Hey there! As some of you who follow me on instagram or read my previous post, you would know that I recently went to Japan! My parents signed up for a 6 Days 5 Nights tour with SingExpress at the NATAS Fair in Expo earlier this year and we were so satisfied with the itinerary as it took us to many parts of Japan including Disneyland!
I will not be explaining every part of the day with too much detail as there are 6 days and a picture is worth a thousand words, isn't it?
My mother was really stressed with all the packing as the tour agent said the temperature might be below 0°C and she was worried that my sister and I would not be able to withstand the cold. With much struggle, my mother managed to successfully pack 3 big luggages for us.
However, it was just my luck that I fell sick three days before we had to leave for Japan. I had a terrible sore throat and my eye was really pain. There was a sty growing underneath my eyelid. It is a red swollen bump that looks like a pimple and it hurts when I touch my eye. I went to the family clinic and got a medicated eye drop and antibiotic pills. The next day my eye got really swollen and every blink hurt. It got better the next morning. My sister and I were so excited for Japan and I cried because I was afraid I would get a fever and not be allowed onto the plane. Thankfully, everything turned out all right.
We were counting down the days, the hours and finally the minutes before we headed for the airport at 10pm on Tuesday 10 December! My sister was literally squeaking with excitement!
We took Singapore Airlines and I caught a glimpse of the second family at the boarding gate. They look nice yay :)
The flight was at 0140.
We arrived at Nagoya airport at about 9:30am the next day and we took a 2 hour and a half bus ride to Osaka!
Pictures we took at the airport!
Lunchtime! Our first stop! We went to make Takoyaki which is a ball-shaped Japanese snack cooked in a special pan. It is filled with diced octopus, tempura scraps, pickled ginger, and green onion. Imagine the look on my face when I saw all the green!
It was quite fun cooking it on our own but when I took a small bite of the Takoyaki, I thought it was horrible! The idea of eating octopus and all the green onions disgusted me.
Luckily they served noodles too so I ate that for my lunch
Next, we went to ride on the Aqua Bus Aqua-Liner to look at the scenery for 20 minutes. Personally I think the ride was a bit of a waste of time but we got a good look around Osaka, how clean it is and the special boat is long, flat and it rises only 1.6 metres from the surface of the water.
We took Singapore Airlines and I caught a glimpse of the second family at the boarding gate. They look nice yay :)
The flight was at 0140.
DAY 1
Nagoya-Osaka
Pictures we took at the airport!
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| First time experiencing 8°C |
Lunchtime! Our first stop! We went to make Takoyaki which is a ball-shaped Japanese snack cooked in a special pan. It is filled with diced octopus, tempura scraps, pickled ginger, and green onion. Imagine the look on my face when I saw all the green!
It was quite fun cooking it on our own but when I took a small bite of the Takoyaki, I thought it was horrible! The idea of eating octopus and all the green onions disgusted me.
Luckily they served noodles too so I ate that for my lunch
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| My father and sister with the Aqua Bus Aqua-Liner sign! |
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| My mother's photography skills yay |
We went to the one of Japan's most famous castles, Osaka Castle! I heard that it played a major role in the unification of Japan during the sixteenth century. In 1868, the castle was burned down but it was fully reconstructed in 1997. It was such a long walk to the castle but the scenery is really pretty! It would have been prettier if the Cherry Blossoms (Sakura) did not die :(
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| My dad's photography skills |
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| Happy family :) |
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| Selfie hehe |
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| Our new found friend, Winni! |
So hungry :( It's finally dinner time! We went to Grand Front Osaka and had steamboat and it was actually very nice and there was a wide variety of food! There was fish, pork, chicken, vegetables (ew) and mushroom.
After dinner we checked in to ANA Crowne Plaza Osaka! I was so tired I forgot to take photos of the hotel room so here are some pictures I found on Google that resembles closest to how the room I shared with my mother looked like! We finally had free wi-fi after such a long day!
| The lobby is so pretty! |
Did not manage to buy anything on the first day. I had a budget of ¥16, 000 (SGD200) and I did not want to waste it buying anything I will probably not use when we went back to Singapore.
