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Around the World 2023
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Around the World 2023

A 262-day adventure by Hen Tours Read more
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  • Hen ToursAround the World 2023Traveler

    Abu Dhabi to Tokyo

    October 20, 2023 in Japan ⋅ 🌬 26 °C

    A 10 hour flight with some I’ll mannered women.

    Once in Tokyo, we made it through immigration and customs quickly and then started the process of sorting tickets. I picked up the JR pass and all the train tickets for the next month (32 reservations). We then moved on and got the Skyliner tickets and caught the fast train into the city from the airport.

    We transferred the the Ginza line and a few stops later walked through Ginza to our hotel. Check in was easy and the room was as small as expected, enough room for the bed!

    In the early evening we stretched our legs around Ginza and had a bed picnic for dinner. The photo is the aftermath of the bed picnic as I was too hungry for a before photo!    Read more

  • Hen ToursAround the World 2023Traveler

    Tokyo

    October 21, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    After a jet lagged night’s not sleep I was woken by light. We had breakfast had Starbucks Reserve (not sure what the big deal is) and then caught the subway to teamLab Planets.

    The installations were good, especially the lights and the fish.

    We caught the train to Asakusa and walked towards the shrine. Along the way we tried different foods;
    - dango 🍡 and green tea
    - red bean paste and sweet soy sauce dango 🍡
    - green tea and chocolate mochi

    We wandered around the area for a while looking at the shrine and shops and then I had tonkatsu ramen 🍜 for lunch.

    We than caught the train to Harajuku and walked along Takeshita Street. We turned off to walk around a shrine and gardens but the gardens were closed. We continued to walk around Harajuku before catching a train back to the hotel.

    In the evening we went to Tokyo station to try to find some dinner. After an hour of walking around unsuccessfully we walked back to the hotel, stopping at 7-11 on the way to get food for a bed picnic.    Read more

  • Hen ToursAround the World 2023Traveler

    Tokyo to Gora

    October 22, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 14 °C

    We made our way to Tokyo station and bought some train snacks. We then caught the Shinkansen to Odawara and then the train to Hakone-Yamote. Here we paid for the luggage to be transferred to our hotel and caught the ‘H’ bus to Hakone checkpoint.

    We spent some time looking at the exhibits and climbed up to the lookout. We the did the cedar walk before walking to Hakone Jinja Shrine. It was really busy here with a long line of people waiting for a photo with the Tori gate. We didn’t wait.

    Instead we went a caught the pirate ship 🚢 cruise across the lake and then the rope way up the mountain. At the top we bought and ate the black eggs before catching the next section of the rope way towards Gora.

    We decided to catch the cable car down further but it was so busy we came back up and checked in to our Ryokan.

    We stayed in the room and had green tea. In the evening we had a traditional meal and the futons were laid out.

    I then went in the onsen for a while before bed.    Read more

  • Hen ToursAround the World 2023Traveler

    Gora to Kyoto

    October 23, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 15 °C

    Well, I’m glad I tried the traditional Japanese bed but it’s not something I will be sleeping on again if I can avoid it.

    I got up early and went in the onsen for a shower. At around 7.30am the ryokan hosts came and tidied away the beds and brought breakfast.

    After breakfast we caught the cable car down to Gora and then the train back to Hakone-Yamote station where we transferred to the Odawara train.

    In Odawara we had some coffee and breakfast snacks before finding the Shinkansen tracks.
    When we got to our platform, there was already a train in and someone told us it was delayed. Most unusual.

    Eventually we found out that there was an electrical fire further down the line and all Shinkansen were delayed. We sat on the platform and after an hour and a half delay our train came and we made it to Kyoto.

    We found our hotel and checked in. The room was a little bigger than the first hotel, but not a lot!

    We then walked back to the station and caught the local train to Inari station. We then spent a few hours walking around (up) Fushimi Inari Shrine. There were a lot of Tori gates and a lot of up hill. It was very busy at the start but the higher up the mountain we went, the quieter, and darker, it got.

