03/24/16- A very early morning as our flight was scheduled to leave at 8:30am. Woke up at 4:30am and drove to LAX, parking our car for the next two weeks this time instead of taking a shuttle. Turned out to be cheaper this way for four people, who knew!
Arrived with plenty of time to spare as the flight left on time. Flew Hawaiian airlines for the first time and it was amazingly smooth the entire route. Almost zero turbulence to speak of. Almost as if we weren’t even moving at all most of the time. We arrived in Honolulu early around 11am, got our bags and found our shuttle for the rental car company. The shuttle with Dollar/Thrifty was quite crowded (standing room only for many), but luckily we were the first ones on and picked the front of the shuttle. This helped as I was first in line at the rental counter. As I was about to sign for the receipt I noticed the price for two days was quoted $100 more than what I had previously reserved. He made the adjustments although confused about how this was and we were soon on our way to our hotel.
The drive from the airport didn’t take very long. We drove this same route a few years back so I remember the feel. Twenty minutes later we arrive, check in without a hitch, park our car (be it being $50 for the two nights for parking), and finally make it to our nice, comfortable oasis of a room. It's now starting to feel like a vacation.
We adjust what we need, change our clothes and soon find ourselves wandering around for a place to eat. Time was important, however, as it was now past 1pm and the beach activities are well on our minds. We originally sit down at a close by Mexican restaurant, however the prices were ridiculous ($6.50 per taco… ughh no). We decide to grab some sandwiches at another shop and eat them at the beach while relaxing in the sun.
Waikiki Beach is literally just down the road from our hotel so it was easy to walk to. The air was nice, the sand felt awesome and the water temperature felt just right. A bit cold at first but once you got use to the 78 degrees it felt like a soothing bath after that. Kelvin and I had fun swimming around and dodging waves while Sharece and Layna sunbathed. Deciding to do something more adventurous I was able to rent two Stand Up Paddleboards for Kelvin and I (which we’ve never done before). What an awesome experience. It took a bit to get use to the balance as we tried to stand upright on the board, but the waves kept flipping us over (once we both completely wiped out at the same time as Sharece was able to catch it on camera). After a few more tries we got the hang of it and had a blast. Kelvin’s hands ended up hurting him a bit so our hour time turned into thirty minutes, however, we were able to get a receipt to rerent them tomorrow at no extra charge. The guy at the stand was first like, “Ahhh man, I can’t do that, brah as like my managers gonna hate me.” But after I asked him whatever he could do I would appreciate it he quickly said, “You know what, I gots you, man.”
A few hours later we venture back out to catch the sunset, scored a few burgers, walked around for a bit before calling it a day. After ten months of waiting for this trip to arrive, Day #1 now complete.
03/25/16- Have a scheduled tour today to go to Hanauma Bay for snorkeling. Our kids have yet to ever do this so hoping they will enjoy it as much as we have. Checking the weather we find that rain is in the forecast and it may thunderstorm while we are swimming around. Not to be deterred we decide to buck up and continue with our tour anyhow.
The shuttle picked us up on time at 10:05am. By the time we arrive at the park and get our snorkel gear we are able to just make the 11am mandatory presentation of protecting the coral and sea life (which only took about 10 minutes). As soon as we were free to walk to the beach the rain started to hit. We quickly put our stuff down in the sand, put our gear on and head straight for the water. Feeling quite cold at first it took some time to get use to it, but once submerged the water soothed our ails as fish immediately were swimming towards us. Swimming above the coral we were able to catch all type of fish feeding and I was able to catch it all with my underwater camera. As the waves were starting to rock us back a huge school of fish appeared out of nowhere right in front of me. It was an awesome site for sure. Our kids had some fun swimming around, but it appeared too much for them to handle for too long this first time out.
