13/04/2017
OSAKA
💥Osaka Castle
🍥You can do a Matcha food trip in the Osaka Castle Park, aside from doing a leisurely stroll to the castle, as lots of stores in it specialize in matcha-flavored products. Just be reminded that the prices of food and drinks here are more expensive than the food outside the Osaka Castle vicinity.
💥Dotonbori
🍥Doing a food crawl in this strip is what we recommend. Taste every Japanese food that comes in to your mind. Want to eat takoyaki,okonomiyaki, ramen, gyoza, Kobe beef? Name it. For sure, they have it.
💥Amemura
🍥Also known as “Americamura”, This place in Osaka is greatly influenced by the West. Western-branded stores could be found here; street art is everywhere; cool coffee shops make this area look appealing during the day while chill pubs and bars keep it alive at night.
💥Umeda
🍥This is where the JR Osaka Station is located. Lots of malls (like the Grand Front Osaka), restaurants, hotels and entertainment establishments could be found in this area. The famous Umeda Sky Building is also located here.
💥Fukushima
🍥A residential area in Osaka that’s as hip as the Shinsaibashi area. (We were able to discover this place because our Airbnb accommodation was located here.) Explore its side-streets to find local eateries that offer good food at a cheaper price, izakayas and speak-easy pubs that are open until 3 AM and coffee shops that offer good coffee and have IG-worthy interiors. Street art could also be found in this area.
💫One of the bonuses in staying in this area is that it is just a few stations away from the Universal Studios Station.
💥USJ (Universal Studios- Japan)
🍥Would you want to leave Osaka without going around Hogwarts and experiencing the Harry Potter-Quidditch ride?
💫Tip: You can buy your USJ passes at Lawson Convenience Stores. We were able to get ours for Y7400 each (around 3300 pesos), for a 1-day standard pass to the amusement park. Don’t worry! It already includes your access to the Harry Potter World! Buying your tickets at Lawson would spare you from waiting in the very long line at the ticket booth outside USJ. Presenting your tickets at the entrance would already get you in!
🚅Travelling to Tokyo from Osaka🚅
🚇We chose to ride the bullet train from Osaka to Tokyo. (because, JAPAN!! and we want to experience riding this iconic transpo!! Hahaha) though, you have the option to book a plane or ride the midnight bus, which are cheaper.
We got our bullet train tickets one day in advance, for Y14600 each (around 6400 pesos) at Shin-Osaka Station.
💫FYI, the tickets that we bought have reserved seats and are for the Hikari train, the cheaper option when choosing your bullet train ride. It has more stops and is a bit slower than the Nozomi train. The bullet train ride took almost 4 hours from Shin-Osaka to Tokyo Station.
💫If you choose to ride the midnight bus, it would take 8-9 hours to reach Tokyo.
TOKYO
💥Ikebukuro
🍥This entertainment and commercial district is more relaxed, nevertheless, still offers most of the things that Shibuya has. Outside the Ikebukuro station, (Japan's and the world’s third busiest station) you can catch young street artists and performers doing their craft at night.
🍥Explore its side-streets to find shops that serve Japanese food, especially local ramen shops that sell delicious food at a very cheap price. We were able to experience eating at a ramen shop that only has standing tables, which sell udon w/ tonkatsu and rice, for the price of 250 Yen only!! (roughly around 150 pesos)
Lots of malls are also located here.
💫This is where we saw a multi-storey Uniqlo and Tokyu Hands store. Aside from Shibuya, You can also find a BIC Camera store here. That store is where you can buy electronics, gadgets, appliances, jewelleries and FILMS!! at a reasonable, tax-free price.
💥Shibuya
🍥Shibuya Crossing
🍥Hachi-ko’s Statue outside Shibuya Station
🍥Explore its side-streets for chill pubs, ramen shops, izakayas, and sushi belt restaurants.
💫We recommend that you go here on a Friday night to experience first-hand how seriously fun Tokyoites spends their Friday nights. Catch street performances and experience Tokyo’s night-life here. See right before your eyes the sub-cultures that are present in the city through its people and how insanely energetic Tokyo is, on a Friday.
💥Shinjuku
🍥Shinjuku Gyoen
🍥Shop at malls around the area
🍥Explore its side-streets to see stores that are selling reasonably priced electronic goods.We even discovered a grocery store here, selling cheap Japanese goodies , (like, KITKAT and Pocky with flavors that are only available in Japan;other Japanese chocolates and candies, rice crackers,Japanese chips, tea) that are perfect as pasalubong.
💥Harajuku
🍥Meiji Shrine
🍥Explore its side-streets and have a more up-close experience of Tokyo’s sub-cultures and its street fashion scene.
💫Stores for international street brands, like Supreme, and local street brands could be found here.
💥Asakusa
🍥If you would like to experience an old-city vibe without leaving Tokyo, this is the answer. Visit the Sensoji- Temple; Shop for souvenirs at the traditional stores in Nakamise Shopping street (the street on the way to Sensoji Temple); Dine in the traditionally-themed restaurants and cafes around the area.
💥Ueno
🍥As far as we can recall, this place gave us an old-city feels. It is laid-back, unlike the other famous wards in Tokyo.
💫Go to this place to enjoy their parks and to do museum-hopping! Lots of street artists, sketching people's faces for a cheap price could also be seen in action here.
💥Tokyo Tower
💥Shimokitazawa
🍥The hippest and most underrated place we've been to during our stay in Tokyo. Reaching this place would require a little effort as you would need to make a couple of transfers from Shibuya Station to reach the Shimokitazawa Station, but it's verrrrry worth it. Explore this place to see cool and quirky cafes and restaurants; buy clothings and other stuff from independently owned stores. Just walking around this place is already enjoyable because every street in it has its certain kind of cool.
