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Japan 2026!
  • Shalee Gherbaz
  • Shalee Gherbaz

Japan 2026!

One month in Japan doing Shalee's customised "Golden Figure 8 Loop" Japan itinerary of the central island of Japan. Meer informatie
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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Cable Car Ropeway and Lookout!

    9 maart, Japan ⋅ ☁️ 10 °C

    One of Onomichi's major draw cards for local (and some international) tourism is the cable car that runs up to the top of Senkoji Park, which is up in the mountainside. This whole town is designed along the mountain, with it's houses, cafes, temples and cemeteries all built into the mountainside.

    We took the cable car up one way, with the intention of walking down the mountain to the temple and cat street before settling into our apartment for the afternoon once we are allowed to check in. It really is a gorgeous view at the top, and watching the old school cable cars come up and down the ropeway is just 👩‍🍳💋.

    Onomichi is also a very citrus heavy region, so the cafe at the top of the lookout area was selling a wide range of citrus goods and ice creams, so we nabbed a few things. My pomelo ice cream was delish, as was Michaels mandarin ice cream float. And the puddings... Oh the puddings were so good!

    On a different note, Cycling is extremely popular here (which I find quite funny given how many steps there are because everything is on a gradient), and we've also noticed a lot of desolated and abandoned traditional houses here.    Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Senkoji Temple Complex

    9 maart, Japan ⋅ ☁️ 10 °C

    Senkoji Temple is super interesting, as it has been built into the stone edge of the mountain. Lots of locals come and visit to hang various items that all symbolise different things that they are wanting to wish for to prosper in their lives. Once again, we found more frogs!Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Naps and Snuggles at Rescue Cat Cafe

    9 maart, Japan ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    At the end of Cat Alley is a cat cafe called Utrecht. I had read online that it was a very laid back and simple set up, but that the cats seemed extremely content here. The reviews were spot on. It was one large room with a range of simple yet effective items and spaces, with I think 6 cats in total at most. But boy were these cats very happy.

    Three of them wanted to be snuggled and absorbed into people, one was cosily nestled in a bed and snoozing beside everyone, and the others were just wanted butt rubs and butt rubs only. I ended up taking quite a nice nap with the ginger cat, who loves laps and clothing. Eventually, three cats decided my jacket was the bees knees, and two of them had a very adorable play fight over it. It was just... This is my favourite cat cafe I've ever been to.    Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Our gorgeous traditional homestay!

    9 maart, Japan ⋅ ☁️ 10 °C

    We have such a gorgeous accommodation here in Onomichi up on the hill. We are in a traditional house that has been modified for comfort and serenity. Easily my favourite accommodation of the trip. The bed is so comfy, the bath was unreal (I've had two) and the chairs by the window looking out over the town to the ocean... Just amazing!Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    A wonderful dinner in Onomichi

    9 maart, Japan ⋅ ☁️ 7 °C

    Tonight we had a very slow, relaxed dinner at a great little restaurant that only has one chef cooking everything. It's all in Japanese so you have to translate with your phone and it takes time between your dishes, but it was seriously so nice!

    We ordered roast potatoes, sweet potato balls (not my fave so only ate a few), a beef stew with baguette (this was amazing), garlic prawns (beautiful and light, and the asparagus was delicious) and a pan seared chicken with veges (so good. For Michael, this was the nicest chicken he has ever eaten).

    After dinner, we wandered down to collect our bags from the storage lockers at the train station, and grabbed some snacks and breakfast pastries to have tomorrow morning for breakfast. The vibe was super eerie and cool, with Michael taking some amazing snaps through the alleyways and of our night view from our traditional house. I had a very relaxing bath, we ate traditional lemon cakes, and then just sat by the window reading, journalling, and collating our snaps. A really wonderful day spent in Onomichi.    Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Of all the mornings...

    10 maart, Japan ⋅ ⛅ 8 °C

    Michael struggles with time management today! It's the accommodations fault. It's too relaxing. The urgency of our departure time did not translate to him at all, despite us being awake at 7am in the morning, and having a lovely, lazy relax. I even had a bath and took snaps of the sunrise (will update later when Michael sends me the snaps I took). Like, just look how chill I am at 8am. We barely had anything to pack.

