Tokyo Station and Tokyo Tower

Two Saturdays ago, the day after Dan and I went to Yasukuni Shrine, we went to the area around Tokyo station.

It was a gorgeous winter day, with the typical pure blue sky, so the skyscrapers looked amazing.

The first place on our list was the Imperial Palace, so we walked from the station. I didn't take any photos of the Palace itself, because I've been there close to ten times, but I always like the look of this fountain when I pass it.

After the Imperial Palace, Dan and I walked to the Diet Building (国会議事堂, kokkai-gijidou). I was glad he suggested going there, as I've done the major tourist sites in the area so many times, but had never seen the Diet.

And from there we walked to Tokyo Tower. We considered getting the train, but we had a completely free afternoon and the weather was lovely, so we found our way. It took about an hour.

I'm never been to the top observation deck at 250m, because you have to pay extra to go up from the main observation deck at 150m. So we decided to go the whole way and pay the extra. The view was fantastic, but it was a windy day and the Tower was actually swaying. It made us both feel quite motion-sick, so we didn't stay up there too long. But I'm glad I did go up, because I may not have had the chance again.

Mt Fuji was visible, but some clouds got in the way.

Tokyo Bay was also visible, and I'd never seen it "from the air" before, so that was nice.

After Tokyo Tower we decided to head home because we were both quite tired. But it was probably the best day of showing someone Tokyo I've had, because I got to see new sides of places I'd been countless times.

Tokyo Disney Sea

On Sunday I went to Tokyo Disney Sea with Rob and several other friends from Leeds. Some of the Japanese people came from Osaka and Fukuoka, and for one it was his first ever trip to Tokyo!

It was the last weekend before Christmas, and Disney Sea is very centred around couples, and as Christmas is a couple's holiday in Japan, it was very very crowded. One of our friends arrived before us, and she texted us saying that we might not be able to get in because there were so many people.

But we decided to try to go anyway. On the way, because it was such a beautifully clear day, we saw Mt Fuji from the train, which was very nice. (Sorry about the awful photo of it though.)



We arrived at Maihama station (舞浜駅) and met our friends, and then went to the monorail stop.

This is the monorail from the front gate to Disney Sea.

And they have Mickey hand holds!

We bought our tickets, and thankfully it wasn't so busy that they didn't let us in, but it was very crowded inside. Because I'm having quite bad money trouble, Rob offered to pay for my ticket, which was extremely kind of him. He's such a nice guy.

All of the Fast Track tickets had been sold already, and it was only 10:30am. So we had to wait for the whole time for every ride we went on. The average wait was about 2 hours, which wasn't too bad considering what it could be.

The first ride we went on was Tower of Terror, which was an experience, considering I hate the stomach-in-your-throat feeling, and it's a free-fall drop ride, but it was still fun.

And here are the Disney characters! There weren't as many as in Tokyo Disney Land, which I've now been to twice, once last year, and then again this year with Soul Run.

We had curry for lunch in the Aladdin-themed area, and then went on a mini-Sinbad ride.

After that, we queued for just under two hours for the Indiana Jones ride, which was very fun.

When we came out of Indiana Jones it was getting dark. When the queues are so long you don't get to go on so many rides!

We went to 'Journey to the Centre of the Earth', which is built inside this man-made volcano. It's so cleverly designed! And when it gets dark, the volcano smokes and ocassionally erupts!

After that ride, it was nearly closing time so we went on one last one, which was Storm Rider, a very good simulator that flies you into the eye of a hurricane. It was very well done.

After that we met up with the others and headed for the main gate.

We left at closing time (10pm) and headed for home. It was a very nice day. I'm so grateful to Rob for paying for my ticket. I need to find someway to repay him!

I think overall I like Tokyo Disney Land more, but if I was going on a date, I'd choose Disney Sea, because it's a very romantic place, with lots of nice areas. But both are great fun to visit - if you're in Tokyo for a while, and can afford the Y5,800, then I recommend them!

Family Visit: Nishiki Market & Return to Tokyo

On the morning of our last day in Kyoto, and last full day in Japan, we wanted to do something during the day, before catching the 17.02 Shinkansen back to Tokyo. I would have loved to see Kiyomizu-dera or Fushimi Jingu, but unfortunately we didn't have time. I hope to return to Kyoto to see the sights I missed.

Instead, we went somewhere someone had recommended to me at Gaba. It was Nishiki Market, about 30 minutes walk from Kyoto station.

It was another bright, warm day, but there was a cloud hanging over my mind. I couldn't push the sadness out of my head, I knew that this time tomorrow I would be on my own again.

We stopped at a couple of nice sights on the way, and my mum took a photo with a Glamour magazine in front of a nice temple, so she could enter the 'Around the World Photos' competition. We had lunch in a small restaurant and then headed into the market.