Day 2
Osaka - Kyoto - Kanazawa
Had to wake up extremely early at 6 o'clock but at least the hotel buffet was nice!
We sat on the bus for about an hour to Kyoto! Our first stop is Kiyomizu Temple! I am a Buddhist so it was not as boring as I thought it would be when I first read the itinerary.
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| There were many kawaii Japanese students! |
This is how the temple is being supported with! There was not a single nail used in the entire structure!
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| Throw in a coin, make a wish and hit the bell! |
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| It was quite fun haha |
This is the Otowa waterfall. There are three channels of water which fall into a pond. We caught the water in a small pail, poured it onto their hands and drank the water. The water is believed to have wish-granting powers! The pail is placed under the UV light for disinfection after each person's turn.
Did you know that being a monk is actually an occupation in Japan? Monks can drink wine, eat pork, get married and have kids! Some women in Japan want to marry monks.
Time for some shopping at Nishiki Ichiba! It is a narrow, five block long market lined by more than one hundred shops and restaurants. The people there are very pleasant but the atmosphere is very busy and it is quite crowded. The stalls sell loads of seasonal foods and Kyoto specialties, such as Japanese sweets, pickles, dried seafood and sushi.
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| So cute sweets! |
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| Octopus samples! |
My parents and sister and the other family tried and bought a lot of Japanese snacks but I didn't dare try.
Lunchtime! We had Yudofu which is a hot pot dish. We sat down on mats on the floor in a private room and made small talk while eating. Surprisingly, the tofu was quite tasty! I don't like tofu but when it is simmered in plain dashi soup it is actually not all that bad!
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| Traditional Japanese way of eating! |
With a full stomach we proceeded to the stop I have been waiting so long for! Mitsui Outlet Park Shiga Ryuo! There are 237 stores and a few duty free shops. I thought it was an indoor shopping mall so I did not bring my gloves and earmuffs. Big mistake. It was actually half-indoor and half-outdoor so once you stepped out of the shops, you are literally freezing.
We had an hour and a half to wander around this huge place but my mother spent nearly an hour in the Polo Ralph Lauren Factory Store as my mother could buy the polo tees without tax and shop assistant took a long time to settle the tax-free issues. My mum bought a dark purple polo tee for me as it is my favourite colour!
After that we went to Burberry, Coach and Vans. I was so disappointed as I did not manage to buy anything else and we had to get onto the bus to go to our next destination.
It took 3 hours and 30 minutes to get to Kanazawa from Kyoto:( On the bright side, the bus driver had good driving skills and did not make me feel like throwing up. Also, my mother's company loaned a pocket Wi-Fi device for my family so we got to check our social networking sites and watch YouTube videos on the bus ride! We could also catch some sleep to recharge our energy.
It was night by the time we reached Kanazawa and we went to a buffet restaurant near our hotel for our dinner. There were many dishes and we could also got to experience Yakiniku. We grilled our own pork, beef and chicken! It reminded me a bit of the Japanese pork buffet in Bugis+. The food was really delicious and I had many servings of chocolate ice cream! My mother told me that Japanese ice cream, cake, milk are exceptionally nice as the cows in Japan eat grass that are grown from the lava rich soil.
We stayed overnight at Kanazawa New Grand Hotel and the room was big enough so my mother and I moved over to my father and sister's room.
We experienced slight snow today! My sister and I were so so happy!
Day 3
Kanazawa - Nagano
Breakfast at a french-styled buffet! Gosh, it was delicious!
We went to Takayama castle town and Kenrokuen Garden. There was a really pretty castle and we got to walk around and see the pretty scenery!
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| Selfies with mum, Winni and Audrey! |
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| Our tour guide! |
The golden wires are to support the trees when snow falls on it and it gets too heavy.
And suddenly... the rain that we have been trying to outrun slowly got heavier and heavier and we were caught in the rain! My jacket didn't have a hood and I forgot to wear my beanie :( We ran to the nearest shop to seek shelter and use the toilets. Everyone bought umbrellas and we walked as fast as we could to the bus. Just our luck, the umbrella my mother and I were sharing got destroyed by the strong wind and we had to buy another umbrella.
