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  • Ben Smeele
  • Ben Smeele

Japan

My first real trip to Japan Read more
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  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler

    Christmas Steak Dinner and Tokyo Dome

    December 25, 2022 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 9 °C

    We had done a fair bit of walking so decided to head to Christmas dinner early. When we first got there it was quite quiet and we were a little worried but luckily it was also still happy hour so I started making my way through the different happy hour cocktails.
    When the steak came out it was a nice piece of meat but on the first attempt it was a little raw for me, we sent it back for a little more cooking after eating half of it and glad we did as it came out much better.
    After dinner we headed to Tokyo dome which had a rollerskating, table tennis, bowling and a full theme park upstairs. They had some great lights for Christmas on display as well. Was keen to do the rollercoaster which ran through some parts of the mall but for some reason they were not running that ride. They had the log flume, Ferris wheel and pirate still running though so we picked the pirate ship and all got on it.
    Then we decided to call it a night and head back on the train, I said goodnight to the Pilkingtons on the train as they got off two stops before me.
    As I was walking through the quiet station I noticed one of those booths you can hire for remote work, could be fun to give one a go.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler

    Ramen dinner Roppongi Taketora

    December 26, 2022 in Japan ⋅ 🌙 6 °C

    I had another rest day today, started with breakfast and tried to plan out the month ahead but made basically no progress so ended up watching the Witcher.
    Didn't leave the hotel till 5.
    Went out for a wander and found a busy ramen place I had to write my name down on a waiting list but I think it was worth the wait. He sat me in a booth by myself sadly but it was a nice place with some decent food.
    I started to wander home and a guy from Nigeria tried to convince me to visit his strip club for 5000¥ with unlimited drinks for 90 mins which was tempting but I was not keen.
    Got a desert on the way home and noticed they sold NZ ice-cream here.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler
    1

    Off to Joetsumyoko

    December 27, 2022 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 3 °C

    I got up, had breakfast and headed for the train station. Google suggested I take a bus to Shinbashi, train to Ueno then a bullet from there. When I got to Ueno the bullet train was full though so I needed to wait around 2 hours. I talked to a French girl who was a student there while I was waiting for the train, I tried to plan the weeks ahead but failed to make any progress on that.
    Got myself a niku Bento Box for the train which was pretty decent.
    The train ride up itself was nice, I was sitting in cattle class this time but still had plenty of leg room.
    I arrived a little early for the hotel so dumped my stuff there and was about to jump on the train but it cost so I went for a walk up the road, didn't see a single other person walking around but lots of cars were driving. I don't think there is much in the area but that just means I need to travel more to find things.
    I walked back and checked into the hotel but asked them to change the 7days I had booked down to 3 nights. I still don't know where I'm going but know I need to keep moving.
    I caught up on washing and had myself an onsen as it had been a few days and really relaxed into it while I was awaiting the laundry.
    I then headed out for a dinner and wandered through the local places the tv had suggested to me and found a place which had a few people in it. I got myself a pork catsu but she asked if I wanted anything else and so I ordered a chicken karage but really think I ordered too much. The port katsu was amazing, moist and delicious and the sake was filled to the brim for $5 and went down very well.
    I ended the night by opening the Jägermeister cold brew and having a few night caps.
    Got up and had a great Japanese breakfast at the hotel, it was half smorgasbord and half served which is fine by me as it forced me to try different things. The onsen cold egg was probably the best part, it was soft-boiled but cold still and great over rice. I left the salmon as I think it was with cod milt as some very sticky substance covered it, but I ate the rest.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler

    Ski day Arai

    December 28, 2022 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 5 °C

    I caught a bus up to Lotte Arai today to hang out with the Pilkingtons and learn to ski. At first I was really worried as it took a fair bit to load up on the ski gear and equipment, walking backwards and forwards really tired me out and I hadn't even started skiing yet. I had originally dressed in full thermals but quickly stripped down to just a shirt with the jacket as it was quite hot out in the ice. Yos gave me a couple of basics and stayed with me to make sure I could at least get in and stand up on my skis, which I am very grateful for as otherwise I felt very lost.
    I kept doing the basic learner run for most of the day as it took a fair while for me to become accustomed to using the skis. After a while I figured I would give the higher (still green) slope a go and I honestly don't think I was quite ready for it but had already committed. By the time I had completed the run though I got a nice sense of accomplishment from it and felt spurred on to do more.
    I did another Gondola green run and was able to catch-up with Nathan and Sienna on that run but was still slightly slower than them on the dip.
    Did a couple more runs on the basic course before having to hand my gear back and then headed to Yos and Nathans room to check it out.
    Ended up relaxing in a jazz bar before heading back on the bus to my hotel. They were playing a lot I was able to singing along to but vibed on Tin Pan Alley by Stevie Ray Vaughan.
    I jumped in a van hopefully to take me back to the train station, I talked to the driver for a bit as I was tipsy and asked him how his night was going and that my day has been a lot of fun, all in Japanese and he seemed to enjoy the conversation. My new phrase, I'm here until February "ni tsuki made koko ni imasu".
    I tried one of the container restaurants and asked for an omakase (chefs choice) dinner. As far as I could figure out it had a Cesar salad, snow crab, beef stew and a soup with bread. But I got some sake to go with it and to help with the tipsyness. It was really delicious and I made sure to thank the chef properly as I left.
    They had a smokeless fire in the corner of the room which I think was pretty amazing and added to the jazz vibe.
    I even played the piano a little in the train station on the way back to the hotel as I figured why not...
    I then headed back to the hotel for a late night onsen for the muscles, hopefully they can take the walking planned for tomorrow.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler

    Snow monkey park

    December 29, 2022 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 2 °C

    I caught a bullet train down to Nagano for the day since I have a rail pass I may as well make the most of it. I had booked the train tickets last night which seemed to be enough time to make sure I got a seat. I jumped on a coach from the train station which took around 40 minutes and they had fully loaded every seat. And by that I mean they even had extra seats which folded down in the middle aisle. As soon as I arrived it started snowing, it was almost like a hail with very soft and light round pieces of snow. I did my normal of talking to randoms as I went, one guy was heading off to a brewery which was in the area and a girl from Melbourne had just arrived and was doing the snow monkey park as well so I hung out and talked with her for the walk.
    At the start of the walk there was a shop selling crampons and I wasn't sure I needed them and got them only for the novelty but by the end I'm so glad I got them. I saw a lot of other people slipping over on the walk.
    While walking through the forest trees would randomly drop snow every now and then, I kept trying to capture it but you had to be really quick.
    My legs were still a little sore from the skiing but the walk was pretty basic and just took it at a slow pace.
    The monkeys themselves were quite cute just hanging in the hot pools, at some points they just reminded me of a bunch of old men sitting around.
    We headed back about halfway and noticed the onsen by the river, I was tempted but it was really exposed and also thought it was weird that all the guys were naked but the girl getting in was in a swimsuit. I don't think it was supposed to be mixed or swimwear but I guess that happens. It was cool seeing them soaking with the monkeys but I also worried about infection as it stunk a bit from their poo.
    The walk back was uneventful but found some small ducks and nice paths to take photos of.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler

    Nagano

    December 29, 2022 in Japan ⋅ 🌧 3 °C

    After coming back from the snow monkeys I had a few hours to kill before my train back to the hotel. I hadn't had lunch at that point so Abigail and I found somewhere for lunch/early dinner and some drinks. She was the girl who I talked to on the walk to the snow monkey park and it was her 11th trip to Japan so we practiced some Japanese together. Found a place which was busy and had nothing in English so it seemed perfect. I got myself a big bottle beer for $4 and a gyoza set. We saw our neighbours order a sake drink which was topped up with the meat broth so had to give that a go. It was decent sake but hot which I'm not the biggest fan of, it was nice to warm as it was 1° outside.
    I then left Abigail at her hotel and went for a wander of the streets. There was not much it seemed to do in Nagano so I changed my ticket to an hour earlier, grabbed an egg sandwich from 711 (as everyone kept raving about them) and booked out my next 2 days while getting some train tickets. I headed back to the hotel, had an onsen and headed off to bed.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler

    To Kusatsu

    December 30, 2022 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 0 °C

    I got up early as I had booked the earliest train I could to get to the onsen village yesterday. I grabbed a newsdays breakfast, the hot canned coffee was not half bad actually. I tried to track with Google but it kept saying the trip I wanted to do was cancelled due to heavy snow. When I got to Takasaki I asked at the ticket booth and she advised just to get on the train at track 6 as it should get me that direction (I think).
    I chucked some earbuds in and cranked some music to jam along to on the train, really related to the one republic - can I get a connection song.
    Well turns out I had selected the wrong onsen village in google maps and got on the wrong train and about an hour in the opposite direction. Can't overly complain as these villages are absolutely beautiful covered in snow on a sunny day and I'm making good use of my rail pass.
    I found the sprinklers in all the roads quite interesting, it was their way of keeping the ice off of the roads.
    I jumped on another train that I think might have been allocated seats but I just found one and sat down. I had to get off at Naganoharakusatsuguchi station, I'm sure it means something but was quite a long name.
    At one point I think I must have been in the town associated with initial d as there was info about it but will need to research that later.
    As I had taken longer I had another newsdays meal to tie me over till I got to Kusatsu.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler
    121

    Kusatsu

    December 30, 2022 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ -2 °C

    While wandering through kusatsu I mostly just picked a direction and walked to see where I could end up. The first thing which took my attention was the temple on the hill so I headed up that way. It was flurries at the time which made it feel quite magical. I got myself a little custard man and used one of the hot foot baths, the whole place reminded me a lot of Rotorua with the sulphur smell.
    I went to see a show which demonstrated how they cooled down the water without dilution traditionally, there was a story about how many famous people have come to this town and many emperors obtained the water from here for their private baths to relieve ailments.
    The central part of town itself had a European influence to it and there were lots of nice smelling restaurants as I walked past but as my meals were being provided by the hotel I didn't get to try any of them.
    In the morning I decided to walk down the hill and came across the onsen I missed going to, I was tempted but at that point had done 5 onsens in the last 24 hours anyway so I really didn't need it.
    I got myself some negima Yakitori and garlic, was a little hard with translation with him but I at least had a little bite to eat.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler

    Kusatsu Onsen Daitokan

    December 30, 2022 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ -3 °C

    I booked myself a Ryokan for one night I had seen lots of them on YouTube and wanted to experience it for myself, seeing as I also wanted to visit this onsen town I figured I would book the main onsen Ryokan. The room itself is nice enough and similar to ones I had seen but I'll be honest, for the price I paid I was expecting slightly more. I thought dinner would be in my room not a smorgasbord style. Albeit the smorgasbord was massive with multiple meet sections, soups, broths, stews, sushi, fish cooked in every manor, fruit, bread, desert, and they even had a beer machine which poured a beer on an angle for you and then topped it off with foam. It was $16 for all you can drink in 90 mins.
    I figured while doing onsens I would visit all I could in the area. There are 4 main ones and the one which was closing first I headed to, it was called Sainokawara open air onsen. It happened to be a mixed night tonight so it got quite busy and everyone had to wear the bathing suit provided. It only had one large bath for everyone and then I noticed a sauna as I was leaving but I had missed it earlier. It was nice in the open air with the snow flurries falling still but it felt a bit basic to me.
    The next one I tried was Gozanoyu. This was in a really nice looking wooden building and was listed as being a very traditional bathhouse. When I got in they only had one big bath area sectioned into 4 sorta pools by beams of wood. It was really hot and you could hear the woman's side over the wall in the middle. I was expecting something more like a snow section or at least a cold pool and sauna but maybe I've become spoiled. The water itself must have been high in calcium as you could feel it and the ground was stained and slippery from the minerals.
    I wasn't able to make it to the third external one but my hotel one allows me there till midnight so left that till last.
    The hotel one had 2 pools, one inside and one outside. While I was using the outside one it had dropped to -5° outside so you felt the chill when getting in and out of the water, aparently will drop to -6 overnight.
    One of the hotel pools had a ph of 1.6 which seemed very highly acidic but that sadly was in the partner onsen. Not sure how to get to it and I think it might only be open at night.
    I did consider through the night getting another futon to sleep on but it was not that bad, better than the bed in the hostel I stayed at.
    I slept in, got breakfast and then went downstairs for another onsen, they had swapped the guys and girls which was good as this one had an outside area which had snow in it so I went and put my feet in the snow to cool them after the onsen.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler

    Kusatsu Tropical Wonderland

    December 31, 2022 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 0 °C

    I was wandering through Kusatsu talking to Mum and Dad when he said I was close to somewhere which had Capybaras and said I should visit so I popped in for a look. They had a fair lot of animals, started with the bugs and hand cleaning fish, then headed down to a dome structure which had the rest of the animals. The home itself looked very dirty and rusting to the point it might break but maybe that was the dilapidated tropical look???
    I walked down and watched the monkeys for a little bit but these ones were not as calm as the snow monkey forest ones.
    When you first walked in there were crocodiles and alligators in tiny pens so they didn't move much. The owls were cute and the tarantula was hanging out in the middle section with a whole bunch of lizards and frogs. Then there were lots of snakes with money that had been left behind by people, I assume it was a good luck thing but found it interesting that no-one stole the money as it was just sitting there.
    I fed the Capybaras, there were probably 10 of them and one had got into the rabbit pen and was stealing their food. A sloth was in the corner just sleeping under the heat lamp.
    As I walked around the corner there were some monkeys who were very cute and interested in the humans. I stayed with the pigmy marmosets for a while as they made a really nice bird chirping call.
    I saw the bat hanging out and he tried to bite me through the cage.
    They then had some baby chickens, hamsters and micro pigs you could play with. The micro pigs were very skittish though.
    I went outside and said hello to the Lama who seemed unbothered by the snow.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler
    11

    New years eve

    December 31, 2022 in Japan ⋅ 🌙 5 °C

    I had to jump in the shuttle to a bus to a train to the subway this time to get to Shinjuku from kusatsu. When I got there, I was walking to the hotel and the passageways were just empty. It was actually a little scary as there were these long corridors of travelators with no-one there.
    I checked in, had a quick shower and unwound with some tv for a little bit. When I left the hotel there were some people drinking out the front so I started chatting to them, turns out they were all LGBT and off to a gay bar. They invited me along and I was tempted but figured I should keep searching .
    I jumped into a restaurant that had ramen on the menu and smashed down a bowl quickly then started walking for a place to drink. There were a number of buskers around the train station which were entertaining to watch for a bit. Some people were just getting drinks from 7/11s and drinking that with the entertainment.
    The place still felt quiet but the closer I got to golden gai the more I ran into people. It was mostly foreigners out which makes sense as all the Japanese people were home or at temples with their families.
    I wandered around until I found a place which didn't have a cover charge and spoke English, popped my head in for a quick drink and ended up spending the night there. Met Martin, Enrico and Xavi from Scotland, Italy and Spain. A couple of others popped in and out but hung out with them the most. The owner of Aces was amazing 51 and kept hassling my taste in music but was a great guy to talk to. I brought a round, pretty much every drink was $8 which was highish but not that bad.
    We wandered for a bit through kabuki-cho but then I left the guys as they were off to the strip clubs.
    On the way home I grabbed a little bite from Wendy's (mostly so I could use the toilet) and then went home to call it a night. It was a rock hard bed but that didn't matter at that point.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler

    Heading north

    January 1, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 3 °C

    I jumped on a train heading north without a real destination in mind or a place booked tonight but I was keen to head to somewhere I hadn't been so north...
    I clocked this bullet train at 318 but I'm sure it was going faster in the tunnels I just couldn't get a GPS signal. This definitely felt the fastest to me so far.
    I got to Sendai quite quickly and from the train it looked pretty calm and there wasn't any snow so I figured I would continue on.
    Soon after Sendai we went through a tunnel and on the other side everything was blanketed in snow, this got me excited so I figured I would continue on and see where this takes me.
    Morioka came up really quick and they announced that half the train continues north with the other half going to Akita, I hadn't been on one of the split trains yet but I'm pretty sure I was in the right half.
    This town looked quite interesting and considered staying here but continued on.
    After seeing the snow and having my Bento Box I felt spurred on to go all the way to Hokkaido. I booked myself a room in Hakodate that looked decent enough and then that allows me to continue onto Sapporo tomorrow.
    I had got to the top of mainland Japan in 3.5 hours and traveled 800km with stops, it was crazy to think how quick that is, it was about the same distance as Whangarei to Wellington or Gold Coast to Sydney.
    I was hoping I could get some pictures with the crossing to Hokkaido but was worried as the sun was setting. I didn't realise it was a tunnel so that solved that problem.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler
    1

