Eating, Meeting, Mighty, Money

  Trip Back to Japan (Summer 2022) It’s been about four years now, but this is a story from my trip back to Japan in July 2022, right after COVID restrictions were lifted. Arrival in Tokyo & First Visit to DisneySea After arriving at Narita, we stayed at a hotel near Urawa (just a regular hotel, not one of the Disney-themed ones). From there, we headed to Tokyo DisneySea for the first time. It was a blazing hot summer day in Japan. Unfortunately, my kids had already lost interest in Disney, and the heat didn’t help either. We ended up staying only from 10 AM to 3 PM before heading back to the hotel. Honestly… not sure if we got our money’s worth. Culture Shock at an Izakaya For dinner, we took the hotel shuttle to the nearest station and went to an izakaya. What surprised me most was that all orders were done on a tablet . It felt like a bit of a culture shock. Staying at a Minpaku (Apartment-Style Rental) After that, we stayed for about a week at what you’d c...

I went back to Japan this summer with two children. The next day we arrived, We were going to Ito (Shizuoka) with my family and friends, so I stayed in the city for a night booked in the reservation site. It's not a hotel, it's like a private residence (with private bathroom with shower), it's not a fancy place or anything, but it's in a convenient location and the reviews are good, so I decided here. My two children were quite big (13 and 8), so I didn't want to sleep on a tight bed, so it was attractive to have a single bed for each person. This room has two bunk beds and the area is nice. I've lived in Tokyo for many years, but I am not familiar with Akasaka or the inside of the Yamanote Line. I arrived at Akasaka around 5:00 in the evening and was full of people after work. The impression of Akasaka is modern buildings and old shopping street merged. Since two suitcases were sent to my brothers' house, I will arrive at the inn with a small ...

I went to Japan to see my family in May.   I left Japan 20 years ago.  The price of the food is really affordable if you choose. For breakfast, I had rice, miso soup, salmon, and pickles set for only 500 yen or so, I bought a ticket at the machine and gave it to the lady who works by herself cooking, serving, clean up, doing everything! There were at least 8 customers including me. She was working hard. at 8:00 AM it was the peak time serving for guys before going to work. After everybody left, I told her, "You were doing all by yourself, what a hard worker you are!"  I didn't take a picture of the food. Too bad. On the other hand, expensive food like this one a cake for 780 yen 810 yen with tax exists. It was good though. Potato cake (heavy and filled me up)  I stayed at Shizuoka where Mt. Fuji is, and also my family. In Tokyo, I stayed at Shin Okubo (near Shinjuku). This area is a Korean town in Tokyo. I booked at booking.com the rat...