    And yet, it hits 9.20am, which is the time we have to leave to comfortably get to Onomichi station, find the platform, and get the train that gets us in with ample time to transfer at Fukuyama, I find myself at the front door packed and shoes on... And Michaels brushing his teeth 😭😭😭 I always allocate at least 2-4 mins leeway, but between bathroom, packing, turning things off, putting bags on, putting shoes on, we don't leave until 9.27am. It's going to be very tight. I say no stopping. We fly down the hill, get stuck at the light that takes forever to give us the ability to cross the road. I check the time, 6 minutes to walk 750m with all our bags.

    We have no choice. We jog. We have three minutes to go. My lucky charm smashes on the floor as we were running, gone forever. No time. We run across the road as the walk light goes from green to red. We get to the station. 1 minute. But on the other platform. I yell to Michael. RUN. NOW. We race down the stairs and up onto the other platform as the train arrives, jumping straight on it. No time to double check. The next train from here is 35 minutes after this one, and would only gives us 5 minutes to get the tickets and transfer to the shinkansen at Fukuyama to get to Osaka.

    We arrive at Fukuyama with plenty of time to sort out our Shinkansen QR tickets, go to the bathroom, to take a rest (given our lungs are now cooked from running through the cold), and to find our platform and hop on the train to Osaka. It was oh so dicey.

    I'm being a drama queen, but in all seriousness, of all the days to not take my schedule seriously... I need a megahorn to blast or something.    Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Conveyor Belt Sushi in Kura Dontoburi

    10 maart, Japan ⋅ ⛅ 9 °C

    We've left our bags in a locker at Namba station to come and have some lunch and do some shopping whilst we await our check in a little south of here. We've come to Kura Revolving Sushi Bar in Dontobori. This is a recommendation from my friend Keith. Super easy system, yummy food (except for the tuna which I promptly spat out in the privacy of my booth hahahaha, I definitely do not like raw fish!)

    highlights were the teriyaki Yellowfin fish and the tempura shrimps (I could eat a thousand shrimps like this). The desserts also slapped.    Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Tasty Taiwanese

    10 maart, Japan ⋅ 🌙 6 °C

    We wandered around our local area after a relax at the hotel to find some dinner, and ended up opting for a Taiwanese place that had some yummy options that I had had over in Taiwan and knew Michael would like.

    It ended up being super delish. The noodles were such a good texture, and my Taiwanese hamburger (beef with peanuts, pickles and coriander) was absolutely heavenly! Another slam dunk of a meal.    Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Universal Studios: Harry Potter World

    11 maart, Japan ⋅ ⛅ 8 °C

    We had a wonderful day at Universal Studios which started in Harry Potter World. I had bought very expensive tickets in advance for today. They guaranteed entry in NintendoLand. NintendoLand is the only area of the park where you can't go unless you have a timed entry pass, and they are done by lottery on the day, or by very expensive ride passes where you get express passes for five to six different rides.

    Given Michael has dreamed of going to Donkey Kong Country (which is the new area inside NintendoLand that only opened last December) ever since it was announced years ago, and he had agreed he would go on the Donkey Kong rollercoaster despite his immense fear of heights and dislike of rollercoasters, there was no way we were chancing it on a lottery. Therefore, the expensive tickets that guaranteed entry and included an express pass for this ride were bought, and our schedule for the day was determined in advance.

    The first express ride we had on our pass was the Flight of the Hippogriff coaster. We needed to scan our pass between 10.30am-11am for this ride. We had gotten through all the massive lines for entry by 9.25am and as the Forbidden Journey ride was flagging as only having a 15 min wait, I suggested to Michael that we mad dash for this ride so that I could go on it. It is marked as one of the best rides in the world, and from what I could tell my inner ear would be able to handle it (I've had issues with dizziness and motion sickness on rides ever since my inner ear got overly impacted on a thrill ride when I was 20).

