you want.

I’m hoping today goes better than yesterday with less tourists pushing us around.

 

[Haley R]

I took the Shinkansen from Kyoto to Tokyo on May 20 and on the reserved cars the only available seats were the "B" seats -- the middle seats, which are closer to the window that doesn't face Mt Fuji. The train was already mostly full with riders coming from Osaka.

Did you reserve seats the day of? We reserved ours when we landed in japan in the airport. The lady that picked our seats gave us mt. Fuji seats on purpose which was nice

 

[Douglas Dubh]

Of course, there are still areas that you shouldn’t wander around in late at night. We were told tourists don’t want to be around Rappongi after midnight.

 

[Haley R]

Of course, there are still areas that you shouldn’t wander around in late at night. We were told tourists don’t want to be around Rappongi after midnight.

Oh I’m sure there are some areas but none that we were going to be in. Everywhere we went was pretty touristy so we weren’t worried at all. Our Airbnb was near some back alleys that was very quiet but also dark. We were never worried walking around there. I’ve never even heard of Roppongi before but I looked up where it is.

 

[Haley R]

Trip Report-Day 8
We woke up and the first thing we did was went to Kinkaku-ji temple (gold pavilion). Holy cow the crowds. We got there at 9:15 am and it opened at 9. I would never go back there again. It was literally one temple and thousands of people to maneuver around. It cost 400 yen per person. Next we went to the Ryoan-ji temple which cost 500 yen per person. There were a lot of school groups here too but not as bad as the first temple. I still wouldn’t come back here though. Maybe we just aren’t temple people? We ended up skipping the last temple because they were getting too repetitive.

Instead we waited for a JR bus to take us to the JR station so we could get to Arashiyama (we tried to use all JR since our pass covers that). We got to Arashiyama around 11 am. We wanted to do the romance car first thing but the 12 and 1 pm trains were both standing only left so we got tickets for the 4 pm. We basically just flipped our plans around and did the monkey park first because we knew they closed at 4:30.

The monkey park was AMAZING. We loved the hike up and the monkeys were adorable. It’s only 550 yen per person to get in and you can pay 100 yen for apples or peanuts to feed the monkeys. The monkeys roam freely and when you want to feed them you have to go inside the building. This was one of the best, if not the best thing, we’ve done so far.

After the monkey park we started making our way towards the bamboo forest and got stopped by a group of Japanese teens. They asked if they could interview us to practice their Japanese. This was seriously so cool. I loved communicating with them and this is really what travel is about. Their English teacher took a picture of us so I could remember that moment.

Next we walked through the bamboo forest. It was okay, just felt like another tourist trap with too many people. We stopped for some food after and my two favorite things were an orange soft serve cone and a cheese dog (deep fat fried mozzarella cheese). We still had an hour before our train ride so we sat in the cafe in the station. It was a much needed break.

The last thing we did in Arashiyama was the scenic railway. It was pretty cool. We did a round trip ticket and it cost around $25. Arashiyama is really pretty and the railway showcases that. Overall a pretty fun day in Arashiyama! I definitely recommend visiting.

Oh and we ate dinner at Ippudo Ramen in Kyoto station. It was pretty good. I had normal ramen and we got dumplings that were really yummy.

 

[hulagirl]

You're going to have to do an "I just moved into my new home in Florida" trip report now too or I am going to have Haley's trip reports withdrawal. lol This was my favorite one yet! It looks SO beautiful there, Haley! Plus you're rocking the hot pink sneakers and that photo with the teens who stopped you to practice is just wonderful. You'll have that photo to remember this, now, forever. I keep wondering what time it is where you are? I wake up and come check what you've been up to;-) and there you are.

ps... Did you get to hold a monkey?

 

[LovesTimone]

I love the picture of you and your DH with the school kids... what a wonderful moment and priceless memory....

I got up this morning and was like I wonder if they have been to the bamboo forest yet... With all the pictures and your wonderful trip report going on... I am really starting to do more and more research on what we want to do....

I really can't wait to see whats up next... Have a fun day...

 

[Haley R]

You're going to have to do an "I just moved into my new home in Florida" trip report now too or I am going to have Haley's trip reports withdrawal. lol This was my favorite one yet! It looks SO beautiful there, Haley! Plus you're rocking the hot pink sneakers and that photo with the teens who stopped you to practice is just wonderful. You'll have that photo to remember this, now, forever. I keep wondering what time it is where you are? I wake up and come check what you've been up to;-) and there you are.

ps... Did you get to hold a monkey?

Haha idk if I’ll do a trip report but I’ll definitely post on Instagram of our trip down to Florida and maybe some pictures of us getting used to the area. Arashiyama was absolutely beautiful. Definitely the most picturesque place we’ve been so far. Helping the teens practice English was really fun and they did a great job! Right now it’s 8:20 pm. We’re uses to central time back home and it’s 14 hours ahead here.

No we didn’t get to hold a monkey. The monkeys are very touchy. You can’t look them in the eyes or crouch near them. I saw one monkey get really mad at a girl because she was staring it in the eyes. I have a video of some monkeys fighting and chasing each other. It was interesting to see the hierarchy going on.

 

[Haley R]

I love the picture of you and your DH with the school kids... what a wonderful moment and priceless memory....

I got up this morning and was like I wonder if they have been to the bamboo forest yet... With all the pictures and your wonderful trip report going on... I am really starting to do more and more research on what we want to do....

I really can't wait to see whats up next... Have a fun day...

Their teacher brought them out there to do that. As a teacher, I really appreciate him giving them hands on experience like that. They even gave us a paper to email him about how they did.

The bamboo forest really wasn’t that great. There were just too many people to enjoy it. They constantly stop to take pictures and it gets kind of annoying.

Tomorrow we head to Nara but not until around noon. We’re gonna sleep in and do some laundry.

 

[CanoeRower]

Did you reserve seats the day of? We reserved ours when we landed in japan in the airport. The lady that picked our seats gave us mt. Fuji seats on purpose which was nice

Yes, I didn't know when I'd be leaving Kyoto so I booked the soonest Nozomi train that day. Only middle seats left on reserved non-green cars

 

[Haley R]

Yes, I didn't know when I'd be leaving Kyoto so I booked the soonest Nozomi train that day. Only middle seats left on reserved non-green cars

Ah okay. Our train was pretty full. I didn’t see hardly any empty seats