Hiroshima - Tokyo - Kinugawa - Hakone - Kyoto - Himeji - Nara - Osaka
May 28 to June 04, 2013
May 28 to June 04, 2013
“Instead of being afraid of the challenge and failure, be afraid of avoiding the challenge and doing nothing.” - Soichiro Honda, founder of Honda Motor Company.
My 17th country to visit, 24th solo backpacking trip, 4th visa application for tourism on entire single page, and of course, usual budget do-it-yourself itinerary from arrival to departure.
The "Land of the Rising Sun" is a country where the past meets the future. Japanese culture stretches back millennium, yet has also adopted (and created) the latest modern fashions and trends. Although Japan has officially renounced its right to declare war, it maintains a modern military with the sixth largest military budget, used for self-defense and peacekeeping roles. After Singapore, Japan has the lowest homicide rate (including attempted homicide) in the world.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Japan
Seasons in Japan are scheduled annually as follows;
Winter: December, January, February
Spring: March, April, May
Summer: June, July, August
Autumn: September, October, November
"the past meets future" concept of Tobu World Square in Kinugawa |
majestic Mt. Fujiyama view in Hakone |
huge torii gate in Miyajima Island, Hiroshima |
This another race against time, very short backpacking researched in somehow detailed manner has a compressed itinerary designed as follows:
May 28 Tuesday: 2100H ETA Osaka Kansai International Airport
May 29 Wednesday: Hiroshima day-trip (the castle, Peace memorial park & miyajima island)
May 30 Thursday: Disneysea resort Central and Western Tokyo at night (Shibuya, Tokyo tower & Harajuku)
June 01 Saturday: Hakone day-trip (Odawara castle, sighseeing cruise, mt. fujiyama)
June 02 Sunday: Kyoto day-trip (Nijo-jo, Kinkakuji, Ginkakuji, Heian shrine, Inari shrine)
June 03 Monday: Himeji (the Castle, the garden & Taiyo Park) and Nara day-trip (Todai-ji)
June 04 Tuesday: Osaka day-trip (the Castle & Universal Studios) 2000H ETD Kansai Airport
June 01 Saturday: Hakone day-trip (Odawara castle, sighseeing cruise, mt. fujiyama)
June 02 Sunday: Kyoto day-trip (Nijo-jo, Kinkakuji, Ginkakuji, Heian shrine, Inari shrine)
June 03 Monday: Himeji (the Castle, the garden & Taiyo Park) and Nara day-trip (Todai-ji)
June 04 Tuesday: Osaka day-trip (the Castle & Universal Studios) 2000H ETD Kansai Airport
TOTAL BUDGET : PHP52,723 = USD1,318 (14.33% went to plane ticket)
Basic Words to Remember;
hello - konnichiwa; thank you - arigatō; I love you - suki desu; goodbye - Sayonara!
sorry - gomen nasai; please - kudasai; excuse me - Sumimasen!
toilet - toire; train station - Tetsudō no eki; airport - kuukou
timezone - +0900H UTC; capital - Tokyo city; language - Japanese
famous dog Hachiko in Shibuya station of Tokyo city |
ultimate torii gates of Fushimi Inari Shrine in Kyoto |
Himeji Castle, Japan's best castle |
Basic Words to Remember;
hello - konnichiwa; thank you - arigatō; I love you - suki desu; goodbye - Sayonara!
sorry - gomen nasai; please - kudasai; excuse me - Sumimasen!
toilet - toire; train station - Tetsudō no eki; airport - kuukou
timezone - +0900H UTC; capital - Tokyo city; language - Japanese
currency - yen 1JPY = 0.40 PHP 1USD = 100 JPY
visa - Filipino's need to apply first before travel (how to apply tourist visa in Japan?)Interesting Facts about Japan:
1. Japan's literacy rate is almost 100%.
2. More than 70% of Japan consists of mountains, including more than 200 volcanoes. Mt. Fuji, the tallest mountain in Japan, is an active volcano.
3. Sumo is Japan's national sport, although baseball is also very popular.
4. Japan is the largest automobile producer in the world, the world’s largest consumer of Amazon rain forest timber and has the world's largest fish market (Tsukiji market in Tokyo).
5. The term karaoke means "empty orchestra" in Japanese.
6. Geisha means "person of the arts" and the first geisha were actually men.
Osaka Kansai International Airport arrival at night;
My flight arrived almost an hour late from NAIA Terminal 3 due to traffic jam as advised by air traffic controller. Osaka airport immigration officers are great compared to other international airports, Philippines being as hard as usual. After around 30 minutes, I was already in JR office Osaka Airport branch (opens until 2300H) to convert my Japan Rail (JR) pass exchange order (purchased online) into their 7-days acceptable card pass. I put intended dates I required which will start the next day. The fare I used from this night is ordinary train bound to Fukishima station where I booked my hostel for the night.
day 1: Hiroshima solo day-trip
day 2: Navigating Disney Resort
Tokyo city by day & at night
day 3: Kinugawa for Tobu World Square
day 4: Hakone solo day-trip
day 5: Kyoto solo day-trip
day 6: Himeji and Nara solo day-trip
day 7: Osaka solo day-trip and departure
7-days Japan Solo Detailed Itinerary (Jun. 2013)
3. Sumo is Japan's national sport, although baseball is also very popular.
4. Japan is the largest automobile producer in the world, the world’s largest consumer of Amazon rain forest timber and has the world's largest fish market (Tsukiji market in Tokyo).
5. The term karaoke means "empty orchestra" in Japanese.
6. Geisha means "person of the arts" and the first geisha were actually men.
shogunate's set of armors in Odawara Castle |
Terracotta army reproduced in Taiyo Park of Himeji |
exclusive train for Universal Studios Osaka |
My flight arrived almost an hour late from NAIA Terminal 3 due to traffic jam as advised by air traffic controller. Osaka airport immigration officers are great compared to other international airports, Philippines being as hard as usual. After around 30 minutes, I was already in JR office Osaka Airport branch (opens until 2300H) to convert my Japan Rail (JR) pass exchange order (purchased online) into their 7-days acceptable card pass. I put intended dates I required which will start the next day. The fare I used from this night is ordinary train bound to Fukishima station where I booked my hostel for the night.
Anyways, I divided this wonderful journey into different set of posts to be more specific on its content;
day 1: Hiroshima solo day-trip
day 2: Navigating Disney Resort
Tokyo city by day & at night
day 3: Kinugawa for Tobu World Square
day 4: Hakone solo day-trip
day 5: Kyoto solo day-trip
day 6: Himeji and Nara solo day-trip
day 7: Osaka solo day-trip and departure
7-days Japan Solo Detailed Itinerary (Jun. 2013)
Kakainggit! Hindi ba bitin na you only spent 1 day per area (1 day Kyoto, Osaka, etc)? DLed your itinerary thanks!! Fnally alam ko na rin saan yung may unli tori magsandamakmak na vanity shots ako when I visit there. haha
ReplyDelete@Mariane; di naman, kasi yung mga main prospect ko which are there main tourist spots na-visit ko naman lahat, di rin naman kasi worth-it yung iba for me... nag-act video din ako dyan sa unli torii, nungkang madaming dumadaan, hehehe !!
DeleteGanda ng photos mo.
ReplyDeleteLevel up yong kagustohan kong bumisita ng Japan.
Someday.. someday. ^_^
Laagholic Buyog
Japan!!! Been wanting to visit this country. Someday I shall. Thanks for sharing.
ReplyDeleteYour picture of the Terracotta army makes me want to go there too!
ReplyDelete