Well here I am trying to blog again about my trip. Will I be successful??
It'll be a whirlwind of a trip. I'm going for 7 days to Japan on a shoestring budget. I actually went for the $28 room vs. $13 dorm. I would of gone for dorm style with Smile hostel, but the all female dorm was not available. So I went with New Koyo which has wireless wifi, tiny but private room. I am scaaared and excited. Originally I was going to go visit my aunt for two weeks, but I found out she is going to Korea for a couple of months to visit my other aunts and had not set of time when she would be back. I was tempted to go to Korea too, but I decided on Japan because it's new to me and I've never been. So now I've got to tighten the purse strings and shorten the time.. BUT HECK I'm going to JAPAN!!
I don't care how tiny the room is and I'm used to sleeping on the floor with a futon.***** got back to me right away about my reservations!! So Reservation & tickets set. The waiting will be the hardest part!! Also I have to get my plan of attack of where to go and what to see! Definitely Ghibli museum!!
12 comments:
Hi there! Love your enthusiasm over your trip to Japan, you're getting me excited about my trip coming at the end of March/ beginning of April! When are you heading out? I'm hoping I'll catch the sakura blossoming, if I do it'll look great. I'm heading to Tokyo, Kyoto and Hiroshima. I'm learning Japanese speaking and writing so hopefully I'll have half a clue when I get there! I'm also thinking of going to the ghibli museum but I have been told that you have to buy a ticket before you go due to popular demand. Is this true?!
Thanks!! It's still about two months away but I'm running in circles from excitement!! I feel like a puppy!! Hehe!
That's so cool you are going too!! Yes you should definitely should hit the cherry blossoms festivities if you are in Tokyo at that time. I don't know about Kyoto or Hiroshima.
Here's what I found out about ghibli. Their website shows you how you can buy the tickets. Tickets shouldn't be hard to get unless you try to get tickets for the weekend or holidays. One lady said she ordered hers the day before they went, on a weekday. She got it at Lawson convience store. So I don't see any problem and I'm guessing that you don't have to buy it months before you go or anything.
Also you have a couple options. You can buy it at lawson for 1000 yen, or from travel agency, or around 6000 yen for a tour. One guy said he wished he did not take the tour so he could spend more time at the museum ( due to picking everyone up the tour group only got to spend 2 hours there ).
Any tips about traveling let me know:) I also have a site that you can check what stations you need to hit and what prices are for trains :)
I know how you feel ^^, I get a big grin on my face everytime I think about heading off to Japan soon! The sakura forecast is telling me that it should be full bloom when I get there so fingers (and everything else for that matter) crossed!) ^^'. Though you may catch them too if your heading out in April. I shall definitely catch the festivities if they are on! Thanks for the nod on Ghibli and I've managed to get a ticket through the website they directed to. Just have to swap the ticket for the real thing @ Ghibli. I read your heading out on your own.. it's the same for me this time too, last time I went with a group and felt a little restricted in what I could do, not this time though! If your staying in Tokyo you might want to get a Pasmo Card so you can use subways without getting tickets all the time, its like a top up card for the subway/ buses and you can get it even before you head out. I'm getting one with my JR Rail Pass. Also go to the top of the Goverment building in Shinjuku for a fantastic view of the city, it's free too! Go at sunrise so you can see it go from daytime to night! Breathtaking! How is your Japanese and what are you planning to see? Are you on a tight budget?!
hehe I am the same way!! I'm heading out late April so in Tokyo I will most likely have missed them already, but I'm still glad to go over there. I've never really got to see anything so it's going to be sooooo awsome!!
Too bad we weren't heading out the same time :) We could site see together! XD
I will probably get a passmo if they still offer them. It looks like you don't have to put down 2000 yen to get the card, just 500 yen ( unlike the suica). JR Pass was out my budget.. If Anything might go for renting a bike or using my feet if it comes down to it. I'm on a tight budget, but I just had to go this year! It's my carrot on a stick for this year :) I want to see the dress up girls in the park, ueno zoo, ghibli, possibly some kind of show like kabuki, a bunch of stuff that I can do with GRUTT pass, and generally just exploring. I definitely want to go to a resturaunt with the grill in the middle of the table and you can make your own okinamiyaki. :) WOOT!!!How about you? Have you already been ( sounds like it )? Are you going to make a blog?
btw what's the usual policy on photography, some say it's not allowed most of the time, others say just not disturbing flash photography ( I have a special low light camera, not needing flash).
I'm sure you'll get so much out of the trip even though you've had to shorten it, so much to see and do you won't have time to stop!
