Hello Tokyo

I  finally arrived in Japan for transit on my way to New Caledonia and Paris for series of meetings.
Super excited indeed!
To finally, finally (I keep using this word :)) welcome myself to Japan. 


Have you been to Japan before?
I haven't! And I have been wanting to come to this lovely country since a long time ago.
It feels like an answered prayer, as my hubby and I have in fact discussed the plan of visiting Japan on our way back home to Indonesia later this summer. We haven't reached our agreement yet (as my hubby just simply wants to go back home directly without transiting anywhere) when this assignment came.
And I was ecstatic!

So I planned my trip to Nouméa, New Caledonia by taking the Japan route.
It was 14 hours direct flight from New York City  to Narita, Japan, then followed by another 9 hours flight from Japan to Nouméa, New Caledonia. 
It was a long flight indeed, but I managed to get around 20 hour layover time in Narita, Japan.
So I planned my transit with the help of my dearest friends in Tokyo , especially Mita who has been there for about 3.5 years now, and Google maps as well as tons of travel blogs.

Long story short, after a pleasant flight with ANA, I landed safe and sound in Tokyo on Friday, 9 March 2018, at 3.30 PM.
It was nice, balmy 12 degree Celcius in Tokyo, compared to 0 degree Celcius in NYC.
And don't forget I'm heading to tropical Nouméa, which has the average of 35 - 38 degree Celcius at this time. 
I do have a lot of challenges in packing the right clothes for all these cities I visited and ended up bringing 2 big luggages :).


a little pose at the airport..

Well, on my one night transit in Tokyo, I decided to stay in Ueno, around 40 minutes away from Narita Airport, using the super fast Skyliner.
I put my 2 big bags in the baggage storage in Narita Airport and just traveled to Ueno with my cabin bag. I went down to the basement floor to get to the Skyliner counter and buy the ticket. It has reserved seat and exact time, so I didn't buy return ticket, as I wasn't sure when I would leave Tokyo the next day. 

The reason why I stayed here in Ueno is because it's the easiest way to get to the Skyliner station which takes me back to Narita Airport the next day.
And Ueno is indeed beautiful!

When I arrived in Ueno, I was welcomed by this lovely cherry blossoms.
That's why I walked back to Ueno Park in the next morning to see this beautiful park.
I woke up at 6, thanks to my jet lag, and went jogging around Ueno.






It was cold and rainy but I managed to go out to Ueno at Taito ward and strolled around Ueno Park as well as Harajuku and Takeshita Dori in the evening.

 Although it was raining rather non-stop, it didn't  dampen my spirit to enjoy whatever Japan has to offer. Even with little sleep I have on the flight (thanks to all Oscar-nominees movies :)), I managed to put my big bags in Narita, take Skyliner to Tokyo and Ueno, check-in to my hotel, walk around and shop a bit at Ueno and Takeshita-dori, and close the day by eating at one of Japanese traditional yummy noodle house! Alhamdulliah.

The Ameyoko Market

My first stop was Ameyoko Market, or the American market.
Located in 6 Chome-4-9-14 Ueno. Taitō-ku, Tōkyō-to, this place is an amazing melange of cute, interesting stores, restaurants and Japanese mementos. You can even find kebabs and halal food here! 
But what strikes me most are the souvenirs!
All those cute socks, purses, bags, umbrellas, lunch boxes, pill box, pencil cases, stationaries and God knows what else are there.
I just can't help snatching those cute items so I did fill my shopping bags with many of them.

my favorite cartoon, Doraemon :)


I took the subway, which is only like ten minutes walk from my hotel, to go to Harajuku station.
And this is what I love so much about traveling in Japan.
It is surprisingly easy to travel around in Tokyo and overall in Japan as well, I suppose.

The subway system and the machines..

Using Suica card for traveling around, I love how convenient it is to be traveling around.  
Despite the fact I couldn't read or speak Japanese beside Domo arigatou and Doraemon, I found it very easy to go to some tourist spots by subway.
And they also put the English translation on every sign, so it's a huge help.
I can directly buy the Suica card from the machine and refill it with enough fund, so that I can travel easily. The fee for each trip depends on the distance and I guess starting from 129 Yen or around $1.3.

With a printed map of Tokyo subway in hand and careful observation, I survived strolling around the city to those lovely stops.

So, after walking around Ueno, It took me around 10 minutes to arrive at Harajuku station. 
Harajuku has been famous for its eclectic Japanese fashion and style, so I just wanted to see it myself. And I was having fun indeed!


Harajuku Station!



Halal ramen..yaaaay!

It was already a bit late when I arrived at Harajuku, so I didn't see many people crossing this famous street nor groups pf people wearing cosplay and Japanese Harajuku style.
Besides it was freezing and a bit snowing when I arrived.
Nevertheless, I enjoyed strolling around the street and checked out the supermarket, finding so many interesting items, starting from local brand cosmetics, Japanese snacks in super cute packaging, and so many more. 



Not to forget, I eat the crepe from the Angel's Heart, the oldest creperie in Takeshita Street.
They do have tons of choices indeed!
It was so overwhelming to me, I chose the basic one with cheese on it!
My favorite for sure.
And it costs me only 250 Yen or around USD 3. And it tasted good!
 



where to go?
So those  are a few random snaps before I share more details on what I manage to do in less than a day transit in Japan.
So, do you think you will like Japan as well?
I instantly fall in love with it and happy to be back for sure.
Wait for more stories from Japan! 

And here's Ueno on Google map if you want to check it out!

 



18 comments:

  1. Akhirnya kesampaian ya Mbk..
    kaos kakinya lucu,doraemonnn

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  2. Duh Mbak, asyik banget pekerjaannya banyak berhubungan juga dengan berkunjung ke berbagai negeri. Bahagianya dirimu Mbak...

    Ada Doraemon... Ingat Jepang saya jadi ingat Oshin dan Musashi dan juga manajemen pabriknya yg hebat.

    Salam dari Sukabumi,

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  3. Jepang cantik ya! So many things to see..

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  4. Waaah beberapa hari ini lagi banyak emak2 yg ke Jepang. Have fun mbak.

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  5. Halal ramen...alhamdulillaah. so glad to see that. And your pictures? As stunning as always.

    Is it spring already in Japan now?

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  6. I bet you're going to want to buy somethings there. Have fun!

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  7. How fun! My youngest daughter is a little miffed we didin't settle on Japan for our summer vacation this year. I'll be sure to show her your photos so she can live vicariously through your travels ;)

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  8. Good thing you finally get to see Japan! it's beautiful..and I guess it will be good to stop here for a while :)

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  9. Wah pas banget sakuranya bermekaran ya mbak

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  10. Aah bunga sakuranya cantik banget, pengin bisa foto berlatar belakang bunga sakura yg sedang mekar :D
    Itu yang ada gambar panda, kue ya mama Bo?

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  11. Mbak Indah, aku baca semuanya satu per satu sembari kuucapkan. Udah lama banget gak baca tulisan bahasa Inggris yang kulafalkan. Alhamdulillah ya Mbak, akhirnya sampai juga di Japan. Japan juga salah satu negara yang ingin kudatangi setelah Belanda. Kebayang perubahan cuacanya yaaa

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  12. I wanted to go and visit Japan as well. It's fascinating to see their beautiful cultures

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  13. Have been wanting to visit this beautiful place as well

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  14. Bunga Sakura... love it so much... cantiiikkk, kapan ya aku bisa lihat langsung di negeri asalnya ini, mupeng banget mbaa

    ReplyDelete

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