Welcome to another report of my one year stay in Japan from mid 2022 to mid 2023! If everything goes according to plan, I’ll post the final part on May 27, which would be exactly one year after I returned from Japan! With that being said, after spending a month with a couple of friends in February 2023, enjoying the snow in Hokkaido and early sakura around the Izu peninsula, it was time to face one of the busiest seasons in Japan – proper sakura season in March/April. My mother would join me in late March on her first trip to Japan ever and she was hellbent on seeing some sakura and me being the tour guide. This came with the benefit of her _paying for all expenses during our travels, which was very nice of her_!
You can find the other reports down below.
[Part 1](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/178mxdx/one_year_in_japan_the_open_air_sauna_june_july/) | [Part 2](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/17kfjpl/one_year_in_japan_escaping_the_heat_august_2022/) | [Part 3](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/17yfls8/one_year_in_japan_sapporo_my_beloved_august_22/) | [Part 4](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/1b1mkrh/one_year_in_japan_big_news_first_mistakes/) | [Part 5](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/1b88w18/one_year_in_japan_a_most_enjoyable_kyoto_october/) | [Part 6](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/1bi2lvb/one_year_in_japan_kanazawa_and_nakasendo_november/) | [Part 7](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/1bsgtgx/one_year_in_japan_onomichi_and_the_famous/) | [Part 8](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/1c0nfqf/one_year_in_japan_a_boat_ride_and_first/) | [Part 9](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/1c8mxu2/one_year_in_japan_horse_meat_and_erupting/) | [Part 10](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/1cfgf43/one_year_in_japan_the_calm_before_another_storm/) | [Part 11](https://www.reddit.com/r/JapanTravel/comments/1cltmi1/one_year_in_japan_snow_and_sakura_in_february/)
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**Tokyo**
Picking up where I left off in the previous report, I decided to show everyone what a “typical” [Airbnb](https://imgur.com/a/c3JuctT) I’d stay in during my time in Japan looked like. When my friends left, I booked a very cheap Airbnb in Kunitachi, which is in west Tokyo, about 40 minutes away from Shinjuku on the Chuo line. As I mentioned in some of my earlier reports, I quite enjoyed staying out of central Tokyo and exploring areas that I’d otherwise never go to on a normal vacation. This place had a kitchen, a bedroom and a bathroom. Looks pretty barebones but it was more than enough to satisfy my needs and the internet in Airbnbs was usually very good.
Since it was the beginning of March, I decided to go back to [Yushima Tenjin](https://imgur.com/a/WPruOWQ) to check the status of the plum blossoms there and they were beautiful at the time. One train stop away from Kunitachi is Kokubunji, which I went to because I saw a couple interesting spots on Google maps to check out. One of which was the small [Tonogayato Garden](https://imgur.com/a/s4FksNM), which was alright for a short visit. More interestingly, there’s a small path called Otaka no michi, which looks very cute and goes along a [few shrines and another small garden along the way.](https://imgur.com/a/ficZCYF)
Having seen Kawazu sakura a two weeks prior, I checked where I could find early blooming sakura in Tokyo and was happy to find that near my next Airbnb’s location (Ojima in the east of Tokyo), a park close to Arakawa river had a few trees so of course I made my way there and it was [the perfect time](https://imgur.com/a/0FegtGc) to see them too. One of the many reasons why I enjoy staying in eastern Tokyo is that the further I went out, the more relaxed I felt. It’s so far removed from the central and west, where you have tens of thousands of people converging in several spots while here, [there is just a wide open park,](https://imgur.com/a/QTOFmuU) families and friends just hanging out in what felt like a more accurate represenation of what the average Tokyoite did in their daily lives. I think I went here a few times every evening because it put me at ease and I miss spending time there. And as always, plenty of small mom and pop shops serving all kinds of food, like this [wonton soup with a side of fried rice.](https://i.imgur.com/wovonL6.jpeg)
Another garden I visited was [Kiyosumi](https://imgur.com/a/z7AywMS)! It’s in Koto, so again a bit out of the way but definitely worth a visit if you somehow find yourself in the area or just want to see something new if it’s your Xth visit to Japan. [Bonus pic](https://i.imgur.com/LKZVn6q.jpeg) from when I walked back “home”; sunsets in Tokyo in those side streets with rivers running through the city are particularly great.
