This year I fulfilled a long held ambition and travelled to the land of the rising sun, Japan. The journey was long, a full day travelling, and if I had to do it again, I would stop over in Abu Dhabi for a couple of days to break it up. The jet lag wasn’t too bad and we had acclimatised within a day. Getting through security at the airport was trying, the queue was long and we were then moved to a different queue which took even longer, where we were eventually eye & finger scanned and allowed through. The mood was not good as by that stage we were all in need of a shower and a bed, but as we settled on the train into Tokyo, we relaxed and looked forward to the days ahead.
First impressions, all signs were bi-lingual, Japanese and English, which made it very easy to get around, all announcements were too. There were maps everywhere so there was little chance of getting lost and the Japanese themselves were more than helpful. We were staying in the Ueno district which was 2 minutes from a subway station and a 10-15 minute walk from the main Ueno Station, located in Ueno Park along with a zoo, museums, cafes, monuments and gardens.
As a city, Tokyo is a huge urban sprawl, sadly, there is little evidence of old Japan apart from a few working shrines. Most of the buildings are designed for form over function so aesthetically there isn’t much to inspire a sense of wonder. Paradoxically, almost every tree and shrub is trimmed and pruned to within an inch of its life to enhance its aesthetic appeal. However, the city as a whole was clean and safe, and you could have walked anywhere at any time of the day or night without fear.
We did the usual tourist sites, the Tokyo Sky Tree from which you have a panoramic view of the entire city. Sadly, Mount Fuji was shrouded in cloud that day so we did not get to see it. However, when we were leaving the plane flew over the crater so we had a complete bird’s eye view.
As someone who is interested in art, a visit to the Hokusai museum was a must. The original print of The Wave is not on show, but there is a replica on view. They have also copied all his sketch books which you are free to browse through.
On the Tuesday, we ventured to Osaka on the bullet train, as we had booked Universal Studios for number one granddaughter. It was a blast and I even did the Demon Slayer and Mario Cart rides. Highly recommended.
We visited the Shibuya ‘scramble’ crossing and Ikebukura, one of the anime shopping areas. Shops with 10 floors of anime and manga characters are something to behold but after looking at it all, I thought there was something sad about those plastic figures, and I had the same thought I have when walking around Poundland, a lot of plastic tat that we could all live without.
There is a chain store group called Don Quixote. Don Quixote is like your local pound-shop multiplied by 1000. Because space is at a premium in Tokyo, they are stuffed to the gills with all sorts, and while it was interesting to wander around them, I didn’t go the whole way to Japan to shop. By day 3, number two son felt overwhelmed with ‘stuff’.
Tokyo is ‘green’ in that most vehicles seem to be electric or at least hybrid but not very ‘green’ in regard to foliage. We were lucky to be near Ueno Park but there wasn’t much more greenery around the city as a whole. It was only when we returned home that we realised how much we had missed the greenery of home, and driving up the motorway from Dublin early on Sunday morning, my son remarked at how beautiful and green Ireland was in contrast and understood now why people go on about it.
Sadly, we didn’t get out as far as Studio Ghibli, it was something we had planned but we had to make adjustments to the schedule. We didn’t realise the weekend after we arrived was a holiday and everywhere was packed out but we were able to enjoy other things as they came up like the Samurai parade instead.
For years we heard about how expensive Japan is but that was not what we found. Granted, the Bullet Train trip was (but worth it) but food and other transport costs were a lot less than here. When we were first looking about our trip, we had visited a couple of local travel agencies. They had quoted us at least £7000 which was more than we had budgeted for, so we looked about booking our own flights and got Etihad Airways out of Dublin for £3300, and booked an apartment on Booking.com for £500. That was for 2 adults and one 12 year old. The apartment in Tokyo was for 8 nights and although it was small, it was more than adequate as all we really needed it for was bed & breakfast.
The food was good, we cooked breakfast every morning before setting off for the day. The bread and eggs were delicious but food in the cafes/restaurants was generally of a high standard, even McDonalds.
We were also lucky with the weather and enjoyed temperatures in the low to mid 20’s with sunshine and blue skies most days.
First trips anywhere are about finding out how everything works and getting your way around. Experience of the London Underground stood us in good stead to navigate the subway and trains. The best thing about the trip for me was the culture and the Japanese people themselves, respectful, helpful and mannerly, it was a pleasure to visit.
Overall, it was a great experience and one I plan to repeat in a few years’ time, only staying longer next time and seeing more of life outside the cities, and will definitely pencil in Studio Ghibli next time.