I'm sure you would have been a great sight-seeing partner, seems you and I are quite like minded, maybe we'll cross paths in the future? ^^
Good idea renting a bike, would be a great way of accessing places away from the subway stations, a little easier on the feet perhaps!I have been before on a group trip about 2 years ago which was for about 2 weeks and we covered so much it was hard to take it all in! We had a few days to begin with in Tokyo then we headed into the mountains, up to Yudanaka (where the snow monkeys like to bathe in onsen!) thru to Matsumoto with it's castle, Takayama with it's old town and beautiful temple walk, Tsumago and Magume which were old post towns that could have come straight out of a old samurai movie, such a strange feeling being in the middle of it all.Also Shirakawago (beautiful village)for a night. We also had a few days in Kyoto then south to Nara and Koya-san which was a buddist temple village on a mountain top, Definitely the highlight as we were able to join the monks for prayer in the morning @ 5.00am! Very surreal. We headed back to Tokyo on the bullet train but couldn't see Mt Fuji as it was too foggy! Like you I'm hoping to see the lolita girls and punk rockers in Harajuku (I think they gather on Sundays and I wasn't in Tokyo then :( Make sure you check out Takeshita street right by the station, so lively! Another suggestion if you can get up early is check out the fish market by the bay, it really is amazing, they have tuna as big as people and lots of oddities besides! Then go to Hamarikyu Garden just over the road, they have a great tea house in the middle of the lake, great there drinking green tea there with the skyscrapers looming over the trees. Theres also a great boat ride that leaves here up the river stopping near Sensoji Temple in Asakusa which is also a must see! Sorry... you seem to have got me started on one! I'll stop for now, but tell me how come you didn't carry on your Korean blog? Were you out there a month? Would have been interesting to read about that and see your photos!
btw Anywhwere and everywhere seems the way for photography, the Japanese are crazy about cameras! I wish I had a decent camera....
Just so you know I added this link ( http://melindamott.vox.com/) to my blog here but it's my first trip to Korea in which I did better at chronicling.. At least i got a bunch of pictures up. I notice that Blogspot is not great at adding the pictures and stuff. For vox or travel blog it's a bit better at integrating blog + photos. I was in Korea for 2 weeks at a time. It's what vacation time I had to go.
I got my camera on ebay. It was kind of on accident but it's a real nice camera.
I don't mind :) You really should do a blog. Or did I just not see it on there ?? o.o
Yah It's going to be stellar.. I definitely won't get to see everything, but I truely hope to go there again!
I wasn't so sure about the whole fish market thing... lol.
I haven't blogged yet but may do for this trip. Maybe If I can get some interesting pictures going and hone my writing skills I'd like to give it a go. Nice pictures on your Korean blog by the way.. It seemed like it was hard to keep it going, I don't know how easy it would be to blog on a daily basis as I would have little access to the net over there. It would be better to blog whilst there as it would be fresh in the mind ^^
Yep the tsukiji fish market sounds odd but it's a sight that has to be seen to be believed + you can pick up the freshiest fish dishes to eat from the local food sellers.
Happy blogging...
Yah, it was hard to go back and chronicle at the end of the day. I was going at a leisurely pace too. I got some tips about using a little paper journal and later transcribing it. Or taking a tape recorder so I can transcribe it.
I was also thinking that my phone has a recorder on it. Even if I don't use my phone, I can use it's voice recorder.
So I'm going to put forth the effort to try to do this blog:) It might just be a few words to describe a picture, but maybe I'll make it this time hehe.
I may try the fish market. But honestly it didn't appeal to me when I heard about it and saw some pictures. lol.
Had a look at your art on your deviant site and you really have some great sketches. I love all the anime/ manga stuff, you have a talent there. I also like ro draw and am thinking of taking a little sketchbook and some pencils with me so I can get some memories on paper too. Thought about anyting like that?
That would be cool. You should definitely put those in a blog :)
I am taking my sketchbook ( moleskin ) But I was not successful at stopping long enough to sketch anything LOL.
Hmm.. yes, stopping long enough to get it down would be tough! Maybe whilst eating lunch or taking a breather in a busy street or park would be the best oppurtunities. I have moleskin too, for quality there is no other to match. I use a small square paper moleskin book to practise writing my Japanese when I have the time. So easy to carry around. I love those books even if they are a little expensive.^^
Ahhh! That's soooo cool <3 Moleskin are soooo awsome. If only I could get drawings in it now. I did draw some of the stewardess cause their little big bow scarf on their neck is so cute. I want to wear that >.<
I get crazy eyes on trips. I can't stay looking at anything but a few seconds lol. Or staring at my food. maybe I should try food sketches hehe:)
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