It was full of everything you could want to buy. There was clothing, jewellery, and most of all, food! There was such a wide variety of strange foodstuffs, and the smells ranged from enticing to frightening.

The market stretched on for several buildings, all in one long straight line.


My brother and I met a devil holding cherry blossom!

The fruit is as huge here as it is in Tokyo! All those chemicals... We bought an apple and cut slices off it - it actually fed five of us!

After the market, we realised we didn't have time to walk all the way back to Kyoto Station, so we went to our nearest station after buying a bit more food to keep us going.

We got on an Express train and wanted to go two stops, then walk to Kyoto Station. But we didn't realise that the express train skipped the first stop, and then made our stop the first one. I was standing there reading the station name in kanji, when I suddenly thought, hold on, didn't we want this one? By the time I'd worked it out, the doors had closed and the train was on its merry way again. I exlained what must have happened, and we said we'd get off at the next station. But no so luck! The express train missed the next five stops before giving us a chance to turn back.

So the last part of our day was a little rushed! We got back to the hotel to collect our bags and everything on time though, and then got to the station to catch our train.

We settled into our seats, as you can see on this photo on my Dad's Flickr page.

And then we were off again, leaving Kyoto behind us. It really was amazing. It was such a pretty place, and so different to Tokyo. I think it's definitely a must for any visit to Japan.

The following are videos showing the view from the train. Sorry about the occassional reflection of my camera or my face!

You can also see the shots of Mt. Fuji taken from the train window.

By the time we got back to Yokohama and Tokyo, it was dark, and there were good opportunities to see the city all lit up!

The train journey back wasn't nearly long enough. I tried to speak to all of my family, saying the things I'd made mental notes to mention. The whole time I was being struck with waves of sadness and foreboding as the goodbye came closer.

We pulled into Tokyo station and collected our bags. It wasn't such a rush to get off the train this time as Tokyo was the terminal.

On the way to take my family to their platform, I realised that I couldn't bear to leave them here, even if I did intend to get up early and wave them off at the airport. It just wasn't enough time with them. I knew I'd regret it if I went back to my guesthouse and didn't spend one last night with them.

We discussed it and decided that we'd make it work. The relief that flooded through me was immense, my mind was completely full of thoughts of staying with them. Nothing else mattered.

Because the way I got to Narita Airport to collect my family was so long and arduous, we decided to take the JR Sobu line from Tokyo station straight through to Narita Airport. Unfortunately we didn't know you had to reserve the N'EX Narita Express train, so we took a normal train.

This wasn't the easiest thing in the world! The Express train that pulled in was very crowded already, so we dragged all our luggage in, and the train slowly filled up with more and more people heading out from work to the suburbs in Chiba Prefecture to the East.

The train journey was very uncomfortable, until the train started hitting the major suburban stations, like Funabashi and Chiba. Then the flow of people started to ease off and we could sit down and relax.

By the time we reached Narita Airport, there were only a few people left on the train.

I was with my family!

We entered the airport, all having flashbacks of when I met them a week earlier. The hotel was nearby, but all the taxis were long-distance. One driver spoke English and told us that there was a free shuttle bus going to our hotel. We arrived at the right bus stop and it was waiting there. We clambered aboard and were off! It was surprisingly simple.

The hotel was very nice, despite being only 3*, it had the feeling of a 4 or 5*. We went up to the rooms and ordered some food, watching Japanese TV. It was so nice to still be there with them. It was like an extension of the holiday.

We went to bed late, at gone midnight, and then slept well, because we needed to be up early for their flight.

What a mad rush of emotions. I was confused, happy, and sad all at the same time. Was any of it actually happening?

One thing was certain, we'd be saying goodbye again very soon.

Hakone Day Two: Lost in the Snow

I woke up at about 9 and dragged myself out of my futon, it was surprisingly comfortable and I didn't want to get up!

Breakfast was served from 6.30 til 10 so I went down to the restaurant at about 9.40 and the place was empty. There was a breakfast buffet, as you can see from the video below.




This is the meal I chose. It wasn't very big but it was filling.



I then went back to my room and packed everything up, taking a last couple of looks at the view in the full light of day.


After checking out and paying for my room, I walked down to Togendai next to Lake Ashi and took the cable car back to Ouwakudani. The rotten egg smell returned and it was pretty gross but I knew I couldn't come to Hakone and not go to Ouwakudani.


The view was great, just hold your breath.



There were worrying warning signs all over the place. Several areas were closed off because of land-slide fears.

You can see the bubbling pools and the steam coming from the mountain.

By the bubbling pools there's a shop that sells 'Kuro tamago' (black eggs) that are cooked by dipping the eggs into a hotspring pool on the volcano and then taste like any other hard-boiled egg. I bought a bag of 6 for Y500 as o-miyage (souvenirs) for my housemates.

