Our two weeks in Japan!
We just got home and I want to do this while it’s all fresh in my mind. So here goes!
Tokyo > Kyoto > Kinosaki > Osaka > Tokyo
We flew Zipair from San Jose to Narita. The flight was fine, nothing outstanding to note, but that’s what you expect from a budget airline. There are lie down seats we’ll spring for next time tho! There is no entertainment screen and their free Wi-Fi is absolutely laughable so bring your own entertainment. We didn’t have their meals that you can prepurchase but the folks behind us said they were alright. We did order some sparkling plum wine and it wasn’t overpriced at all for being booze on a plane. Very good. Definitely recommend. My only gripes with this airline is how fucking strict they are with luggage weight and staying in your specific seat. We opted to purchase extra carry on weight for one of us on the way there and checked baggage for one of us on the way back and it worked out well. They will absolutely weigh your all of your luggage so be prepared for that. We’ll still fly with them next time though because for two people, we paid $1700 roundtrip.
We have T-Mobile so we opted NOT to do a pocket wifi and unfortunately our phones are still locked thanks to paying on them monthly so no esim, so we just used the international thingy they have and it worked great like, 95% of the time. Maps and Google translate were the bulk of what we used and we kept our social media browsing limited to wifi, which was available a lot of places. We didn’t end up having to purchase the extra pass they offered either. So if you’ve got T-Mobile, use it.
Now onto our fantastic two weeks. My husband and I opted for a more chill itinerary as being rushed is incredibly stressful and we really wanted to take our time and enjoy Japan. We also had a very sick dog who we ended up losing 3 weeks before we left so our brains were mush. All last minute planning went out the window in our grief. We had full days where we had absolutely nothing planned. But it ended up working out well, as you’ll see below.
Tokyo Day 1- arrived at 2pm, whipped through customs, purchased Narita Express tickets and got the hell out of there. We made it all the way to Shinjuku, which is close to our friends place. She had the stomach flu so our first night was in a little hotel about a 12 minute walk from Shinjuku station. Of course we went to go see things but it was mostly just overwhelming and overstimulating what with jet lag, the sheer amount of people, noise, lights and no familiar language anywhere. Went back to our room after hitting up the 711 for fun food, ate, then slept.
Day 2- up early, as expected thanks to jet lag. Went to the Studio Ghibli museum for the first entry at 10am. Was absolute magic! So glad we got to go. Then we meandered around Inokashira Park for a while. Found some early blooming sakura and our first temple. Had some conveyor belt sushi for lunch. Headed back towards Shinjuku to meet up with our friend and get settled in her place, then bounced over to Harajuku. Fun, loud, touristy. Found a ramen shop with the ticket machine out front and was able to order ramen with minimal stress. Had yuzu ramen! Highly recommend. Back to our friends house and to bed.
Day 3- jet lag is easing! Meandered to downtown Tokyo for a kaiseki lunch with our friend. We ate a lot of new things (like horse meat) and drank a lot of sake. Then we headed down under Tokyo Station to Character Street and ended up getting lost in the massive sprawling shopping area. It’s like a whole little town down there. Very cool. Back to friends house for dinner and sleep.
Day 4 OFF TO KYOTO
We purchased our shinkansen tickets the day before and almost missed the opportunity to sit on the right side of the train to see Mt. Fuji, but we lucked out and found two seats. Absolutely worth it as Mt Fuji was out in her full spectacular glory! So cool. Definitely grab a bento box and a fun beverage for your ride. There is WiFi on the shinkansens as well, but no beverage/snack cart that I saw so make sure to load up on fun treats. Got to Kyoto and stayed at Sotetsu Fresa Inn. Enjoyed our stay there. Did a food tour that evening and can definitely recommend doing one of those. We were taken to places we never would’ve found otherwise.
