Wednesday, March 28, 2007

Japan Trip - Part 6

Today is the end of our tour package. We now embarked on Phase 2 of our trip - free & easy.

After checking into Keio Plaza hotel, we took the JR train to Harajuku (原宿). As it is a weekday, there were less people dressed up in their fanciful & colourful costumes.
















After shopping about an hour in Takeshita Dori Street, we headed to Meiji Shrine (10min away), an important Shinto Shrine.

SG in front of the entrance with the largest wooden Torii in Japan.


Main shrine.








Rows of prayer plaques in the garden.













The always busy, packed Tokyo.


A local train crossroad junction, near a cosy neighbourhood.






Next stop is to the Metropolitan Government Office, where we get a great view of Tokyo at night. What a great view! Free some more.....










According to the news, Cherry Blossom arrives in Tokyo that day!! This leads to the next day Great Cherry Blossom Hunt (based on the japan-guide.com info about Popular Cherry Blossom Viewing Spots).


More photos on Soo Guan's Flickr page.

Japan Trip - Part 5

Today is the day to relive our childhood - a visit to Tokyo Disneysea!

















An amazingly colourful parade on water!












Is there a treasure somewhere??







Spot the mermaid(s)!












During the night, our super friendly tour guide, Annie, brought us to Shinjuku, Singapore's equivalent of Orchard Road.



In front of a good ramen store. A bit salty though.






More photos on our Flickr site.



Tuesday, March 27, 2007

Japan Trip - Part 4

Today started with a taste of Shinkansen, the famous bullet train which was launched for the Olympics in 1964. That's how we zoomed off towards Tokyo!












Next, a long bus ride to Mount Fuji, the famous mountain in Japan. Do you know you can see her from Tokyo on a clear day (from high ground, of course)?










A quick stop at Owakudani Valley (Boiling Valley), where sulphrous fumes rise from crevices in rocks. Here, the enterprising Japanese sells eggs boiled using the super hot sulphur, so hot that the egg shells turn black!












The eggs that are cooked till the shells turn black!




How can we not include the famous mouth-less cat as icon!









Due to some road closure, we visited Tenjinyama Ski Resort nearby for some photo-taking instead of going to the 5th level of Mt Fuji.














Owakudani Valley is where we spent the night, including our first Onsen (温泉 hot bath). The ladies are pretty shy about going for it while the guys are more 'open' and decide to 'just go'. Karen finds it addictive while SG feels it's way too hot.


A traditional Japanese room...





.. matched with traditional Yukata (浴衣)










... complimented with Nabe (鍋物 steam boat) dinner...



... and a good view of Mt Fuji from our room.





More photos on Soo Guan's Flickr page.

Japan Trip - Part 3

A day full of long bus rides.

From Osaka, we departed for Kyoto, the old capital of Japan. First stop is Kiyomizudera (Pure Water Temple) Buddhist Temple. Located on a hill top, there's a great view of the surrounding Kyoto.





Karen drinking real spring mineral water.










Some early cherry blossom at the temple.













Next is Nishijin Textile Centre, where there's a simple kimono fashion show. Within the textile centre, we saw an old gentleman at work on a traditional weaving machine!















After lunch, it's to the restored (not original) Kinkakuji (Golden Pavilion). Not very interesting though.









Something really cute is the coffee-making machine we encountered along the way. Really have to hand it to the Japanese to think of such a creative idea.



Talking about cute stuff, see if you can figure out what these 2 devices are for...












After dinner, it's shopping at the local supermarket. Yes, some display signages are in digital format instead of paper!







Again, more photos on Soo Guan's Flickr page.

Japan Trip - Part 2

Before proceeding to post Day 2 events, here is some good-to-know info for our friends who are going to Japan.

  • Most Japanese can't speak English well. My experience is that they may understand what I'm asking but they can't reply in English. So, it's good to learn some basic Japanese to get around. Best download some from Internet like this one japanese.about.com

  • To get around better, write down the Japanese names of the places so that when you ask for direction, it's easier. It worked many times for us.

  • Between cities, there's a railway system (called JR), which also overlaps with the underground subway system within the City. Unlike Singapore MRT stations, in some stations, if you exit from West Exit, you may not be able to go to Exit East without re-entering (hence paying again) the station.

  • It's still very cold in Hokkaido. Snowing while we were there in March. For people who live in tropical countries like Singapore, we assume Winter in Hokkaido is till early May. By the way, the start of the Cherry Blossom is the 'official' start of spring. Still, it can be chilling.

  • Oh yes, about Cherry Blossoms, you need to look for some good trees. We only caught the beginning, not the full bloom. The best way to enjoy it is not only to take pictures, but also to have a small mat/newspaper to sit down, drink coffee & enjoy the sun/sight. Very interesting to see people of all kinds having picnics.

  • Money. When the cashier took money from me, they normally will repeat the amount they receive (e.g. 1,000 Yen) so as to avoid misunderstanding with customers. Of course, I can't understand Japanese. But it's good to know that they really try to avoid getting more $$ from us.

  • When taking a domestic flight, the luggage tags given during check-in is very important. When you collect your luggage after landing, you need to produce the luggage tags before customs allow you to take them out of the airport.

  • Prepare for long queues for the theme parks. If available, go for the single rider queues. Much much faster!

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The day starts with a great view on the 54th floor during breakfast time.




Osaka Airport in the background, built on a man-made island and linked to main Honshu Island by a bridge.






Then, a short visit to Osaka Castle. When SG was here in 1995, it was not open to public. Now, it is.





Next is Universal Studio!



















Thanx to a good tip from our CG's friend Alex - we took the Single Riders queue for some rides.





For the new Spiderman ride, instead of waiting 100 min, we took 10 min! That gives some time to catch the parade at 11:30am!









Hmm, when is Hello Kitty part of Universal Studio??


































Who move SG's university here??









The days ends with a tour to a covered shopping street in Osaka city, Shinsaibashi 心斎橋筋.









See more photos on Soo Guan's Flickr page