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East Asia

March - April 2024
  • Aushim Krishan
  • Divya Deepankar
Divya and Aushim’s month long adventures across various parts of East Asia Read more
  • Aushim Krishan
  • Divya Deepankar
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  • 29days
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  • East Asia

    Arashiyama bamboo forest

    March 27, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 14 °C

    After the tea ceremony, we headed back to Kyoto and onwards to the Arashiyama bamboo forest. Our first task was to find lunch in the area, which was a challenge once again because of the peak season. Most places we went to were either fully booked or had a waiting period of at least an hour. When we finally managed to get inside a restaurant, we realised that the supposedly vegetarian dish was not actually vegetarian, which meant that some of the group couldn’t eat much. We proceeded towards the actual forest, which initially felt a bit underwhelming but as we went deeper, the views of the tall bamboo trees all around were pretty good. As it was mid-afternoon, the crowds were at peak. We walked for 15 mins, clicked a few photos, and then decided to head back to Kyoto station and then onwards to Tokyo. Nishu and Purva took a mini detour to find Vegan Ramen but were again hit by long waiting times. We eventually took the Shinkansen back to Tokyo, reached our hotel and had some ready-to-eat meals (heated up expertly by Purva in paper cups) for dinner.Read more

  • East Asia

    Senso-ji

    March 28, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 7 °C

    We all decided to do an early start and go straight to Tokyo’s famous Senso-ji temple. One of its identifiable features is the big entrance gate with a giant paper lantern. We clicked lots of pictures there. The path to the temple is usually lined with shops selling lots of different food items, but because we were super early, hardly any of those shops were open. After spending some time in the temple area (which had a large courtyard and a pagoda), we headed to get some pancakes and sandwiches for breakfast.Read more

  • East Asia

    Sakura hunting

    March 28, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 12 °C

    The rains and subsequent temperature drop had delayed Sakura in Tokyo and Kyoto and our hopes of getting glimpses of Japan’s famed cherry blossom were low (at least in this week). But Purva had found via Tiktok that Shiori Park had Sakura trees blossoming already. So we decided to test our high hopes and go Sakura hunting. After initially feeling disappointed when we couldn’t find any blossomed trees in the park, we persisted and were finally graced with a long riverside row of cherry trees, most of which had fully blossomed. It was a stunning sight, and everyone in the group was delighted, especially the people who were leaving Japan by the end of the week. After countless pictures, we headed onwards to Ueno Park (because our cab driver had told us that the big tree there has also blossomed). Unfortunately, the reality in Ueno Park was much less positive. Yes, there was a tree which had blossomed, but it was nothing compared to the sights we had seen in Shiori Park. Divya decided to get some light bites in the food stalls in the park and was accidentally hit by a shellfish allergy attack. After mitigating any harm, she and the rest of us decided to go back to the hotel and get some sleep before heading out again in the evening.Read more

  • East Asia

    Teamlab Planets

    March 28, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 13 °C

    After getting some rest and then grabbing some delicious food in the Yodobashi mall in Akihabara, we headed for our evening experience which we had booked in advance - Teamlab Planets, an art museum with artworks that blend the viewer with the surrounding art. Divya and I had seen Teamlab’s exhibit in Singapore in the ArtScience Museum, so we were excited. Getting there, however was a hassle. We couldn’t figure out the directions to the correct train line and then spent half an hour trying to book a cab, before finally catching one, when it was mildly raining the entire while. The experience itself was amazing and all the artworks were surprisingly good. Overall, it was much grander than the one we had seen in Singapore, especially the crystal artwork and the ones involving water, but it had lesser interactivity. Everyone enjoyed it a lot and we then headed back to our hotel.Read more

  • East Asia

    Izakaya in Shinjuku

    March 29, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 21 °C

    It was raining heavily the entire morning, so we took it easy and chilled in the hotel. Nishu had ordered breakfast for everyone. We played some cards in our parents’ room (I unsuccessfully tried to get everyone to learn and play “The Crew” before falling back to simple playing cards) and then we finally headed out when the weather improved. We went to Shinjuku, the most happening part of Tokyo. After reaching, we split up with Divya, Nishu and I going to Omoide Yokocho, the famous street with multiple Izakayas and the rest going for shopping. The three of us ended up in a super local Izakaya and ended up having Miso ramen, pork gyozas, hot and cold sake, and funnily some simple cold chicken (because we couldn’t understand what we were ordering). The food was amazing and was easily the best food we had in Japan till now. The vibe of the place was extremely no-nonsense. The cooks silently took our order, cooked it in front of us and put the cooked food on the counter without saying a single word. Also, clicking pictures was explicitly prohibited in the place. The whole experience was as local as it gets. We were all extremely satisfied and went back to meet the rest of the group and go towards Harajuku.Read more

