Japan 2023 - Week 2 of 2

Continuing the day-to-day accounts of our Japan trip from Sep 26 to Oct 11, 2023.

Day 8 - Oct 3, Tue

• The hotel at breakfast bundled in so I was really looking forward to this. 
• We booked breakfast at 7am so we could start our days early.
• Left hotel at 8:30am and took the train to Saga-Arashimaya to visit the following:
• Tenjiku Temple and Bamboo Grooves
• Tugetsukyo Bridge, the most iconic landmark of Arashimaya
• Hiked 1.4km to 160m elevation to watch and feed Macaque Monkeys in Arashiyama Monkey Park Iwatayama
• We then took the bus to the Kyoto International Manga Museum. It didn't seem interesting enough so we didn't go in. We instead had lunch at the nearby coffee shop and they had the best Cheese and Boiled Egg Sandwich. To good that Ethan ordered a second round. 
• After the meal, we walked to Kyoto Imperial Palace
• The kids were too tired so they just stayed and rested outside while Lani and I went in and enjoyed the sights inside the palace.
• We decided it was already enough steps for the days, so we took the bus back to hotel and were resting at 6:30pm
• The found really great food at the nearby Life supermarket, so we ended up buying dinner there most nights.
• Lani and I also realised how convenient it is to wash and dry clothes using the nearby laundromat

 Day 9 - Oct 4, Wed

• We had originally planned to go to Universal Studios once we are in our Osaka leg of the trip. But since we didn't have anything else to do in Kyoto, we decided to do this earlier. It helps that it's a Wednesday too, so we expect less people in the park.
• Left the hotel right after our 7am breakfast to take the train and shinkansen to Osaka
• Arrived at Universal Studios Japan around 9:30am.
• Enjoyed the Harry Potter ride and the Nintendo area
• Ethan did multiple runs of the Flying Dinosaur roller coaster.
• After enjoying the park, we had dinner at Shake Shack just outside of USJ
• Then went on our trip back to the Hotel. We arrived at 9:30pm

Day 10 - Oct 5, Thu

• After breakfast, we took the train to Fushimi Inari to see the Thousand Torii Gates. 
• As we now expect, we had to hike an entire mountain to see the gates
• After this, we went around and walked around the shops
• Took the train to Gion to see Geishas roaming around the streets. We didn't see a lot cause it was very early, but there were enough to amaze us.
• We then walked 1.5km to Nikishi market, an modern buzzling shopping district very different to the nearby traditional Gion.
• Kids parked themselves at a donut cafe while Lani and I went to various shops, including the famous 2nd street shops.
• At 2:30pm, we took the bus back to the hotel so we can have some rest.
• Left again at 6:30pm for church at Local of Ishida 
• Back to hotel at 9:30pm
• Kids dinner was from Life grocery again. 
• While Lani and I ate at the reknown ramen chain Tenkaippin (Tenichhi) 
• We also did laundry after.

Day 11- Oct 6, Fri

• It is our last day at Kyoto and we're heading to Osaka for the last leg of our trip.
• Lani and I got up early to see Nijo Castle which was about a 1.5km walk. 
• Unfortunately, it wasn't opened yet and there was already a long queue because of school excursions. We decided to just take photos outside and went back to Hotel.
• We checked out at 9am and walked to Nijo train station.
• We arrived at Nara Park around 11am. Too bad we missed on the scenic train as it was fully booked. So we just took the normal train. 
• Ethan and Erin enjoyed feeding deers spread along the road in Nara.
• We also visited the 5-storey Pagoda and strolled around Nara Park.
• Headed back to the train towards Osaka at 2pm
• Stayed at Osaka station for a bit to buy the Amazing Osaka Pass, which will give us 2 days of unlimited rides in the local buses and trains, as well as free access to a lot of attractions.
• Check-in at Del Style Daiwa Roynet Hotel, unit 1307 at 3:30pm. The hotel was surprisingly in the middle of the city and right next to the Shinsaibashi Suji shopping street. Perfect location! 
• Late afternoon, we walked down the shopping street, ate at Parco foodcourt, where Ethan fell in love with Sweet Chilli Karage. 
• We saw the Pokemon shop and the Glico Running Man at the Dotonbori river
• Walked 2.4km to Den Den Town to buy anime stuff. 
• Then at 9pm, we walked back another 2.4km to the Hotel 
• Despite all the walk, the kids did not complain at all. 

