Japanese Alps: Introduction

Had it been that long? Yes, it had been that long. Ever since changing my place of work, there is more travel and less trying new food outside. However, we still maintain our annual oversea trip getaway. After all, after days of long work, there is nothing wrong of pampering ourselves a bit.

This year, we went back to Japan. I can hear the "again?!" comments echoing back. But this round, we visited the area which we had not been to, which is the central Chubu area, with Japanese Alps as the main draw.

I had listed the approximate itinerary in the following few posts, but the actual itinerary is much more in details. I had listed in this first post some general ideas on traveling to Japan, and some general ideas to plan and save money.

1st Leg: From Tokyo to Nagano
2nd Leg: Tateyama Kurobe Alpine route, from Nagano to Toyama
3rd Leg: using Toyama and Kanazawa as base to visit Takayama and Shirakawa, ending in Osaka

Planning:
The trouble with Japan is there are so many choices from travelling from point A to point B. Some may be faster, some slower. Some much more expensive, some more gentle to the pocket. Take time to explore each option. Small savings will accumulate to a lot.
tips:do more homework and you will see the result in savings on time and money.

Cheapest flight differ from company to company, even budget airlines like Airasia would priced their ticket differently from day to day. There is no shortcut here but to click and click to find the cheapest. The general idea is to book as early as possible. Consider some other obscure airline which may be cheaper if the dates are less flexible. My friend who went to Japan a week before me use Vietnam Airline.
tips: compare. make full use of website such as tripadvisor or skyscanner

Decide where you want to go, explore options in and out of the area, because the price would be different. It is not my intention to travel from Tokyo to Osaka this round, but that is the cheapest option considering the flight ticket to Tokyo and back to Malaysia using Airasia (after adding in all the train ticket and different pass). If you check back my Hokkaido itinerary, you may find that in order to lower expenses, we used different airlines to travel reach Hakodate instead of beginning our journey in Sapporo which is more conventional.
tips: compare each combination of air/ train/ bus

Local travelling also has as many option. Train. Super express bullet train (shinkansen). Bus. overnight Bus. The fastest is definitely train (super express/ shinkansen or limited express at least), so if time is the utmost priority, shinkansen is a clear choice. To save on ticket, buy the open ticket without seat reservation, but have to be careful, not all shinkansen has open coach and on certain time, all people will be crowding towards this coaches. To save a bit, try bus. This journey me and Lyn took a few buses, and the comfort surprised us. Some budget bus company like Willer offer online booking, which is very convenient. Japan has loads of passes which may localize in each area, or generalized to nationwide (eg. JR pass). Each has its pro and cons. Not all pass suits the travel itinerary. For all my travel to Japan, I had never use JR pass before, simply because JR pass would cost the same as a cheap Airasia air ticket. I might as well come on a different trip and it would not be as rushed. This round, we opted for Takayama Hokuriku pass simply because it provided us with tonnes of savings, considering it will cover the main expenses on my last leg, namely Hokuriku Shinkansen and Thunderbird limited express train. The added bonus would be covering Takayama (using Hida express) and also Shirkawago (covers the bus)
tips: consider bus, but prepare to spend more time. Do lots of homework in comparing Pass. If used correctly, it will save a huge amount.

Going around may also be a headache. But adequate homework would lead to lots of savings. There are many options especially in big town such as Tokyo and Osaka where combination of JR train and local sub would be the most convenient. However, if we were to sacrifice a bit of time, we used the metro ticket in Tokyo (thus, not using JR train) and local HR train in Osaka (no subs, because JR covered by our Takayama Hokuriku pass). ALthough many people start to use Google map to help planning local transport, I still prefered Hyperdia website which proves to be more superior, except travel involving bus.
tips: consider local pass, espeically those tailored for foreigners.