Day 5- Kyoto
We braved Nishiki Market. I recognize it’s pretty touristy but in the middle of a weekday it wasn’t bad. Ate a bunch of fun stuff, including some of the best sashimi I’ve ever had in my life. Then went to the Kyoto City Museum of Art for the Takashi Murakami exhibit. If you’re around before September 1st, you should definitely check it out. After the museum we walked over to the Heian-jingÅ« Shrine then over to the Kyoto Imperial Palace gardens. Grabbed some onigiri and fun shochu drinks for the walk. Gardens were cool, but nothing was exceptionally note worthy except for the plum tree we found in bloom. Very beautiful. Walked alllll the way back down to our hotel, soaking in the sights, and stopping at Ichiran for some ramen. Not the best, not the worst, but having your own private ramen window where no one speaks to you except to give you your food was nice. They also do the ticket machine ordering.
Day 6- Kyoto
Leisurely morning then off to Minamiza Theater to catch some Kabuki. We stayed the whole show plus the dance act afterwards and it was quite the experience. Get the English audio guide! Well worth it. Minamiza is a historic theater too so it was all around awesome. Wandered down the main road in Gion to find ourselves at Yasaka Shrine. Hung there for a bit and then wandered back down to our hotel to refresh for the evenings activities. Grabbed more onigiri and shochu drinks for the walk. 🙈 Once 6pm rolled around, we went to Fushimi Inari. It was still very people-y but they were trickling out and by the time the sun went down, we found ourselves alone a few times while making our way through the gates. It was eerie and beautiful. We would’ve gone to the top but there were no bathrooms and I have a tiny bladder so hopefully next time we’ll make it. Went and found a tan tan ramen spot for a late dinner and then a tiny tiny little sake bar where we drank ourselves silly with the owner, who was a little old Japanese woman who spoke very little English.
Day 7- Kyoto
Back to Nishiki Market to get more sashimi and oysters from that little fish stall we loved so much. If you go, you’ll recognize it. They have a dingy little seating area in the back of it. It was so good and they were really nice! Afterwards, I let my husband talk me into the most corny thing ever : the samurai and ninja museum and experience. Y’all, I love this man, but oh my god. Unless you’ve got kids super into ninjas and samurai, skip it. It was super cheesy and expensive for what it was. Wandered around a bit, ate some more street food, then headed back for a rest and a bath, as my lower back was killing me. Stopped at a curry place for dinner (coco house is pretty solid) Then we did a free walking tour of Gion at night. Omg this was fantastic. We immediately saw a geiko right next to us as we walked into the side streets of Gion. She was so beautiful! Our guide was incredibly respectful and told us outright from the get go how to behave and about the tensions in Gion with tourists. He taught us all about the history of geiko and maiko and showed us some historical spots that we wouldn’t have seen otherwise. Then we headed off to see some shrines and discuss the religious history of Japan. It was a 3 1/2 hour long tour and we saw SO MUCH I can’t even write it all down. I highly recommend you do this tour. My husband and I went backwards basically after it was all done so we could see the sights with no people and it was incredible. We found another sake bar and had another wonderful time there and then decided to do one more walk through the side streets of Gion, just to see if we could spot another geiko. We were rewarded with a maiko! All alone, no one else, just us and her, and it took my breath away how beautiful and poised she was. Of course we didn’t say one word to her, just let her be on her way. I love the geiko and maiko culture so this was very special for me, especially since after next month those side streets will be closed to tourists. Apparently, people can’t act right. 🙃
Day 8 KINOSAKI ONSEN
Train ride up was lovely. Stayed at Sennen no yu Gonzaemon. The rooms were really cool as they were authentic ryokan style, complete with tatami mats and futon style beds. Only had an ensuite toilet but that was fine as all the onsen had showers and products to use. We got our onsen passes, jumped into our yukata and geta, and got to it. What bliss. It’s awkward being on full display but you get used to it quickly. Bathe before going in, put your little white towel on your head and keep your hair out of the water. Dry off a bit with the little towel before heading back into the changing room. Onsen etiquette is simple. Don’t forget to bring money with you so you can grab some milk afterwards (trust me on this) or pop into one of the little stores in-between onsens. We got the set breakfasts and dinners with our stay, and its crab season so dinner was fantastic. After dinner, we went back out to soak some more, then off to bedm
Day 9 kinosaki
Breakfast was very traditional and fun. Then we rented bikes to ride up to the beach. I have this thing where I have to touch the water near where I’m staying. We were a 20 minute ride away from the Sea of Japan so I had to go. I can safely say we should’ve gotten the ebike rentals instead of standard bikes. 😅 Got back, wandered kinosaki a bit to see things and eat stuff, checked out the local cemetery (oh my god it was beautiful) then back into the onsen circuit. Broke for dinner, then back to the onsens again. We truly stewed ourselves. It was great. Things to note: I am heavily tattooed and my husband has a few himself. The Kinosaki onsens are all tattoo friendly, but expect some stares. A LOT of locals frequent Kinosaki! I can definitely recommend where we stayed, but be advised the futons were thin and people are loud so if those things bother you, find another spot. This place was centrally located and made up for it with all the other amenities. Plus the staff was super nice.