After about an hour of swimming around, and a few cuts and bruises from the coral reef, we head back to shore. The rain has stopped, however, the chill was still fresh in the air. With it still be about ninety minutes before our pickup we decided to head back up to the top and relax around the park area nearby. Our shuttle came promptly at 2:30pm and we made it back to the hotel not long after that.
Resting at the hotel for a moment, we were able to get some food before venturing out once again to Waikiki Beach to take advantage of the Stand Up Paddleboard again with the voucher. We opted for 1 paddleboard for 1 hour time and Sharece, Kelvin and I split it. It was hilarious watching Sharece attempt this for the first time trying to stand up and balance but I thought she did well enough. When my turn came I took the paddleboard all the way out where the waves were crashing and road it like a surf board with the rest of the surfers.
Once the hour was up we cleaned up at the hotel, ventured out for tacos before making it back down towards the beach to catch the Friday fireworks display. Unfortunately our location was not the best as we were only to catch a glimpse of it around the buildings. Finishing the night off we grabbed some ice cream sundaes.
03/26/16 to 03/27/16- Last day in Hawaii. We begin our day by packing our belongings and checking out of our hotel before 10am. Looking for a decent breakfast we find a Denny’s down the road. It took a bit of time to find parking as there was none around and they seemed to have many things blocked off with police directing traffic. We did find parking at the post office around the corner, however. Funny enough, after the rain yesterday the weather was very warm and sunny. Where was this when we went snorkeling?
After the hearty meal we set our gps for Pearl Harbor and off we go. Of course we got turned around a few times as the navigation was on my phone and not the best for updating when needed, but we managed to get there in one piece. Since we really didn’t have much time to spend we opted to purchase tickets for the submarine only and take advantage of the free museum and displays. In Japan, I plan on hitting Hiroshima so I wanted to make sure the kids were able to see both sides of World War II. An hour and a half later we finally leave to return the rental car and arrive for our flight three hours early.
The flight was a long nine hours but at least this time we were fed twice and had free access to movies. For the most part it was uneventful but there was some turbulence every now and then. We were also seated two rows back of a loud baby but at least it wasn’t bad for the entire flight. Our original flight two days prior to Hawaii had three babies from the same family screaming the entire 5 ½ hours. Now that was brutal.
Partway through the flight we crossed the International Date Line which advances us to the next day (24 hours). Funny, I didn’t feel like I went into the future at all. We arrive safe and sound in Tokyo around 9:15pm, get our passports stamped, grab our luggage, hit he ATM and purchased our limousine bus tickets to go to Shinjuku Rail Station. Forty minutes later we arrive at Shinjuku and find a taxi to take us to our rental (which we got from Air BNB). I am so very happy that our host gave us a map with directions in English and Japanese as the taxi driver spoke ZERO English. Just the drive here was awesome to take in as the streets lit up like New York City. I Can’t wait to explore this area tomorrow night.
Once here, we had to walk around the building for a moment or two to find the right entrance. Once inside the main lobby we had step-by-step instructions on how to access the key for the room. First we had to go to the mailbox and reach inside the mail slot to retrieve a capsule with a lock on it. With the combination in hand we were able to retrieve the key which we had to use immediately to open the main doorway. Around the corner we used the fob of the key to access the elevator to the 8th floor then used the key again to open both locks on the door to our room. We open it up and are amazed at how great everything looks. There a mini kitchen, fridge, washer/dryer and living room. We even had pajamas laid out for us on the bed if we chose to use them. Lastly, the view from our balcony is absolutely stunning. Love the city lights.
After a very long day and nineteen hour time change we are ready for bed.
03/28/16- With only about five hours sleep I was awake and ready to go at 6:30am. The time difference has my clock off of course but arriving late at night after the long plane ride helped out. First thing we did was find a local market to buy some food for our kitchen. Figured starting the day off making our own meals was the right thing to do with a family of four. I checked the weather and it stated rain was in the forecast, so we put on our coats and found a place not far from our apartment, loading up on some noodles, eggs, ham and drinks.
