Our very first trip to Japan, what an adventure. At first I was worried about not speaking the language but was pleasantly surprised to find us able to get around and asking for things using our handy dictionary and pictures for food. Plus many Japanese folks know some English and don't hesitate to try and have a conversion. Next time I promise to have learned more Japanese!
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A quick re-visit through pictures of our trip.
A little background first, I spent months reading blogs and travel sites to find the most "off the beaten path" non-touristy places to visit. Our itinerary turned out to be over 20 pages long that included down to the minute train schedules and to the penny costs.
A very handy guide it made. I included at least 3 places to visit at any given time, according to weather and mood. We had limited time (6 days) getting lost and wandering wasn't a choice for this visit.
Call me obsessive, I know, but my husband was just as bad when it came to choosing airline seats and schedules (our tickets were changed at least 2 times). But this made for an extra day in Japan - Bonus! Have to give a big thanks to all those obsessive folks who blog about airlines - who knew there were so many...
So, here goes.
We began our trip in DC at National Airport which took us to Los Angeles (not a fan of LAX!)
This is when changing the tickets worked out to our advantage. We went from an overnight layover in LA to a 5 hour layover and added a day to our trip.
The Delta lounge in DCA served a continental breakfast of oatmeal, cereal, muffins and juice.
The lounge in LAX is nicely decorated, although very overcrowded, which is why I could only get a picture of the restroom.
The Delta Lounge in LAX also has a well stocked bar - but the drinks are not free; and there were only snacks like trail mix and pretzels to munch on.
We were so happy to board the 5pm flight to Haneda! Not only to get away from the LAX terminal but also (drum roll please) this was the first - and most likely only time- I have been in first class!
And WOW what a ride.
Being Chinese New Year the plane was nearly empty and we had the 2nd First Class cabin all to ourselves. So cool. Once seated we were served Sparkling Wine, and after a bottle and a half it was time for take off - thank you Ms. Vicky.
Dinner was a choice of Western or Japanese. We had one of each and I can tell you NOT to get Japanese dinner on an American carrier! What was I thinking? I managed to eat all my food but YUK! Anyhow, being the only passengers in the section we had our choice of ice cream or fruits and cheeses or both. I hate to let food go to waste so one of each it was. Why can't they offer dessert first?
Did you know the toilets in the front of the plane are twice as big as the ones in the back? My butt hardly fits in the door in the back of the plane toilets, but what a treat to have a room that was so big.
Going to be hard having this knowledge sitting in the back of plane for any future trips.
Anyhow, as I cannot sleep in any moving vehicle I watched many movies and enjoyed the progress of my cold into a slight flu. Even Abe Lincoln Vampire Slayer is awesome on such a long flight.
Did you know at Haneda Airport at the entrance to Passport Control there is a security area with guards and a thermal camera? Well there is, and it is a good darn thing that someone posted this in a blog I read before getting to the airport, because I knew to hide behind my husband as we entered the area. No thermals on me. Who knows what they would have done if they noticed I had a fever...sent me back to LA - oh the torture that would have been.
Before landing at about 9pm in Tokyo, we were treated to one more meal of I think everything that was left on the plane, some kind of breakfast, lunch and dinner combo - and again leaving nothing to waste, my poor tummy!
More about Passport Control, on other blogs I have read most folks have gotten through the lines rather quickly, but of course on my trip this turned into over an hour of passing up the restroom and not wanting to leave the line (just in case it moved). I think 4 or 5 flights arrived at one time. Oh the agony. TIP - go to the bathroom before entering passport control!!!
After getting our passports stamped and having no luggage only backpacks off we went to the Haneda Airport Subway line. The ticket terminal is fairly easy to navigate and we purchased our tickets to Hamamatsucho Station. The trip took about 30 minutes and $11.40 for 2. Then transferred to the JR Yamamote Line for 6 minutes to Tokyo Station (about $3.60).
Sorry for the lack of pictures here, not sure why I didn't pull out the camera for the first class experience and the subway had many people so I did not want to be rude. But there are plenty ahead.
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| Tokyo Station at midnight |
We stayed at an very nice hotel right at Tokyo Station, the Hotel Metropolitan Marunouchi.
Mind you, their website read that the hotel is right at the station. After walking around the block three times and through the station twice we finally called the hotel desk. By the way, they are in a building called the Sapia Building right at the exit where we passed multiple times. TIP - ask if the hotel is located within another building - oops missed that one.
The room was small but clean and nicely decorated.
The view of the Shinkansen tracks from room.
