I went to Japan(Tokyo-shi)
Feb. 11th, 2017 04:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
agatha_inooSorry, it took me forever to follow up on my adventures in Japan ahahahahaha(but I actually updated already in my lj account lmao). Real life stuff is getting real this early lmao.
For the second part, I'm going to talk about our sojourn in Tokyo so read on if you guys are interested.
So, we took the afternoon flight to Narita on Wednesday and arrived at around 5 pm. Since it's in Japan where the sun rises early, the sun sets early as well so can you imagine a dark 5:00 pm(I'm used to seeing light even until 6:30 usually). When our plane got to the airport, there was still an airplane on the spot where we were supposed to exit so our plane had to wait for quite a while at the side, and guest what I found, the plane beside us had the letters "k-e-i" on it
(I'm so sorry, I maybe imagining things but even his name on the plane already made me extremely happy ahahahaha bless my poor heart.).
Then, when we got to the arrival area of Narita terminal 3, we took a break and searched the net to find a place for us to stay. Yeah, we went to Tokyo without having an actual place to stay ahahahahaha wild. Okay, so, when my mom booked it already, of course we had to train our way to there as usual, but the train is only in terminal 1 and 2, meaning from terminal 3, you either walk or take the shuttle bus. Knowing us, we walked again outside in the cold weather.
The place my mom has chosen was Ichikawa-shi. It took us more or less two hours from Narita to reach Ichikawa, Chiba. We took the Sōbu Line and when we arrived at Ichikawa station, the struggle starts.
I think it was the north exit that we got out of from, then we asked the police for directions to the place where we were supposed to stay. They asked my parents if they should call a taxi for us but of course, they preffered to walk, as always. TBH IT WAS SO FAR I SWEAR WE WERE WALKING FOR MORE THAN 10 MINUTES AND IMAGINE WE'RE TIRED FROM THE FLIGHT AND IT WAS AROUND 7 PM AND WE WERE HUNGRY AND ALL AND WHEN WE GOT THE THAT PLACE, IT WAS CLOSED. TALK ABOUT LUCK. It was kind of like an apartment and the host wasn't there to entertai us since it was a rushed booking. We decided to go back to the area of the station to find a new place to stay. Then, while we were walking, I saw a building which says "ホテル" and I pointed it out and since we were all exhausted, we decided to stay there. Good thing it was pretty cheap(the one we stayed at Osaka was cheaper, but the fact that it was already in Tokyo, the price was really low). I think it was a love hotel 'cause it looked really flashy and the other people going in were mostly couples( please forgive my judgement abilities) but we were just so tired so we didn't mind already(although I was dying already because of the smell of cigarette and lack of wifi).
When the next day came, I was determined to find a wifi place because I needed to tell my cousin where we were so that we could meet again(because that's what we planned from the beginning). My parents talked to the owner to extend our stay but when she gave the price, it was thrice as high because it was a holiday the next day so my parents decided to look for another place. But tbh I really wasn't satisfied with the place we were staying at so THANKS SO MUCH OWNER, I LOVE YOU HAHAHAHAHA. We ate lunch at this noodle place and lucky the vending machine outside the store had wifi(how efficient, right?) so we were able to book another place and went straight there.
I think we got to Okubo station at around 2:30-3:00 pm(travel time plus the time were were frantically looking for the transfer platform lmao). We got out of the west exit and I ran to Famima(Family mart, as they call it there, FAMI-ly MA-rt) to get wifi. I used it to open google maps so I can track where Holiday View Inn.
Okubo station belongs to the JC Chuo Line and it is located at Shinjuku area. Tbh, the Shin-Okubo station is just a few minutes away from Okubo station.
Okay, a little lesson for those of you who are reading this and is planning to go to Tokyo.
If you wanna go to Harajuku, Akihabara and stuff(You know, those famous places) go ride the JY Yamanote Line. It is the line that goes around Shinjuku, Shibuya, Tokyo, Akihabara, Ueno, and those main places to visit(kinda) around Tokyo. When I say goes around, I meant it literally because the Yamanoto is a loop line and it just goes on circles so you can never get lost with it.
The JC Chuo Line that I was talking about is what we rode coming from Ichikawa which means if you are from Narita, there is a chance that you won't be riding the same line as us.