Once we got back we started to cook our breakfast when I noticed there were no spatulas or even seasonings like salt and pepper around (slaps forehead). We were still able to make our meal with Sharece coming up with the idea of using the seasoning packet from the noodles we just bought. You go girl!
With our meal completed we took off to view the city. We walked towards Shinjuku Train Station first as we ducked into some gaming shops along the way. Almost forgot that people drive on the opposite side of the road hear so naturally they pass each other walking the same way as well. Got to get use to that. We set our gps to the Sword Museum but half way there I realized that it might be closed due to it being Monday. After a quick check I was right. Close by, however, we were to find a park area and see the Meiji Shrine. It was free to view and quite interesting to take in as the buildings were laid out in traditional Japanese form, but not much happening to warrant staying long. Hungry again we walk toward Shibuya district and find a good noodle restaurant. We had to wait outside for a table as the place was pretty busy for lunch time but the food was excellent and the soup hit the spot.
Replenished we continued on to Shibuya Crossing located just in front of the main train station. This is a massive crosswalk where traffic halts in all directions and people flock through the large intersections in every which direction to cross. We had to cross it just once to say we did. At this time the weather has cleared up as the sun was warming up again.
Finally, with legs tired, we hit the subway train. Our daughter, who is very interested in Anime, convinced us to check out Pokemon. So we found the right direction and paid for our subway ticket (170 Yen per person which is about $1.50). After three stops we change lines and are stopped at the entrance with barriers as we entered our ticket. Apparently in Tokyo the subway train tickets are calculated by distance and not by rail and you have to put your ticket through the gate when you enter and leave the area. We were stuck between lines and found out we needed to pay 110 Yen per person more to continue on. I handed over the money to the attendant and continued on our way.
Once out of the station we use our gps again to find this Pokemon exhibit but are not able to locate it. We walk around the building a few times going upstairs to the third floor and down the basement (because our daughter really wanted to see it remember) but it was a no show. I asked a guard nearby and he stated it moved to a new location two years ago and is now thirty minutes away. Uggghh no. Feeling a bit defeated we wandered back into the streets, but was feeling better once I saw the Tokyo Tower close by. Reenergized we head straight for it to capture some decent pictures. On the way we hit another shrine area with some interesting features and grabbed some crepes to eat.
The tower itself was inspired by the Eiffel Tower in Paris with similar characteristics but not worth paying the money to go up to the top. I heard there were better views elsewhere in the city so we kept on walking once our picture minds were satisfied. As we walked a few blocked down the road I saw the tower beginning to light up. Ugghh, I’ll have to catch that another day. Extremely tired from walking so much on little sleep we decide to take the subway back to our apartment. Unfortunately we were turned around a bit trying to find a close by station and ended up walking about twenty more minutes before we found one. We purchase our ticket (180 yen) and proceed to board the heavily occupied, smack down in the middle of rush hour, train. Luckily we only have four stops to go but it was literally standing room only. Not even enough room to breathe let alone stand without leaning on someone next to you. Upon exited the line we are again greeted with the rejection of not having paid enough. We locate the attendant and have to pay another 40 yen each. Oy! This is all a bit confusing but a challenge I will find a way to master soon.
Ending the day on a high note we walk through our area as the night hit and buildings lit up. Definitely something to see, and tried to take it in despite our weary legs.
03/29/16- Having a teenage daughter means a lot of things, but I didn’t realize that included waiting three hours in the morning for her to be ready to walk around on a vacation she’s excited to go on. We still were able to make it out by 10:30am after fixing our own breakfast. Planning our course of action we head to the nearest subway station. This time I was able to search for the destination and find out the exact fare so we can easily glide through without any issues. We could have bought a reloadable card but there wasn’t much savings on it so why bother.
