Kawaguchiko (Mt. Fuji) (Day 10)

We started early. Went to Shinjuku to take the express train to Otsuki to transfer to another train to Kawaguchiko. The train from Otsuki to Kawaguchiko costs ¥1,620. You can buy the ticket from a machine near the station office.

Upon arriving in Kawaguchiko, we walked to Kachi Kachi Ropeway Entrance which was about 15 minutes walk, 20 minutes for us since we took lot of pictures along the way and also we were walking so carefully. Too many snow and ice on the road.

The ropeway costs about ¥1500, and it was worth it. The view is magnificent. Plus Fuji-san didn't hide from us. It was a cloudless day with a clear view of Kawaguchiko.

There's a photo booth there. You can get the post card for free while the bigger photo is ¥1000. What we did was to asl for copies of the post card for ¥100 each. The idea is to send it to our friends.

We had lunch in a restaurant near the Kachi Kachi Ropeway Entrance. It was nice place with free wifi, though very unstable.

After which, we went back to Kawaguchiko Station so they can take a cab to Fujiten Snow Resort to ski. Roms and I went to Kubota Itchiku Musem and then head to the onsen at the back of the museum. There was no other person inside the the ladies' onsen, so I was able to enjoy about 30 minutes before I find the water too hot.

We went back to Tokyo around 7 pm and reached Shinjuku about after 9 pm and had dinner there. My friends are to leave the next day so we need to go back as early as possible.

It was a fantastic day. They were able to ski and I was able to try onsen. An experience of firsts for all of us.

Kanazawa (Day 9)

I didn't get to explore Kanazawa as I met with my former manager.

In the morning, we checked out of the hotel and headed to Kenroku-en. One of the three most beautiful garden in Japan. We had breakfast in one on the cafe there. Afterwards, I left while they go and explore Kenroku-en and Kanazawa Castle Park.

There's a loop bus from Kanazawa Station. You can take either the right loop or left loop bus. You won't miss the stop as there's an announcement on the monitor on board.

As we have agreed to leave Kanazawa early to have an ample time to shop in Tokyo. We left Kanazawa at around 1:30 pm. We took the old way to go to Tokyo, the via Echigo-Yuzawa one, which took almost 5 hours. But if you are going after 15th of March, 2015, you are so much blessed as there's a new shinkansen for the Tokyo-Kanzawa route for just 2.5 hours.

Upon arriving in Tokyo, we split. Malou and Dref went to Odaiba, Roms went off to meet some friends while teJing, Joy, Kuya Aris and I went to Akihabara. If you are going to Akihabara, go there early, shops close quite early.

Takayama - Shirakawa-go (Day 8)

Shirakawa-go was not part of the original itinerary until the day that someone posted (Visit Japan) in Facebook about places to go to during winter. And in all of the places, Shirakawa-go is the most feasible place to go as we will be coming from either Osaka or Tokyo.

To go to Shirakawa-go, you must go to Takayama first (or Kanazawa). From Tokyo, take shinkansen to Nagoya then transfer to Limited Express Hida Wide View to Takayama.Or, with the new shinkansen line to Kanazawa (starting March 15), take that instead for a shorter trip. If coming from Osaka, there's a limited express train to Kanazawa as well or take the shinkansen to Nagoya and transfer for Takayama. Either coming from Takayama or Kanazawa, there is a bus operating and you may find the time table at Japan Guide web site. 

Well, I suggest what we did. We arrived in Takayama by noon, had lunch and walked around and took around 1 million pictures then went to Shirakawa-go by 3 pm. The light up starts at 5:30 pm and the last bus departing Shirakawa-go is at 5:20 pm. So because we want to see the light up, we arranged for a van months before. Hato Taxi is by far the cheapest I found. So yeah, after the light up which was at 7 pm, we headed to Kanazawa instead of going back to Takayama. I know that 3 hours in Takayama is not enough to enjoy the place and explore the Old Town, hence it is already on my list of places to return to.

Disneyland and Odaiba (Day7)

This was a free day for us. We all went wherever we we want to go. For Dref and I, we went to Disneyland then to Odaiba. For Jing, Aris and Joy, they went to Shinjuku, Shibuya and Harajuku then met up with us in Odaiba. Malou and Roms met with their respective friends.

Sad to say, I didn't enjoy Disneyland as much as I enjoyed USJ. Or maybe because we're not sure on how the system works. Plus the fact that the  parade was cancelled due to wind. That was big let down. Anyway, it's easy to get there. Just get to Maihama station, it's a JR line so if you are coming from near the Yamanote line, it will be easy to transfer trains.

By 4 pm, we left Disneyland and went to Odaiba. There is a shorter way to go to Odaiba from Disneyland but I opted to go back to Tokyo to go to Shimbashi to take the Yurikamome Line to Odaiba. Apparently, the view going there is a nice experience too. But  unfortunately, there was nothing on the day we went.

My friends said that it's way cheaper in Odaiba than in Shinjuku (I surmised much), and Dref said that H&M there is cheaper than in Manila. So, 3 hours and a thousand shopping bags later (all were Dref's), we went back to the hostel with a decision that we shall go back to Tokyo from Kanazawa a lot earlier than planned.

By the way, while they were shopping, I was in McDonald's having my dinner while connecting to the free wifi of the next door shop.