The week leading up to my mom’s arrival was spent with me visiting a bunch of parks in Tokyo to see how the [sakura](https://imgur.com/a/uoXtuZE) were going considering my mother wanted to see them. This was a tad stressful because it was supposed to rain for a few days before my mother arrived and in 2023, sakura season started super early so I was scared the rain and wind might kill em off before she even got there. That being said, [Shinjuku Gyoen](https://imgur.com/a/2qPOzyB), [Yoyogi park](https://imgur.com/a/LVHnYCl), the [Kanda river](https://imgur.com/a/k6XGYxj), [Chidorigafuchi](https://imgur.com/a/SPIACp3) and Ueno park were going strong! I switched Airbnbs one more time before my mom arrived, staying in Asaka – in Saitama. I had a couple more sakura trees right next door, which was great.
And then, the day had come! My mom arrived at around 7pm, I picked her up from Narita airport and let me tell you, it was an incredibly weird feeling riding back into that airport. Around 10 months earlier, I flew in and it was practically deserted due to the pandemic but now it was back to somewhat normal and I was hit with a weird sort of nostalgia! My mom was surprisingly fit and didn’t seem jetlagged at all, demanding me to show her around Ueno park at like 10pm still. We got her her own Suica, her first konbini visit and then just went to the hotel and slept.
My mother had a couple of things she absolutely wanted to see and aside that, I was basically a tour guide who just showed her around spots I decided on on the day. The first thing my mom wanted to see was TeamLabs. Not something I personally had much interest in and the experience was pretty meh overall to be honest but she enjoyed it. Following that we headed to Tokyo station and went to Sushiro because my mom wanted to try Sushi and was keen on trying the “conveyor belt” one she saw on social media. Since it was nearby, we then walked to Chidorigafuchi and the Imperial Palace Gardens, giving my mom her first proper sakura experience. We spent quite a while walking around and it soon got dark so we took a train towards Tokyo Tower. [Tokyo Tower](https://imgur.com/a/wsiAijY) looks great at night, especially with some sakura in front of it. We finished the day with a CoCo ichi meal before walking around the [pond near Ueno park.](https://imgur.com/a/J282Qmm)
The following day, my mother wanted to check out Akiba to my surprise. She’s not into anime or video games at all but she thoroughly enjoyed seeing just how many figures and plushies of everything exists. A visit to nearby Kanda shrine was of course obligatory. Gotta love the ema people put up there due to its close proximity to Akiba. Before going to Sky Tree in the evening, we went to [Hamarikyu Gardens](https://imgur.com/a/0i1n0r5), which are way nicer looking in sakura season than in February, when I went there with my friend. Now, Sky Tree was an experience. Having been there just a few weeks earlier with my friends and there being no lines whatsoever, this time around, things were different. We had to wait for around an hour to get tickets and the observation decks were packed. If it was that bad in 2023, I can’t imagine how it is now.
On the third day, the jetlag or just general fatigue hit my mother and she slept past noon so we had a more relaxed day without as much walking as the two before. Took a train to Kichijoji in hopes to show my mom [Inokashira park](https://imgur.com/a/q7acafP) with its famous sakura around the pond and we were not disappointed! My mom wanted to shop and since I am the least knowledgeable person when it comes to this, I simply took her to Ikebukuro’s Sunshine City and hoped she’d find stuff there and she actually did buy a bunch of “fluffy” dresses!