Okubo and Shin-Okubo station are TWO DIFFERENT STATIONS FROM TWO DIFFERENT JR LINES. Please don't get confused.
Okubo is in Shinjuku, in other words, you are in Shinjuku already, but the Shinjuku station(Yamanote Line) is different from Shin-Okubo station(Yamanote Line).
Back to the story, I registered to the wifi(Imagine the struggle trying to decode the kanji lol) then google maps helped me find the inn. I think Okubo station was just 2 minutes away. Yeah, we were actually so very lucky with the places we stayed at because they are so freakin' close to the train stations(even that hotel in Ichikawa was just 1 minute away, I cannot, thank you Lord!) and so yeah, we checked in and I messaged my cousin so she can go to us that same day.
(just a small view from the top)
The room wasn't big, but it was spacious enough for four people. The place is also new so yeah, enjoy using new facilities. And of course, my favorite, the automated toilet is back whoich I missed from Ichikawa. Imagine how happy I was when I saw buttons on the wall of the comfort room(sorry for this ahahahaha).
We took a walk around while waiting for my cousin and we actually got to a part in Shinjuku with that big crossing(LOL NOPE, it's not they Shibuya crossing ahahahahaha). We went pass a KFC store and I saw a bokugoha poster there with a promo that I couldn't read because it was in kanji hahahahaha. Just search for it if it's still available but yeah. Then we went to Uniqlo and I found this top that I was eyeing in here and it was so cheap there so of course, I bought it.
OMG I WAS LAUGHING SO MUCH because when I was browsing my songs magazine:
(my cousin bought it for me)
I realized that the top I bought looks similar with what chinen wore in this photoshoot
(it looks kinda diff with the lighting, but the color is really close to chinen's top)
Moving on, we met my cousin at the same Famima and when she dropped her stuff at the inn, we went out again to eat dinner. I'm so surprised at how cheap Yoshinoya is there, compared to here. It was as if the Yoshinoya here is a middle priced food store while it's just a common fast food there.
(forgot what it was. yakiniku? with miso soup and rice)
Then, my cousin couldn't get enough of karaoke so we went for another round. Yeah, never ending hey say jump, news, arashi, one ok rock and other japanese songs were sang by us. I recorded them but I won't share it with you 'cause you might get nightmares lol kidding.
(saw Yuto's movie in the commercial again)
The next day, it's already Friday. Just one more day before we leave the dreamland country and I planned the places we shall go to(idk why, I had to do it or else we'll waste time along the way).
We left at 8:30 and went straight to Harajuku to reach Meiji Jingu. We took the train from Shin-Okubo station for the Yamanote line which was just 3 stations away from Harajuku. It'll take you about 18 minutes to get there and idk which exit it was that we took but we ended up in front of Takeshita street. It's that street with loads of fashion and food stalls. All those cute clothes and crepes are there.
(hello again dear cousin)
(look at how cute these things are. they cost about 600 yen)
Then, we were walking around, following google maps that we actually reached a shine that I don't even know about. Then I realized we got lost again ahahahahaha. So yeah, we went back to Takeshita street and from there, I used my location to get directions from google maps. When I looked at the route, I saw something familiar, but then I didn't mind because I was busy looking for Meiji Jingu. Then when we took a turn on this certain street, I was like, 'wait, it says Johnnys Store. I wonder what's inside.' IGNORANT AF. I SWEAR. I WAS SO OUT OF MY MIND WHEN I WAS WALKING. Then, maybe I was starring at the "Johnnys Store" sign so much that I thought the font looked familiar and I actually concluded that IT WAS A LEGIT JOHNNYS STORE WHERE THEY SELL JE STUFF I CANNOT EVEN I WANNA CRY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET. Then I looked around the area and saw a sign that says "store hours 10:00-17:00" then "no taking of photos" and "please follow the line" and I was like WHERE IS THE FREAKIN' LINE I DO NOT SEE ANYONE IS THE STORE EVEN OPEN??? Then a bunch of people walking from the end of the street came and entered a door that leads to the basement of the building. I was so stressed so I walked to where they came from and it was as if a truck hit me when I saw that the line was there, circling around the entrance of the train station. and it was just 10:17 am. 17 FREAKIN' MINUTES PAST 10 AM AND IT WAS THAT LONG? GOODNESS GRACIOUS IF IT WASN'T THE BIRTHDAY OF THE EMPEROR I SWEAR TO THE COW I COULD'VE QUEUED UP AND BOUGHT SOMETHING THERE. CAN YOU FEEL THE FRUSTRATION??? I SO WANTED TO QUEUE UP, BUT I KNOW WE'RE GONNA WASTE LOTS OF TIME SO I GAVE IT UP AND JUST STUMPPED FORWARD TO MEIJI JINGU WHICH WAS JUST A CROSSING AWAY FROM JOHNNYS STORE. UGGGGHHHHH WORDS ALONE CANNOT EXPRESS THE STRESS I FELT WITH JUST A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME TBH.