    Hakodate

    January 1, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ -2 °C

    It was snowing quite heavily when I arrived but it just made me happier.
    The onsen in this hotel is one of the best ive come across, I risked taking some photos as I really wanted to show what this one was like. There were 2 baths inside with one of them being very high in salts apparently which turned it orange. Also a cold plunge pool for the after sauna.
    There was a dry 90° and steam 48° salt sauna. It had a large bowl of salt in the corner which it instructed to rub all over your body let it resolved in and then wash off when leaving.
    Outside there was another large bath and then 2 smaller tubs, there was someone using them at the time so I couldn't take a photo out there but it was also snowing so after one of my baths I stood in the snow and got snowed on. It was one of the things I had been looking forward to doing on my list before I came here and it just made my day.
    I put some laundry on and checked out the social area. They had free soup, wine, ice blocks, softdrinks and a library to read from. For the price this place has been amazing so far.
    I just looked at the weather forecast and it will be 8 degrees colder tomorrow with a high of -5, and that's here in Hakodate, I'll be heading further north tomorrow.
    My washing was running till 9 so I did a quick walk around the block and while I did the snow was really coming down, paths I had walked had lost my footprints.
    I headed back out and found an izakaya for a snack, it had gotten too late and I wasn't really feeling dinner anymore.
    Had a couple of beers with some locals, the lady next to me just kept talking about the yakitori so I had to try some and they were pretty good.
    The owner gave me a new years day gift which was a patterned onsen towel which I think was really nice of him.
    I got up and went down for breakfast and man did they have a selection. The sashimi side of it was absolutely amazing, maybe as it was a coastal town they had more access I'm not sure but it went down well.
    I then packed up everything and ran for the train to Sapporo.
    I easily could have stayed in this town a couple of days as I didn't really see anything of it but what I did see I really loved.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler

    Continuing to Sapporo

    January 2, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ -8 °C

    I decided to head up north further as a lot of people talk about Sapporo and booked 2 days to have a quick look around.
    As the train took 4 hours and only ran a few times a day I needed to get up, pack and run through the snow to make the train.
    Luckily there were 2 carts of unreserved seats which I was able to grab instead of worrying about missing the train.
    I skipped lunch due to the massive breakfast.
    The trip up was nice, going past lakes and frozen trees, I mostly just watched a movie on the way to help pass the time though as it was a 4 hour ride to Sapporo.
    I arrived at Sapporo and tried to figure out how or where to catch the bus from to get to my hotel but google was not providing me the numbers and my normal process of time matching was not helping with so many running.
    I ended up getting a taxi in the long (30 min+) line of people which only cost $10 anyway.
    I got myself settled and headed out for the night, not really knowing which way the city was I turned right as most people were walking that way.
    I found an alley mall named after a tanuki which had a Yakiniku place with a line so I joined that for a little bit. Yaki roughly translates to bbq and niku being meat so you cooked your own. It was cool to start up the grill with whatever sauce you wanted on it.
    I then went to a pharmacy as I needed some deodorant, turns out they only had 2 options and I have noticed at supermarkets they just don't have men's deodorant, makes me wonder if guys just don't wear it here.
    I did a quick walk through the main city part and then through pole town (the underground mall/pathways). I then headed back to the hotel to call it an early night and have an onsen as my toes were quite cold.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler

    Sapporo lazy day

    January 3, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ -4 °C

    I ended up staying in bed till around midday today, part of me was thinking it was because I had been so happy in Hakodate but also I started realising that big city's stress me and Sapporo felt very similar to Tokyo in some ways, there are too many options of places to go and do that it overwhelms me.
    I missed out on the breakfast but went out and found a fast food cafe for a quick bite/lunch.
    Walked through Arora underground this time to get a subway to a famous statue in the area. I really liked the write-up and the note of "Boys be ambitious". I got myself a little gashapon and was thankful it was the one I was wanting to get. They had a museum which had the models of all the Sapporo winter festival stages, some of them were massive and did make me wonder if it was worth trying to attend as it's on in the start of February.
    I then headed back to the city as I wanted to check out the Sapporo beer factory. They had these little boxes every now and then which you could grab bags of gravel from and sprinkle on the sidewalks if it was too slippery for people. I liked the thought that they were just free and not vandalized or pointlessly used up by people.
    Sadly the museum was closed as it was still public holidays in Japan so I went to the mall not far from it for a quick lunch.
    I then went back to the hotel for a rest and researched early flights home and options if I wanted to change.
    I headed out for some ramen as apparently Sapporo is famous for it and had a ramen alley. I do have to say it was a pretty good ramen and my neighbour got one which was just corn and butter, and when I say just corn, it was the whole top of the bowl, probably half a can at least.
    I started walking dinner off and found these susukino (district I was in) information shops which advertised the different bars you could go to with scantily dressed girls in different styles. Cowgirl, nurse, business, bunny the list went on. Again I was tempted but they all just feel so fake.
    I ended up going to an Irish bar for a drink and spoke to a fisherman for a couple of hours. His English was about as good as my Japanese so a lot of our conversation used Google translate to assist. He was a very philosophical guy often talking about how to make the most out of life but was still very merry about it all.
    It was midnight by the time I got home but I wanted to get up early and head back to Hakodate tomorrow as I was enjoying the smaller city life much more.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler

    Back to Hakodate

    January 4, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ -3 °C

    I came back to Hakodate as I wanted to explore it some more and this is also where the Shinkansen leaves from. On the train ride back I sat the ocean side this time and found it interesting that the snow went right down to the water.
    As soon as I had arrived I could tell it had seen alot more snowfall in the last few days and that cheered me up again.
    While art eh train station I booked my tickets back to Tokyo for tomorrow with the rough plan to head to my Fuji for a night.
    I checked back into the same hotel, a slightly cheaper room this time and then headed out to explore.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler
    1211

    Goryokaku

    January 4, 2023 in Japan ⋅ 🌨 -11 °C

    I caught the tram up to Goryokaku Tower and to have a look around. It was at this point I realised Hakodate was a lot bigger than I originally thought but it's nice it still had the small town feel to it.
    The tower wasn't busy and so I hung around a little until the lights for the star came on.
    I then walked down and through the star grounds which compared with the others I had been too again felt quite small but I still enjoyed it. The trees which lined the area looked amazing at night.
    Wandered south a little and came across a busy yakitori bar where the locals ate. It was very good food and I spoke to a guy there the whole time, he had good English and helped me translate to order what was being suggested to me. The sake drinks were really good being poured into the wooden cup until that and the plate below it almost overflowed.
    I went to catch the tram back and had my first slip over in the ice, might have been from the couple of sakes or was just about time. I went back to the train station as my hotel is not far from it and changed the train tickets and booked another night in this hotel as I wanted to explore Hakodate a little more than just one day.
    I kept running into these little statues everywhere, I only took photos of a few but that was another thing I liked about smaller towns was they had a little more art scattered around.
    I then caught up on washing and while that was running I went out for a few drinks at local pub. Again ended up talking to the locals a lot who found it very interesting that I would choose to stay in a small town. The girl seemed interested and so did the bartender, they asked questions like what type of girls I like and if I was single but found it hard to know if they were or not. Guess this is my insecurity and naivety or they could have just been friendly.
    As I was heading back to the hotel it was -11° which you really felt but I was glad I was wearing full thermals.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler

    Mt Hakodate

    January 5, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ -1 °C

    After smorgasbord breakfast which again I ate too much at, I figured I would head south on the tram. I came across the harbour, the last traffic control booth (not in operation) in Japan, the first concrete power pole in Japan (The classic small town claim to fames) and Hachiman Zaka slope which is a steep road in the area. There was a section of churches I came across as apparently Hakodate is where the foreigners first settled and thus their influence on building and even the star shaped castle design.
    I saw a gondola in the distance so decided to take it up the hill. It normally costs $15 for the return ride but they had a special on which was $20 with lunch included so I went for that.
    When I got up the top I found a "path" which headed down through some trees. I followed it for a while but as it was not very well treaded my shoes and jeans were getting quite wet and cold.
    The lunch was a seafood curry omurice which (other than all the baby octopus and prawns) I really like the heat and taste of. I ran a long exposure while I was having lunch which I found interesting to see the snow rolling through the city every 10 mins or so.
    While having lunch I took my shoes off and dried them on a heater next to my table, I'm glad I did as my toes were feeling the cold at that point.
    While up on this mountain I noticed another temple so I headed down that way.
    The stairs to the temple were quite slippery but managed to make it fine. I did think at the time that my step count for the distance today has probably doubled due to my stride being much shorter than it normally is so I don't slip.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler
    121