The final day in Tokyo was a bit more packed again in terms of things to do. First on the agenda was a visit at Cafe Reissue, which my mom of course saw on Instagram. Since you can’t reserve, they take your name and give you a time to come back at, which meant we had about an hour and a half to do something else. This was when we headed to Shibuya Sky. I had never been there because I didn’t really want to spend 2000 yen on another observation deck but this one is [actually good](https://imgur.com/a/pbLUyeH). In my opinion, if you could only pick ONE observation deck in Tokyo, this should be it. Nice, open views in a far better location than Sky Tree for example. Afterwads we headed back to the cafe and got our latte/hot chocolate art. I’m a bit of a hot chocolate snob so I’d say the drink itself was alright, [the art](https://i.imgur.com/eZ8EJQG.jpeg) is pretty nice and the sandwich was better than I expected. Definitely worth checking out if you can get a spot here.
[Shinjuku Gyoen](https://imgur.com/a/TjXLY3U) at this point had a fair amount of sakura trees already losing their petals, making for pretty walkways. In general, and this isn’t some hidden gem, Shinjuku Gyoen is definitely worth going for sakura because of how many varieties can be found in it. Just make sure to get there early…
And with that, the first portion in Tokyo was done and the next day saw us take the Shinkansen to Kyoto!
**Kyoto**
I dreaded this visit to Kyoto because during my time in Japan, Kyoto has been relatively empty and enjoyable, contrary to how it was pre-pandemic. And the difference was definitely noticeable just a few weeks after having been there with my friends. Still not as bad as it probably is now, but noticeable. We wanted to go to Kiyomizudera in the evening for _that_ picture, so we spent the time before that just [strolling](https://imgur.com/a/TbXibdz) around the east side of Kyoto, but not before getting some lunch at a nearby restaurant. This is where I first realised my mother had no taste, as she didn’t like gyudon whatsoever. Meanwhile, I thought this was one of my favourite [gyudon](https://i.imgur.com/Z96djHx.jpeg) I ever had.
We headed over to Maruyama park afterwards, with [sakura all around](https://imgur.com/a/pNbDMfe) and plenty of food stalls for your typical Japanese festival snack cravings. From there, we walked over to Heian Jingu, passing by [Chionin Samnon](https://imgur.com/a/g3Yc2gV). I’ve not been to the garden that is next to Heian Jingu, so we went in there. It’s not the biggest place but it’s [very quaint and beautiful](https://imgur.com/a/N7gLdvD), especially the pond area. The sun was beginning to set and the walk back to Kiyomizudera would have been a bit too much for my mom that day, so we took a bus… and I’ve vowed to never do that again. It’s crazy how packed buses in Kyoto got once regular tourism picked back up. [Sannenzaka](https://imgur.com/a/y5lZLzh) was also back to what I was used to pre-pandemic. On one hand, this must be great for local business. On the other hand, I can’t imagine living anywhere near here…
Kiyomizudera was packed to the brim and my mom really wanted to take a picture from the famous angle, so we stood there for what felt like half an hour with little to no progress before she conceded, but we got nice pictures just off the [platform](https://i.imgur.com/C2tTtGf.jpeg). She enjoyed walking around Kyoto more than actually checking out the sights sometimes, which was great because Kyoto is a beautiful city. [Kiyamachi](https://i.imgur.com/QpYPiMn.jpeg) is fantastic at night!
I had to face the PTSD of the prior month’s Nara visit because of course, my mother wanted to see there deer there. But we got there early enough, with plenty of time to check out [Todaiji](https://imgur.com/a/aEC04SN), where my mother bought a goshuincho, and [Kasuga Taisha](https://i.imgur.com/WfESgGs.jpeg). On our way back from Nara, we got out at Fushimi Inari and made our way up for the [sunset](https://i.imgur.com/TNKpxTJ.jpeg). No torii pictures here because I’ve taken so many at that point, that I simply didn’t this time.