Tokyo (Asakusa) (Day 6)

We left Osaka with Hikari Shinkansen at around 6:30 am. Upon stopping in Shin-Yokohama, everybody got excited because it was snowing. We alighted in Shinagawa. Well, my first itinerary was to alight in Tokyo Station then take another train to go to Kuramae Oedo Line since our hostel (K's House) is in Kuramae and it is nearer to the Oedo Line exit than the Asakusa Line exit. But upon further checking, the transfer from Shinagawa is much simpler and easier than in Tokyo Station. From Shinagawa, there's a train that pass by Kuramae Asakusa Line.

Upon exit of the station (which was the correct exit, we later learned), it was raining crushed ice! Then because I am following the instruction from the hostel's email, we crossed the road, turned right and search for the hostel, but to no avail. Then finally, we asked someone and taught us how to go (which was were we came from) with an advice that if we still cannot find it, to ask anybody.

So, we crossed the road again, and this time, not wanting to get lost, asked a random passer by and asked for direction. She did not tell us how to go to the hostel, she came with us and brought us there! So amazing, these people are! 

Just like the weather, we were in a not so good mood when we checked in. But after getting warmed up and a cup of tea, we were all smiles again. On the right is our picture in K's House just before we leave for Kimono appointment.

So then, after confirming with Kiyomi-san (since we were already late due to getting lost) that we can still go despite the rain, we had a quick lunch and head over to Sakura Photo Studio. Kiyomi-san is a very nice person who speaks English. She said she lived in Cebu for 7 years. Her studio is very near Asakusa Shrine, so I highly recommend her studio if you wish to wear Kimono too. What we had is Basic Plan for 3,000 yen per person.

We opted to stay in the hostel to rest after walking around Asakusa.

Update (2015-03-15): You may check this site for the list of kimono rental shops in Asakusa.

Amanohashidate - Kinosaki (Day 5)

This was a very challenging train ride with so many transfers but the destination is worth it.

The ride from Shin-Osaka to Fukuchiyama is covered by the JR Pass, but from there to Amanohashidate, it is not. It is better to buy the Amanohashidate Day Pass as it will also cover the train ride to Toyooka on the way to Kinosaki. The day pass can be bought in the Station Office in Fukuchiyama. Station officers are very kind and helpful, they will help you out. Just show your JR Pass (for exit) and say that you want to buy the Amanohashidate Pass.

From the Station, it is a short walk to the ferry terminal. Due to our limited time, we had to take the ferry to go to the other side. The ferry is covered in the pass as well as the tram going up the view deck. We wanted to take the chair lift down but it is not on operation during winter. The bike rental is also free and we would have biked around if we had enough time. In our opinion, the view from Amanohashidate View Land is better, but because the other side is the free from the pass, we opted for that instead.

Then we took the 1 hour travel to Kinosaki (transfer at Toyooka). It's all covered by the Amanohashidate Pass and JR Pass. There are seven hot springs in Kinosaki. Our three guys tried it, but each one is different onsen. I think it was only for 500 to 800 yen for an hour use, but if you are staying in a ryokan there, the entrance to all the hot springs is free.

Kinosaki have the old town feeling to it. The shops close down early. We also bought a lot of omiyage (pasalubong) there. They also have a Hello Kitty Store but I think it's more expensive than the one in Tokyo. Our train back to Shin-Osaka was at 6:30 pm, and not wanting to be left behind by the train, we were at the station 15 minutes early.

Amanohashidate and Kinosaki is already on my list to visit again. Next time though, I will stay in a ryokan in Kinosaki and stay a whole day in Amanohashidate.

Nagoya - Group 1 (Day 4)

On this day that my friends started using their JR Pass. Time for some bullet train ride.

Dref, Malou, Jing and I went to Nagoya, while Aris, Joy and Roms went to Hiroshima (Roms will be making a separate post on this).

We have secured our seat reservations in the airport for Nagoya, but not for Aris and Joy to Hiroshima, so we dropped by the JR Office get use reserve the seats. Then we headed straight to the Shinkansen tracks. When using JR Pass, always go to the barrier office and show your JR Pass. On your first time use, the station officer will put a stamp on it.

The tracks in the Shin-Osaka Station are easy enough to follow. There are English signs as to where the train in the track is going to.

We bought ekiben
prior to going to the tracks. The price ranges from 800 yen to 1,200 yen. They have katsu and beef and sushi rolls and onigiri. They also have sandwiches. But if the time is too tight and there's no time to buy, fret not, they also sell on board the train but with limited choices and the price is actually cheaper than outside.

For Nagoya, our itinerary is to visit the Toyota Museum and Nabana no Sato. In Nagoya Station, take the exit via the Takashimaya, the bus stop 8 for Meguru Sightseeing Bus is just outside on the left (when going out). This bus' first stop is the Toyota Museum. For more info and what else you can visit, go here. The One Day Pass is 500 yen, one bus ride is 240 yen. We didn't take the day pass as we will only take it twice, but if you plan to go to other places that the sightseeing bus is serving, then it is wise to get the day pass.

After Toyota, we headed back to the Nagoya Station. Note that the bus will not stop on the same bus stop 8, it will stop across the street. So just walk over, go inside Takashimaya and take the Hirokoji Exit, then after crossing the street, turn right. You will see the signs to go to Meitetsu Bus Center. Go up level 3 for the tickets, advisable to buy a round trip ticket. The travel takes about 25 to 30 minutes.




The admission fee was 2,200 yen, but the admission ticket includes a 1,000 yen voucher which can be used in the restaurants inside. It was really cold that day because of the wind, but the experience is worth it. Amazing illumination. It is so worth the visit and the cold. ^_^

When going back, make sure that you take the same bus. Check if the bus is going to Nagoya Station and the bus must be a Meitetsu Bus. It could become very crowded and you might not be able to get on the bus, good thing there's a warm waiting area.