Tokyo and Mt. Fuji – The Final Chapter in Japan

I arrived in Tokyo in the early afternoon after taking a train from Yudanaka to Nagano, then a bullet train from Nagano to the city. It was a smooth trip and I was excited to see the most populated city in the world (over 37 Million people!!). I knew it would be a bit of a shock after the quaint little mountain town of Yamanouchi, but I closed my eyes for a bit on the train and tried to switch gears to prepare myself. When I traveled north I had a transfer in Tokyo, so I had a bit of a taste and knew it would be intense!

I got off the train, and as expected, the station was busy. It’s kind of funny, I felt like an ant moving through everyone. It’s so huge and there’s so many people moving so fast everywhere. You have to be careful when you stop to get your bearings or cross a hallway, as you could easily get squished!

I made my way out of the station and walked about 15 minutes to my hotel. Of course when I arrived, it was too early to check in, so I walked around for a couple of hours before I could collapse in my room for a bit.

Although it is super busy and I was bothered by the young girls advertised at the men’s clubs, I did appreciate that it is super clean. The fashions are also pretty fun. Lot’s of anime costumes, etc. Just like everywhere else in Japan, but amplified here, there are tons of vending machines selling anything you could want! There are also tons of toy arcades that seem crazy expensive for the cheap junk they spit out, but it’s definitely a thing and the kids love them! Oh, and the flowers were nice too. Not just the bouquets you could buy for the girl and boy bars, but the solar powered planters around the streets were beautiful!

Finally, it was time to check into my tiny, but all I needed, hotel room. Here it is! Just enough room on the small desk to pile a few clothes, a space to stash my bags under the bed, and a spot to put my yoga mat out in the entryway! Out the window was a view of a club which we’ll explore later! By the way, this was the larger, deluxe room! The good news, they had a free onsen spa in the hotel that even provided tattoo cover stickers so I could go without being kicked out!

And that was the day! I really wanted to visit Mt. Fuji before leaving Japan, so I had spent a bit of time during a train layover, and booked some tickets to get there the following day. The next morning I got up early and made my way to the station.

I didn’t have breakfast, so I grabbed a quick meal at the station before boarding the first train. Luckily I had a seat, so I could eat this somewhat satisfying meal. After this, I was on my own to find a spot to stand on the next train. Apparently, I wasn’t the only one wanting to see the beautiful mountain on this sunny day! Here’s the first glimpse I caught of her beauty when I leaned over to peek out the window! And yes, I not only took A train, I took Thomas the Train!

It was funny, almost everyone got off the train at the station before, Shimoyoshida, as it is known for the most “Instagrammable” spots of the mountain with both Honcho Street and Arakuri Fuji Sengen Jinja Shrine, but I stayed on until the Mt. Fuji stop as the man that hooked me up with the ticket said I should do. Just across the street, there was an information booth, so I wandered in. I was the only one there, and the lady working couldn’t have been any nicer. I said, “Okay, I’m here, now what do I do?” She laughed and pulled out a map. She explained that I could take another train from there to access Yagizaki Park and Lake Kawaguchiko, where I could get amazing views of the mountain and the cherry blossoms. The train was leaving in 20 minutes, so I had just enough time to go up to the 4th floor of the station and see the Mt. Fuji observation deck before leaving. I thanked her for the great info and she handed me a special gift, a postcard of Mt. Fuji, as I walked out! I felt so taken care of!

I soon jumped on the train to Kawaguchiko Station, and a couple of stops later I arrived. It was a bit congested with tourist busses, but my trusty lady at the information booth said I could walk or rent a bike to get the the lake. A bike sounded nice, so I checked at the rental place down the road, but they only had one e-bike left, so I decided to walk instead. With my trusty map, I made it to the lake in about 30 minutes. It was the right choice! So few people (they were all jammed on top of each other on the tourist busses riding around the lake!) and I was able to take it all in at my pace!

I spent several hours waking around the lake and enjoying the scenery. It was a beautiful day and a magical scene everywhere!

Words cannot express my excitement for the beauty….so, here’s a few more pictures around the Fuji Omuro Sengen-jinga Shrine by the lake.

And with that, I was going to stop and check out the “IG spots”, but got a seat on the train that was getting busier and busier, and decided the day was a win as it was. I headed back to Tokyo.

The next day was my last day in Japan. Although a bit sad, I was ready to move on to my next adventure. I had been in Asia for 6 months, and was ready for a bit of western culture back in my life. So, after a relaxing morning at the spa, I ventured out for a nice sushi dinner and a walk through town. As it turns out, I was staying right by the red light district, so here you go….I didn’t stay out too late to see what happened, but it was an interesting scene. After looking it up, I found this “Robot Restaurant” actually isn’t a restaurant at all. It’s a place where sexy girls do, well….stuff.. with robots??

And the morning after, here’s a pic from my window when the bars were closing around 6 am.

With that, I headed back for one last soak in the spa, and then a walk to Shinjuku Chuo Park. It had the most beautiful flower gardens and sweet kids on field trips, a treat before heading to the airport for a long couple of days!

That’s all until we land on the next continent. Thank you my friends for following me and keeping me company thus far. We’ve seen some amazing sites and met some beautiful people!

Peace, Love and Hugs, Michelle