Japan : Kyoto > Randen Pass > Kimono Forest > Arashiyama Bamboo Grove > Izumiya (Day 2)

24 May 2018

We bought Randen 1 Day Pass (RM19) from Klook. The pass is really cheap and worth it 👍.

We started our journey at 8:30a.m. from Shijo-Omiya Station to Arashiyama Station by Randen tram. There was this guy who fall asleep 😪 on the tram and his handphone literally fall off to the side 😮. I was thinking he probably would not be able to see his handphone anymore if he does that in Malaysia.

The journey took around half an hour. Once we reached Arashiyama Station, we checked out the Kimono Forest right beside the station. I highly recommend you to take photos early in the morning as the crowd would swarm in later. At night, you get to see a different side of the Kimono Forest as the light will lit up and illumine💡 the place .

We followed the crowd and reached Arashiyama Bamboo Grove. If you want to get a nice photo, hike further up. At 9-ish, it was already very crowded so if you can, do depart earlier. 

There's really a lot of walking involved. So in case if you get tired, you can hire a beca (rickshaw) and enjoy being carried away by muscular man 😝.

This temple was filled with students praying for good grades.

After exploring Arashiyama Bamboo Grove, we walked towards the housing area. The vending machine near housing area seemed to be cheaper. I like 100Y vending machine 💓 The orange drink was so-so but the milk tea was good.

We found some elderly playing sports. Seemed like golf, but they played it on sand. 

There was a house selling Special Boiled Egg (100Y), Flesh Egg Rice (350Y)  and Custard Pudding (350Y). I tried the egg and it wasn't special at all. It tasted like normal egg.

To be honest we thought the Arashiyama Bamboo Grove would be huge but we finished walking through the forest in 20 minutes. So we decided to visit Nison-in (京都二尊院, 500Y). If you bought the Randen 1 Day Pass, there would be coupons provided. You can receive a small gift (prayers written on paper, stamped by the temple) by presenting the coupons. Since it was summer, everywhere was greenish. There were only some leaves turning red. It would be best if you visit during Autumn or Spring when the trees are colourful.

After all the walking, we had our lunch at Arashiyama Udon Ozuru (嵐山うどん おづる). Do note that you have to order one dish per pax.

As expected, the portion was huge. Good thing we ordered one Udon Noodles with Prawn and Vegetable tempura set (1980Y) 😋 and Udon noodles with duck and scallion ala-carte (990Y). The tempura was awesome! I love how its fried but not oily and the udon was chewy. The duck was so-so.

Recharged, we walked along Katsura River. Definitely bring a cap if you go during summer. I felt like I was melting. 

There was a long queue at Arabica Kyoto Arashiyama so we decided to try the % coffee. We ordered Colombia San Agustin 200g (1200Y). My husband said it was nice but slightly overpriced.

After that, we decided to cross over to the opposite and explore. It was a lot cooler and less crowded. We saw this 👆 and was very gung-ho to see the Great View 😍. So we walked for nearly half an hour only to find that the trail leads to a temple, which you would need to pay for a fee to go in 😞. We opted to turn back as we were already exhausted. 

It says, "When you'd like to take a ferryboat, please wave the white flag towards other side." 😆

We headed back to the Arashiyama Station. Right beside the Kimono Forest, there was a hot spring foot bath for you to soak your tired feet. 

You have to purchase the ticket at the Information Counter nearby. 

It's 200Y per pax and you would be given a small towel which can be brought home. Remember to wash your feet first before you soak your feet.

We were feeling adventurous and decided to take the tram and explore the blue line (since its a one day pass 😆). 

By chance, I caught a glimpse on Izumiya shopping mall at the last stop (Kitanohakubaicho Station). We spontaneously hopped off and check it out 😁

Food attracts me more than clothes 😜 We bought one of these wagyu beef back to our Airbnb to cook. Super awesome I tell you! 👍😍😋

Tips: Most supermarkets in Japan will start putting discount stickers slightly after dinner time. Can't remember the exact timing, probably around 6 or 7-ish. You will see a lot of people grabbing the discounted items.  🍣🍙🐄🐙

We were really happy with our purchase. The food is fresh and cheaper than Family Mart or other supermarkets. Total cost: 2,835Y. 💰


Steps count of the day: 23,832 steps. 🏃

Japan : Osaka Kansai Airport > Kyoto > Shijo Omiya (Day 1)

23 May 2018

After 6 and a half hour of flight, we arrived in Osaka, Kansai Airport at 4:30p.m. ✌ I was waiting for my luggage and caught a glimpse of my bag at the side of the luggage belt. Apparently an officer was pulling some bags from the belt selectively and put it at the side. So if you cannot find your bags, don't panic 😭, look around and check first. 