(sorry, I couldn't take photos of the outside of the store because a girl suddenly came out, tryna see if there are violators and I was too afraid)
Moving on, we walked the big land area of Meiji Jingu. It was so peaceful. Everything is just green. Imagine a forest in the middle of a city. Totally relaxing. Perfect for meditation and reflection.
(I believe that photos tell better stories than words but now that I look at it, the photos I took actually suck. I need to buy a new phone with better camera and processor so that it won't lag at important times ahahahahahaha). But there are a lot more picture from our dslr, but I'm too lazy to transfer them lol.
When we got there, there was a ceremony for something (idk I couldn't understand what they were saying. maybe related to the birthday of the emperor??) AND THERE WERE LOTS OF PEOPLE AAAACCCKKKKKK TOO MUCH CROWD. But yeah. we did the things you do in shrines and all. I was looking for an omamori but it was expensive and my parents said we already have one at home(BUT OF COURSE I WANT MY OWN RIGHT!!!) so we just left and headed for the train station to the next desitination.
We went to Shinuya next and OMG MY MAP READING SKILLS WAS SO NOT ON POINT WE GOT LOST AGAIN. I HATE THIS. GOOGLE MAPS BETRAYED ME(kinda) so we just asked in the mall how to get to Hachiko's statue and of course when we got there, swarm of people were taking photos.
(LOOK AT THAT CAT IT'S SO CUTE I MEAN COME ON HACHIKO IS BAE BUT THE CAT IS LOVE *drowns in my cat lover senses*)
Then, we walked at the Shibuya Scramble Crossing(YEAH, the legit one guys ahahahaha). Too many people. I wonder how they never run out even after all those stop lights. Holiday is too crowded). I didn't take a photo but a video instead, but I'm too lazy to upload ahahaha so I'll just share the pics I took of NEWS and Arashi's promotional posters.
*screams in high-pitched tone of fangirlness*
Then, we took the train to Akihabara(OMG I WONDER WHY I SKIPPED TOKYO STATION I SWEAR I WANNA SLAP MYSLEF WHEN I REALIZED BUT THEN I REALLY COULDN'T FIND THOSE GO-TO-PLACE IN THERE SINCE I PRIORITIZED THE REALLY POPULAR ONES). And I am not surprised that we were lost for about an hour, just tryna find the street where animate is.
We went inside animate and omg can I just say that it was heaven seeing all those manga and merch and the copic markers I've been dreaming about. They're all so dang cheap. Especially the manga, but then you can't understand it. BUT STILL. I was sooooooooo controlling myself not to panic buy because I saw those anime that I really love(butif I saw D.N.Angel, I swear, no one can stop me from buying whatever merch it was. I managed to buy two copic markers. They're pretty cheap there and I wanna build my collection so yeah. It was so crowded inside. we were on the sixth floor and I think it still goes all the way up. I'm not sure how many floor that building was but it was really jam packed. And when you step outside, it's just like going to war. Idk how there can be so much people in the world actually.
My cousin saw a game center and she pulled me in so we could do purikura. It costs 400 yen per session and it's so addicting. There were a lot of booths in the game center and it's all full of people. It took us about 30 minutes(imagine, that long, just for purikura???) 'cause we were struggling with the instructions we couldn't understand. I picked the bokugoha theme so the background of our shots where bokugoha ahahahahahahahahaha. Then when we came out of the booth, I saw a table with bokugoha fliers so of course I took my own ahahahahahaha.
Next is Asakusa. From Akihabara, we took the Ginza line(because Yamanote Line doesn't pass through Asakusa. Please refer to a map for reference) and headed straight to Senjoji Temple. Again, lots of people. Idk where they all came from ahahahahahaha.