Choosing accomodation may proved to be spoilt for choices. No matter budget, luxury, all accomodation in Japan is very clean. They are very smart in utilizing space even in a small room. Consider those nearer to public transport as you would not want to carry your luggage far. Especially for us in the first night, since we arrived at 10.30pm, we chose somewhere near Haneda and easy to find. We used to frequent Toyoko Inn since they had free shuttle from the airport but this time, we tried 328 Hostel which is really easy to find after 2 train stops from Haneda. NO worry if arrive early to any hotel, as all the hotel we went to offers to keep our luggage until the room is available typically at 3pm. Considering luggage forwarding service if do not want to carry it or store it in the hotel. TAikubin is popular there, and send as early using the normal taikubin (usually via hotel) rather than same day delivery would also save some  money.
tips: go for budget.

Food? Forget sushi and sashimi, because these are not common food in Japan. The usual would be noodle and rice bento. To reduce the expenses, just pop by their convenient store (conbini) and a usual dinner would cost around 500 yen, a simple bread breakfast would be around 200 yen. Their food is really really nice, and sometimes, we would dine at conbini by choice.
tips: convenient store is like a big restaurant when it comes to choices.

We learn a few things when we go around. Beside the usual raincoat and water that we carry around, do remember to carry plastic bags to store thrash and rubbish. There are not many rubbish around, even you do find, most bin are specially for recycling paper or plastic bottles. I would not do like some tourist who would just ignore the signs and throw everything into the same bin.

Hopefully these tips would help those who wan to travel on own to Japan. Now, for the sample itienreray this round, do visit the post with links above.

Japanese Alps: visting Chubu

Kenrokuen Garden

Day 6: Takayama
Using Toyama as a base, it is time to put our Takayama Hokuriku Pass to full use.
After checking out from Toyoko Inn Toyama, we store our luggage in the hotel and made out way to Takayama using Hida express train, covered by our pass.

Takayama is an old town with rustic charm. I had a bit of regret of not spending a night here. The town has certain character that excite and yet felt relaxed. Reminded me a bit of Brussels. Our pass also covers the Sarubobo tourist bus so traveling in town is basically free.

Kenrokuen garden

Morning market: Arriving in the morning, we manage to visit the Miyagawa morning market, which is a gem. Lots of street food, it reminded me of a small pasar malam. Come empty stomach and exit full.

Yatai Kaikan: Near the market, we visited the exhibition of floats for the famous Takayama festival, Yatai Kaikan. Although the ticket price felt steep, but that is the nearest we could get to Takayama Festival without attending the actual one.

Hida Folk Village: After that, we spend the whole afternoon in Hida Folk Village. The first impression was exciting but the buildings tend to get repetitive. It lacks the diversity of Sarawak Cultural Village. None the less, it is one of the more interesting place to visit. After visiting all the houses here, at least we do not need to enter any of the houses in Shirakawa-go later.

Eco Teddy Bear: On the way down Hida Folk Village, we made a brief stop at the Eco Teddy Bear Museum, which is a private collection of teddy bear. Some of the exhibits are rather impressive but do not expect the scale of the famous teddy bear museums of Korea.

Kanazawa castle

After returning to Toyama and collecting our luggage, we use our pass to board the Hokuriku Shinkansen to Kanazawa. Again we chose a hotel near to the station; this time, we stayed at Oka Hotel, which is also a rustic but comfortable hotel.

Day 7: Kanazawa & Shirakawago
It is a busy day ahead, attempting to covers both Kanazawa and Shirakawago. Staying near the station is beneficial as we have to arrive early to book our bus ticket to Shirakawago (covered by the pass). The initial plan would be to go in the morning but the earliest available ticket is the afternoon. Lesson learnt that tickets should be booked as early as possible.

Kenrokuen Garden & Castle: Firstly we visited Kenrokuen garden in Kanazawa. This is a must-go in Kanazawa.  After a few garden in Japan, this could easily be one of the top few. Very pretty, the size is not too huge to walk, but not too small to look tiny. Across the garden host the castle park. Comfortable to walk around the castle, there are free good will guide available

Tea district: We made our way to of the chaya (tea) district, Higashi Chaya district. We manage to visit one of the tea house which housed geisha in the past, and had relaxing walk around the area.

