Spring 2018 (3/26 - 4/4)

Day 1- Nihon Bound

LAX. Arrived about 3 hours early. Overly cautious, yes...but better than missing the flight completely. Had a quick breakfast at one of the local airport restaurants. Bad quality and choice. Last minute gate change. Time for some cardio. Flight was also overbooked by one person, but I was definitely not going to surrender my premium economy seat. Amazingly had the seat nexdt to mine empty the entire flight. Guess this trips is looking up already. 

ようこそ Youkoso to Japan. The 12 hour flight dragged on a bit near the end, but I managed to gradually make my way through customs and baggage claim. Next, upstairs to grab my pocket wifi. Connected. JR pass acquired. Currency...flush. Decided to hold off on activating my JR pass for a later date and paid out of pocket for the Keisei Skyliner ticket. Nearly missed the train while perusing through playlists. 

Google Map'd it to Remm Akihabara. Modest accommodations, but suitable to my basic needs. Unpacked, unwound, and explored Akihabara and all its offerings. Family Mart for some tasty snacks. Reviewed the game plan for the next day and attempted to sleep off the jet lag.

Day 2- Ramen Fail

Sporadic sleep. 3am then 7am. Time to get going. Ramen on my mind. Specifically: Nakiryu. Managed to find it after wandering through the narrow residential streets and being distracted by the sakura trees in full bloom. I saw a small group of tourists wandering around the front of the restaurant. Upon closer inspection, I saw a sign posted on the door: 'Sorry we are closed today'. Salty tears and no salty broth.

Decided to ease the disappointment with instant ramen versions of Nakiryu at the nearby 7-11 and even managed to find some Tsuta instant noodles too. Ate my conbini brunch and decided to do the shopping trifecta: Shibuya, Harajuku, and Shinjuku. Welcome to organized chaos. 

Stopped by another conbini and decided to have a small picnic at Yoyogi Park. Enjoyed the stroll amongst the sakura trees and groups of people enjoying hanami with friends. Stopped on a bench near some sakura trees and soaked in the atmosphere. Decided to grab some ramen at Ichiran in Shibuya afterwards. Definitely felt that ramen bloat. Walked it off gradually and did some shopping including a few tees, button ups, shoes, and raw denim. Headed back to home base for some R&R. Ended up eating at Gansozushi in Akihabara with the locals. Not the best quality, but cheap and quick. Called it a night a bit early to prep for Osaka/Kyoto tomorrow.

Day 3- Osaka

830am. Tokyo to Shin-Osaka 2.5hrs. Enjoyed a beef ekiben and some Tokyo Banana snacks. Checked into Best Western Fin Osaka. Not too shabby. Aimlessly wandered around the streets and did some shopping at Momotaro, MSPC, and Hoods Osaka. Got some fresh air and hung out at Horie Koen (ignore the dog pooping 😅 ). Grabbed snacks again at Family Mart including the Famichiki and some Japanese whiskey. Rested up at the hotel and then had dinner at Tempura Ebinoya late night. Most shops were closing at the time, so I decided to get some rest before meeting up friends tomorrow.

Day 4- Kyoto

Jet lag still hitting hard. 6am. Land of the rising sun I guess. Decided to do a quick day trip to Kyoto from Osaka. Did the usualy touristy stuff. Fushimi Inari Taisha. Kiyomizu Dera...another time. Enjoyed a stroll across the Kamo River and checked out a few more shops nearby. Back to Osaka. Met up with my college buddy and his friend. Decided to plan out the night at their AirBnB. Walked around Kuromon Ichiba market, Nipponbashi DenDen (Osaka's electric town), and decided to have some yakiniku at Sora. After a few cuts of meat, we walked over to Tsuruhashi (Ktown area) and got more drinks and pork belly. Decided to play some poker at the AirBnB and then ended the night there. 