My cousin was looking for this certain store that sells melon pan and when we got there, she said "Finally, you got to the place where Yama-chan ate his melon pan." FANGIRL AF.
(I NEED AN EXTRA SUPPLY OF OXYGEN)
And we were so lucky because my cousin wanted us to try the Melon pan with macha ice cream, but then the cashier said it was only available during summer time, then when we were trying to think of what to pick instead, she said that they can serve it to us! Omg, thank you so much. It was such a great treat. I could've shared mine with baby keikes if he was there ahahahahahahaha *jumps over the cliff*
Now to the part where I was hurt too much.
After Asakusa, my cousin and I parted from my parents to head to Sanrio Puroland. YES OMG I LOVE HELLO KITTY EVER SINCE I WAS IN GRADE SCHOOL AHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA. SANRIO PUROLAND IS LOVE. It was already 3:45 when we left Asakusa and we need to get to Sanrio Puroland which was in Keio Tama at around 5:30-6:00 pm so we can still enter.
OMG IDK WHY BUT SINCE ASAKUSA IS ALMOST 2 HOURS AWAY FROM KEIO TAMA, WE HAD TO TRANSFER LINES AND WE GOT LOST FOR AROUND AN HOUR. GOODNESS GRACIOUS HOW DO YOU EVEN FIND A TRAIN STATION??? I thought is was just a simple platform transfer, but we actually had to get out of the subway to trasfer to the other station of the different line. I hated that moment so much. And when we got to the Keio line, ahdkjagdhffahjdf I couldn't get out of the gate because there were 3 freakin' different gates because that station connects 3 different train lines. Dang it. Of course, I went to the information to ask for help and then the guy told me what to do. When I got out of the gate, I need to buy a new ticket for the next train and I couldn't read a thing in the map since all was in kanji. I swear, the same guy helped me even if there were three of them available at the moment unlike when I first asked for help. He probably thought that 'this kid must be so lost, I have to help her'. Thank you sooooooo much!
Then, the Keio Line has two different ways, a straight and a train taht turns which will pass by Tama center. we needed to get on the train that passes by Tama center so when we reached this certain station, we got off so we can ask at which time will the train that turns will come. I said "let's go up, maybe the information is there." Then when we went up, viola, another platform. WOW JAPAN. TWO LEVELS OF SUBWAY IS JUST SO AMAZING FOR ME.
So yeah, we got the info right(since the guy talked to us in English) and we got to Tama Center station peacefully. The station is just Hello Kitty heaven. The poster, clock, vending machine, garbage can and others were designed with Sanrio characters I swear I was so happy.
Now to the sad part. We already saw the "Sanrio Puroland" sign so we rushed there and when we got there. IT IS DANG CLOSED. I'M SO FRUSTRATED. I WAS SO CLOSE TO ENTERING MY DREAMLAND. They probably stopped selling tickets at 6:30 and we got there a few minutes late because it was 6:45 when I check I swear I had my tears.
*insert my crying face*
My cousin took tons of photos of me because she probably felt that I was already about to cry. In public. So yeah. She also told me to go take another purikura in the game center near Puroland so I can at least lift the heavy feeling. Thanks a bunch couz!
After that, I was still feeling depressed so I told her that instead of heading straight home, we should drop by Harajuku. I just wanted to look around to forget my sadness and I bought earings that doesn't require you to have peircings(so cute!).
Then when we got back to Okubo, we walked around again and we headed to the grocery because she wanted to buy something and I found something on the magazine stand which I didn't see yesterday when I was with my parents:
Yaaaaaasssss of course I bought them and I shall share scans later. These boys never fail to make me happy. Thank you so much!
Then, we got home and we ate our last dinner in Japan and got ready for our flight back the next day.
It was such a trip and I'm pretty sure I won't forget this experience every in my life becaue it took me a step closer to my dreams and it made me experience a lot of emotions. Best trip I had so far.
(I saw this on our way to the airport hahahaha)
(konnichiwa, Fuji-san!)
(I just had to try the difference of Japanese Mcdonalds)
It took me 5 hours to finish typing this omg, all those emotions came back.