Day 10 OSAKA
Ok by now I am tired and I didn’t really find anything about Osaka that got me excited so the only reason we came here was for food and to get tattooed. We stayed at Aloft Osaka Dojima and it was absolutely wonderful. Loved it. Big fluffy bed, big fluffy pillows, excellent amenities, all around lovely. We were set to get tattooed the next day at 6pm but he messaged and asked if we could come at Noon instead. This took away the one full day we had (we were gonna checkout the aquarium) but it sounded better to me to be done at 5pm instead of 11pm so we took it. So upon arrival, we headed over to Osaka Castle. Holy crowds. Did not go inside. Just checked out the grounds. It was pretty. The plum grove had some blooms. Then off to Dotonburi. I can safely say this was my least favorite place. It was so expensive, the food was mediocre, and I genuinely didn’t enjoy much of the experience. Candied fruit on a stick was good tho. Definitely try that.
Day 11 Osaka
Leisurely morning then off to Three Tides Tattoo to get tattooed by Mutsuo. He’s incredibly talented and considered a master at what he does. My husband and I are stoked we were able to get in with him. Afterwards we wanted to be gluttonous so we hit up Kura sushi and went ham. 25 plates for 27.99 usd. Wild. We even tried fugu and lived. Lol. At this point I’m starting to not feel very good. Chalked it up to tattoo fatigue and went back to our room to rest.
Day 12- back to Tokyo
Guess who’s sick? Meeeee. Not happy. Definitely should’ve been masked during our trip but I got comfortable and paid the price. Put on the mask I should’ve been wearing, navigated the cold medicine game of Japan, hoped on our train and made our way back to Tokyo for our last two days. We stayed near Asakusa at Andon Ryokan. I have mixed feelings about our stay, not because the place wasn’t nice, it was, but because people are rude and inconsiderate as fuck. Y’all, in any hotel situation, shut up. Seriously. You do not need to yell down the hallways, you do not need to yell at your companions while in your room, and you can close doors quietly instead of slamming them. Andon Ryokan is like a pocket hotel with a ryokan vibe, so it was all close quarters and very little sound insulation and by the end of our stay, I was at my wits end with people. Seriously. Be considerate! Anyway, the place itself was super sweet. Good breakfast, an actual comfortable futon, and nice showers. They even had a private hot tub for reserve, which I took advantage of. I made sure to open all the windows after my time slot to air out the room and I wiped down anything I touched with some antibacterial wipes I found. I wasn’t like, omg I’m gonna die sick, but I definitely didn’t want to pass it on to anyone. (Took a test, not covid! Woo!)
Day 13 last day
Japanese cold meds are no joke. I didn’t get any tired achy vibes, just a little sniffle and cough, so I loaded up and we did our souvenir shopping. We lived in Honolulu for a time and we had a Don Quijote there. It was an absolute treasure trove for souvenir shopping. Huge huge huge selection of really great priced items. So we figured knowing that plus what I’ve read in here, that’s where we should go. We needed a big suitcase too and everyone said “get one from there. They’re cheap”. I’m not sure what Donki some folks went to but we went to the Asakusa location and was sorely disappointed. The luggage was outrageous, with the cheapest piece a carry on size for 8900 yen or basically $60. The souvenir section itself was small, with mostly incredibly cheap and cheesy looking stuff that felt overpriced to me. Not having the luxury of time and assuming the airport was gonna be more expensive, we got what we could get, and left. We did manage to find a huge full size hard shell suitcase down one of the little shopping alleys for 6000 yen, which was a much better victory. So I let it go. We got souvenirs. All was well. We had the best udon of my life for dinner and then off to bed where we had a terrible night sleep thanks to a jet lagged family that arrived late and stayed up all night, slamming doors and being loud AF. We’re ready to go home!