Day 5- Dotonbori

Checked out of the hotel by 9am. Held luggage there until 2pm. Toured around Shinsaibashi solo for an hour or so. Met up with my friends again and checked out Dotonbori. Glico Man. Street food. Takoyaki. Okonomiyaki at Mizuno. Taco Bell...WTF? I passed on that, but my two friends had to get it since there aren't many Taco Bells in Japan. Wandered around America Mura a bit. Spotted another statue of liberty on one of the buildings' rooftops. Said our temporary goodbyes. Grabbed my luggage. Osaka to Nagoya. Met up with my friends again. Stashed my bags in a coin locker. Decided to join a hanami party in Meijo Koen in Nagoya. Afterwards, went to Sekai no Yamachan for that tasty tebasaki and Ginga Kogen beer. Crashed at my friend's place for the night while reminiscing about the good ol' college days. If only I had a time machine...

Day 6- Nagoya

Finally slept in. Jet lag officially over. Only took 6 days. Decided to grab ramen for brunch with my friend. Went to a local spot he likes that had almost a gravy-like broth. Very heavy, but enjoyable. Stopped by a local laundromat to dry my clothes I washed the night before at my friend's place. Perused the local shops nearby and then went to Osu Kannon to meet up a friend of a friend. Visited the nearby shrine and stopped by a pub to grab a few drinks. Enjoyed a parade of people and a band that walked through as we were sipping beers. Ended up at a yakitorki spot called Sumibiyaki and also had some oyakodon. Said my final goodbyes to my friends for the trip. Nagoya back to Akihabara. Unpacked and unwound. I was determined to have a ramen redemption at Nakiryu. That's the mission tomorrow.

Day 7- Ramen Redemption

Alarm woke me up at 830am. Ready for ramen baby. Mission: Nakiryu for some tantanmen. Success! The restaurant was open and I was maybe 4th or 5th in line. Got the original tantanmen and a side of pork with rice. The highlight was definitely the tantanmen. Definitely recommend. Stopped by Shinjuku afterwards for some more shopping. Was planning on checking out a sushi spot, but skipped it because the line was too long. Ended up in Shibuya Mark City for the Tokyu Food Show. Grabbed some sashimi and yakitori. Stopped by a Natural Lawsons for some Ginga Kogen beer (blue can is best). Still having some good energy reserves, I continued on to Daikanyama and did more shopping there. Decided to check out Nakameguro since it was only a few stops away. Sadly, most of the sakura had blown off from the wind. Still a nice sight to see, regardless. Grabbed a few snacks for the hotel and rested up.

Day 8- Ueno and Odaiba

Woke up and decided to hit up the Ramen Street located in Tokyo station's basement. Saw a line for Rokurinsha (tsukemen, featured on 'The Mind of a Chef') and decided to hop in. The line went fairly quickly as people slurped down the delicious tsukemen and left. Thankfully they have English menus. I opted for the Special Tsukemen and even poured extra broth in at the end to dilute the tsukemen broth to drink afterwards. With a belly full of ramen, I waddled towards the subway to Ueno Park. Most of the sakura were falling off, but it was still nice to casually stroll through the park amongst the sea of locals and tourists mixed all over. Ended up wandering around Shinobazunoike pond and saw a small Buddhist temple. The vibes were very relaxing and chill. Went back to the hotel to rest up a bit, then took the train to Odaiba and to visit the Diver City Mall. Ended up at a kaitenzushi on the top floor of the mall and ate my fill. Stared in awe at the Gundam statue lit up at night and enjoyed the views of Tokyo Bay and the Rainbow bridge. I could feel that the trip was definitely amazing and I was thankful that it ended on a very chill vibe.

Day 9- Arigatou gozaimashita

Depressed. Last day. I don't wanna go homeeeeeee. All good things must come to an end at some point. Checked out early from Remm Akihabara. Had the luggage on hold until 2pm. Decided to explore Akihabara more and stopped by Tonkatsu Marugo for lunch. Portions were small,  but expertly fried to a satisfying crunch. Grabbed my bags. Took the Keisei Skyliner back to Narita. Dropped off the pocket wifi. Filled my empty carry-on duffle bag with as many snacks as I could stuff into it. Boarded the flight. Home sweet home. Gained 4 lbs. Credit card bills. Return to work next week. Ugh. Time to get physically, mentally, and financially sound. Definitely worth it and an amazing trip I'll never forget. Til next time in Hokkaido!