Japan

What can I say, Japan is by far one of the best countries we have been to. Even before we added this country into our 100 day world adventure, Jona and I knew that Japan exceled in many areas, such as education and cleanliness. To our surprise we learned much more about this country.

The day that we arrived we immediately felt as if we'd crossed to a different dimension, I mean the differences between the western world and this California sized island was unarguable. We arrived at Narita airport and the immigration process was the fastest and most welcoming of all, you can tell Japanese take pride on tourist wanting to visit their country. Once past all the usual arrival activities we took the N'EX express train to Tokyo station which is about a 40min ride. We arrived at Tokyo station right before rush hour, and boy you could tell it was about to get crazy with all the people getting off work rushing to get home. We google mapped our lodging address but our phones were not getting a signal, so we just decided to look for any exit. We totally underestimated the size of this train station because all of a sudden we found ourselves walking through hallways of stores and restaurants - yep, there is a "mall" in the train station and you can certainly spend a whole day in here. I think it was a combination of arriving to a new foreign place and the 14hrs flight that caused us to overlook  a few "EXIT" signs, but finally we stepped foot onto the street and headed to out hotel. Upon entering our room we knew this was going to be our first true test as a couple in this trip, are we going to be able to make ado in such a freakishly small room? To our surprise we managed perfectly fine.

During our stay in Tokyo we visited most of the must-do tourist sites. We said hi to Hachiko and crossed the busiest intersection in the world, Shibuya Crossing. We explored the colorful Harajuku district and got wonderstruck while touring through the countless maid cafes, pachinkos, and anime/ manga stores at Akihabara. I wanted to buy everything at sight but my excitement died once I remembered that I only had a carry on with no space left in.

Once I got my dose of cuteness overload at Akihabara we took the train and headed north towards Senso-Ji, the oldest temple in Tokyo. Before you reach the temple you will need to walk along side hundred of craft and souvenir shops at Nakamise street. Once again I wanted to buy everything but we kept on walking towards the temple. As soon as we reached the entrance you can see the iconic oversized red lanterns that adorns the gates. As we walked towards the temple we saw several young girls dressed in traditional Yukatas, which is a lighter type of kimonos worn during spring and summer seasons.

Odaiba is a small island that is connected to mainland by a series of bridges, one of them being the famous Rainbow bridge. It is one of the top entertainment hubs in Tokyo with numerous retail stores, museums, theme parks, ferris wheel, an observatory at the Fuji TV building, a giant Gundam robot, and much more.

Tokyo has so much to see and do that a week is not enough to explore all there is to see. You can dedicate a full day of shopping or just window shopping at some of the many robot, car, tech stores around Ginza. Walk around the Tsukji fish market and eat fresh sushi at one of the restaurants in the area. You can go on day trips to Hakone and relax at a onsen (hot springs) or go hiking at Mt. Fuji.

Osaka is the second largest city in Japan, and just like Tokyo there is a plethora of things to see and do. Since we only had a few days we were only able to do the top attractions. The Osaka Castle being one of Japan's most famous landmark was a top priority. This five story castle with emerald roofs, stone walls, and vast gardens houses a museum from the Edo era. Another place that we actually visited more than once is Dotonbori; Osaka's famous food strip or to what Jona and I called it, food paradise. Here you will find countless number of restaurants and street food vendors. From ramen, octopus balls (Odoritako), wagyu meat, sushi, tonkatsu, matcha soft cream, and many other delicious Japanese dishes.

Even thought we did not stay in Kyoto, we did make a day trip where we explored some of the streets and temples in the city. However, the main reason for the trip was to visit the bamboo forest of Arashiyama, the monkey forest, and to walk through the red gates at the Shinto shrine of Fushimi Inari Taisha. If you have seen Memoirs of a Geisha then you will remember the scene where Chiyo runs through the gates.

I really wish we could have spend another week exploring this amazing country, but we know that we'll definitely be back soon!