I heard so much about Japan and its vending machines prior my trip. Even at the airport itself, there were a lot of drink vending machines. 😮

Unlike most travelers, we decided to head to Kyoto first instead of Osaka. At the airport, we crossed the bridge to the opposite building to get our Kyoto Access Ticket at Nankai Ticket Office. You can also buy your JR Pass beside the Nankai Ticket Office (the one in blue).

Our Airbnb was at Shijo Omiya, Kyoto. We bought the Kyoto Access Ticket from Nankai Kansai-Airport to Omiya Station, which costs 1,230 yen per pax. It is the cheapest option 👍 to go to Kyoto. 

The bottom ticket was from Nankai Kansai Airport to Tengachaya. From Tengachaya, we switched to local sub to Omiya Station with the ticket on top. 

This was where we boarded the train. If you are not sure, do ask the friendly officers around. They are usually very helpful. 

Japanese are very quiet in train. They usually play with their handphones or read books in train. Also, they would put their bags either between their legs or at the overhead compartment. I was quite fascinated with the fact that all trains I took in Japan are cushioned 😍. 

The train journey took approximately two hours. We were thankful that our Airbnb was only 5 minutes walk from Omiya Station. When we reached our Airbnb, it was already 8p.m. 😫 

The place was small but cozy. 

I really loved the fact that we could cook here. The fridge was a tad too small thou. 

This was probably the smallest toilet + bathroom I had ever used. The bath tub beside the sink was extremely small. The shower and sink were sharing taps. 

We went to Seabura no Kami Mibu (セアブラノ神) for our late dinner. It was around 7 minutes walk from our place. 

Seabura Niboshi Soba (Backfat dried small sardines ramen, +Onion, +Egg) - their signature ramen (950Y). You had to order from the vending machine and it was all Japanese. We managed to make our order with the help of the shop assistant. The recommendation was to order the ramen with onion broth and egg.

Tips: 

Take photos of the food that you want to eat when you were doing research and show it to the shop assistant to avoid ordering wrong food.

I wanted to try another rice dish but the shop assistant said its not available😞. So, we randomly selected a rice dish from the photos shown at the vending machine. We were so surprised to find that its actually noodles - Mazesoba (まぜそば) (800Y). It was served in a thick sesame sauce with lard and soy sauce. You basically mixed all the ingredients together like a noodle version of bibimbap. It was savoury 😋and I prefer this over their signature ramen. 

We ordered medium portion for both and was alarmed by the big portion. Their medium was large to us. As I was feeling thankful scooping the last bit of noodles, the shop assistant came....

Shop Assistant  : Gohan (rice) *pointing at the Mazesoba*, service (on the house)! OK?

Me                      : *Smile and nod* OKOK! 😊*turning to husband* I told you those were rice on top! They said it was on the house.

Husband            : I see I see 😮.

When I was feeling proud that I could understand basic Japanese, the shop assistant came....

Shop Assistant  :  *passed me a scoop of rice* Service! *points at the Mazesoba and gestures to pour the rice in to eat with the sauce*

Me                      : *finally realized what she meant* Ahhhhh OKOK! *forced myself to smile* 😆

I tell you.... my stomach was on the verge of bursting from too much food at that point of time but I had to finish it if not it would seem too impolite. I felt very warmed by the hospitality thou. 

That pretty much sums up our first day in Japan! 💕

Japan: Tune Hotel (Day 0)

Worry about missing your super duper early morning flight? Fret not with Tune Hotel! 😁

Our flight to Japan was 8a.m. and it was recommended to check in at least one to three hours before our flight 😓. We didn't want to strain ourselves just before our trip so we decided to check in to Tune Hotel the night before.

I was imagining it to be some shabby, cheapo place since the price is not expensive. But it proved to be otherwise. Although it was late night, you could still see people at the lobby since the hotel location is conveniently located near to KLIA2.

There is a Snacks Bar for you to grab some snacks anytime you want. 😋

A reading zone is also available for you to immerse in your book. Beware though as it is just right beside the reception area so it can be a little noisy.

Chill out place with some light music.

The room is small but I think its just nice if you want to stay for a night. There's a very small TV provided as well. 

I like the simple design.

 Shampoo, body wash and hair dyer are provided.

Since there was not much to do, we decided to head to KLIA2 to collect our PocketWifi. 

As you can see, from Tune Hotel to KLIA2, it is really just a very short walking distance. Took us 10 minutes or less to reach. That pretty much sums up our Day 0. 

*Yawn*