We arrive at our destination of Senso-ji Temple. On our way we walked through a vast amount of shops lining the streets and were able to find some souvenirs. The temple was not much but interesting enough to walk through. Afterwards we continued our walk (About 2- minutes) to Ueno Park for what we thought relaxation. Turned out the park was widely overran with people covering almost every square inch of sitting space in the entire area. Thousands of people seemed to be there all at once and it was only around 1pm on a Tuesday. Very strange indeed. There were some nice areas to view as well as cherry blossoms which made this worth the while. We finally find a place to sit down after getting some kebobs to eat and rest our legs.
We decided to finish off the day by checking out the anime at J-World. We take the subway and luckily don’t have to walk far as it is located in the mall. The admission price is small so we let our kids wonder around J-World while Sharece and I explored the rest of the stores. One thing I wanted to check on a new necklace. My current one broke yesterday so I thought now was a good time to start searching for a replacement. We were in luck as we found a great store nearby at very nice prices. Concerned about the kids I sent a text to Layna but without a reply. We decided to check back up with them an hour later and they were already waiting for us. Apparently her phone didn’t put her message through to me and they waited about a half an hour. Poor things. We made up for it by sitting down for some wonderful sushi before heading back to the apartment.
03/30/16- Sharece woke up around 1am with excruciating pain in her side and back. A month ago she was diagnosed with kidney stones and it seemed to be rearing it’s head full force. There were moments when we thought an ambulance may need to be called but she was able to drink water and find a way through the pain. Bless her heart. Needless to say once we woke up the next morning that she was not having any of that day. We originally had planned to take a daytrip but after recalculating the kids and I decided to stay in Tokyo and hit other parts we haven’t seen yet.
First things first as we arrive at the train station to redeem our JR pass train ticket vouchers. It’s good for any train with Japan Rail for seven days straight (which we will be using tomorrow for our train journey to Kyoto). Good news is we were able to use it to get to our destination today as well. It only took four stops and we were at Tokyo station. From there we walked about fifteen minutes to see the Imperial Palace. Hoards of people were exited and we were the only ones entering as it almost looked like a mass evacuation. Regardless the guards let us right through without an issue. When we get to the ticket gate the attendant points to a sign that says something to the effect of “No Charge Today” (Found out later that they don’t regularly charge for the grounds anyhow but of course we didn’t know this at the time and thought we picked a lucky day). Walking around the garden area was tiresome as our bodies were still sour from the last few days, but it was nice to look at. Colorful trees and shrubs outlined the walkway with some cherry blossoms mixed in. Again, there were tons of people there just like yesterday at the temple. Makes me wonder how these places look on the weekends if it is this busy around noon on a weekday.
We exited through the North gate, rested a bit at a nearby 7/11 market then continued on to Akihabara. This is where the streets were lined with Anime buildings and such. Our daughter had a field day here as she was constantly going in and out of stores checking out games, videos, books and what not. With nothing else to please our minds we head back to our apartment, but not before grabbing some pizza for dinner. I was not ready for the $30 price for 4 personal pans, however. Met back up with Sharece when we got back to find that the rest had done her some good, although still not 100%. Hopefully this does not come back to bite her again before the trip is completed.
Tokyo is now all but done. Tomorrow we have a morning checkout time then onward to Kyoto.
03/31/16- Just when I finally get use to a new city it’s time to move on to the next. Interesting observations so far are: #1) Japanese culture is all about respect. Bowing, not looking directly at you and being formal are all part of that. #2) Men wear all black business suits with white button shirts like clockwork. You don’t see anyone breaking that trend at all as everyone is uniform. #3) Everywhere you go sounds like a video game; from crossing the street to announcements on the intercom. I feel like I’m in an Atari/ Nintendo world sometimes. #4) Everyone walks on the left side and passes on the right. This is of course due to traffic being opposite from the US as well. #5) I saw ZERO homeless people and only one street performer the entire time in Tokyo. They are doing something right. #6) People here don’t eat while walking or point at things as these are considered very rude.
