I was determined to go back to Japan as soon as feasibly possible, so it was a hot May morning when I staggered off the plane at Haneda Airport. Pausing only to eat a quick brunch (which included the greenest thing I have ever drunk – a melon soda which was to green as Irn Bru is to orange) I caught the monorail into Tokyo … Continue reading Day 1: Tokyo
I began my first full day in Japan pretty early in the morning, as my body clock was still rather confused. I made good use of the time, however, and was on a train to Ueno by 7.30am. I was feeling quite smug about having left early enough to beat the rush hour, until the train arrived at Ueno station and I saw the sea … Continue reading Day 2: Tokyo
Breakfast! The thing on top was half a stewed apple (I think). I woke up quite early again, and moments later experienced an earthquake. I found out later that there had been a large-ish one up north (magnitude 6, but not too serious, thankfully), but in Tokyo it just made the room shake for a few seconds. At the time, it took me a moment … Continue reading Day 3: Kyoto
I began my first full day in Kyoto with breakfast at a café I’d found last time (Komeda’s Coffee, in case you want to check it out), which offers an incredibly cheap breakfast – toast and a boiled egg free with every drink. This time, however, I’d decided to opt for the mixed sandwiches, which I ordered to accompany the intriguing-sounding “iced cocoa”. This turned … Continue reading Day 4: Himeji
I began what was to be a very busy day of sightseeing with a trip to the nearest combini (convenience store) to buy breakfast. My best find was this, a small cake/biscuit with delightfully crunchy edges: I had woken up quite early as the first stop on the day’s itinerary was the phenomenally popular Kinkaku-ji, the Temple of the Golden Pavilion that launched a thousand … Continue reading Day 5: Kyoto
I had been looking forward to the chance to see the Kamogawa Odori (Dances of the Kamo River) ever since I got my hands on a ticket, so I made sure I headed into the centre of Kyoto nice and early so I would have plenty of time before the performance. In fact, I had so much extra time that I made a short visit … Continue reading Day 6: Kyoto
I breakfasted at the Wired Café under Kyoto station on a giant cube of French toast with ice cream and maple syrup, and a cup of Earl Grey. It was basically the only non-Mexican food on the menu, for some reason (nothing against Mexican food, just not for breakfast), but it was very tasty and I needed plenty of fuel as I had a full … Continue reading Day 7: Kyoto
The morning I left Kyoto, my first task was to lighten my load. I had decided to use takkyubin, the (very affordable) Japanese luggage-forwarding service, to send my larger suitcase on ahead of my to Takamatsu, so I didn’t have to spend the next two days lugging it on and off trains and ferries. The young man staffing the hotel desk helped me fill out … Continue reading Day 8: Hiroshima and Miyajima
I woke up early to glorious sunshine streaming through my window and decided to nip out to Itsukushima shrine before breakfast (thankfully, my shoes had dried overnight). There were beautiful long white clouds threading their way through the mountains and skyscrapers on the mainland, I was snapping away before the torii was even in view. The tide was in, so I saw the torii in … Continue reading Day 9: Miyajima and Matsuyama
I started the day with a tram-ride in search of breakfast, and found an empty but very trendy coffeeshop above a combini, which did the usual toast-and-boiled-egg deal. I also ordered a pastry (a cross between a cheesecake and a lemon meringue pie) which came with a tiny ball of beautiful, refreshing peach sorbet. While I was sampling these delights (and listening, rather incongruously, to … Continue reading Day 10: Takamatsu
Tinpot travelogue 