I didn't spend long at Ouwakudani because of all the warnings and bad smell, but I was pleased I went. I then took the cable car (it was free of course because of my Hakone Free Pass) back to Togendai and waited for the next pirate ship cruise to the southern end of the lake.

I had my lunch in a cafe there, and then realised that it was recommended in the travel guide I took with me. I usually use the DK Eyewitness Travel Guide to Japan but there was a copy of the Rough Guide to Tokyo in my guesthouse, which was much more specific and described the route, where to eat and stay, and was much more detailed than the more general DK guide.

The restaurant was called 'Lake View' and there certainly was. I got a Y200 discount because of my Free Pass too.

Here's the pirate ship I travelled on (it's included in the Free Pass).

Here's the view of the surroundings from the ship.

There were announcements with things like "If you look to your left, you will see..." but there was Japanese and then English and by the time the English came on, the sight had already disappeared!

You can take a cable car from Hakone-en (halfway down the eastern shore of the lake) or a bus from Moto-Hakone (southern) to the summit of this mountain, which apparently has stunning views, but I didn't go up.

There's the small town of Moto-Hakone.
Hakone Shrine from a rather unflattering angle.
I got off the boat at Hakone-machi (the first stop, before Moto-Hakone and then Togendai again) and went to a reconstruction of the old Hakone Barrier on the Tokaido road. There was a discount with the Free Pass but I wouldn't bother, it looked too fake, and, well... reconstructed.

The views are quite nice if you walk up to the Look-out Tower.

After the Hakone Barrier, I walked to Emperor Meiji's Detached Garden Palace, which was pleasant, but nothing special. Kiyosumi Gardens over the river from my guesthouse were much more impressive.

A better shot of Hakone Shrine.

This route through the Gardens was closed due to heavy snowfall.
On the pathway from Hakone-machi to Moto-Hakone, you can walk through the Avenue of Cryptomeria which was very pretty, but very icy!

Hakone Shrine! I'm getting closer to that famous view!
A pirate ship leaving Moto-Hakone for Togendai.
Moto-Hakone with Hakone's Twin Mountains in the background.
And here's that famous view! And... just my luck, Mt Fuji is shrouded in cloud. I could see it but my camera couldn't fight through the whiteness. But I swear it's there! Somewhere...

The gateway to Moto-Hakone town.

I walked through Moto-Hakone (it's a tiny place) and round the shoreline to Hakone Shrine.

It was nice, but the view from over the lake probably shows it in its best light.

I walked back to Moto-Hakone and tried to find the Stone-paved section of the old Tokaido road, which ran from Kansai to Edo (Tokyo's old name). It's an 11km hike from Moto-Hakone back to Hakone-Yumoto station, but you can just do some of it to, either a famous teahouse called Amazakechaya, or further on to a small town called Hatajuku, then get a bus the rest of the way.

I wanted to hike as far as possible, maybe Hatajuku, but at least to the teahouse.

The road was so difficult to find! I followed the map (taking a photo of the kanji of 'Stone-paved section of the Old Tokaido Road' because I'm really not going to know how to ask where that is!) and couldn't find it! I was worried I'd have to give up and just get the bus all the way, but I asked at a petrol station, and they directed me to a bridge over the road. I walked round and found it.

The bridge was literally covered in ice and snow. I had to hold the bannister with both hands and haul myself up to stop myself slipping back down to the bottom. The path after the bridge wasn't much better either. I was met with an icy slope, which I clambered up using roots and tree branches. When I finally got to the top, I thought 'if it continues like this, I'm going to have to give up and turn back' but I stuck with it.
There were some pretty sights along the way.
The route was as treacherous as you could get, with slopes and hills, hidden dips and so much snow and ice! Although it was possible, I really wouldn't recommend attempting the route in winter, maybe any other season but winter! I couldn't even seen the stone-paved road!

At an intersection with a road, the snow cleared and I could see what I was walking on.

After about 45 minutes with seeing no other people, and not meeting a road or anything, I did start to get worried. After the busyness of Tokyo, it was so weird for it to just be me and the wind.
Thankfully, there were bilingual signs at regular intervals, but I was constantly worried the deceptive snow would lead me on a side-road and I'd be stranded.

This slope was so hard to get down! My bottom did a lot of the work. Wet, wet work...
Salvation came in the form of a pylon. Bless those pylons.
Did I just climb down that?

The guidebook said 1km! Not 1.5! It's not a lot of distance extra, but in the cold snow, it was hard-going.

Oooh, ground!
I found the Amazakechaya tea-house and ordered what the guidebook told me to. Amazake. It's like sweet rice pudding that slips down your throat and warms you so nicely. It was looovely after the chilliness outside. It cost Y400. This is where weary travellers would rest centuries ago on their trek across the Japanese mountains. It felt nice to be treading in the same footsteps as samurai and their families hundreds of years ago.