With that said, I was able to get plenty of sleep last night. Ate sushi and noodles for breakfast, packed our things and checked out of our apartment around 10:20am. I tried to flag down a taxi for the train station, however since it was not even a mile away decided just to walk it. Once we arrived we boarded the JR train to take us to Shinagawa station. Packed pretty tight and with luggage the first few stops were quite crazy, but slowly enough seats became available. Took twenty minutes and we were off again to find our gate for out reserved train to Kyoto.
A two and a half hour ride on a bullet train. The speed alone made it feel like you were in a plane speeding down the runway but never taking off. And every time another train passed it blew the train to the other side momentarily. All in all it covered the distance in a short amount of time and we got here in one piece. Not without being seated next to a noisy child yet again. This whole trip has been filled with that so far.
We arrive in Kyoto exactly on time and make our way to the taxi stand. A tiny bit of a wait later we show the driver the address written in Japanese and are at the hotel within ten minutes. It took a moment to find the front entrance, however, we had a print out supplied to us by the hotel showing pictures of the outside which helped out tremendously. Again, we had a combination lock to retrieve the key and made it inside without a hitch. The room is quite small with two sets of bunk beds, a kitchenette, fridge/microwave and washer/dryer. The bathroom is also quite strange with the tub being set feet into the floor. Makes me miss the Tokyo apartment already. We didn’t stay long as our stomachs were rumbling, so we ventured out to find food and explore. Walking around you can definitely tell the difference between here and Tokyo. At first I was not very impressed but the more I walked around the better I started to feel. It didn’t take us long to find a noodle place. Upon entering we were pointed to a machine on the side where you order your food and pay. Then you hand the ticket(s) to them so they can prepare your food and serve. Quite an interesting way of doing it. The food wasn’t the best, however, but it did its job. Sharece was still not feeling the best. Hopefully she doesn’t have a bug of any kind.
As we explored more of the shops we stumble upon a cat café. That’s right, it’s a place where you can pay to spend time with cats. Layna was very excited about this one so we attempted to check it out, but they wanted 1000 Yen for 30 minutes minimum. Hmmm, that’s not happening. Plus is really smelled like litter. Moving on we were able to find a souvenir shop as well as walk down the water front and see the beautiful cherry blossom trees lining the streets. We finish up by hitting a 7/11 market to get some food for our apartment.
By the way, our bathroom door is glass (which is extremely weird). Even though you can’t really see through it all the way it is still uncomfortable. I was able to make a cover by using an extra fitted sheet and a wardrobe cart. Worked like a charm.
04/01/16- Late morning as we didn’t leave until after 11am. As we left the rain was already coming down. Part of me wanted to just stay in and relax, but I am ready to get started on this city. We began walking to our first destination when we saw a McDonalds. Feeling hungry we decided to step inside and grab a quick bite to eat (and to get out of the rain for a moment). Upon entering we are greeted by a worker that tells us there is no room and only take away. This was strange as it seemed like we were the only ones she spoke to about this. We ordered our food and as I left the counter I saw Sharece already securing four seats for us. We were able to sit without a problem and enjoy our meal, but it still remains questionable on all of that.
Continuing on we hit our first place Sanjusangen-do Temple. Cost us about 2000 Yen for all four of us and it didn’t disappoint. Before entering the temple we had to take off our shoes and leave them on a rack. This made our feet feel cold walking around but it was welcomed as they felt sore already from the walk over. The temple housed many sculptures of guardians and a great Buddha statue. Sadly, no photos were allowed but it was interesting all the same. The surrounding temple grounds were beautifully laid out and very much picture worthy.
Next stop was the walk over to Kyoto train station to catch the JR train to Nijo Castle. We grabbed some food on the way to hold us over and made it to the Castle at 3:55pm (only five minutes before they stopped allowing people to enter). We spent the next hour walking the grounds, enjoying the temples and walking amongst the beautiful cherry blossoms laid throughout. There were truly some breathtaking moments here as the rain brought out the colors very nicely. Luckily by this time the rain had stopped, giving us a break from before.