    By the time we got there, it was a 30 min wait, so I hopped in line and Michael wandered about and took a chill pill. I'm so glad I did. The ride was hands down the best ride I've ever been on, and right on the border of what 33 year old me could handle. It mixes massive digital screen work and practical sets and effects and you fly around a range of scenes and creatures from Hogwarts. It was so immersive, so fun, and completely seamless. You really felt like you were flying and the actual mechanics of how you were moving were completely hidden.

    By the time I got out, the line was 150 minutes long. By the time I did the express line of the Hippogriff ride (which was a very, VERY basic kids coaster, but a fun one that I could handle nonetheless), the queue was 200 minutes. So I was grateful to have gotten there when I did.

    We then wandered about the world, enjoying the butterbeers, which were delicious and came in hot and cold options. They were kind of like creaming soda with a butterscotch caramel flavoured cream that had elements of the consistency of marshmallow fluff without the overt sweetness. Yum!

    We also decided to grab an early lunch here before the lunch lines got crazy, and the lunch at the three broomsticks actually seemed somewhat nice. Michael got the beef roast, and I got fish and chips. We ended up splitting the meals between us, with me beelining for the veggies and thoroughly delighted to be eating mushy peas.

    We really liked this world in the park. The music was varied and immersive, the castle was really well done, and the food and shop options were really interesting.    Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Universal: Snacks and Wanders

    11 maart, Japan ⋅ ⛅ 9 °C

    After finishing up lunch at Harry Potter World, we had the Illumination Minions ride at 12.30pm, so we took a wander around the park until we arrived and smashed through the ride. This one was cool, as you had a laser gun, got placed on a spot on a conveyor belt, and went through a range of minions scenes and shot at different screens as you moved around. Thoroughly enjoyable!

    From here, we had just over three hours to kill until we were allowed into NintendoLand for our 3pm timed entry, so we pottered about to enjoy some themed snackies. We got a minion ice cream sandwich, some mixed berry churros (the one thing that really bugged me was that there were no plain churros in this park. Every single one was themed and flavoured in some way. In the end, we went for the most left of field one, which ended up being quite yummy), and some Mario treats. After that, we explored Jurassic World and had an absolute blast watching people get unexpectedly soaked on the main Jurassic ride. The coaster here was unreal. It was a corkscrew coaster, but it was on your stomach. I've done a stomach coaster before and it was super fun, but this one was nuts, and not something my inner ear could handle (nor my patience with a 150 minute wait time), but we did love watching it go by and discussing the mechanics.

    Then it was a breather on a bench beside the NintendoLand entry to just have a snooze and a read until 3pm.    Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Universal: NintendoLand Koopa Challenge

    11 maart, Japan ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    We hit NintendoLand to tackle the last three rides of our day: the MarioKart Koopa Challenge, the Yoshi Adventure Ride, and Donkey Kong's Minecart Madness. We were allocated between 3-3.30pm for MarioKart, 3.30-4pm for Yoshi, and 4-4.30pm for Minecart Madness. I was a bit nervous that we weren't going to make all the entry times, given MarioKart had a 150min wait in the regular line, Yoshi had a 60min wait, and Minecart had a... 220min wait. So I told Michael no dordling, no photos, just mad dashing to make this schedule happen.

    It was SO SMOOTH. We hit MarioKart at 3.05pm and it only took 25 min to get through via express. The inside of this ride before you got to it was super cool. The theming in USJ before the rides are exceptional. Once we got on the ride, we had an absolute blast. It was go-carts on a track where it mixed real world animatronics with glasses that had augmented reality in them, and you had to steer your carts together and then use your buttons on the steering wheel to shoot items like shells at the other cart racers in your augmented reality glasses. Where you turned your head and looked was where you shot. Super super fun!

    Yoshi's Adventure was a very basic kids ride where you were on Yoshi's and just gallivanted about animatronics over the top of the park with a view out at everything. It was a welcomed relax, and Michael loved the set design and animatronics.

    After this, it was on towards Donkey Kong Country, which gets multiple posts on its own.    Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Universal: Donkey Kong Minecart Madness

    11 maart, Japan ⋅ ☁️ 11 °C

    We had finally arrived in Donkey Kong County, aka Michaels dreamland. Michael is the biggest Donkey Kong fan. Like, the biggest. So much so that he was willing to do a rollercoaster. This was one of, if not, the biggest incentive for Michael to want to come to Japan. His number one on the to do list.

