my little boy

the baby hammies at great world reminds me of you ......

11:32 PM

Japan Trip 210309-270309 (vi)

Day 7

was the start to our independence day ...
no more comfy coach rides ...
no more xiao li to settle everything for us ...



breakfast ...
had japanese style spaghetti!
(yes i ate spaghetti ... it was quite nice actually)



then it was a few rounds of group photos before we hopped onto the shuttle for Narita station ...



think the time was 0950 ... and the next train leaves at 0955 ...
had an omg experience trying to lug our luggage from 1 platform to another as fast as possible ...
huge luggages and long stairways are always bad combinations ...
(1 cute japanese guy helped ms kuah with hers!)

we made it to asakusa station in 1 piece ...
(only making a wrong stop once)
our hotel is actually pretty near the station ...
we just walked stright from exit A1 ...
3 min and voila!
train tickets from Narita to Asakusa JPY920 (approx SGD14.60)

first stop for the day was Tokyo metropolitan govt buidling ...
Asakusa to Shinjuku JPY260 by metro (approx SGD4.20)
had a hard time finding the Shinjuku line ...
(it was at a separate station)
luckily the japanese we met were really helpful ...
Shinjuku station was huge!



Tokyo metropolitan govt building was ok ...
saw lots of buildings ... thats all ...
didnt manage to see mount fuji or tokyo tower ...

next was sakura viewing at Shinjuku gyoen!
JPY200 entrance fee (approx SGD3.20)
it was a loooooooong walk from the tokyo metro govt building ...
(maybe 20 min?)
lots of picnic-ers ... families ... youngsters .. elderly ...
love the casual feel of the garden ...
we found a sheltered spot for our packed lunch ...



pepper porku + barley rice from family mart JPY395 (approx SGD6.30)
mineral water JPY100 (approx SGD1.60)
ms kuah had some fish bento ...

was quite nice actually ... barley mixed with rice is edible ...

after lunch was sakura searching!











sadly most of the trees have not started to bloom ...
but we still managed to find a few pinks and whites around the park ...
the prime spots were 'chopped' by picnic-ers ...
(and couples)

next to Harajuku ...
train tickets JPY130 (approx SGD2.10)
it was super crowded!
didnt manage to see any gothic lolitas ...
shopped to our hearts content at daiso ...
total damage JPY1995 (approx SGD31.70) on cute random stuff ...

last stop for the day ...
tokyo tower ...
xiao li told us nobody bothers to visit tokyo tower nowadays but we still decided to go ahead ...
Harajuku to Kamiyacho via metro JPY190 (approx SGD3.00)
entrance JPY820 (approx SGD13.00)

night scenes of toyko was ok ...
but it was cold outside and the windows were foggy ...



our little memorabilia ... neoprint with the tokyo tower as backdrop! JPY800 (approx SGD12.70)



also bought a hello kitty keychain JPY500 (approx SGD7.90)

then it was hotel sweet hotel ...
Kamiyacho to Asakusa JPY190 (approx SGD3.00)
dinner bento from family mart again ...



noodle JPY295 (approx SGD4.70)
apple yogurt JPY105 (approx SGD1.70)
liked the apple yogurt ... the apples inside were crunchy!

Day 6

our last day in japan ...
we woke up super early ...
(used to waking up at 0600 for breakfast at 0700 ... thats SG time 0500 and 0600 respectively)

itinery for that day was the Asakusa Kannon Temple ...
then the Narita airport ...

on our way to the station ...
Bandai HO!







Back to where we first started ...



it was another freezing cold day ...
did some last min souvenir shopping ...
hello kitty wooden charms JPY300 each (approx SGD4.80)
mini scent bags JPY180 each (approx SGD2.60)

then a leisurely stroll along the sumida river ...
the kaminarimon was actually very near our hotel!





on the pink train back to the airport ...

we were very early ...
(think we had 4 hrs to roam around)
luggage storage JPY500 (approx SGD8.00)
lunch was at macudonaldkudo ...
xiao li said the ebi burger is a must try ...
so we tried!