Now it’s time to eat an actual meal. We locate a sushi place about ten minutes away and begin our walk. Our gps took us through some back alley roads and once we finally got there we couldn’t find the place. We looked on yelp at how the front entrance looked and we saw nothing like that around. Either this place closed shop or the address was way off. Either way we continued our walk to the shopping area down the street. Another mile down the road and our legs and back are feeling the burn. Mostly due to the heavy walking but also because our bed is the most uncomfortable, hard, thin mattress yet. It almost feels more like a torture device. Back to our journey. So we continue to look for sushi with nothing around. Giving up we decide to hit a local market, Lawson, and buy food there to take back to our hotel. Problem now was our hotel was still about a fifteen minute walk. We could have tried to take a bus but we all just decided to walk it as it was the last part of the day.
We arrive back at our place only to find the front entrance unlocked. Then we open our room door finding that it too was unlocked. Apparently the cleaning crew failed to lock everything back up which actually made us feel uncomfortable. Luckily all of our stuff was still there, but it didn’t make us feel any better. Tomorrow we will need to put a note asking not to clean our room and to make sure they lock if they do enter.
04/02/16- Early start waking up at 7am. We have no set time for our train to Himeji but I was hoping to get to the train station by 8:30am. In order for us to do so we would have had to leave around 8am, walk to the nearest subway station and take that one stop to the train station (which cost us $8 total to save us only ten minutes of walking). Unfortunately we were behind schedule and arrived closer to 8:50am, missing the planned time I had. I asked an attendant which train to Himeji and was told track 5 at 9am so we took that. As we were traveling I realized this looked more like a subway car than a train. Since I didn’t know how long this train would take I decided to get off at Osaka and get on the next train there.
Once we exited I looked up at the main board and saw a train heading to Himeji was coming up in ten minutes. We jumped on that one right away but it was packed wall to wall with people. Standing almost the entire hour long journey our feet were already tired. Some seats opened up during each stop which allowed us to sit down one by one. It took a bit of traveling but we finally make it to Himeji around 10:50am (two hours behind schedule). We had originally planned to spend a few hours here and continue on to Hiroshima for the rest of the day (especially since the weather was perfect outside and rain was scheduled to fall again the remaining few days), but the late start interfered. We instead opted to just enjoy the time we had and see what happens later.
We took our time eating burgers at Himeji train station and I looked around for an ATM to refill my low cash flow. Why? Because every place around here seems to only take cash for whatever reason. Either case, I had a hard time finding an ATM that worked properly. One I found had zero English and did not feel comfortable using it for that reason. Knowing I still had about $40 worth on me I thought best to just skip it for now and head for Himeji Castle. We located the bus we needed to take to drop us off at the front gates (100 Yen each) and proceed inside the walls.
Instantly we are met with the awesome sight of the castle surrounded by cherry blossoms. After snapping away a few photos we continued to the main gate. We paid for our tickets (cash only of course) and found out the wait to go up into the castle was around 90 minutes long). Undeterred we stayed in line as we slowly made our way up. Once inside we were greeted with room after room of just stairs (nothing else in them but empty space). When we finally reach the top we were able to see much of the city with the clearest blue sky possible. Stupid part of it was that it wasn’t a clear view as the open air windows had gridlines on it causing it to be in the way of taking photographs. Either case, the view was nice. I just had no idea the whole journey was just to get a view of the city from above. Well worth the price but perhaps not as much the time spent doing it all.
We descend back down to the bottom and contemplate the rest of our day. With it being already 3pm we knew another city would most likely be out of the question. Instead we enjoyed our stroll back to the train station and this time boarder the correct bullet train back to Kyoto (only one hour with comfortable seating as opposed to the two hour local train this morning).