Overall, Japan is great. I definitely wanna go back. RIGHT NOWWWWWWWWWWWWW. OKANE, DOKO????
For the second part, I'm going to talk about our sojourn in Tokyo so read on if you guys are interested.
So, we took the afternoon flight to Narita on Wednesday and arrived at around 5 pm. Since it's in Japan where the sun rises early, the sun sets early as well so can you imagine a dark 5:00 pm(I'm used to seeing light even until 6:30 usually). When our plane got to the airport, there was still an airplane on the spot where we were supposed to exit so our plane had to wait for quite a while at the side, and guest what I found, the plane beside us had the letters "k-e-i" on it
(I'm so sorry, I maybe imagining things but even his name on the plane already made me extremely happy ahahahaha bless my poor heart.).
Then, when we got to the arrival area of Narita terminal 3, we took a break and searched the net to find a place for us to stay. Yeah, we went to Tokyo without having an actual place to stay ahahahahaha wild. Okay, so, when my mom booked it already, of course we had to train our way to there as usual, but the train is only in terminal 1 and 2, meaning from terminal 3, you either walk or take the shuttle bus. Knowing us, we walked again outside in the cold weather.
The place my mom has chosen was Ichikawa-shi. It took us more or less two hours from Narita to reach Ichikawa, Chiba. We took the Sōbu Line and when we arrived at Ichikawa station, the struggle starts.
I think it was the north exit that we got out of from, then we asked the police for directions to the place where we were supposed to stay. They asked my parents if they should call a taxi for us but of course, they preffered to walk, as always. TBH IT WAS SO FAR I SWEAR WE WERE WALKING FOR MORE THAN 10 MINUTES AND IMAGINE WE'RE TIRED FROM THE FLIGHT AND IT WAS AROUND 7 PM AND WE WERE HUNGRY AND ALL AND WHEN WE GOT THE THAT PLACE, IT WAS CLOSED. TALK ABOUT LUCK. It was kind of like an apartment and the host wasn't there to entertai us since it was a rushed booking. We decided to go back to the area of the station to find a new place to stay. Then, while we were walking, I saw a building which says "ホテル" and I pointed it out and since we were all exhausted, we decided to stay there. Good thing it was pretty cheap(the one we stayed at Osaka was cheaper, but the fact that it was already in Tokyo, the price was really low). I think it was a love hotel 'cause it looked really flashy and the other people going in were mostly couples( please forgive my judgement abilities) but we were just so tired so we didn't mind already(although I was dying already because of the smell of cigarette and lack of wifi).
When the next day came, I was determined to find a wifi place because I needed to tell my cousin where we were so that we could meet again(because that's what we planned from the beginning). My parents talked to the owner to extend our stay but when she gave the price, it was thrice as high because it was a holiday the next day so my parents decided to look for another place. But tbh I really wasn't satisfied with the place we were staying at so THANKS SO MUCH OWNER, I LOVE YOU HAHAHAHAHA. We ate lunch at this noodle place and lucky the vending machine outside the store had wifi(how efficient, right?) so we were able to book another place and went straight there.
I think we got to Okubo station at around 2:30-3:00 pm(travel time plus the time were were frantically looking for the transfer platform lmao). We got out of the west exit and I ran to Famima(Family mart, as they call it there, FAMI-ly MA-rt) to get wifi. I used it to open google maps so I can track where Holiday View Inn.
Okubo station belongs to the JC Chuo Line and it is located at Shinjuku area. Tbh, the Shin-Okubo station is just a few minutes away from Okubo station.
Okay, a little lesson for those of you who are reading this and is planning to go to Tokyo.
If you wanna go to Harajuku, Akihabara and stuff(You know, those famous places) go ride the JY Yamanote Line. It is the line that goes around Shinjuku, Shibuya, Tokyo, Akihabara, Ueno, and those main places to visit(kinda) around Tokyo. When I say goes around, I meant it literally because the Yamanoto is a loop line and it just goes on circles so you can never get lost with it.
The JC Chuo Line that I was talking about is what we rode coming from Ichikawa which means if you are from Narita, there is a chance that you won't be riding the same line as us.
Okubo and Shin-Okubo station are TWO DIFFERENT STATIONS FROM TWO DIFFERENT JR LINES. Please don't get confused.