Next, we went to the historic Shirakawa-go Village. It is a World Heritage Site! The village is so pretty, I swear. It is widely known as one of the most scenic places in Japan! It's even more picture perfect during winter!
It was the first time my sister and I really experienced real snow (not counting the light snow we saw on day 2) and oh my gosh, it was perfect!
We had to cross this long bridge from one side to the other over a stream of water and it was quite slippery as the snow had frozen into ice and there were a lot of people.
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| I want to go back so badly! |
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| The ridiculous hat that made me a monkey... |
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| It was too cold to smile properly okay |
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| So sweet! |
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| I finally can make a real SNOW ANGEL! |
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| My sister's so happy! |
After that it was seriously way too cold and the snow on our boots melted and the water entered our shoes and our feet were freezing so we had to run back to our bus! The temperature was -4°C!
It's time to eat again! When I saw 'Japanese Set' on the itinerary, I thought we would finally be able to experience Japanese ramen! I was so happy so imagine my disappointment when I found out instead of ramen, we are served grilled meat and beanstalks on a dried leaf. I did not even like beanstalks!
However when I first took a bite of the grilled meat, I was amazed! It was nothing like I had ever tasted before and it was delicious! You would think it is a bit strange to eat food on dried leaf but it actually makes the flavour stronger! The special sauce was very nice too.
Next we went out to walk around and I saw this machine! It actually does not need any electricity, it runs on water currents. As you can see in the pictures below, the food changes every time the puppet raises the box. My sister and I thought it was fascinating.
Now it's time for another 3 hour and a half bus ride to Nagano :( I spent the time whatsapp-ing my best friends and listening to more songs on YouTube!
We arrived at our hotel for the night, Wakamiro. We checked in and got changed into traditional Japanese Yukata and head down for our dinner. We are going to be enjoying Kaiseki set!
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| My father and sister moved their mattresses over to join us! |
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| Me in the Yukata! |
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| With Jarrett, Audrey and Winni! |
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| The ladies of the tour! |
Kaseki is a traditional multi-course Japanese dinner. It takes a lot of skills and technique to prepare these meals!
Next, we went to the hotel hot spring! We undressed in the locker room and took a shower using the shampoo, conditioner and body foam provided and we entered the hot spring. It is important to use warm water to bathe to prepare your body for the warmth. It was my first time experiencing a hot spring but my parents and tour guide said that the temperature of the water was not as warm as they expected. The water was set to exactly 40°C. The room was filled with steam. We were actually quite lucky as when my mother, sister and I entered the hot spring, there was only one other Japanese lady in the hot spring and she left shortly when we entered.
I got the pictures online as I did not know we could take photos in the hot spring.
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| The indoor hot spring |
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| Outdoor |
The hot spring was very relaxing, it helped us de-stress and it made us quite sleepy so after we finished, we went back to our hotel room and slept.
Day 4
Nagano - Tokyo
We woke up at 7 and had porridge with fish, egg and tofu.
After that we went to Lake Kawaguchi to take some photos and we had a good view of Mount Fuji!
After that we went to make Soba which is a type of thin noodles made from Buckwheat flour. It was actually quite fun although the wheat got stuck onto our hands and nails and we had to scrub them off. It was a great way to bond with our family members and although we even could taste the noodles we made ourselves! I don't like soba though...
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| teamwork! |
After after more than 45 minutes of hard work...
Ta-da!
Next we went to Nagano Fruit Farm.
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| Asked a random stranger if we could take a picture with him :) |
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| These vending machines are everywhere! |
For lunch we had sushi-udon set :( I do not like cold, raw food and they served only a few bites of udon... My mother gave me her chawanmushi and I ate it with prawn and udon. Gave all my raw fish to my parents. The restaurant does not sell any other food besides sushi.
Heading to the long-awaited stop! Mount Fuji! We went to the 5th station which is the highest station. Immediately when the bus driver opened the bus door the strong wind blew in and we experienced the cold. However, it was nothing compared to how cold it really is! The temperature was way below 0°C and the wind was so strong you can see it blowing up the snow on the ground before it hits you.
