[Japan] Final Thoughts

Before anything else, here is a summary of all my posts about our Japan experience:

Family Trip to Japan
Osaka
Nara Park
Kyoto
Mt. Fuji and Lake Kawaguchiko
Temples and Popular Areas in Tokyo
Hachiko and Shibuya Sky
teamLab Planets and an Afternoon in Odaiba
Tokyo DisneySea!
Hunters Bar, a Monster Hunter-Themed Restaurant
Dinner and a Mini-Reunion at Gonpachi Nishi-Azabu
Food!
And More Food!
Hotel Vista Osaka-Namba
Marunouchi Hotel in Tokyo
Travel Tips to Osaka and Tokyo
Final Thoughts

Dotonbori in Osaka

This was our planned itinerary. However, the typhoon hit us on Day 4 so we ended up compressing the two day trips to Kyoto (days 4 and 5) into just one, on day 5. It also meant that we had to drop a few items. As such, we no longer got to see the Golden Pavilion, Ninenzaka, and Kiyomizu-dera Temple.

Day 1: Depart Manila, arrive in Osaka
Day 2: Day trip to Nara Park
Day 3: Osaka: Universal Studios Japan
Day 4: Day trip to Kyoto from Osaka: Tea Ceremony and Kimono Experience Kyoto (Maikoya at Nishiki), Samurai and Ninja Museum
Day 5: Day trip to Kyoto from Osaka: Fushimi Inari Taisha, Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, Kinkakuji Temple (Golden Pavilion), Ninenzaka, Kiyomizu-dera Temple
Day 6: Travel from Osaka to Tokyo via Shinkansen
Day 7: Day trip from Tokyo to Lake Kawaguchiko for Mt. Fuji viewing
Day 8: Senso-ji Temple, Asakusa, Ginza
Day 9: Akihabara, Hunters Bar, Gonpachi Nishi-Azabu
Day 10: Hachiko Statue, Shibuya Crossing, teamLab Planets, Odaiba
Day 11: Tokyo DisneySea
Day 12: Imperial Palace, Shibuya Sky, Meiji Shrine
Day 13: Departure from Tokyo, fly back to Manila

Torii gate at Meiji Jingu in Tokyo

This trip to Japan was my first international trip since the pandemic. It's also the first time my nephews traveled abroad as adults. Their previous international trip was to Singapore and Malaysia more than a decade ago and they were still kids back then.

Todai-ji Temple in Nara Park

Japan is pretty much a walking country because taxis are expensive and you can get to most places quite easily via subways, metros, and the rail system. A big change since the last time I was in Japan (more than two decades ago) is that railway stations and trains now have English signs and announcements. This makes it a lot easier for tourists to go around and find their way.

Restaurants and bustling crowds in Dotonbori

When we took the Shinkansen from Osaka to Kyoto, we initially ran into a challenge because reserved seats were sold out that day. (My guess is this was because there was a typhoon two days before and up until the previous day, many intercity trains were still not in operation.) The only tickets we could get were the cheaper, free-seating ones. Thankfully, the train we got on was originating from the Shin-Osaka station which is where we were boarding. This meant that the train was complete empty when it arrived. Not only did we manage to get seats, but our seats were also next to each other. Cool!

Tokyo Station in Marunouchi

One other great thing about trains in Japan, such as the Shinkansen from Osaka to Tokyo and the Narita Express, is that there is a lot of legroom and space. They are designed for people who are bringing lots of luggage with them. We actually managed to fit large luggage between us and the seat in front of us. That's a lot of legroom! There are also areas at either the front or the back of each car where you can place your luggage and you can also put smaller bags on the overhead storage spaces.

Lots of leg room in the Shinkansen from Osaka to Kyoto

Whenever my mom and I travel, we try to find Catholic churches and hear mass on Sundays, even if the mass is celebrated in a different language. In Osaka, we heard mass at Sacra Famiglia Osaka Umeda Catholic Church. I'm guessing this was organized by the Filipino community in Osaka because many of the songs sung during mass were the same songs we sing in the Philippines. They even sung a song in Filipino!

Sacra Famiglia Osaka Umeda Catholic Church

In Tokyo, we heard mass at St. Ignatius Catholic Church. This was a beautiful church with an incredible ceiling and stained glass panels.

St. Ignatius Catholic Church in Tokyo

I forgot to write about this tip in my Travel Tips post so I'm sharing it here. But if you do plan to see Mt. Fuji - there are a variety of places where you can do this, not just Lake Kawaguchiko - you can find out what the visibility is of Mt. Fuji by checking the live webcams: https://www.fujigoko.tv/english/.

Selfie with a shrouded Mt. Fuji

The Uniqlo store in Ginza is an interesting place to visit not only because it has 12 floors, but it provides a customization service i.e. you can customize the clothes you buy here. There is also a cafe on one of the upper floors. I really wanted to try it but there wasn't enough time. (My friend Tim who I met up with in Tokyo for a few drinks told me that there are many retail establishments in Ginza that have cafes, and one of the best ones in his experience was the one in Ralph Lauren.)

Custom Corner at Uniqlo in Ginza

The food court at the basement of Mitsukoshi Mall was quite impressive. There are so many stalls that offer a huge variety of food. My family bought a sushi platter here one night and because it was almost closing time, it was at 50% off. The discounted price was 400 yen which was an absolute steal!

Ginza Wako and Mitsukoshi Mall

Many restaurants in Japan have automated the ordering process, eliminating the need for waiters to get people's orders. In many restaurants we visited, we had to order by scanning a QR code and ordering from our phone. In some other places, like Ten-Ti-Jin (the ramen place in Dotonbori), there is a machine at the entrance where you place your order. It then gives you a stub that you give to the cashier for payment. We didn't know how it worked though so the cashier at this ramen store just told us to go in and place our orders directly with her. We did see how other people were placing their orders outside. When we encountered a similar machine in a restaurant in the Shin-Osaka station, we now knew how to use it. 

Food ordering machines at a restaurant at the Shin-Osaka Station

I talked about using Klook to rent pocket wifi devices while in Japan. I was quite worried about returning them. However, it was quite straightforward. The pack comes with an envelop that is already set-up so you just need to put all the pocket wifi items inside, seal it, and drop it off at one of the post office mailboxes at the airport. When we arrived at Terminal 3, I asked guest services where I could find that mailbox and they helped me. The airport does have wifi so we could still connect to the internet for free even without our rented pocket wifi devices.

Dropping off our Klook pocket wifi rentals at a post office mailbox at the airport

Our trip was packed and we ran into some problems such as typhoon and our Lake Kawaguchiko troubles. Despite all this, it was still an incredible experience that I got to share with my family. Hopefully, we get the chance to visit Japan again in the future.