Shirakawago: With a leisure pace, we reach the time to board our bus to Shirakawago. For a taste of the area, we visited the popular Ogimachi village. A fully functional village with buses of tourist, the area is full of authentic gassho zukuri houses. An afternoon here is very relaxing, there is no regret coming although bit out of the way.

Day 8: on to Osaka
the last full day, we made our way to Osaka using Thunderbird limited express which is covered by our pass. The rest of the day is actually shopping, which we had a gala time visiting Den Den town. Given more time, we could have walk around Shinseikai more since we just stayed behind the area.

Day 9: Flight Home
concluding our journey this round, it had been a fruitful and wondering adventure.

Link
Introduction
Leg 1: Tokyo to Nagano
Leg 2: Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route

Japanese Alps: Tateyama Kurobe Alpine route

  Day 4: Nagano
Arrived in Nagano, we decided to take the day slow. Initially we thought of visiting the ninja temple which is  at least 1 hour away from Nagano town. After considering that we still had a few busy day ahead, we decided to just "lepak" in Nagano for the day and it turned out to be a wise decision. We manage to get lots of things done, and get adequate rest for the second leg of our journey.

Abest hotel may not score very high among certain website, but we had nothing but praise for this hotel. Just across the station, it is a stone throw away. The staff is so helpful that they help us save quite a bit using normal taikubin baggage delivery instead of the same day delivery recommended by the Tateyama Kurobe Alpine route website. We just need to send our luggage a day earlier which is fine with us. The hotel also comes with free dinner. Yes, FREE dinner. And the room is comfortable with adequate room to move around.

Zenkoji Temple: We still manage to visit Zenkoji temple., Although with lots of Buddhism significance, after numerous temple that we visited in Japan, it did not impress me as much. I would still prefer the crowded Asakusa or the ones in Kyoto.

Day 5: Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route
The actual day itself excites us a lot. We bought out Tateyama Kurobe Option ticket in Tokyo, so this is the time we put it into full use. Note that the ticket covers all the transport from Nagano to Toyama. Prepare for lots of transport changing, and using the option ticket, we do not need to buy any extra ticket. We could not book any of the transport ahead though. However, fear not, as being individual visitor, there is a separate line, and most of the bottle necks are stuck with groups. Do come early though so there will be more time to appreciate the Alps.


The highlight would be Tateyama snow mountain. From April to July, the authorities manage to dig a path among the thick snow for a road for buses. Walking along the majestic path is awesome, the highest point of the snow wall during our visit was 16m. There is even a snow maze for the inner child, and there are plenty of snow photo opportunity

The route ended in Toyama, it is time for us to rest. Being a firm believer in Toyoko Inn chain, the hotel is very tourist friendly and comfortable as long as we do not expect a huge room.

Link:
Introduction
Leg 1: Tokyo to Nagano
Leg 3: Visiting Chubu

Japanese Alps: From Tokyo to Nagano

Day 1: arrival

One Piece Tower: Live Show

We arrived at Haneda at night, manage to clear the custom and got our luggage before 11pm. Thankfully the tourist counter is still open so we manage to get our Tokyo Metro pass there and then. Since we are using the pass, all our travel in Tokyo would be using Metro or Toei Subway. Note that we did not use local JR train at all (eg. Yamanote loop train).

We check in to 328 Hostel which is very near to Haneda. We did want to take the risk to book a place in Tokyo at the first night, as any unexpected delay may throw a wrench in the travel plan. At least with a accommodation near the airport, even if we arrived late, the taxi would not cost an arm or leg. 328 is a very cozy place, with only 3 rooms (2 dorm style, 1 private) which is managed by a very friendly and nice lady. She is very diligent and kept the whole place very clean and homely. Sharing toilet is never a problem given that there is not many guest and the owner clean the toilet very often.

sanja matsuri

Day 2: Tokyo proper
Checking out the next day, we first put our luggage in Asakusa Ryokan Toukaiso in Asakusa, just opposite Shin Nakamise Dori. The price is very reasonable given the average price of hotel room in Tokyo is very expensive. The place is walk-able from metro station and the room is very spacious for Japan standard.