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| The view! |
The other family that came along with us hid in the store while we ventured up to see the view. I think it was worth it because who knows when will be the next time I get to see Mount Fuji again?
I bought a pink Mount Fuji keychain that looks like a pudding! It's so cute!
After that we ran back to the bus while braving the scary but awesome wind. Everyone was really tired and glad to be on the bus but I was like "Let's go again!" It was so fun!
Another 3 and a half hour bus ride :( But yay Tokyo! I have been waiting so long and now we are finally going to the largest metropolitan area in the world! I have heard of how advanced and busy the huge city was and I just could not wait any longer to see it with my own eyes!
When the bus first drove to Tokyo city, I was overwhelmed. For the past few days Japan seemed to be like a really relaxing town with small buildings on the street and not all that many cars. Tokyo, was the complete opposite!
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| Cuddling like penguins! |
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| My sister nearly got blown away! |
It was extremely slippery climbing the stairs to the top and my father slipped and nearly fell. The snow was different from the one we experienced in Shirakawa-go vilage. It was hard frozen ice that would actually hurt if you threw them on someone or tripped over!
I bought a pink Mount Fuji keychain that looks like a pudding! It's so cute!
After that we ran back to the bus while braving the scary but awesome wind. Everyone was really tired and glad to be on the bus but I was like "Let's go again!" It was so fun!
Another 3 and a half hour bus ride :( But yay Tokyo! I have been waiting so long and now we are finally going to the largest metropolitan area in the world! I have heard of how advanced and busy the huge city was and I just could not wait any longer to see it with my own eyes!
When the bus first drove to Tokyo city, I was overwhelmed. For the past few days Japan seemed to be like a really relaxing town with small buildings on the street and not all that many cars. Tokyo, was the complete opposite!
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| First thing I saw when we got off the bus |
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| Imagine this x10 |
Headed for dinner! We will be experiencing Shabu Shabu! It is a Japanese dish and we must boil the thinly sliced beef in the water. My parents side ordered noodles that tasted a bit like ramen and after adding some seasonings, it was delicious! Tasted just like good soup.
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| The three female teens :) |
We stayed at Grand Pacific Le Daiba. BEST HOTEL OF ALL. It was so classy and the bed were so comfy!
The toilet was so pretty and I took a bubble bath!
DiverCity was amazing, I shopped in H&M and got a rose dress and a cat skater skirt! I know it may seem strange to buy clothes available in Singapore but there are more designs in Tokyo and most shops are only selling winter wear.
So excited for tomorrow!
Day 6
Tokyo Disneyland
YAY!
We took the bus to Disneyland and my sister and I were literally the happiest people ever, we have been looking forward to this day since we booked the tour! I had saved my best outfit for Disneyland! We knew there were going to be a lot of people as it was a Sunday but nothing prepared us for what happened next.
The other family was going to DisneySea and I wanted to go too but my sister was too young and it was already cold enough without ice water spraying all over us!
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| Me with the FastPass machine! |
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| Cinderella Museum |
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| It's a small world! |
There were so many people you could get lost and you had to queue to get into toilets, (you might think it's normal but it is so crowded there is actually a toilet cubicle conductor) queue for more than an hour to get into restaurants and queue for more than two hours on every single ride. Even the kiddy rides I went on with my sister needed more than half an hour of queuing!
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| Kiddy roller coaster for my sister! |
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| Creepy fairy godmother... |
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| This was not even scary :( |
Spent two hours plus queuing up. Was so tired I actually fell asleep :(
My mother made a bet with my father that she would win at the Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters games and she lost so she had to wear this:
For the rest of the day and the whole of the next day when we are shopping! She had to humiliate herself in front of public! Poor thing... But then again, serve her right for being so obnoxious...
We queued for more than two hours from afternoon to night...
Was so sad when they cancelled the fireworks show due to too strong wind. Everybody was braving the cold and was waiting for this and they only told us five minutes before it was supposed to start.
Bought an Alice in Wonderland photo frame and 4 matching keychains for my best friends.