There's a bus-stop just outside the tea-house, and I decided not to walk to Hatajuku, but to get the highway bus to Hakone-Yumoto station.

It arrived after about ten minutes waiting, which was lucky as the timetable said they only run every hour on weekdays and twice an hour on weekends and holidays, when Hakone is more crowded.

The buses were pretty cool. You take a ticket from the machine by the driver and he welcomes you with 'Hai douzooooooooo'. You can keep an eye on the cost of your journey by looking at the colourful screen at the front of the bus, where each ticket number has a screen next to it proclaiming Y200, or whatever. The price increases with each stop. You can even use your Pasmo card (used for the Tokyo subway and bus system) on these buses!

The view from the winding roads through the mountainside were very nice, showing all of the National Park at times.

I got back to Hakone-Yumoto station and went under the under-pass from the bus terminal to the train station. I walked past a couple of women who stopped me and said a cheerful 'Konnichiwa!' I was confused for a second, then recognised them as the women who took my photo on the cable car to Togendai yesterday!

We chatted for about ten minutes. I say 'chatted', as much as I could in Japanese! It was one of the things that make trips interesting and worth doing. The women were both really nice.

At Hakone-Yumoto station, I saw an Odakyu Romance Car waiting at the station. I knew that it wasn't included in the Free Pass, but was an extra Y850 or so. I thought it would be fine to make the fare adjustment at the other end, and the only train-worker nearby was talking into a microphone, so I got on and sat down. It was very nice, and comfortable. It was nice to rest my aching feet.

The door could be opened by touching this little sticker - how hi-tech!

The train was due to make two stops, first at Odawara, then Machida near Yokohama, before reaching Shinjuku. It's like a mini-shinkansen (bullet-train) so it was sleek and smooth, and does the entire journey in about 90 minutes.

It was at Odawara, when I was moved from two seats by passengers with reserved seats, that I began to sense something was wrong. The train pulled out of Odawara and an announcement in English came on saying that the Romance Car was reservation-only.

Oh dear!

I pretended to be asleep in case anyone asked to see my ticket, and then slipped off at Machida. I was worried that I'd have to go through a ticket barrier and I'd be caught out, but I just had to walk across the station and board a Local train.

This train didn't leave for about 20 minutes, and I was imagining the lovely warm, comfortable Romance Car pulling into Shinjuku, while I was still stuck near Yokohama on a cold, crummy local train.

In about forty minutes, we'd been to about five stations (local trains stop at every station on the line) and it was ridiculous. At one station, I saw an express train bound for Shinjuku on the other side and I ran for it, with half the local train's passengers!

I got a seat and it was much faster. I got off at Yoyogi-Uehara and transferred (not through a ticket-barrier) to the Chiyoda subway line, then again at Otemachi to the Hanzomon line.

When I got back to Suitengu-mae station, neither my Pasmo card or Hakone Free Pass would get me through the ticket barrier! The Free Pass only works on Odakyu line stations, and because I'd got off before Shinjuku and not gone through any ticket barriers, I'd slipped through the system.

I tried my best to explain to the ticket barrier guard and he charged me the cost of a ticket from the Chiyoda line to Suitengu-mae, which is fair enough.

I got back at around 7pm and was exhausted! But it was amazing to get out of Tokyo for a couple of days. They weren't relaxing days, but I'm so glad I did it. Hakone is definitely worth a visit!

Here are the kuro tamago I brought back.

Beautifully modelled by my housemate.

If you're interested in doing a similar trip to mine, here is the route. (It is the general tourist trail.)

Shinjuku station - Hakone Yumoto station (Odakyu line)

Hakone Yumoto station - Chokoku no Mori station (Hakone-Tozan switchback railway bound for Gora)

Hakone Open Air Museum

Chokoku no Mori station - Gora station (Hakone-Tozan switchback railway)

Gora station - Sounzan (funicular tram)

Sounzan - Ouwakudani (Ropeway cable car)

Ouwakudani volcanic springs

Ouwakudani - Togendai (Ropeway cable car)

Togendai - Hakone-Machi (pirate ship cruise)

Hakone Barrier

Emperor Meiji's Detached Garden Palace

Hakone-Machi to Moto-Hakone (walk through Avenue of Cryptomeria)

Hakone Shrine

Moto-Hakone - Amazakechaya tea house (walk along stone-paved Tokaido road)

Amazakechaya tea house - Hakone Yumoto station (highway bus)

IMPORTANT - the last train to Shinjuku from Hakone Yumoto leaves at about 8-9pm

All the transport described above is included in the Hakone Free Pass. A Two Day Pass from Shinjuku station costs Y5,000.