We were looking for something to eat and up until that day, I had _never_ experienced being denied entry into a restaurant before. Throughout 3 separate Japan vacations and this whole year I spent there, everywhere welcomed me, even out in the sticks. But that day, it happened twice. The first place I kind of give a pass because apparently they had some “bar event” going on so no food was being served that day (Google maps reviews were raving about the food there). But the second place, an okonomiyaki restaurant, does not get that pass. I slid open the door, saw 2 empty tables and the counter having a bunch of space. The owner’s wife saw us coming in, I asked whether two people are fine – in Japanese, mind you – she had a very brief chat with her husband and then told us they’re full. Obviously I accepted that and we went back out. I was pretty angry outside, though. There was no way they had no space in that restaurant and I am convinced they used that reasoning because they didn’t want to serve foreigners. We just went to a nearby Chinese restaurant in the end, my mom not minding the “fuss” much but this was the first time I got denied from multiple places, so I was still somewhat mad lol.
The next day, we headed over to Nanzenji. Since we got off at Keage station, we walked our way up and had a quick look around [Nanzenin](https://imgur.com/a/OVkFJiQ) before getting to [Nanzenji](https://imgur.com/a/tliBSyM). Also worth visiting is [Eikando](https://imgur.com/a/oonvumy) a bit further up the road. I can’t remember if pictures inside the facility are just not allowed or if I forgot taking that many but the area is quite large and you can walk inside the temple. We then went to Ginkakuji, which I didn’t take pictures of at all since I’ve been there before in October (so if you want to see pictures of that, check that post out). Unlike in October, this time there was a line to get tickets – which I didn’t expect because it used to not be as popular as Kinkakuji.
Final day in Kyoto proper was spent in and around [Arashiyama](https://imgur.com/a/J9Dko2b) before my mother had her booked Maiko photoshoot. This took about 2 hours, she got the makeup done, was dressed up and had a bunch of pictures taken. She loved it. The place she did it at was called “Kyoto Kimono Rental Yumeyakata). Afterwards, she bought some souvenirs in random stores in the city. She also wanted to check out some other “famous” maccha place called “Maccha House”. I’m actually not that big of a fan of maccha and this place really just seemed like a tourist trap. My mother enjoyed it though and as long as she had a good time, I didn’t mind going to these places. Looking back at this Kyoto leg of our trip, I realise we didn’t really have any “traditional” Japanese food experiences (as in kaiseki or the like). Not sure why that was. That was our last full day in Kyoto since the next one would be a day trip from there to Himeji, before we headed down to Hiroshima.
**Himeji**
I’ve been to Himeji before in like 2019 but back then, the castle was covered up for some renovations but this time, it was all there in its glory. And man, [Himeji in Spring is absolutely beautiful.](https://imgur.com/a/HaRK8iB) The park before it is full of sakura, I’ll let the pictures do the talking and say that visiting Himeji is always a must but especially when you are in Japan in Spring. One of my favourite sakura spots for sure. The only negative thing I could report about it is that going inside the castle may not be worth it for you. There’s a whole lot of stairs to take, which usually is no big deal for me but at some points, everyone had to wait for like 10 minutes before being able to go up to the highest point because there were so many people inside. I can’t imagine this being much better a year later.
**Hiroshima**
Took the Shinkansen from Shin-Osaka to Hiroshima at around 11, making us arrive at around 1:30pm. Dropped our luggage off at Koko Hotel Hiroshima and then went for lunch at [Yotchan](https://maps.app.goo.gl/2xWwwoEvWZHDDYqF7), an okonomiyaki restaurant I went to a few months prior. I was a bit scared my mom wouldn’t be a fan of okonomiyaki, given she didn’t enjoy tonkatsu or gyudon but this turned out to be her favourite meal of the whole trip, which made me very happy. Hiroshima style okonomiyaki are in my opinion far superior to their Osaka counterpart, the noodles at the bottom really elevate the dish. The weather during our time here was pretty bad with mostly rain, but it certainly added something to the mood around the peace park and museum, which we visited of course. Sakura in Hiroshima weren’t really existent at this point anymore, understandably so since the season starts a bit earlier here than up in Tokyo. The good thing about Hiroshima is that there’s a bit of an underground mall with lots of shops and places to grab some snacks, so we were able to avoid much of the rain. Nevertheless, we ended the day a bit early at around 7pm (even though my addiction kicked in and I went for CoCo ichi at like 10pm lol).