Upon arriving back in Kyoto we quickly looked for the ticket window to reserve our seats tomorrow for Hiroshima. I didn’t want to have to play the same game tomorrow morning and definitely wanted to make sure we had seats for the two hour bullet train ride. The bad part is the latest time available for a non-connecting train was around 8:22am. At least we will get to Hiroshima early enough to enjoy it and if the weather cooperates may even check out the surrounding islands.
04/03/16- Hiroshima round #2. We wake up at 6am and follow the same morning routine as the day before, except this time we all are ready and out the door by 7:30am. We make it with time to spare for our 8:23am train, with assigned seats. Good thing to as this ended up being almost 2 ½ hours on a bullet train. Was able to catch some sleep on the way before arriving around 10:45am.
At first I am a bit lost on which direction to go outside the station. The info I’ve received says to take the #2 tram line to Hiroshima Peace Park (which is about fifteen minutes away), however nothing on any board says anything about a tram. We decide to follow the signs for the buses and are led to a long line for a sight-seeing one. Not exactly what we wanted and most likely would cost us quite a bit more than what we had planned. So we continue to walk around to the other side when we see a line of taxies. Deciding not to waste any more time I ask the driver how much and he quotes 1400 Yen ($12 or so). Why not?
We arrive pretty quickly and find the museum right away. Worries that the rain might fall later on and of course a large crowd forming making it harder to get pictures, we thought best to view the outside memorials first. Luckily the crowds were light at this time so we were able to walk through everything without and issues. The memorials themselves were quite interesting with several of them spread around for the same cause but different reasons. One of them was dedicated for the kids of Hiroshima with a bell attached to it. The surrounding park was also nice to view with cherry blossoms and colorful flowers lining the paths. A little further out we find the A-Bomb memorial which is one of the only original buildings left standing after the blast. The dome looked to be in shambles but they had scaffolding there for renovation.
On the way back to the museum we detoured down by the riverbed to skip some rocks and enjoy a moment of play. But finally it was time for the real deal. The museum was mainly a collection of artifacts salvaged from the blast and clothing worn by the people. There were also photos depicting how the victims looked and suffered. It was definitely moving and interesting all the same.
Around 1:30pm we head back to the train station (this time by tram which we found nearby) and hopped on the JR train to see Miyajima Island. Once we arrived the rain started to fall a bit, so we hurried onto the ferry to bring us across. The dark clouds were looming overhead but the rain began to lessen. Once on the island we headed straight for the floating Tori which during high tide appeared to be floating on the water. It was definitely a pretty cool sight to see. Deer also walked right up to us and ate my paper tourist map I got front the station. The kids had a blast petting them.
Within minutes the rain started to come down harder and we knew it was the end of the day. We began searching for a restaurant to sit down at but many on the island were closing up or way overpriced. We opted instead to take the ferry back and look around town. Unfortunately that too became frivolous as none could be found there either. Undeterred, we take the thirty minute long JR train back to Hiroshima station and find a noodle place there. Unfortunately it was still a bit overpriced and not as good as other places we’ve been too, but what made it pretty cool was the traditional Japanese seating. No shoes and sitting almost Indian style on the floor as we enjoyed our meal. That was cool.
Feeling tired we board our bullet train to head back to Kyoto (barely finding seats for all of us as the reserved section was full). Two hours and one change in Osaka latter we arrive at Kyoto station around 9:48pm. The rain is still falling but not very hard so we walked the twenty minutes back to our hotel.
04/04/16- After the last few days of running around for twelve hours at a time we decided to just take it easy today and stay around Kyoto. Sleeping in and not leaving our place until 1:30pm felt real good and much needed. The rain had all but stopped as the sun tried to come out, but it was still pretty cloudy outside.