Okubo is in Shinjuku, in other words, you are in Shinjuku already, but the Shinjuku station(Yamanote Line) is different from Shin-Okubo station(Yamanote Line).
Back to the story, I registered to the wifi(Imagine the struggle trying to decode the kanji lol) then google maps helped me find the inn. I think Okubo station was just 2 minutes away. Yeah, we were actually so very lucky with the places we stayed at because they are so freakin' close to the train stations(even that hotel in Ichikawa was just 1 minute away, I cannot, thank you Lord!) and so yeah, we checked in and I messaged my cousin so she can go to us that same day.
(just a small view from the top)
The room wasn't big, but it was spacious enough for four people. The place is also new so yeah, enjoy using new facilities. And of course, my favorite, the automated toilet is back whoich I missed from Ichikawa. Imagine how happy I was when I saw buttons on the wall of the comfort room(sorry for this ahahahaha).
We took a walk around while waiting for my cousin and we actually got to a part in Shinjuku with that big crossing(LOL NOPE, it's not they Shibuya crossing ahahahahaha). We went pass a KFC store and I saw a bokugoha poster there with a promo that I couldn't read because it was in kanji hahahahaha. Just search for it if it's still available but yeah. Then we went to Uniqlo and I found this top that I was eyeing in here and it was so cheap there so of course, I bought it.
OMG I WAS LAUGHING SO MUCH because when I was browsing my songs magazine:
(my cousin bought it for me)
I realized that the top I bought looks similar with what chinen wore in this photoshoot
(it looks kinda diff with the lighting, but the color is really close to chinen's top)
Moving on, we met my cousin at the same Famima and when she dropped her stuff at the inn, we went out again to eat dinner. I'm so surprised at how cheap Yoshinoya is there, compared to here. It was as if the Yoshinoya here is a middle priced food store while it's just a common fast food there.
(forgot what it was. yakiniku? with miso soup and rice)
Then, my cousin couldn't get enough of karaoke so we went for another round. Yeah, never ending hey say jump, news, arashi, one ok rock and other japanese songs were sang by us. I recorded them but I won't share it with you 'cause you might get nightmares lol kidding.
(saw Yuto's movie in the commercial again)
The next day, it's already Friday. Just one more day before we leave the dreamland country and I planned the places we shall go to(idk why, I had to do it or else we'll waste time along the way).
We left at 8:30 and went straight to Harajuku to reach Meiji Jingu. We took the train from Shin-Okubo station for the Yamanote line which was just 3 stations away from Harajuku. It'll take you about 18 minutes to get there and idk which exit it was that we took but we ended up in front of Takeshita street. It's that street with loads of fashion and food stalls. All those cute clothes and crepes are there.
(hello again dear cousin)
(look at how cute these things are. they cost about 600 yen)
Then, we were walking around, following google maps that we actually reached a shine that I don't even know about. Then I realized we got lost again ahahahahaha. So yeah, we went back to Takeshita street and from there, I used my location to get directions from google maps. When I looked at the route, I saw something familiar, but then I didn't mind because I was busy looking for Meiji Jingu. Then when we took a turn on this certain street, I was like, 'wait, it says Johnnys Store. I wonder what's inside.' IGNORANT AF. I SWEAR. I WAS SO OUT OF MY MIND WHEN I WAS WALKING. Then, maybe I was starring at the "Johnnys Store" sign so much that I thought the font looked familiar and I actually concluded that IT WAS A LEGIT JOHNNYS STORE WHERE THEY SELL JE STUFF I CANNOT EVEN I WANNA CRY IN THE MIDDLE OF THE STREET. Then I looked around the area and saw a sign that says "store hours 10:00-17:00" then "no taking of photos" and "please follow the line" and I was like WHERE IS THE FREAKIN' LINE I DO NOT SEE ANYONE IS THE STORE EVEN OPEN??? Then a bunch of people walking from the end of the street came and entered a door that leads to the basement of the building. I was so stressed so I walked to where they came from and it was as if a truck hit me when I saw that the line was there, circling around the entrance of the train station. and it was just 10:17 am. 17 FREAKIN' MINUTES PAST 10 AM AND IT WAS THAT LONG? GOODNESS GRACIOUS IF IT WASN'T THE BIRTHDAY OF THE EMPEROR I SWEAR TO THE COW I COULD'VE QUEUED UP AND BOUGHT SOMETHING THERE. CAN YOU FEEL THE FRUSTRATION??? I SO WANTED TO QUEUE UP, BUT I KNOW WE'RE GONNA WASTE LOTS OF TIME SO I GAVE IT UP AND JUST STUMPPED FORWARD TO MEIJI JINGU WHICH WAS JUST A CROSSING AWAY FROM JOHNNYS STORE. UGGGGHHHHH WORDS ALONE CANNOT EXPRESS THE STRESS I FELT WITH JUST A SHORT AMOUNT OF TIME TBH.