And then we were off to Miyajima on the next day. It was my first time going there since my planned trip in November was foiled due to stomach issues. The weather was still rather bad but just like the day before, I think it actually added to the atmosphere on the island. Obligatory torii picture [here](https://i.imgur.com/rvLS10l.jpeg). The shrine itself isn’t that impressive – maybe this was due to the weather, though. But it wasn’t raining super heavily, so we decided to take a walk to [Daisho-in](https://imgur.com/a/vwCH2s2), which was maybe 10-15 minutes away on foot from Itsukushima shrine itself. Very much worth a visit, they occasionally let steam (?) out into the yard here, which is pretty cool in these weather conditions. Of course, I was put on goshuin duty ever since my mom had gotten her book in Nara so I had to collect stamps at every shrine we got to. If you go here and it is raining, be a bit careful about the stairs – they can be very slippery and my mother was incredibly lucky to not tumble down all the way down at one point.
After exploring just a little bit of [the forest/mountainside, we decided to head back](https://imgur.com/a/AJtQKdt) to the shrine and to our surprise, it was completely free of water now! [Got lucky there and able to get up close to it!](https://imgur.com/a/OY8qFUX) And that was it for Miyajima, we took the boat back to Hiroshima, got another round of okonomiyaki in before returning to Tokyo on the next day.
**Tokyo**
Since it was my mother’s last full day in Japan, we went on a bit of a goshuin hunt around several shrines and temples, both small and large, in Ueno, Uguisudani, Akihabara and Asakusa. We simply walked from on to another, can’t really list them all but Ono Tersuaki and Akiba shrine (this was kinda hidden!) were some of the smaller ones. There was a little festival around Sensoji going and we got a few snacks there. After one last walk along the Sumida river, it was time to go shopping. Only this time, it was me doing the buying… Got myself a PS5 that my mother took back home in her suitcase for me, the weak yen was just too good back then already and made me save like 100€ on that thing! We had dinner at my favourite little Chinese place near our hotel and then, my mom’s time in Japan was pretty much over as we went back, packed up her stuff and got ready for the next day’s trip to Narita, which I will cover in the next (and possibly final) report!
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I love showing people around Japan, especially when it’s their first time. I was a bit afraid my mother would miss out on the sakura and the mood would be bad but fortunately it all went well and mostly as planned. She absolutely loved it and would love to visit again. For me personally, as you can read about in this thread I made a year ago, I was super glad to have been “living” in Japan during sakura season because I think planning a normal 2 week vacation around sakura would be very stressful. Especially with tourists hitting record numbers currently, I feel like travelling during sakura season would be too much of a hassle for me personally – but to each their own!
To be honest, I had a tough time writing this report due to some depressing stuff going on in real life right now so I am not really that happy with how it turned out. Nevertheless, I am planning to release the final report on the 27th as planned. It’s been almost a year since I returned home and I wish I had written these reports while in Japan instead of this late but too late to stop now, I suppose. If there’s enough interest, I could write a “Best of…” report as an extra, talking about my favourite restaurants, foods, places to visit, activities and also my least favourite things during my time in Japan. But I’ll see how the next report goes. Speaking of which – that one will include my final solo sakura adventure around the north of Japan in cities like Kakunodate, Morioka, Kitakami, Hakodate and, of course, Sapporo.
Thanks for reading and if you have questions, feel free to drop them!
by Dumbidiot1323