Day 12 - Oct 7, Sat

• Left the hotel early at 8am to book our Tombori River Cruise Tickets
• Then took the train to Umeda for Udema Sky viewing
• Walked towards Hep Five mall for lunch and to ride the Hep 5 Ferris Wheel. Saw the Osaka Castle from the top.
• Train to Higobashi Station to visit the Science Museum, a similar experience to Questacon, though much smaller.
• Bus to Tanimachi 4-chome to see the Osaka Museum of History. We arrived 4:15pm so we only had 45mins to enjoy. Osaka Castle was right in front but was already closed at 5pm so we decided to return the following day. 
• Took the train back to Namba for our 7pm Dotombori River Cruise. But before that, we passed by Parco to eat Sweet Chilli Chicken again, plus Pork Buns and Shrimp Dimsum
• 7pm river cruise
• 7:30pm shopping at Don Quixote, a shopping center under the Ferris Wheel in Dotonbori. Really cheap souvenirs. 
• Then walked back to the Hotel at about 8:30pm

Day 13 - Oct 8, Sun

•  Early start for 10am church at Local of Osaka
• Then after a long walk, we caught the 11:30am bus to Tennoji Station to see Tennoji Zoo
• Zoo was small and in poor shape. Lots of enclosure under construction, and those open are dirty and small. But they have a red panda.
• Took the 2:30 train to Osaka Castle and Museum. The castle was grand. It stood on top of a hill and above everything else. It was majestic. Inside, it was crowded and tight-spaced. There were interesting history about the 3 great unifiers of Japan. But it required climbing up 8 floors of stairs to see everything.
• We were back in the hotel at 5pm. Kids bought Karage again along the way. 
• Lani and I went out for Udon dinner
• When we all went out again at 7:30pm to buy stuff at Den Den Town. Unfortunately, most of the shops were already closed. 
• It was also raining so it wasn't the best walk. 
• We were back at the hotel around 10pm back in Hotel

Day 14 - Oct 9, Mon

• Day trip to Hirroshima, site of the world's first Atomic Bomb
• Left hotel at  8am on Shinkansen train to Horishima
• Arrived 10:30am, breakfast at Doutor in the station
• Took the Loop Bus to the Hiroshima Castle
• Walked past Art Musuem and ate lunch at the open-air Festival near the Dome
• Visited the following places 
• Atomic Bomb Dome, 
• Hypocentre of the bomb
• Children Peace Bell
• Cauldron of Peace
• Peace Memorial Hall, 
• Cenotaph with the names of all the victims
• The experience was truly touching. It was intense to be in the place where hundreds and thousands of people perished in a blink of an eye. It was intense to watch testimonies of survivors, and to see the names and faces of the victims. It was so difficult to smile even in photos. 
• Took the bus back to train at 2:30pm and the Shinkansen back to Osaka-shin
• Arrived in Osaka at 4pm and went straight to Den Den Town to buy more anime stuff
• Walked to Dontonbori for souvenir shopping then back to hotel. 
• Clothes washing again at the Hotel laundromat
• Lani and I went out to buy another luggage and a late snack at Starbucks

Day 15 - Oct 10, Tue

• Last day in Japan. 
• Before checking out, Lani and I went out to do last minute shopping at Daiso.
• Hotel checkout at 11am then leave bags in hotel storage 
• Walked around Parco/Daimaru shopping centres
• Walk around guitar shops in Shinsaibashi.
• Desert at one of the cafes nearby, then went and bought an Epiphone Trad Pro Ebony at Ishibashi Guitars
• Walked back to the hotel to grab our bags, then train to Osaka Itami Airport for our 7pm flight back to Haneda Tokyo.
• The local airport was small. There were about 5-7 shops for souvenirs and maybe 7 food stores. We had a quick dinner then went on to board the plane.
• Arriving at Haneda, we had 2 hours to disembark, exit the airport, take the shuttle bus to Terminal 3, then go through immigration and board.
• We managed to do all early and had time to eat again to spend all the remaining Suica card balances.  
• The flight was full so it wasn't as comfy as the inbound one. But legroom was sufficient so it's still a decent overnight rest. 

Day 16- Oct 11, Wed

• Arrived back in Sydney at 9:30am
• Thanks once again to our Uber - bro Dennis