I originally looked into going to the Philosopher’s Walk area (which was lined with cherry blossoms and temples), however the walk there would have taken over forty minutes. Luckily there was a closer area (Kiyomizu-dera Temple) that we’ve not been to and takes only half the time to get there. The walk consisted of going uphill the entire way, however, which made it a bit tiring on our legs. Also, the street was very narrow yet cars were whizzing by us constantly. I didn’t realize this was a major route at all as it seemed like a dead area. Suddenly we come upon a traffic light and a major street. Hidden out here was a line of shops that I had no idea existed. Walking further up we found a major tourist area where a parking lot with rows and rows of tourist buses were seen. Here were all of the souvenir shops. Not to mention the hundreds of people over crowding the street making it almost impossible to get anywhere.
We took our time looking through the shops and found some cool ideas for our living room, however, time was starting to slip away so we made the journey up to the temple entrance. So glad that we made the journey upwards as the view from this place was pretty spectacular. We could see almost all of Kyoto with the mountains surrounding. We had a notion to pay the entrance fee for the temple, but decided to skip this one. Instead we started making our way back down to eat a late lunch.
With bellies now full we brave the crowds to continue our tour of the souvenir shops. It didn’t take long before we found a decent size statue to put in our living room. Now I feel complete. With this in mind we walk back to our hotel. It’s hard to believe tomorrow is our last day on this trip. Our flight doesn’t leave until late at night so we will have one more day to roam around.
04/05/16- Our last day. Checkout is at 11am, however we had plans to take the train to see the town of Nara today. We opted to leave just before 10am and find a taxi to Kyoto Train Station. Once there we searched around for a luggage locker and found one immediately, but it didn’t seem to work. Confused we walked around a bit to find a set of lockers that did before asking information. Turns out the lockers are either full or no longer in use and we were pointed to the direction of a luggage drop off area. There was a bit of a line but it went smoothly and we were able to drop off everything for around 1260 Yen ($11 US). If you are wondering why we didn’t just have the hotel hold it for us, well since it was more like an apartment there was no way for them to store it for us (as there is no front desk).
We make the train and arrive in Nara around 11:48am. From the station we began our thirty minute walk through town to see the Great Buddha statue, which is the second largest Buddha statue in the world. Along the way we passed by deer park where of course deer roamed freely. So amazing how friendly they are here.
After spending about an hour we walked back towards the station and grabbed a taxi to save our legs. The train we took ended up being about 14 minutes longer than expected as there was some kind of holdup on the tracks, but we make it back to Kyoto station with plenty of time. Layna wanted to check out the Anime Jump shop just outside the station but as we made it to the building we find that it had closed down. We were able to pick up some food and snacks at a local Lawson market and board our airport train at 5pm. I am glad we got in line early for that because the journey was almost ninety minutes long and many people had to stand the entire time. Arriving at the airport we see that it is on a man-made island. The sun was perfectly setting in the horizon, however, the view from the train was blocked from the tracks and overpass. I was able to capture a good view once we left the train.
Check-in was a breeze, although the line for security was a bit long. We also had to go through customs of course, but again no hassle to deal with. The flight was seven hours in the air and not without turbulence. Seemed like the half the flight we dealt with high winds. Even on landing the plane seemed to drop a few times. We landed safely, went through customs, picked up our bags, took them two steps to drop them back off, went back through security and proceeded to wait the four hours before our next flight. During the wait we realized our gate was on the other side of the airport and needed to take a shuttle. However, at the other terminal there was nothing but overpriced menu food around. Tired from the long flight and barely functioning I made my way back to the other terminal with the shuttle to get some Burger King burgers. On the next flight there were more bumps in the air as we flew the rest of the way to LAX landing just before 11pm. Strange how we left Japan at 9:30pm and arrive in the US at 10:45pm on the same day.
What a crazy, whirlwind adventure with the kids. I am so glad they got that experience which they will take with them around forever. Now to think about my next trip…. Oh yeah- Australia and New Zealand!
END OF BLOG