(sorry, I couldn't take photos of the outside of the store because a girl suddenly came out, tryna see if there are violators and I was too afraid)
Moving on, we walked the big land area of Meiji Jingu. It was so peaceful. Everything is just green. Imagine a forest in the middle of a city. Totally relaxing. Perfect for meditation and reflection.
(I believe that photos tell better stories than words but now that I look at it, the photos I took actually suck. I need to buy a new phone with better camera and processor so that it won't lag at important times ahahahahahaha). But there are a lot more picture from our dslr, but I'm too lazy to transfer them lol.
When we got there, there was a ceremony for something (idk I couldn't understand what they were saying. maybe related to the birthday of the emperor??) AND THERE WERE LOTS OF PEOPLE AAAACCCKKKKKK TOO MUCH CROWD. But yeah. we did the things you do in shrines and all. I was looking for an omamori but it was expensive and my parents said we already have one at home(BUT OF COURSE I WANT MY OWN RIGHT!!!) so we just left and headed for the train station to the next desitination.
We went to Shinuya next and OMG MY MAP READING SKILLS WAS SO NOT ON POINT WE GOT LOST AGAIN. I HATE THIS. GOOGLE MAPS BETRAYED ME(kinda) so we just asked in the mall how to get to Hachiko's statue and of course when we got there, swarm of people were taking photos.
(LOOK AT THAT CAT IT'S SO CUTE I MEAN COME ON HACHIKO IS BAE BUT THE CAT IS LOVE *drowns in my cat lover senses*)
Then, we walked at the Shibuya Scramble Crossing(YEAH, the legit one guys ahahahaha). Too many people. I wonder how they never run out even after all those stop lights. Holiday is too crowded). I didn't take a photo but a video instead, but I'm too lazy to upload ahahaha so I'll just share the pics I took of NEWS and Arashi's promotional posters.
*screams in high-pitched tone of fangirlness*
Then, we took the train to Akihabara(OMG I WONDER WHY I SKIPPED TOKYO STATION I SWEAR I WANNA SLAP MYSLEF WHEN I REALIZED BUT THEN I REALLY COULDN'T FIND THOSE GO-TO-PLACE IN THERE SINCE I PRIORITIZED THE REALLY POPULAR ONES). And I am not surprised that we were lost for about an hour, just tryna find the street where animate is.
We went inside animate and omg can I just say that it was heaven seeing all those manga and merch and the copic markers I've been dreaming about. They're all so dang cheap. Especially the manga, but then you can't understand it. BUT STILL. I was sooooooooo controlling myself not to panic buy because I saw those anime that I really love(butif I saw D.N.Angel, I swear, no one can stop me from buying whatever merch it was. I managed to buy two copic markers. They're pretty cheap there and I wanna build my collection so yeah. It was so crowded inside. we were on the sixth floor and I think it still goes all the way up. I'm not sure how many floor that building was but it was really jam packed. And when you step outside, it's just like going to war. Idk how there can be so much people in the world actually.
My cousin saw a game center and she pulled me in so we could do purikura. It costs 400 yen per session and it's so addicting. There were a lot of booths in the game center and it's all full of people. It took us about 30 minutes(imagine, that long, just for purikura???) 'cause we were struggling with the instructions we couldn't understand. I picked the bokugoha theme so the background of our shots where bokugoha ahahahahahahahahaha. Then when we came out of the booth, I saw a table with bokugoha fliers so of course I took my own ahahahahahaha.
Next is Asakusa. From Akihabara, we took the Ginza line(because Yamanote Line doesn't pass through Asakusa. Please refer to a map for reference) and headed straight to Senjoji Temple. Again, lots of people. Idk where they all came from ahahahahahaha.