  • East Asia

    Takeshita street

    March 29, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 21 °C

    After reaching Harajuku (which was a pain because it took us twenty minutes to finally get on the right train), we split up again. Purva and the elders went to a Vegan place where they ended up having their best meal of Japan. They were super stoked. Divya, Nishu and I took a walk and inadvertently ended up on the super crowded Takeshita street, which was full of places selling toys and sugary food. We had some cakes shaped in the form of pandas, strawberries and grapes coated with a crystallised sugar and finally some tea to neutralise all the sugar. We also went inside a capsule toy shop where I ended up getting a Mario watch (which doesn’t work yet, probably because it needs cells). When the rest of the group finished their meal, we brought them to the entrance of the street so that they could witness the madness of the street too. We clicked some pictures at the entrance which had a camera and a small rectangular screen reflecting the people standing in front of the entrance. We then headed towards the Shibuya district.Read more

  • East Asia

    Shibuya crossing

    March 29, 2024 in Japan ⋅ 🌙 19 °C

    While walking towards Shibuya, we split up yet again. Purva and her mom went inside a clothes store, while the rest of us continued to walk along the high street towards the scramble crossing. The route was super interesting. We noticed buildings with weird architecture, groups of mini-karts on the roads, women with eccentric hairstyle and fashion sense (we think these might have been the “Harajuku girls” we knew of via Youtube videos about Tokyo but we could be wrong) and some unique shops. We dropped our parents to a shopping centre called Loft and headed onwards to the famous Shibuya crossing - where every other minute, thousands of people cross the road in all directions simultaneously. We crossed it ourselves twice before heading to the Shibuya station and resting in a cafe. Everybody else eventually joined us at the station and everyone was tired enough that we decided to get back to the hotel.Read more

  • East Asia

    Sushi and Sake

    March 29, 2024 in Japan ⋅ 🌙 15 °C

    We reached back to our hotel and were super tired from all the walking from the day in Shinjuku, Harajuku and Shibuya. We ordered some Indian food for the parents. Purva suggested the rest of us can go to a nearby local place for sushi dinner. She was willing to switch from being a vegan to having fish for an evening to be able to properly experience Japan’s famous sushi. We brushed off out tiredness and the four of us went out. The place was amazing and very authentic. The chefs and the host were enthusiastic about feeding people. We got three platters of sushi among the four of us, along with some miso soup and hot sake. The food was delicious and the vibe was great. We finished almost everything and were constrained only by our already full stomachs. After thanking the chefs and the host, we left for our hotel, ready to crash and sleep immediately.Read more

  • East Asia

    Breakfast, souvenirs and all the fish

    March 30, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

    Given that the cherry blossoms had unfortunately still not opened, we ditched our Sakura plans, woke up at a comfortable hour and went out for breakfast in Ginza at a place found by Purva. After lots of sandwiches, pancakes and toasts, we went walking in Ginza and ended up in a nice souvenir shop with interesting crockery and chopsticks. Everyone bought something to take back and we moved on towards the Tsukiji Fish Market, Tokyo’s largest fish market and a popular avenue for street food. It was fairly crowded and we were anyway too full for food, but we grabbed a few fresh citrus juices to sip in a weather that had suddenly become summery.Read more

  • East Asia

    Pokemon fun

    March 30, 2024 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 24 °C

    Next up, we took a train and went to relive some childhood memories at the Pokemon Centre in Tokyo. It was in the Ginza district and as we reached closer to the centre, we realised we were walking in Tokyo’s financial district with all the big investment bank buildings around us. The Pokemon centre itself was a joyful experience. It had a souvenir shop and a Pokemon themed cafe. Nishu, Purva, Divya and I went around the shop (while parents waited on the side) and browsed the different stuffed Pokemon and other artefacts. Divya got herself a Jigglypuff and a Pikachu. Nishu and Purva also snatched a few. After clicking a few pictures, we then went onwards for lunch.Read more

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