    When we got back to the bottom, we caught the train back to the hotel and had a convenience store dinner.    Read more

  • Hen ToursAround the World 2023Traveler

    Kyoto Day 1

    October 24, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 23 °C

    Up early and on the bus to kiyomizu-dera temple by 6.30am. We walked up the quiet, but not empty, streets towards the temple and spent time wandering around the buildings and gardens. We headed out and through the increasingly busy streets looking for breakfast.

    We found a little cafe and had the breakfast set before popping in the combini for extra supplies. We continued our walk, calling in some temples but missing others because they were closed.

    We stopped for a break in the park before continuing on our way. After another combini stop we caught a bus towards the Eikan-do temple.

    After looking around, we called in a cafe and had omurice before walking along the Philosopher’s Path.

    At the end, we caught a bus back to the hotel and rested for a while. In the evening, we caught the bus to Gion and walked around looking at the old buildings.    Read more

  • Hen ToursAround the World 2023Traveler

    Kyoto Day 2

    October 25, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    We had a super late start today and eventually headed to Kyoto Castle. We stopped at a supermarket on the way and got some dango 🍡 snacks.

    We spent a while walking around the castle, which wasn’t grand but is a very historic place, linked closely with the unification of Japan.

    From there we caught the bus to Nishiki market and spent some time walking around trying different foods and looking at the shops. We found somewhere for ramen for lunch. We then continued walking and visited Gion again, looking at the different areas and shops.

    In the evening we went to a local restaurant and had skewers and tofu salad.    Read more

  • Hen ToursAround the World 2023Traveler

    Kyoto Day 3

    October 26, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    Yet another early start as we headed to the bamboo forest. The bus stopped right at the bottom so we walked up the hill and fortunately it wasn’t too busy just yet. At the top we stopped for breakfast and then walked down through the park to the river.

    We then walked back through the town to Tenryu-ji Temple and spent time in the garden with the colourful leaves 🍁 and different plants.

    We then walked back up through the bamboo forest which was much busier and visited Okochi-Sandi villa. Here we spent time meandering through the gardens and then had green tea 🍵 in the tea house.

    We then walked through the old streets looking at shops and visited a memorial temple before heading back in the direction we came and catching the bus to Kinkaku-ji.

    This golden temple was busy but we made our way around before catching the bus back to Nishiki market and going to a restaurant for tempura.

    In the evening we had combini dinner.

    After lunch w    Read more

  • Hen ToursAround the World 2023Traveler

    Kyoto Day 4

    October 27, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 22 °C

    We started with breakfast in a cafe before catching the bus back to Kiyomizu-dera temple. This time though we didn’t go to the temple, instead we slowly walked through the streets looking in the shops.

    After a couple of hours we caught the bus to Ginkaku-ji and looked around the landscaped gardens. We then went to a vegan cafe for lunch.

    After lunch we caught the bus back to Kyoto station and spent time looking around the different levels. We then went back to the hotel and rested.

    In the evening we went back to the local restaurant for rice and skewers.    Read more

  • Hen ToursAround the World 2023Traveler

    Kyoto to Nara

    October 28, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 18 °C

    We got up and packed everything into the cases and the walked to the station. We caught the local train to Nara, which took about an hour.

    Once in Nara we left the luggage at the information centre and went to the supermarket to get breakfast.

    After breakfast we started walking through the streets, at one point we were in the Nara pride parade 🏳️‍🌈!

    We left the parade and visited kofuku-ji temples. We then went to Yoshiki-en and Isui-en gardens. The second one was one of the best gardens visited so far.

    After the gardens we continued uphill to Todai-ji where we visited the Buddha Hall before carrying on uphill to visit the other temples in the complex. For lunch we stopped at a soba restaurant, which was cheap and tasty.

    We then walked through the gardens and back towards the station.

    We collected our luggage and walked the short distance to our accommodation, a 2 bedroom house.

    After we dropped the luggage off, we went to the supermarket for dinner and then did a lot of loads of laundry! 😂    Read more

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