JPY670 (approx SGD10.70)
not too bad ... prawns were sweet ... preferred the fries in SG though ... maybe because the fries in Japan are lightly salted ...



all observatory decks should be open aired ...
could have sat there for half a day to people and plane watch ...

more souvenir shopping before boarding!
tokyo banana cake org JPY1000 each (approx SGD15.90)
tokyo banana cake choc JPY1050 (approx SGD16.70)

& more shopping at the boarding gates ...
(should have bought the food stuff from here instead ... slightly cheaper)
snapped up a few boxes of royce chocolate JPY660 each (apporx SGD10.50)
royce bar chocolate JPY330 (approx SGD5.20)

and we finally called it a day ...



got influenced by xiao li to watch the last samurai on our flight back ...
once again i fell sleep ...
(lol ... perhaps i was really tired)

---

and thats sums up my unforgettable japan trip!
i need to go back again for:
mount fuji
sanrioland
disneyland
kyoto
shirakawa-go?
who wants to go with me ?????????????

10:30 AM

Japan Trip 210309-270309 (v)

Day 6



this is what we had for breakfast almost everyday ...
wedges ... hotdog/bacon ... eggs ... bun ...
i didnt mind as long as theres potato ...



totally random ...
how to use the toilet bowl ...



this is the enlarged version of what we see from our room ...
it snowed again that morning ...
but i was too cold to hop down the coach ...

anyway highlight for the day was disneysea!





the sun was out but it was still freezing!
we concentrated so much on phototaking that we only made it for 1 ride and 1 musical ...
we fast passed journey to the centre of the earth ...
screamed once and the ride ended abrubtly ...
should have fast passed the indiana jones ride as well !!! that one looks much more roller coaster-ish ...
watched the little mermaid musical ...
only understood the english songs cos we forgot to ask for english translation ...











aim for the day was to find chip and dale ...
but they must be hiding ...
cos i only found donald ...
and goofy in a weird einstein-ish crop ...
and the ulu chef from little mermaid ...
and the 'prince' from little mermaid who was flirting with the jap girls in english -_-
(made us wanna puke our lunch out)



had to literally grab donald to take a pic with him ...
(no orderly queuing up when it comes to phototaking with disney characters)
luckily we saw mini donald ...
(saved the day a little)



too cute!

didnt have much time for shopping cos we had to rush out bfor 5 ...
& we were late ... oops ...

expenditures at disneysea:
hotdog for lunch JPY380 (approx SGD6.00)



curry popcorn JPY300 (approx SGD4.80)
(wanted to get the chip and dale popcorn bucket ... but they say its only available at disneyland T.T)
the whole arabian coast area smelt of curry! not that i m complaining ...



sesame churros JPY200 (approx SGD3.20)
(not too bad ... tasted like 'butterfly')
baby mickey case with snacks JPY1200 (approx SGD19.00)
chip and dale jar with nuts JPT1300 (approx SGD20.60)



dinner was japanese bbq! JPY1800 (approx SGD28.60)
we only had 1 hr ... so its chop cook chop eat ...

the rest of the night was packing for our free and easy day ...

9:53 AM

Japan Trip 210309-270309 (iv)

17/05 better finish adding pics to these posts otherwise they will never get posted ...

---

Day 5



thats the view from our hotel room!
(we were lucky to have nice views from our rooms throughout our trip ...
except for our last day ...)
i thought that was mount fuji ...
(lol ... fat hope)



love this hotel ... service was very good!

every morning the whole bunch of us will souvenir shop at our 'new' hotel ...
& this morning i bought 1 hellokitty fabric mirror! JPY648 (approx SGD10.30)
(afer discount ... there was some complimentary voucher ... have forgotten to bring it down but they gave me the discount anyway! )

after shopping xiao li told us its snowing!


photo credit to ms kuah

all of us rushed out like excited little kids ...
that was my first experience with snow!!!
tried to capture it on camera but couldnt ...
cos they were small and fluffy and foam like ...
(luckyily ms kuah video-ed it ... the super hilarious video)

our first stop was supposed to be mount fuji ...
(supposed because weather was bad ... and we couldnt ascend even the first station T.T)
the rest did experience the woah toilets at the entrance though ...
(lol)
off we went to the visitors centre for a video to show how mount fuji was formed from the eruption of 2 volcanoes ...
the more i watched the more disappointed i got ...
but xiao li was very nice to buy us each a mount fuji postcard ...
(i wanted the real thing though!)

souvenirs to console myself:
mount fuji clarinet hp charm JPY370 (approx SGD5.90)
hello kitty lucky charm JPY580 (approx SGD9.20)

lunch was at a restaurant near lake ashi i think ...
it was raining & freezing cold! look at the mist ...