    The man was in heaven. And we did the coaster with the regular 220 minute wait... In barely 20 minutes. By the time we got done with all three rides, it took us barely 70 minutes across the three, versus their total wait time of like 450+ minutes. Absolutely wild.

    And this coaster... My god! It was a BLAST! So immersive, and incredibly fun for a coaster that barely had any drops and no looping. It was family friendly but full of thrills, as it used a very clever mechanic that genuinely made you feel like the cart was bouncing off the track. And when the photo came back... My god 😅😅🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣 I mean, Michael looks gorgeously scarily delighted, and I look utterly terrifying and have a double chin for days. He was thrilled at the image, so of course we were taking it home hahaha!!!!

    Honestly, I don't think I've seen my husband as chuffed as this the entire time I've known him. It was heartwarming indeed.    Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Michael meets Donkey Kong

    11 maart, Japan ⋅ ⛅ 10 °C

    Michael wanted to do the meet and greet with Donkey Kong. He had purchased his cute little headband with the Donkey Kong and barrels on it, was wearing his Donkey Kong tshirt and his Diddy Kong jacket he got from the Nintendo store in Tokyo, so he was decked out and ready to go. I will point out that both Michael and I got pulled up so many times by staff during the day to comment about how wonderful we looked, and how much they loved my beanie and Michaels Donkey Kong fit. Even strangers pulled us up, as my beanie is very much one of a kind, and we didn't see another single Diddy Kong jacket like Michaels.

    Everyone here is wearing park memorabilia and merch, or is wearing a school uniform (it's a Japan thing), so we really stand out. Plus, my coat I got from the flea market looks like it was designed in tandem with my beanie, and I have my capybara by my side that's the exact same colour, so I get comments on the full package, which is quite lovely.

    Anyway, back to the man of the hour. Donkey Kong. The way it operates at Universal is that the meet and greets get photographed by Universal staff, they take 2 pictures, and then you can buy them. But no fancy DSLR pics by you. So I had to pull a sneaky and try and capture Michaels meet and greet using zoom and taking advantage of crowds. So of course someone in the line got right in my line of shooting that I had set up to be as inconspicuous as possible 🤣🤣🤣

    Still, I managed to capture elements of it from the shadows and witness it for myself. I've never seen Michael as joyous and as happy as he was meeting this massive Donkey Kong. It also helped that Donkey Kong reacted more to people who were wearing Donkey Kong stuff, so Donkey Kong was as loving and excited as Michael was. So much so that he bopped Michaels headband off his head, causing lots of laughs.

    It really was one of those core life moments for him. Being here, buying the merch, meeting his favourite character. It was well worth a week's salary, which is how much today had cost once we add in all the food, the photos and all the merch. I just feel delighted and privileged that I am in the position to do this so that I can witness my hubby experience a childish whimsy and magic that feels rare and so special.    Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Donkey Kong County and other characters

    11 maart, Japan ⋅ ☀️ 10 °C

    We ended the day wandering about NintendoLand, having the Donkey Kong sundae, and meeting various characters that were out and about. I played the bongos in Donkey Kong County, and Michael collected coins on his wristband thing he bought that's designed like an interactive game where you can touch items in NintendoLand and get points, images and stickers. Michael wrapped up his purchasing of merch, getting a wide range of products to take home (making the third suitcase now an inevitable reality that we will need to purchase before we leave Osaka) and we wandered back home.

    I thoroughly enjoyed this park, and feel that the express pass, whilst expensive, was 1000% worth it. I got to ride 6 rides, visit all the areas, and found the food offering, the aesthetics, and the management of the park and staff to be top notch. And seeing Michael so in his element as a dream of his came true... Priceless.    Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Nara Park: just the deer

    12 maart, Japan ⋅ ☀️ 10 °C

    We went and explored Nara Park. The big temple was under renovations at the moment, but it looked very similar to the inari shrine we went to in Kyoto so we weren't too fussed. Honestly, we just came to check out the deer and watch people act dumb and get bit and headbutted by deer as a result.

