You could say that my husband and I have a slight obsession with Asia! In the past five years we have been to Japan, China, Thailand, Cambodia, Vietnam, Myanmar , Laos, Singapore, Malaysia and Indonesia. This year we decided to check out two new Asian countries-South Korea and the Philippines.

What keeps drawing us back you may ask? Each of the countries is so different, but all such rich and distinct cultures. All much different than our own. In my opinion, there is nothing more satisfying then learning , exploring and experiencing other cultures. Not all of our Asian experiences have been glorious and splendid. But that is part of travel! How boring would it be if everything was always comfortable and predictable!

We set out on our journey with a first stop in Tokyo. We have been to Tokyo a few times now, and whenever we have a layover the debate is how long should we extend it. We just love Tokyo so much! Not wanting to take too much time away from the new destinations, we decided 2 nights in Tokyo on the front end of the trip and 1 night on the back should be good!

Thankfully, (for the first time in a long time) our travel to Asia was smooth sailing! No delays, no issues!We arrived at Narita Airport and took the train into Tokyo- arriving just in time for an early afternoon dinner! The train took about an hour and is an easy ride. The thing you first notice about Japan, is how helpful people are. While the trains system and many signs are in Japanese, if you are lost or need assistance, most locals are more than willing to help.

The immediate excitement of Tokyo is overwhelming as you walk down the brightly lit streets! Overwhelming, in a good way! Imagine NYC but times 10, cleaner and just so rich with culture! Now, perhaps the Japanese feel this way about NYC when they visit?

We were craving some fresh sushi, and nothing beats the sushi in Japan! We found an awesome conveyor belt sushi place, which I am convinced we went to on our honeymoon 5 years ago, but hubby wasn’t sure. With our travel backpacks and gear in tow, we had to squeeze our way into the small establishment. Restaurants in Tokyo , are often very small. Some only with 5 or 6 seats. This one, although small, had probably 20 or so seats, and no restroom. But boy, oh boy was the sushi good!

 

Sake tasting

The damage– all of our plates

After dinner we checked into the gorgeous Hilton Tokyo in Shinjuku. We had stayed here on our honeymoon and loved it! Shinjuku is one of the coolest areas to walk around in Tokyo! It is very central and easy to get on the train to anywhere else in the city.

Our room was as lovely as we remembered , with gorgeous views of the city! We enjoyed cocktails in the executive lounge , with even more fabulous city views!

The next morning we set out to explore an area we previously enjoyed – Shibuya. Shibuya is a huge commercial and business area with two of the busiest rail stations in the world ( Shibuya and Shinjuku). Shibuya crossing is known as the busiest intersection the world! It is really something!

It seemed rather quiet for a Saturday morning for Shibuya, but it certainly picked up as the time went on. We had an amazingly delicious ramen lunch! The food is also one of the reasons we love Tokyo ( and Japan in general). The Japanese know how to do food. They take so much pride in their cooking and it really  shows!

Vending machine ordering is very common in Japan—

Conner (aka hubby, aka John) is the navigator when we travel, and he does such a great job! We decided to explore an area of Tokyo we had not yet seen before- “Electric City”or Akihabara. The Japanese love their video games and electronics! This is seen everywhere-but electric city was insane ! It was huge buildings , all 5-6 levels , one after another filled with all sorts of gaming. Everything from the “claw” grabbing machines featuring anime figurines, to dance games and virtual reality- even horse racing!

Vending machines are EVERYWHERE

I got in trouble for trying to take a video of the gamers– oops! But just imagine– pure craziness!

every old school video game ever made

We had a blast walking around our favorite city all afternoon! Navigating the trains in Tokyo can be confusing – even my amazing hubby navigator needs some time to figure it out–

That evening we had another amazing meal ( you really can’t go wrong in Tokyo), followed by cocktails in the hotel lounge and even a stop at our old favorite Karaoke bar! We had randomly walked into it on our honeymoon and had a blast! Finding it again this trip was just awesome! We chatted with some locals and watched as a beautiful ladyboy sang some tunes. (Lady boys are pretty common in Asia- and they love to sing karaoke!)

The next morning we set out for our next stop Seoul, South Korea! Tokyo , you never disappoint, and the more time we spend with you , the more we love you! If you haven’t been to Japan, put it at the top of your bucket list- I promise you won’t be disappointed!

Ja Matane ( see you later),

Kinz