Wanderlust V2 - Japan & Beyond

Not sure how long local travel will take me, so I kept things very very general. May fit more in, Not sure.  This is not set in stone. I want to see the aquarium and possibly the other zoo. Also trying to keep areas group together to save travel money.
Trip: April

Day1: Flying at 7am
Day2: Land in Japan And go to my hostel New Koyo - Explore local area ( Ameya Arcade? )
Day3: Ghibli Museum & Shinjuku if there is time
Day4: Takarazuka Revue show ( Gotta wait in line in AM) & Possibly Ginza/Akasaka
Day5: Ueno Zoo?
Day6: Takarazuka again possibly and cafe
Day7: Harajuku + Flea market + Meiji-jingu ( check out Cosplay Zuku and stuff!)
Day8: Akihabara exploration
Day9: Sensoji and more local exploration
Day10: Leave early, check out Narita, get to airport in time for my flight


Blog Template!
So what do you think of my new blog template? I used one that existed and adjusted it to make it personal. I made the chicken, the mini-me complete with glasses!, and change the color scheme. Previously it was pink with different art. I also added my title:)

My opera glasses came!! Hurray!! Now I am prepped for Takarazuka! Yah I'm obsessed to see the show. I'm going to try like heck to go see one! I bought my opera glasses on ebay. It's unsure if I'll need them. Half of the folks at my yahoo groups said yes and half said no. So I'll have to see for myself.

More Takarazuka Planning!

Thanks to some kind fans of Takarazuka Revue at Takarazuka Revue Yahoo Groups, I am finally settled. I'm going to try to get either Standing seat ( Tachimi) or B-seki ( B seats). Mostly like I'm going for the Tachimi seats, because I hear they are rather pretty good :) I'd also rather stand than my leggies get squished. I also got some opera glasses on ebay. I know I should of just rented them, but I plan on using them again one day as well! Just so you know rental is 500Yen with 5000Yen deposit. Anyways the opinion is out on whether they are neccessary or not. I got a pair anyway for cheap, because who knows right?

So after obsessing about Takarazuka.. I think I'm rounding out what I want to do while I'm there. I'm still wondering how much it would cost to get my photo taken as a Takarazuka Star!! Still looking it up. I haven't seen much on that.. I actually read it in a comic called " Japan Ai"by Aimee Major. Now that I think about it! I'm going to check out her sources or something. She does awesome cosplay. I wish I was so motivated!! Anyways back to real life. Soooo close to Japan trip OMGOMG!

So I said I wouldn't be able to go see Takarazuka?? I am totally wrong! Haha. Anyways, using Japan-guide.com, I actually got another response with with a lot of crazy side venues for Takarazuka.. I might have to do the train and go out of Tokyo to go see the shows, but it opens up possibilities. Right at this very moment as I'm typing this, I'm scoping out the lawsons online! The shows are on weird days, sometimes Monday, sunday or saturdays. Some are in oddball places that I'm trying to figure out if it's reasonable for me to go. The tickets look discounted from 8000 yen to 7000 yen. for s seats ( close to the stage seats). I think I could use it to get my tickets...
One show is in Omiya Sonic City Hall? It looks like from Train planner Jorudan, it will take around 30-47 mins and cost around 540 yen ( unless I take express, which has 2500yen surcharge to get there in 25mins). I'm going to study it more, for what I can go see and what seats I might want..
Btw it says 'My pick up' in English, that's really for another service if you plan to do shows a lot or something. Doesn't really have to do with seats for the show I am looking at.
If you are interested for a taste of what I was talking about to see if you want to go, here's a youtube video of one of the current shows. Kinda like a trailer for a movie! Click on the pic  to go to youtube to see it <3
I will write more as I learn of it and if you would like a lawson Takarazuka guide to buying tickets, let me know. I'm going to see if one exists or just do one myself:) Gotta go now!

( Note Poster to left is from their official site: Takarazuka Revue English )Well I happen to find out that I am quite bad at planning. I planned myself into a big hole when it comes to activities happening in Tokyo! Good gracious! You may ask why I decided to write about this. Well I decided to go to the Takarazuka Revue. So I began to research on it. Well there are shows just before I get there and after I leave. Nothing in the middle. Truly I am weeping at my bad luck. Also I missed the Cherry blossoms and some festivals that involve archery on horseback and floats.  Next time I will look into things a little more specifically..

But! Don't worry.. Does this mean I'm disappointed before I get there? Nah! I imagine it'll still be crazy cool, since I've never been there. I will shop till I drop and I have a lot of regular/ non-festive activities to enjoy :) I just curse my luck to miss things like Takarazuka Revue! In case you wondered and didn't want to click or look things up. It's musical plays put on by all female casts with gorgeous costumes and incredible stories!! It sound rather elegant.

Also I really need to get out of my procrastination mode and really plan my trip some what, maybe solidfy some days for things like Ueno zoo and Ghibli museum and flea market/kimono hunting. Yes, I'm determined to get a Kimono/Yukata used. I also thought about getting my photo taken in Kimono dress up, but I don't know. I think I might just buy one so I can dress up any time!

I'm Considering whether I should actively look for an activity partner for when I get there.. I think I will most likely meet people there.. but who knows..

Till next time! I'll keep you updated!!

So I didn't see the charge for my tickets for about 1.5 weeks and started freaking. I had gotten confirmation through email that I had my ticket and everything was charged. Vayama.com usually does everything rather quickly, so I started to sweat it. Well the other day I got an email letting me know that United Airlines was changing the times on my domestic flight with less wait times in between layovers in LAX. Just so you know I have to take an extra leg of the journey from Arizona to California. That adds some money to the ticket, but Vayama.com always does me right when it comes to these things. I kinda hope I get to live in California sometime just for the cheap tickets and deals to Asia haha:) Anyways the actual change didn't cost any extra and they ask if you approved. I approved it and the next day my ticket was charged. HURRAY! It feels real now.

I've also decided to take my small roller bag. It's carry on size. I think I actually fit it on a domestic carrier, which tells ya something. So I rather take that then a backpack. Also I saw New Koyo rooms with people and their bags in them. There's little shelf above the door height and an area under the little table with the tv to fit bags under. Looks alright to me. So I'll take my purse, laptop shoulder bag, and my little roller bag. I will attempt at mailing stuff if I collect too much for my bag. I can chose the cheap option where I'll beat the mail before it gets to my house.

But I'm being lazy on actual planning. These are my must do's so far:
1. Need to see the dress up girls in the park & Rockabillys
2. Find an art/craft/diy store : want to buy felt food directional magazines & look for Kanzashi supplies
3. Flea market at the shrine
4. Ghibli Museum and Ueno Zoo and aquarium
5. Try to look for used Kimono that is cheap at flea market or second hand store ( or pretty Yukata)
6. Eat Okinamiyaki, the kind you grill at your table yourself
7. Go to that huge toy store with the machines you put coins in
8. Look for children's museums with hands on stuff
9. Sing Karaoke at one of the 700yen places ( alone or if I can pick up random stranger, I will)
10. Wander through  random neighborhoods not even known for any kind of tourist value

P.S. Read about no time limit karaoke for 3500yen! If I get someone to go with me, that would be the way to go possibly!! Also I'm working on getting some business cards before I go.

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!!