    This post is just shots Michael got of the park area and the deer themselves. I have to say... They weren't in the best shape. There was a lot of mange on them, their horns were often missing or damaged, with a number actively bleeding. Others had foam around their mouths or their tongues out like they were having breathing challenges.

    So they were cute... But it was mixed feelings. We wanted to capture the honest reality, so I haven't edited out the icky shots.    Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Nara Park: People are silly

    12 maart, Japan ⋅ ☀️ 10 °C

    This post is so that Michael and I can laugh at how silly people are when it comes to the deer. See, vendors sell crackers that you can feed the deer with, and the deer have been trained to bow towards you so that you can bow in return (or first), and then you give the deer a cracker.

    The problem is is that people are stupid. I'm sorry. Actually, I'm not. People just are dumb. That is the way of things. They don't get the etiquette, they overfeed, they feed incorrectly, they run around, they fake having food, and all sorts of things. They especially are dumb when they bow at the deer without food, or without understanding the order of the routine.

    These actions and behaviours result in tourists being swarmed by hordes of deer, having their clothing bitten and nipped, being headbutted, and all sorts of deer punishments. It's actually hilarious to watch, and Michael and I did have a great time laughing at stupid people. Although Michael did have to pull me up a few times to remind me that, whilst the deer can't comprehend why I'm openly laughing my ass off, the people I'm laughing at can.

    Still... Tehehehehehehe. Silly tourists. Every tourist we captured in these images copped a biting, a headbutt or a swarming. Except the little girl... She was just a sweetie Michael photographed.    Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Amazing Scores from secondhand shopping!

    12 maart, Japan ⋅ ☀️ 12 °C

    After Nara park, we took one train out into a very local, non tourist area (never seen as many white people in Japan as we did on the train towards and in Nara park) to go out into the sticks again and check out their secondhand shops. And boy, was this detour worth it! We scored!

    At the BookOff I got 3 Pokemon t-shirts, two of them actually having Ash Ketchum on them, which is a score since I've not seen a single bit of merch with Ash on it basically anywhere! The rare times I've seen something, it was like hundreds of dollars, and all 3 shirts fit me spot on as loungewear.

    At the 2nd Street, I found another Yuri On Ice keychain for less than $1! I couldn't believe it. It was a blink and you'll miss it moment, and this one is so cute because it's Yuri Plisetsky with cats and the cat hoodie on from the photo that I recreated in Karatsu!

    And then, the ultimate score at HardOff. I FINALLY found her. Serena. As a figuring. For less than $10. Again, it was a blink and you'll miss it moment, as she was tucked inside a cabinet and I was soooo worried that she was a display piece. She wasn't. I bought her immediately, making sure to tuck her into the box with my Shikamaru figurine in my suitcase the second I got home. I really wasn't expecting to find a figurine of her. So to get one... It's made my trip!

    Michael also scored at this HardOff. There are sections at HardOff called "junk", and it's basically giant rows and piles of old tech that either has issues, doesn't work, or needs some sort of fixing up. I think my uncle Nige and my steppy Rob would have a field day in these. The tech is unreal. So much random, quirky stuff. Anyway, Michael decided he wanted some memorabilia and fix up projects to take home.

    He found a Fujifilm Nexia Q1 for $3 and a Nikon Coolpix 950 for $22. Both are super old, weird, cool cameras/video cameras. We bought batteries for the Nikon and it legit works. It's pretty dope, and all a bit of fun!

    After all this shopping, we finally had lunch at another local Udon chain. These meals were so big and delish, we had no hope of finishing them! But at $14 each, we couldn't complain!!!    Meer informatie

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  • Shalee GherbazJapan 2026!Reiziger

    Light on the updates

    12 maart, Japan ⋅ 🌙 7 °C

    Michaels camera is playing up and we are hitting the point of our trip where we are mainly shopping and having downtime to wind down and take a breather after so many activities, so posts will be added here and there until we arrive home. ❤️Meer informatie

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