I've sorted out the Japan photos by day and my trip started off in Tokyo.
We put off our luggage at my Auntie's house in Kobe, then went to the nearby supermarket to check out the colourful and yummy Japanese snacks
There are so many varieties available and they all look so yummy! I particularly loved their BIG apples where there were small traces of honey inside. My auntie told me that the honey was infused inside the apple
This was just a normal walk around the suburb in Kobe, note the red arrows which show that there are vending machines at every corner! In the city, you can see a vending machine almost everytime you turn your head. The drinks are cheap too (aud$1+) and they have a lot of variety. I buy the hot coffee all the time as it was winter and it's a good and cheap way to warm myself up! I also need to extra energy for walking so much everyday.
Took the Nozomi Shinkansen from Shin-Osaka to Tokyo after lunch. We didn't buy the JR pass as we were only going to use the Shinkansen once and it wasn't worth it. There are more Nozomi trains than Hikari trains which means there will be minimal waiting time in between. Anyway, you can see that in the shinkansen station, there are shops selling bentos for you to buy and bring on-board.
The train-attendant will push a cart with magazines, snacks, coffee or tea for your to enjoy while on board. Their service is so impeccable they will bow at the passengers before leaving each cabin. Their toilets (like most japanese toilets) are so clean. The seats on the shinkansen are also so spacious and comfortable, i really enjoyed the journey!
We reached our hotel at about 8pm. This is the first hotel (Hotel Sunroute Plaza Shinjuku) we stayed in Tokyo and it is conveniently located at the Shinjuku Station. We just cross the road and we will reach takashimaya. I think location is very important in choosing a hotel (esp. in japan) as most people will be too tired to walk back to their hotels at the end of the day. I usually bring my own toiletries when I travel because hotels give crappy ones. However, hotels here give really good quality shampoos etc, like this one, we got Pola toiletries. I immediately put my shampoos aside and used them!
I will definitely recommend this hotel as they are reasonably priced, the location is one of the best and the room is very clean and comfortable.
After settling down we went to walk around our hotel. Went to Shinjuku Station and randomly walked through electric city towards Isetan for dinner.
We must have walked about 2years to reach Isetan (by now my feet have swollen up so much my toes have merged into one)
Reached just in time before they close, so their bentos were all going at discounted prices (as recommended by lonely planet japan). As i was walking past all the stalls with the staff screaming for business, my heart was racing. I don't do well under pressure so I ended up buying the bentos from whoever was shouting (which was basically everyone). All of the food was presented so nicely and perfectly as the japanese are really particular in this aspect. The variety of food was amazing and I would definitely recommend travellers to go to one of the big departmental store's food hall for this unique experience.
Bought this odenoden (im not sure) bento which was delicious and contained food that we normally put in steamboats like crabstick, fish cake, tofu etc.
Look at the amount of food we bought for the night! Every stall was tempting and I couldn't resist! Bought yummyyyyy sushi, chicken, ebi prawns, onigiri and sashimi sushi too.
After dinner, my feet have woken up and we decided to go to Tokyo Tower at 11pm in the freezing winter condition to take some photos. Apparently, this was built as a replica of the Eiffel tower and is slightly taller. Beautiful....
This is the end of Day 1. Stay tuned for Day 2 as it will be a very long entry with lots of photos!
written by mff perth
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