Teetoo- Japan 2023 Trip Itinerary
- Nov 1 – Arrival at Nagoya, around Nagano Station, Stay : Sotetsu Fresa Inn Nagano-Zenkojiguchi
- Nov 2 – Bus trip to visit the famous Snow Monkey Park, Nagano, Stay : Sotetsu Fresa Inn Nagano-Zenkojiguchi
- Nov 3 – Easy trek at Togakushi 5-shrines, Nagano, Stay : Sotetsu Fresa Inn Nagano-Zenkojiguchi
- Nov 4 – Visite to Zenkoji Temple and hiking at Hakuba Happo Pond, Stay : Hotel Hakuba
- Nov 5 – Relax at Hakuba Mountain Harbour and Oide Park, Stay : Hotel Hakuba
- Nov 6 – Drive to Sea of Japan, Ben-ten Iwa rock, Stay : APA Hotel & Resort Joetsu Myoko
- Nov 7 – Drive to Kiyotsu Gorge and Naena Waterfall, Stay : APA Hotel & Resort Joetsu Myoko
- Nov 8 – Drive around Lake Nojiri, train ride to Lake Suwa and Tateishi Park, Stay : Beni-ya Hotel
- Nov 9, 10 – Train ride to Shizuoka and Nihondaira Terrace sunset, Stay : Nippondaira Hotel
- Nov 11 – Walk around Atami City, Stay : Super Hotel JR Fujiekimae Kinenkan
- Nov 12 – Mount Fuji, fresh seafood at Co-op and Numazu City festival, Stay : Super Hotel JR Fujiekimae Kinenkan
- Nov 13 – Mount Fuji, Shira-Ito Falls, Fujisan Sengan Shrine, Mount Fuji World Heritage Center, Stay : Super Hotel JR Fujiekimae Kinenkan
- Nov 14 – Mount Fuji, Hamamatsu Station and Overall Experience, Stay : Hotel Route-Inn Tokoname Ekimae
I woke up really really early at 6am to take my morning walk to Fuji Yumeno Ohashi (bridge) as forecast for the day was super clear sky. Japan weather forecast tend to be quite accurate – so off I went on a chilly morning walk. The predawn blue-pinky-ish sky casting its colors on Fujisan was utterly mesmerizing as I couldn’t keep my eyes of this beauty. Went to a 7-11 to buy milk and onigiri (rice balls) which had Fujisan as a backdrop – so beautiful. There are so many … so many… convenience stores with Mount Fuji as a backdrop – I really don’t understand why why why people all go to that particular Lawson store at Lake Kawaguchi.
Luck had it as I was reaching the famous Fuji Yumeno Ohashi at 6.30am – a beautiful girl photographer happened to be walking down and she became my model of the day – with Fujisan bathed in glorious golden yellow glow. Thank you random caucasian lady. Went up the bridge and a few local cars were stopping by the side of the road to capture some pictures – it must be a special day. I was the only one there as I sat by the curb and had my onigiri breakfast while admiring the sacred mountain.
I made my way back to Fuji Honcho-dori thru quiet suburban neighborhood – it was a pleasing walk greeting “ohaiyou” to locals. With Fujisan in clear weather, the street of Honcho-dori is looks extra special. To locals, it was just another Tuesday with students nonchalantly going about their day – but to us tourist, it was magic.
After having my fill of Fujisan, made my walk back to our hotel, Super Hotel JR Fujiekimae Kinenkan, just nearby to checkout. Still using our “JR Mt. Fuji-Shizuoka Area Tourist Pass Mini“, we made our way to Hamamatsu via train. It was intentional as there is a direct bus from Hamamatsu bus station to Nagoya airport for quite a cheap price of 3,500yen and most importantly – it is direct. We reached Hamamatsu station, had our Sukiya meals and bought our bus tickets from a vending machine at the bus station. How to from Hamamatsu to Centrair.
Bus came on time and we reached Nagoya Centrair airport in 2 hours 15 minutes. Since our flight was the next day morning, we stayed at a nearby township, Hotel Route-Inn Tokoname Ekimae, just 2 train stops away – coz it was affordable and quite near. We just ate simple 7-11 food for our dinner.
The next morning, we packed our 1 medium sized baggage and a backpack (we like to travel light) to board our train at Tokonome station. In the train, I noticed alot of students were on board – that could not be – there are no schools on the way to the airport. Made a quick check on google maps – confirmed we were on the wrong train going the opposite direction to Nagoya!! Quickly alight at the next station, Taya, and walked back to Tokoname Station as the next train that stops at Taya station was 45 minutes. Walking was quicker and thank goodness it was only a 1km – 15minute walk.
After the morning exercise and taking the correct train to the airport, we made our check in and reluctantly made our way to board our flight. We didn’t have the mood to take any more photos. LOL. It was thankfully a uneventful and safe flight back via dependable Singapore Airlines to Penang.
Overall this 2023 trip was very enjoyable as we spent most of our time out of the major cities and in the inaka (countryside). Even the biggest city we stayed, Shizuoka, was quite ok and relatively free of large crowds. We made it a point to stay at least 2 days in a town to absorb the area better – the best is 3 days. By doing so, we slowed down our traveling pace and it turned out much more relaxed and fun. It was not a tick-box type of travel, if we miss something – so be it. We can always do it another time. It might be one of the better self-organized trip we had with the mixture of country and urban hitting the right balance.
There were japanese monkeys (lifelong dream), picturesque five-shrine walk, calming Lake Suwa and overall great experiences. All wrapped nicely with the sound of the railway tracks, station announcements and the smell of autumn leaves (koyo viewing).
Also a big thank you to Ninja Wifi for providing us with reliable and super fast internet connection at all times, everywhere.
The surprise natural beauty of this trip was Naena Falls, a little known waterfall deep in the forest of Myoko-Togakushi Renzan National Park, Niigata. This relatively unknown waterfall with only a handful of local visitors really captured our hearts. Kiyotsu Gorge also deserves a mention and definitely worth a visit.
Personally, my favorite moment was the simple mushroom soup and clam rice we had dining next to Chikuma River at roadside station Shin-etsu Sakae. The atmosphere, lighting and peacefulness really captured the mood of that moment. It was so simple yet so ……. happy.
Camera gears : RicohGR3, CanonRP + 85mm 1.8, Iphone 11 and Mi Action 3