Day 7
Tokyo - Singapore
Today is the last day in Japan :( I miss Singapore but I know I would miss Japan, the tour guide and the other family :(
We had breakfast at the hotel buffet.
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| The view from our table. |
I literally just ate this at nearly every single hotel buffet. Not joking.
We had our own free time in the morning to shop and we spent it all in DiverCity!
I split up with my parents and went shopping on my own. Went to Forever 21 and bought some clothes and I was so happy I'm sure I was radiating happiness and basically walked around the whole mall till I had to meet my parents. I actually did not buy anything else as nothing caught my eye.
There was a really really huge robot called Gundam outside DiverCity.
After that we checked out of the wonderful hotel and went to Asakusa Kannon Temple. It is a Buddhist temple. My mother was the most excited about this as she wanted to buy amulets and she came here ten years ago and she received a fortune that was extremely accurate.
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| There were a lot of people |
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| Drinking the water |
I made the mistake of asking for my fortune thrice and my fortune got worse every time I asked...
After that we went to Ginza which is basically like Singapore's Orchard Road except that it is even classier!
Everyone is rushing for time, wearing expensive coats and carrying brief cases. So high-class!
It was so cold and it was so alike Orchard Road, we did not buy much. We hid in stores when we could not stand the cold anymore. The good news is that I bought a really pretty earpiece!
We did not enter the multi-storey toy park as my parents were afraid my sister would go crazy in the shop but the second family said there were a lot of cute items there!
We hunted for a ramen store and found one in the alleys of Ginza and the ramen was super tasty! I had some doubts at first because it was not a restaurant and there was no menu, just a sign on the wall. However there were a lot of customers so we decided to give it a shot.
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| Kawaii! |
The food came!
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| Mum's gyoza |
After we ate we tried to shop some more but it was really too cold so we bought some hot drinks and hid in a small mini-mart to wait till we had to go back and meet with the tour guide to go to the airport.
At 7.20pm, we headed for the airport.
We said goodbye to the bus driver who stuck with us through the 6 days :(
While waiting for us to check in and collect our tickets, we bonded with the second family really well. We took lots of photographs and I know I will really miss them. I have made friends with them and now we probably will never see each other again :( We followed each other on instagram and promised we would whatsapp each other when we arrived in Singapore.
This was actually one of the best tours I have ever experienced, the other family was so nice and generous, the tour guide was so friendly and hilarious (his laughter omg), the hotel rooms were classy and we got to try out so much amazing food and go to so many cool places! Heavy snow, heavy rain, we've experienced it all. Big thank you to all of them for all the fun memories:)
Although my family and I had some arguments, I think it was a trip that really made us closer and we had fun!
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All my Japan loots!
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This is the end of my photo diary! I don't know how many of you actually bothered to read this incredibly long post all the way till the end but if you did, thank you, I appreciate it! It's really late now and I had to rush this post and it took me 4 days so I'm sorry if it's not as good as my other posts.
Comment if you read the entire post?
Thank you.
♥,
Jermainex
6 comments
read the entire thing :-) omg jermaine it looks like you had so much funnn! so jelly :(
ReplyDeleteI thoroughly enjoyed reading your entire photo diary :) It must have been a lot of fun and I like your outfit choices :D It's great that you managed to experience heavy snow and had amazing food there in Japan.
ReplyDeleteOverall, you did a fabulous job writing this post *thumbs up*
p.s. Your younger sister is adorable xD
I love this post! We all look so pretty in the photos! Yay!
ReplyDeleteLIKE by 2yi
ReplyDeleteWell this was an extremely long blog post! But oh well it was a long trip anyway wasn't it? Looks like you had a lot of fun with your family at Japan. It was really fun and interesting reading the photo diary. It must have been great experiencing all the things you haven't experienced before :) So overall I think this was a really thorough yet interesting blog post (mainly because of all the pretty pictures hehe) XD
ReplyDeleteHey Jermaine! Im Jungwon ;) Yes.. I took some time to stalk you... Looks like you had a blast in Japan! Ate super nice food lor... jellly :(
ReplyDelete