Day 14 bye bye Japan.
Made our way to Narita with our huge suitcase with no problems. Checked in, stayed under luggage limits. My cold meds are keeping me upright and all is well. Until we hit the stores in the airport and I realize they literally had just about everything Donkis had but for less AND more fun and wonderful souvenirs to boot. I was so sad. I wandered around seeing all the shit we bought, but cheaper, and then even cooler options for gifts too. The kit Kats were even cheaper at the airport! And they had different flavors I couldn’t find in any of the stores. So my advice with souvenirs is take Donkis with a grain of salt and give the airport a good try. The never ending shopping alleys are good too! There’s stuff to buy EVERYWHERE that is less expensive and more fun that the souvenirs at Donkis. We made it on the plane with little incident and now we’re home, feeling like it was all a dream.
This turned out WAY longer than I expected but I had so much fun writing it because I relived the entire trip. I have some tips and advice I’ll include below (making it even longer! Lol) but I hope you enjoyed my recap of what was a lifelong dream of a trip. Also, I’m down to answer any questions y’all have to the best of my ability, so ask away!
Tips and advice:
Editing to add that apparently suica is available at the airports, which naturally makes sense, but I did not look while I was in Narita because I was jet lagged and exhausted and really ready to be out of the airport. 😅
Suica is NOT AVAILABLE (apparently it’s available at the airports!) but we did see Icoca is available in Osaka and the Pasmo Passport card we snagged in Tokyo at Harajuku station. We went to the information counter where they asked for our passports and issued the Pasmos. There are no refunds when you leave but we managed the funds well and left with about 200 yen left on them. Definitely get any kind of transportation card you can because it made train and bus travel so much easier. You can use these cards for vending machines and at Konbinis too! Editing to add: yes, there is an app for iPhone users, but unfortunately I have android. They did have QR codes for an android suica app but unfortunately, if you’ve got a US phone, it’s not available for you. Lol.
Give yourself TIME if traveling within Japan. Train stations can get confusing and overwhelming and if you’re rushed then it’s a nightmare. Plus you need time to browse for all the good train snacks and drinks! Get there early!
Google maps did a pretty good job. It only got us lost a few times. It didn’t do great with train switch times tho. We had an instance where the train we needed to switch to was literally on the other side of the platform and we had two minutes to get onto it and Google maps wanted us to leave the station, walk around the block and then go back in? Pay attention to your times if switching trains and if you see something that looks impossible, ask one of the station employees or the information counter if your Maps is being stupid.
Toilet paper is like less than 1 ply, so be prepared for that. Also, paper towels in public bathrooms are not common. Bring a little washcloth to dry your hands with.
Trash cans truly are a rarity. I have a picture of ONE we found in Kyoto. Lol. Dog poop bags are excellent little trash bags to carry around.
The three main konbinis are amazing. If in doubt or if you need food now or whatever, Lawsons, 711, and FamilyMart has got you! Salted plum onigiri and the pancakes with maple syrup and margarine were my crack. Oh and the lemon sour shochu drink in a dark blue and yellow can. Omg so good. So cheap!
If you have questions about cold medicine, hit me up. I don’t know much but it’s a jungle in Japan when it comes to meds.
Be quiet on trains and buses. Don’t be that asshole.
Google translate is not fool proof, but it is so helpful, especially Google lens.
“Arigato gozaimasu” goes a long way.
Vending machines are EVERYWHERE and they’re BRILLIANT. They serve cold and hot drinks and sometimes even soup! We never went thirsty, that’s for sure.
We avoided using social media as a resource for finding food and ate some of the best meals of our lives. Hyped up stuff is not always the best stuff. (Especially in the case of Ichiran. Didn’t know it was famous, and now having eaten there don’t really understand why. Lol)
Japan truly is an incredible country. We can’t wait to go back and we’re gonna try for one of the Yokai Festivals this fall. 🙈
by omfgsquee