enjoyed my porku lunch!
hotpot ... meatballs .... fried fish ... udon and rice ...
bought mount fuji postcards at the souvenir shop JPY200 for 2 (approx SGD3.20)

next stop hakone peace park ...
was still raining ...
walking up the hill was good excercise ...
we were panting midway ...
(lol)



the summit looked heaven-like to me ...
must be the mist ...
this park was built by the father who lost his son during war ...
(i think)



last stop for the day was gotenba factory outlet ...
this place reminds me of McArthur Glen at Troyes ...
didnt get anything except for a thermo flask ...
(lol i know)
at least ms kuah got a coach bag ...
i think they said timberland was reasonably priced ...



our hotel for the day!
loved our room! the decor and the view outside (river + streets + buildings + sakura trees that finished blooming?)
this is the only hotel that didnt allow us to borrow an adapter -_-
the recep actually told us to buy one from the vending machine ...
JPY800 (approx SGD12.70) for 1 adapter ... siao ...
our tour mates told us they bought theirs for SGD2 at ntuc so they helped us charge our cams instead ...
(so nice (: )

dinner was at the shopping centre next to our hotel ...



xiao li recommended this ...
found my porku abit tough ...
ms kuah's cheese one was nice!
there was free flow cabbage but we couldnt even finish our first portion ...
lots of food outlets in that area ...
my sanrio shop closed before i could step foot inside ...
loots from JPY105 (approx SGD1.70) shop:
an eye mask and a baking tin for my sis (mamee says she has seen that in daiso ... oops ... still abit cheaper la ...)



supermarket shopping was fun ... bought lots of random stuff ...
monkey toy JPY300 (approx SGD4.80)
chocolates JPY298 (approx SGD4.80) + JPY258 (approx SGD4.10)
(once again should have bought more! the chocs were nice! dont know why i want to hold on to all the cash -_-)

8:18 AM

Japan Trip 210309-270309 (ii)

Day 4
has got to be our favourite-st day ...
also the most packed one ...


starting the day with japanese breakfast ...
the dishes doesnt really appeal to my tastebuds ... love japanese rice though ...
bought some bread sprinkled with gold foil bfor we left the hotel JPY780 (approx SGD12.40)

---

first stop was omicho market ...

we must have been the first batch of tourist there ...
the market was rather quiet ... n i didnt dare to take too many pictures ...

---

next ... to the samurai district Nagamachi ...
it was interesting to listen to xiao li speak about about shoguns and samurais ... and how samurais turned into modern day mafias ...
loved to explore narrow streets and alleyways like this ...



---

more narrow streets and alleyways at chaya?


iwas really happy ... lol


---
next was kenrokuen garden ...

huge garden ...
but was kind of disappointed with the 'fountain' and 'pagoda' ...
(so no pictures of them)

lunch was inside the souvenir shop ...

sakura meal ...
(if i didnt remember wrongly)
i only liked the fried prawns ...
didn't finish the tofu even though they were garnished with gold foil ...
loved japanese rice with their wasabe seaweed ...
bought some home JPY525 (approx SGD8.30)
& super nice crackers too JPY1050 (approx SGD16.70)

---

next was shirakawa-go village!
the well anticipated world heritage site didnt disappoint!
weather was super good too ...
thus it was photo taking spree !







---

last stop at Takayama castle town ...
dont know why it is known as castle town ...
(didnt see alot of castles on the way)
but the black shophouses at the old town were cool looking ...
& there are more more narrow streets and alleyways for phototaking!



on the bus ride to Takayama ...
xiao li told us about the sad lives of ninjas ...
how kids were given weapons to fight one another as training to become ninjas ...
& only the strongest will survive ...
those were the olden days ...


didnt get ourselves any of their famous sarubobo good luck charms ...
(should have at least gotten 1)
but bought some fish pancakes in cheese and chocolate ...
JPY200 for 5 small fishes (approx SGD3.20)
(the cheese one tasted better!)
the opposite shop was selling gigantic rice crackers ...
& the japanese were queuing for them ...

---

our rest stop for the day was at Nagano ...
changed into yukata for dinner!

the slippers are abit ah pek-ish ...

loved the tempura ... taken with salt ...


discovered a wedding exhibition area ...
and the staff allowed us to take pictures with the gigantic kitties!
(they were telling us can take pictures but cannot take home ... so cute (: )

our day ended with the hot spring bath!
we were contemplating on whether to go ...
& good thing we decided to try it out with camy (our tour mate) ...
it was shiokness!
(especially the open air one)

10:30 PM