    Day at the beach

    January 5, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 0 °C

    I continued walking down to the water as I wanted to see how far the snow went on the beach line. While walking around it would snow then sun then snow on and off every 10 mins or so.
    I walked along beside the sea for a while until i found a path down to the sand. My shoes at this point were quite wet but it had warmed up to only -2 today which was much more bearable.
    The snow at some points along the road was up to my shoulders high as I passed "the real drug store".
    I went into a large building my hotel which turned out to be a supermarket and figured I would grab some breakfast and lunch for the train tomorrow. Again had a look for deodorant and was only able to find 1 roll on stick???
    I was considering having some snow crab for dinner🦀 but they looked quite sad in their tank so I went back and had some ramen instead.
    I then headed back to the hotel for an onsen and an early night.
    My step count for the day ended up being 17.5k but the distance was only 12k, must have been the lots of little steps.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler

    Back to Tokyo

    January 6, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ -1 °C

    To make it back in time I needed to grab the 7am train to Shin-Hakodate which I could then catch the bullet train to Tokyo from.
    I had got myself a peanut butter sandwich for breakfast, it was sealed on all edges white bread sandwhich which was not half bad but I couldn't help wondering what happens with all the crusts when they make these.
    While on the bullet train, when we came out of the tunnels you could hear the ice pieces tinkling along the outside of the train.
    I was originally planning on having a sleep or watching something on the train but ended up spending the whole trip writing in findpenguin as I had needed to catch-up from the week been. It had not been because of laziness or being too busy, I had just been in a bit of a down mood and figured it was best not to write too much when like that.
    I made it back to Tokyo around midday but I couldn't find any coin lockers to chuck my luggage into. I caught a bus down to where teamlabs was and found at least 2 smaller lockers to put my luggage in.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler
    1

    Teamlabs Planets

    January 6, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 9 °C

    We got to the team labs and considered getting a little food before going in but out the front all they had was vegan ramen and funny flavour tea/ice cream. I would have been keen on a coffee but they didn't even have that at the vending machines.
    We headed in, took off our shoes and socks and were told to put on rental shorts if wearing a skirt as there are mirrors on the floor. I could tell some of the girls didn't listen to that warning.
    We went through the water section first which made you walk up a river to wash your feet before entering the main exhibitions.
    There were some dark sections which made you focus on the textures under your feet which changed.
    We then made our way through a bean bag room where the whole floor was one large been bag.
    The led room was next which amazed me as to how many led strips there was and the programming which would have gone into making the patterns flow across the room of mirrors.
    Next was the large ball room which changed colour and noise apparently when you hit them but there were so many people hitting them it was hard to tell what was causing the change. I found a little corner I could sit down in sorta secluded from everyone else but then would have these little kids run in and around me every now and then.
    After that we entered the fish pool room and had to roll up our pants. There was a kid which actually fell over in the water.
    We then had a dome room which had projected leaves and flowers falling around you, it actually made you feel slightly out of balance at some points.
    There was then the gardens section to go through, it started with the sound domes in moss area, they made a noise when you tapped them
    There was a guy we assumed was filming for his music video but was acting a little bit of a doosh while filming.
    We then went through the flower room which actually had lots of real flowers moving up and down on different strings and patterns. The time in this room was limited so they could get everyone through which felt a little short but was still really fun moving around the flowers.
    There was a flame totem out the front which had an app which lit a flame on your phone if you went near it, it would then spread to other people's phones if you're nearby, with the goal to spread across the world.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler

    Cabin hotel

    January 6, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 7 °C

    I decided to give a cabin hotel a go which is very similar to a capsule but slightly bigger.
    Staying at The Millennials in Shibuya for 5 nights to see how it goes.
    They do free beer from 5:30 till 6:30 which sounds promising for the social side.
    The "room" itself is basically the size of a double bed and is able to be adjusted from flat to a couch style. There is a blind you can pull down for privacy and if you need to get changed you need to change the bed to couch mode so it gives you 20cms or so of changing room.
    Your luggage is stored underneath the bed which is nice compared to being on another floor like other places.
    The breakfast each morning is 2 pieces of bread with some soup and a yoghurt pot. It's pretty basic and at first I had been spoilt from the smorgasbords I had been having but now that I've got used to it, it's not a bad breakfast and often keeps me full for a while.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler

    Hang out and Ominomiyaki

    January 6, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 6 °C

    We jumped on what we thought was a train but actually think it was some kind of automated monorail. It had no people checking the doors or drivers. That got us to a mall where we had some macas. I got myself a Samurai Mac which was a small Mac with a rice roti in it and some sort of fresh chilli sauce.
    We played some claw machine games which Yos did pretty well on and won two large stuffed toys, I have a couple a go but had no luck.
    The rest of the mall was quite expensive brands, which they looked around a little on but I was not really interested in any of it.
    Out the front they had a unicorn Gundam and some rainbow stairs.
    I had to catch the monorail back to my luggage as it was still in some coin lockers, luckily this time I was able to get one of the end seats.
    Headed back, checked into my hotel and dumped my luggage to the. Head back out for dinner.
    We did a little more shopping for Pokemon cards and visited the Monier store which seemed more of an art exhibition.
    Yos then pointed out a restaurant she liked the look of and it was Ominomiyaki so was keen, they saw us up to the third floor and even though I wasn't really hungry I ordered one and it went down pretty well with the beer and sake.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler
    111

    Mt Fuji

    January 7, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 2 °C

    I tried to book a train to Fuji as my phone said it could get the whole way there but it would only allow me to book up to Otsuki even though the train continues on. Turns out the part where it continues is owned by another company and is chargeable, I was able to stay on the train but needed to pay the conductor to continue on though I lost my seat and sat on the ground for the second half. It only cost an extra $10 to do that last section.
    I got off and walked up to the pergola first as that was one of the major tourist spots. There were a fair number of stairs, my video was only half of them and apparently you can continue much further up the mountain if you wished but I didn't feel up for that. Up the top was quite busy with multiple lines for photo spots. It was a nice beautiful day and view but with all the people around it was not a very calm place.
    I got back down and found a food cart which I grabbed a rainbow 🌈 cheese dog from. It was basically just mozzarella with food colouring but I had seen other people order them and felt I should give it a go.
    I started walking from there towards Fuji and to see where it would take me. There were lots of Yakitori places and signs in english saying to be careful taking photos from the middle of the road so I assume this was a popular spot as the road aligned with Fuji.
    It must have snowed recently as there were signs of it and frost out of the sun.
    I grabbed myself a curry lunch which was decent enough and then headed to a local onsen for a look.
    The onsen is called Sensui and has a few baths/sauna/cold pools. There was a list of all the minerals which the baths contained but was in kanji and I didn't have my phone to allow me to translate. The outside baths were volcanic rock and a view of Fuji which was nice. I did a few laps and then used my little towel to also dry myself. I have noticed at onsens you don't properly dry yourself, instead just a ringed out wash cloth to remove the majority. It's not actually that bad and have gotten better with this style.
    I then bussed back to the train and just jumped on but for some reason it cost $17 this time. I again didn't have a seat but sat with a guy in the hallway until we got to the jrsection. At that point the 3 car carriage joined a 7 car carriage to continue onto Tokyo and there were plenty of seats.
    It was interesting to see how the two trains joined and then a passageway opened up between what was originally the front/back of each of the trains.
    When I got back to Shibuya I found them working on the yamanote line which is the main circle line in Tokyo. They had to replace the tracks which was done in 2 days using a lot of man power. The shot I took was just one section but there were multiple which had this many workers all working on top of each other.    Read more

  • Ben SmeeleJapanTraveler
    1

    Shabu shabu

    January 7, 2023 in Japan ⋅ 🌙 6 °C

    I had come back from mt Fuji a little too early so I thought I would try get a spot at Starbucks overlooking the crossing to speed some time.
    It was very busy at that time and took 20 mins or so to get a coffee and then I was unable to find a seat. I waited behind a family who was sitting at the window and looked almost done on their coffees but they were not even interested in the crossing with the whole family spending all the time on their phones.

    At dinner, it was a little awkward at first as we went to the wrong restaurant for the booking of 6:30, then by the time we got to the correct one we were thinking about when our allocated timeslot went until, it was supposed to be 8:30 leaving and if we should order before Nathans old friend and her friend arrived.
    Once they had arrived though and a few drinks it was a lot better. The friend sat at the table with the kids and me and helped walk through how to do the shabu shabu.
    We ordered beef chuck, beef flank, pork butt and pork rib. It came out in 8 little trays with roughly 4 pieces per tray.
    The twins didn't want to eat pig butt even though I explained that's what ham is they were a little worried about it.
    It was really nice food though, had heaps of mushrooms along with it and by the end we had half our bowls full still.    Read more

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