*This post may contain affiliate links, meaning if you make a purchase through these links (at no additional cost to you) I will earn a small commission. Click here for the full disclosure*
*I’m going to apologize in advance for the lack of photos as I lost many of my photos from my travel in Japan in an unfortunate situation in Beijing (but that’s a story for another day).
Independent Travel
After finishing up my tour of Yokohama and Tokyo with Semester at Sea (which you can read about in part 1 of my Japan posts) on my second day of travel in Japan, my plan was to meet up with a group of friends in the city. However, my afternoon did not go as smoothly as I had anticipated. One of my friends had a cell phone that worked internationally which I was to call when I reached Tokyo Station so we could arrange where to meet.
Unbeknownst to me, that cell phone got left in the hotel while the group went out to do some souvenir shopping, leaving me unable to reach them. I spent a couple of hours at the station periodically calling my friend’s number and leaving increasingly frustrated voicemails from a pay phone. During this time I people watched, munched on a Meiji chocolate bar (delicious by the way), and eventually decided to go to Tokyo Station’s Japan Rail Pass Exchange Office to ask for some directions. I had the address of the hotel we were staying at that night and the very kind woman I spoke with not only gave me instructions how to get there, but also wrote down the address in Japanese for me.
Overall I found the people of Japan to be extremely helpful and willing to speak to you even if they only knew a little English. While I was at the station killing time and trying to get in touch with my friends, I had several people approach me to ask if I was lost or needed help. (I can only imagine the look of panic on my face as it dawned on me that I’d have to navigate a huge city in a foreign country by myself during my travel in Japan.)
Taking on Tokyo
Following the directions I was given, I took the appropriate train and tram to Asakusa district successfully, but then I found myself wandering around unable to find the hotel. Mentally thanking that wonderful rail station employee, I used the paper with the hotel’s address written on it to ask people where it was located. (Don’t worry Mom, I tried to only ask people who looked unlikely to rob me.) After a few failed attempts, I finally asked a gentleman who whipped out his iPhone, typed in the address, and walked me right to the door of the hotel (which I had walked past on the opposite side of the street). This guy instantly became my hero! After thanking him profusely, I walked into the lobby and right into my friends who had returned after their shopping trip and were about to head back out to dinner.
Cozy Capsule Hotel
Now that I’d finally found it, I checked into the hotel and dropped my stuff in my locker for the night. We were staying in a capsule hotel that night which essentially provides each person with their own ‘capsule’ consisting of a bed that’s sunken into the wall. Upon checking in you’re provided a pair of slippers to use during your stay and leave your street shoes in a locker in the lobby. Then you are given keys for the locker on the floor where your capsule is located so you can store your bag overnight. It seriously is just the way it sounds, each guest gets a bed that’s in a cubby in the wall. There was a small TV and a radio/alarm clock built in and a roll down door at the end. It was definitely an interesting experience.
These types of hotels are becoming more popular and have even started popping up in the United States in recent years. If you get claustrophobic, this may not be the best hotel choice for you.
Experiencing Japan
That night we went to a Japanese restaurant where we had to work pretty hard to overcome the language barrier. The food was worth it, but this was probably the most difficult time we had communicating in Japan. Afterwards we went out to sing Karaoke which was quite different from what I expected since each group is given their own room by the hour where you get to pick your songs and have a couple microphones for people to sing with. Different than singing in front of the whole bar as you often find in the US, but it was a lot of fun.
The next morning, a couple of us got up early to have breakfast at McDonald’s and Starbucks. I know, it was so stereotypically American of us. However, being as picky as I was at that point, a McGriddle sounded awfully delicious in a country whose cuisine I was wholly uncomfortable with. I was sadly not ready for any eating adventures during my travel in Japan.
Hot Springs in Hakone
From Tokyo we took a train to Hakone where we went to the hot springs at Hakone Kowakien Yunessun which was a hot spring spa and theme park. As some of the only westerners there, we received a lot of stares, but it was still a fun experience despite that. The spa had a number of different types of pools/baths available, and we went to many of them including a Coffee Bath, Green Tea Bath, Wine Bath, Sake Bath, Charcoal Bath, Hot Water Baths, Cold Water Baths, and a foot bath with small fish/minnows that nibbled dead skin off your feet.
It was a rainy day, which actually made it the perfect day to relax at the hot springs as opposed to exploring a city. As most of the hot springs were outdoors, we had the beautiful misty mountains as the backdrop to our relaxing day.
Quick Stop in Kyoto
Once we dried off and got dressed, we departed for Kyoto where we planned to stay that night. Since it was late when we arrived, the first thing we did was find a hotel where we crammed eight people into a very small room. Then we went across the street to Man in the Moon, an Irish pub, to have a couple drinks before calling it a night.
I really wish we had been able to see more of Kyoto, but we were on a time crunch. Kyoto is definitely a place I want to come back to to explore more fully! Perhaps I’ll try to include it on an itinerary see the cherry blossoms in Japan which is on my bucket list or to see the beautiful foliage in the fall which is on my autumn bucket list.
Read about my last two days of travel in Japan in part 3!
Read more about my adventures on Semester at Sea!
Subscribe to make sure you don’t miss any new posts!
The capsule hotel sounds really interesting- I think I would feel too claustrophobic though!
They have a lot of different styles, but they’re all essentially a small space so probably best to avoid if you’re not ok with that… Thanks for reading!