I love documenting my travel stories. Not only do these keep me motivated to save up for my next trip, my stories also remind me of all the amazing things that have continuously been happening in my life. 

That is why even though it has been more than 2 months since my Japan trip, I will still blog about what happened. For the record, I have been blogging about Japan since weeks ago so that is 2 consecutive posts of ~actual blogging~. Small progress is progress! I apologize for the delay still. 

DAY 1 (March 9, 2016) | Sotetsu Fresa Inn Kyobashi and Shibuya

We arrived in Narita International Airport at around 2:45pm, Japan time. First plan of action after immigration and baggage claim was to get our 7-day Japan rail pass. We then proceeded to the Narita Express train which would be our ride to Tokyo Station.


The duration of the ride from the Narita International Airport to Tokyo Station using the Narita Express was around an hour. When we reached Tokyo Station, we looked for the exit nearest Sotetsu Fresa Inn - Kyobashi, our hotel for our first 2 nights in Japan. We got lost while we were looking for the exit because Tokyo station is one big place. It also did not help that Tokyo Station is one of the busiest railway stations in Japan and the continuous influx of people was more than a wee bit overwhelming.

Of course, the most logical thing to do when one is lost is either to find a map or ask around. We decided to go with the latter and asking a local did lead us to the exit of Tokyo Station. (Can I reiterate how kind the Japanese are!!) When we got out of the station, man, it was freezing! We only had 2 layers of clothing on and some scarf to shield us from the wind and rain. We found out later on that it was 6 degrees Celsius that time but the RealFeel weather is at -4 degrees Celsius! Good thing there was an underground mall near Tokyo Station so we passed through that. We also had a heater appreciation moment because hey! heaters aren't really things you value in tropical Philippines (lol).

After getting almost lost (thank you to the camera/Fuji film shop guy who drew the directions for us!) and walking around the city lugging our bags and getting soaked by the rain, we have finally reached our hotel! The supposed-to-be 7min walk turned into a 20min one but no worries! Our faces literally lit up when we saw the magnificent sign of the place we would stay in for 2 nights.



Our hotel room was good for 3 people because we were... 3 people (lol). It was spacious, modern-looking and definitely comfortable! We chilled for a while but left the hotel at around 7pm to 1.) grab some dinner and 2.) to make the most of our first night in Tokyo.
For dinner, we picked this ramen place near our hotel. I didn't get to take a photo of the name of the restaurant but you would pass by it if you walk from our hotel to Tokyo Station. I got a large bowl of Max Ramen (the restaurant's bestseller!) and it was very filling! Finishing off my bowl was quite difficult because the serving was good for two people! My order was around ¥1500. It was kind of pricey but eating authentic Japanese ramen on our first night was a decision I'd never regret.


After dinner, we decided to head off to Shibuya to see Hachiko and the iconic Shibuya Crossing! Taking the JR Yamanote line, the train ride to Shibuya Station was around 30 mins. We just followed the directions to get to the right exit and once we got out of the station, we immediately saw Hachiko! A lot of people were taking photos with the loyal dog (a lot of Filipinos too!) so we just took a selfie with him (lol!).


A few steps after, we saw Shibuya Crossing. Seeing it live, with all the people coming from different directions of the intersection, was astounding. The numerous city lights and signages on a rainy weeknight in Tokyo just added to the experience. Of course, we had to take a photo with the crossing as our background!



I failed to have my shot taken while doing the actual "crossing" because I was too shy to do so. Admittedly, I felt like I would cause traffic and bump into people if I stood still on the middle of the busiest pedestrian crossing in the world #ISFJproblems. I'm regretting it now though and I will definitely get that shot when I go back!

We went around Shibuya for a while, passing through alleys and looking at various stores and sceneries. I honestly did not know where we went because we just headed to wherever our feet would lead us. After more than 30 mins. of walking around, we stayed in the Starbucks across the train station to rest our tired feet. We managed to get seats on the second floor and it came with a spectacular view of Shibuya crossing below us. Matcha Green Tea Latte was my choice of drink for the night and even though the taste was similar to what the local Starbucks is offering, it felt more authentic because of the cold weather (which was the perfect partner to my hot drink!) and I was in Japan -- the land of matcha anything!


At around 10pm, we decided to call it a night and headed back to our hotel. As expected, we had to stop by Lawson first and bought random snacks and drinks! We were amazed by the local Japanese snacks available. Buy all the drinks~


It was indeed a productive Day 1 in Japan. We already crossed off Shibuya on our list and we had not even spent half a day in the country yet! Day 2 was even more productive so watch out for that! Snow and sakura, anyone? ;)