I'm so out of words right now, but I really have to write something, just because. Haha. These past two weeks has been a blast for me; finally visiting one of my favourite countries to explore since my last visit two years ago: Japan. It was a great time I had there, visiting some more cities I never been to (re: Kyoto) and experience more things I could ever imagine doing so.
For this trip, I went with my usual travel partner (re: mom), my brother, and my two cousins. I'm so happy that I can finally use the Airbnb application that I have in my phone after some quite time keeping it in my phone, wondering when I can finally use it when travelling! We did town hopping from Tokyo-Kyoto-Osaka-Tokyo in the span of two weeks, so there will be 4 places we will stay. It was so easy to book places in Airbnb I am so happy there is such a thing as Airbnb. God bless Airbnb! (Pardon my overexcitement)
I'm so excited to meet some new people in Japan! As I said, Airbnb lets me meet and befriend new people from all over the world, including this very country. My apartment hosts were so communicative and so friendly, although I didn't see some of them in person. I think this gave us an opportunity to experience how locals in Japan live!
The flight from Jakarta to Tokyo took us almost 7 hours on board and when it was almost in the midnight. Well, it was a no problem for me as I can sleep shortly after the plane took off and get up shortly before the plane landed. Haha. I spent times in the plane doing so, got up some quite bit because of bumpy ride up there. We finally landed safely at Tokyo's downtown airport, Haneda International Airport. Right after we landed, we bought some necessities that were needed while we're there such as SIM Card (I honestly can't live without connections in my phone *sob*) and Suica, a card that can store our money in it and it can be used for train and bus tickets, and even buy food and drinks from the vending machine! Speaking about convenience, Japan is one of the best country that provide so!
Oh, I almost forgot about Japan Rail Pass. This pass works like magic while I'm staying in Japan. The pass could be ordered via online or by a travel agent prior departing to Japan, so you can't make any purchase of it while in Japan. This pass gave us lots of benefits especially when it comes to travelling via bullet train a.k.a Shinkansen, because it will save you loads of money rather than buying regular tickets (bullet train tickets are so costly, it's the same price as plane tickets to the same destination!
It was summer already in Japan, but there are still plenty of rains before a long, dry, and humid summer next August. The best way to travel in Japan in these past months is to bring yourself umbrella, just because, rain can come anytime. It was raining the first day I was in Japan and it goes warmer and warmer for the next following days, but still, rain can comes every time. Speaking of summer, summer in Japan is everything you've ever seen in movies, television, and manga! It was so festive and there are lots of festivals and events in several spots in Japan! Even some theme parks such as Universal Studios Osaka and Tokyo Disneyland held summer only events that are so cool! Stay tuned for my coverage of what really happened in those two places! Haha.
People in Japan never cease to amaze me. They are responsible, and know how to act in public spaces properly. Every time I go to station, no matter how crowded it is, they tend to queue properly and show some etiquettes, such as letting people get out from the train first before going in. They tend to be friendly to travellers and foreigners, so there will be no problem when it comes to asking people in Japan. One other thing that is so eye opening is; public spaces and facilities in Japan are also built for the needs of people with disability. There are some parts of the sidewalk that were bumpy and plays chirping sounds because it was designed for people with visual impairment. I love on how people are considered equal in Japan and deserve public facilities the same as normal people.
By the way, have you tried toilets in Japan? If you haven't see one of the magical invention of Japan, then toilet shall be one of them. Man, they sure have lots of buttons to press!
Ah, Japan. One of many countries where I left my heart in. Yes, more posts about my trip to come. Finally, enjoy this song I barely know some few hours ago.
