Places we visited near Tokyo Japan

Upon visiting Osaka years back, it is now time to explore Tokyo this time. And we are very happy to be joined by the whole set of our father's siblings. This is a very rare occasion for us hence making this trip as memorable as possible.

Oycos in Asakusa

It was February 29th, our first day in Tokyo, and the freezing temperature welcomed us. It ranged from 2°c to 12°c but the wind chill makes everything colder even below freezing point presumably.

We took the train from the airport and thankfully Paolo guided us through from there. Thank you, Pao. Alam mo na. Haha! Though plans were settled, leading the pack was extra pressuring as follow-up questions were being raised and certain conditions arose accordingly.

Keisei Skyliner selfie

Tokyo train raiders

With eaten, lost, and adjusting train tickets, it was a big help Pao can speak their language. How can we even settle those problems without our guy, Arigatou Gozaimasu!

The hotel we stayed in was at APA Hotel Ayase-Ekimae.

APA Hotel Ayase Ekimae

The hotel doesn't much have that amenities and has small room spaces but they still delivered on what was expected. Of course, the standard of living here is high especially as we go near the center of Tokyo City. Even if the rooms were small, they were able to maximize the space efficiently. And even if there were not many entertainment facilities, all our needs were met and more.

Just to give you a few ideas, here is what our room looked like:

APA hotel room

APA hotel bathroom

If you want to see and know more about the hotel. I made a separate video HERE.

mini convenience store

A mini convenience store is found on their ground floor beside the lobby though whenever the need of supplies or food assistance is needed. This is a manless station where all payments are made via their self-checkout machine beside that microwave while a CCTV camera serves as its security.

Tokyo Skytree

Tokyo Skytree

One of the famous tourist spots to visit when in Tokyo. As we ride the train to go to the nearest hop-on and hop-off bus, this tower can be accessed through the red line of their tourist bus service. They got great observation decks on top and nice restaurants below which is a norm for famous skyscrapers.

We also walked along the Sumida River sighting some famous attractions like the Golden Flame and building which we'll tackle more about below.

Asakusa area

As the thumbnail photo used above, it houses the famous Asakusa temple and has a lot of shopping districts. We roamed around the place and tried some of the food including Takoyaki and some steaming sweet potatoes.

Asakusa Takoyaki

We also got a chance to go up close to one of their rickshaw transports which is one of the unique modes of transportation here in Japan, especially for tourists. Man, the people who carry the rickshaw have great physical forms, particularly the legs. Sana all. LOL. Sabi pa nga ni tito Roy artistahin daw sila.. Haha!

rickshaw transport

One of the interesting things about their convenience stores here is that they have a good variety of ready-made meals that not only are affordable but taste great as well. I made a video regarding some of Pao and other friend's recommendations on what to try and you can watch it HERE.

Asahi area

golden flame and building [Asahi]

As previously discussed above, this is where the golden flame sculpture can be found, the Asahi golden turd and the beer hall building. We also cruised the river and found out that the Tokyo Skytree is just around the corner and that there is a specific spot on the boat ride where the Tokyo skyscraper will reflect on the golden building seeing 3 iconic spots in one view. If you want to see that, watch the video HERE.

Shinkansen bullet train

Shinkansen train seats

For the experience, we took a short trip using this bullet train to go to our next destination, Odawara. As we experienced the underground of the busy Tokyo train station, we had some opportunity to go back here again to take some pictures of its ground floor and outdoor facade which we'll put more details about below.

inside Shinkansen bullet train

Odawara Castle

Odawara castle

The area has some temples and traditional spots that can be enjoyed including a coffee shop which was set as our meeting place after a while. We walked it out from the train station and later found out that there are scheduled buses that go in and out of the area. Oh well, exercise for the day is done.

Shibuya crossing

in the middle of Shibuya crossing

Of course, we traversed this chaos intentionally and crossed the crossing many times for the photos and videos. We visited the 6 floors Don Quijote building, had dinner at Cafe Gusto, and dropped by the Hachi statue.

Cafe Gusto Shibuya

It was actually hard to find a restaurant that reserves or can cater to a family of 17 members all at the same time so this was a first for us all eating in one establishment at the same time but still at different tables. Order-taking was via using the tablet per table and the food was served through a robot. Something unusual but definitely one for the books.

Hachiko statue

Tokyo Tower

Tokyo tower

We decided to ride the hop-on and hop-off bus and do a full circle on its green line. This famous landmark was one of its stops including the rainbow bridge which I really enjoyed going through because of its windy experience with an overlooking view of the Tokyo Bay.

Tokyo Train Station

As we went to Shinjuku, this was the time we got back to the ground level of the Tokyo train station to capture some moments. As almost every train station passes by this station, well, this is probably the busiest station in the whole of Japan.

outside Tokyo train station

inside Tokyo train station

We daily pass by this area because the nearest bus stop was just a few blocks away from here wherein the Mistubishi building became our reference point having Starbucks and a restroom inside making it a perfect meeting place for the whole family to rally.

Shinjuku Gyoen park

One of our last stops was here at this Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden where many Cherry blossom blossoms. The initial plan was to do a picnic but we ended up doing it on the lower level of the Starbucks located in the center of the area. Lol.

cherry blossom at Shinjuku Gyoen

We ended the whole trip in a BBQ place near our hotel before doing some final shopping for the pasalubongs. It was a nice and quiet place where we accomplished a second but final time having dinner all together in one place but still at different tables. LOL.

Japanese bbq experience

It drizzled on the last night and it was something to appreciate because I got to use and experience this transparent Japanese umbrella. Not really on the bucket list but something to capture. Haha!