Sanja Matsuri: celebrated every May, we managed to be part of the celebration in the second day, where local community paraded their local mikoshi (divine palanquin) in Asakusa neighborhood before ending in Asakusa temple. Very crowded but fun.

Tokyo station: We took a break after that to collect our passes (had to be bought outside Japan, and exchange in Japan with the receipt) in Tokyo station.

One Piece Tower: not cheap but for any One Piece fan, this is a pilgrimage that should not be missed. Plenty of memories and photo opportunity. However, I would not recommend the live show unless you can understand Japanese language.

Nakano Broadway: despite what some website may say that there are plenty of otaku bargain here,  this building complex reminded me of Yik Fong in Ipoh. Past its prime. Only the many Mandrake store inside worth some visit and not many other attractions. I would still go back to Akihabara or even Den Den town in Osaka.

Day 3: Fuji 5 Lake

Fuji Shibazakura

Today is meant for Fuji Shibazakura (pink moss) festival. We first took a bus (booked via Willer online) to Fuji 5 Lake and arrived to the festival site via shuttle.

Fuji Shibazakura: The pink moss is impressive, but nearing the end of the season, it may not be as pretty as some of the photograph. Expect to spend 3 hours here walking around, appreciating the flowers, with some street performance and lots of food stall available.

Kawaguchiko: Returning back to the main station in Kawaguchiko, the main station in Fuji 5 Lake, we just walk around to Kachi-Kachi rope way to ride up Mt Tenjo for a full view of Mt Fuji. Remember to eat Hoto here, which tasted pretty special for Japan standard, but for us locals, it basically resemble our local pan-mee

Being free and easy, we still manage to steal some time after returning to Tokyo to stop by Akihabara but it was bit late and all the main shop is closing.


Day 4: On to Nagano
ending our short Tokyo outing, it is time to move to our highlight of the trip, we took a bus (again, booked via Willer) to Nagano.

Link:
Introduction
Leg 2: Tateyama Kurobe Alpine Route
Leg 3: Visiting Chubu

Wonder Woman: Woman Power

After all the disappointment churned out by DC, finally there is a movie by the comic power house that garnered general positive review. However, being a more Marvel fan rather than DC, I had my doubts. Still, scoring over 90% in Rotten Tomatoes is not an easy feat.






To be fair, lots of things was done right with Wonder Woman. The casting was perfect with Gal Gadot playing the title character. She has an elegant aura around her, at the same time emit a powerful feeling of independence. Chris Pine is fine, just that with Gal Gadot playing a perfect Wonder Woman, she overshadowed the rest of the character.

Action is awesome with smart use of slow motion, and the action sequence was framed artistically well. At some point, I really thought that Zack Synder was the director instead of producer. Having Wonder Woman as the title character, she can really pack a punch. All her action sequences are believable.


Comes the story. Diana is the princess on an all female Amazon island. A allied spy stranded on the island after a mission under the German, pursued by them. Obviously Steve Trevor was rescued by Diana, who later followed him back to the real world in the context of finding and destroying Ares, The God of War. She got involved in World War 2, rescue a village, became a hero. In the finale, she realize the war may be more than what she bargain for, and of course Ares made his appearance.


The war story was good. In fact, the whole thing work, mainly because of Gal Gadot. But  I had a problem with the mesh up of war and the God vs Amazon battle. It felt bit funny having to follow the war mission to destroy a plane filled with poison gas, while having another God level battle on another end. Both battle is nice on its own, but having them together just felt unnatural. Without revealing too much on the villain, the casting was fine before revealing his true identity, but after that, he just lack the menace. Nothing like Loki at all.


Finally, while it will remain one of DC better works, I still feel Wonder Woman is over rated. However, it did do justice to woman super hero, and just get to prove that woman also can fight well and emerge a hero.


ratings: 3 half poink~!
comments; I cant help but to compare to Captain America First Avengers. Both are origin movie. Both happens in WW2. Both hero basically has super strength, fights well, jump far. Both also ended up with someone sacrificing themselves. However, I ended rooting for Captain, as the story, villain (Red Skull at least is still a human) harmonize well with the whole flow.