My cousin was looking for this certain store that sells melon pan and when we got there, she said "Finally, you got to the place where Yama-chan ate his melon pan." FANGIRL AF.
(I NEED AN EXTRA SUPPLY OF OXYGEN)
And we were so lucky because my cousin wanted us to try the Melon pan with macha ice cream, but then the cashier said it was only available during summer time, then when we were trying to think of what to pick instead, she said that they can serve it to us! Omg, thank you so much. It was such a great treat. I could've shared mine with baby keikes if he was there ahahahahahahaha *jumps over the cliff*
Now to the part where I was hurt too much.
After Asakusa, my cousin and I parted from my parents to head to Sanrio Puroland. YES OMG I LOVE HELLO KITTY EVER SINCE I WAS IN GRADE SCHOOL AHAHAHAHHAHAHAHAHA. SANRIO PUROLAND IS LOVE. It was already 3:45 when we left Asakusa and we need to get to Sanrio Puroland which was in Keio Tama at around 5:30-6:00 pm so we can still enter.
OMG IDK WHY BUT SINCE ASAKUSA IS ALMOST 2 HOURS AWAY FROM KEIO TAMA, WE HAD TO TRANSFER LINES AND WE GOT LOST FOR AROUND AN HOUR. GOODNESS GRACIOUS HOW DO YOU EVEN FIND A TRAIN STATION??? I thought is was just a simple platform transfer, but we actually had to get out of the subway to trasfer to the other station of the different line. I hated that moment so much. And when we got to the Keio line, ahdkjagdhffahjdf I couldn't get out of the gate because there were 3 freakin' different gates because that station connects 3 different train lines. Dang it. Of course, I went to the information to ask for help and then the guy told me what to do. When I got out of the gate, I need to buy a new ticket for the next train and I couldn't read a thing in the map since all was in kanji. I swear, the same guy helped me even if there were three of them available at the moment unlike when I first asked for help. He probably thought that 'this kid must be so lost, I have to help her'. Thank you sooooooo much!
Then, the Keio Line has two different ways, a straight and a train taht turns which will pass by Tama center. we needed to get on the train that passes by Tama center so when we reached this certain station, we got off so we can ask at which time will the train that turns will come. I said "let's go up, maybe the information is there." Then when we went up, viola, another platform. WOW JAPAN. TWO LEVELS OF SUBWAY IS JUST SO AMAZING FOR ME.
So yeah, we got the info right(since the guy talked to us in English) and we got to Tama Center station peacefully. The station is just Hello Kitty heaven. The poster, clock, vending machine, garbage can and others were designed with Sanrio characters I swear I was so happy.
Now to the sad part. We already saw the "Sanrio Puroland" sign so we rushed there and when we got there. IT IS DANG CLOSED. I'M SO FRUSTRATED. I WAS SO CLOSE TO ENTERING MY DREAMLAND. They probably stopped selling tickets at 6:30 and we got there a few minutes late because it was 6:45 when I check I swear I had my tears.
*insert my crying face*
My cousin took tons of photos of me because she probably felt that I was already about to cry. In public. So yeah. She also told me to go take another purikura in the game center near Puroland so I can at least lift the heavy feeling. Thanks a bunch couz!
After that, I was still feeling depressed so I told her that instead of heading straight home, we should drop by Harajuku. I just wanted to look around to forget my sadness and I bought earings that doesn't require you to have peircings(so cute!).
Then when we got back to Okubo, we walked around again and we headed to the grocery because she wanted to buy something and I found something on the magazine stand which I didn't see yesterday when I was with my parents:
Yaaaaaasssss of course I bought them and I shall share scans later. These boys never fail to make me happy. Thank you so much!
Then, we got home and we ate our last dinner in Japan and got ready for our flight back the next day.
It was such a trip and I'm pretty sure I won't forget this experience every in my life becaue it took me a step closer to my dreams and it made me experience a lot of emotions. Best trip I had so far.
(I saw this on our way to the airport hahahaha)
(konnichiwa, Fuji-san!)
(I just had to try the difference of Japanese Mcdonalds)
It took me 5 hours to finish typing this omg, all those emotions came back.
Overall, Japan is great. I definitely wanna go back. RIGHT NOWWWWWWWWWWWWW. OKANE, DOKO????
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