In the midst of Idul Fitri preparation, I was offered to accompany a family trip to Japan. It was a hard decision but I had found that it was all worth it. Japan was super beautiful!
As I reached Japan, I was welcomed by the banner Olympic 2020 in Haneda Airport. Yep! Japan is befitting herself toward the greatest sport event in the universe. So I invited myself to join the happiness by taking a photo in front of the banner. The next day I, met the family with adorable children aged, 16, 14 and 2 years old.
Our first destination was the Tokyo Sky Tree. The family decided to go up the Tembo Deck, rising 359 km from the ground. We were amazed as we entered the elevator. It was all decorated with mesmerizing butterflies. We were even more amazed on how fast the elevator was. 600m/minute! It went up so smoothly, we barely felt anything. And woosh! In 50 seconds we reached the Tembo Deck! We took lots of pictures there and we took some more from from the outside. We were surprised to found that it was raining outside, despite of the summer. The temperature dropped to 16° C. We were lucky to have sweater with us.
We then continue to the famous Sensouji Temple with it Kaminarimon Gate. We also went to Odaiba to see the replica of Liberty Statue. The statue looked real and the scenery around was magnificent. There was even a huge Gundam Robot!
The next day we spent more time in Tokyo. This time, is for Shibuya and Harajuku. The family spent a lot of time shopping in Omotesando area. Even the baby got himself a cute yellow jacket! How adorable. In Shibuya we jumped in the world’s bussiest crossing road. I felt so small in the midst of 2.500 people crossing the street at once. We then moved toward the station where Hachiko long-waited for us. It was a heart touching experience to see the statue.
The next day was still raining but it didn’t stop us follow our plan going to Fuji area. We decided to go to Iyashi No Sato Village first. The family rented traditional clothes. Samurai wardrobes for the father and the boy, and beutiful kimono dresses for the mom and the daughter. There was even a jinbei for the little one! So cute!
After taking some photo, we then continued to Mount Fuji’s 5th station in a hope that the sky would cleared up soon for us. But it didn’t. We even broke our umbrelas when we tried to out the car! But the family took the incident lightly and laughed each other of what happened. We decided to went in the Mount Fuji’s souvenir shop and went down the mountain. On our way up and down the mountain there was a section of the road that played music as the car rolled on it. The song was beautiful and soothing. As the rain continued on, we decided to delay our trip to Gotemba so we checked in to villa had some rest.
The next day, the Fuji mountain said hello to us. The sky has cleared up and we could see the mountain from our windows! We than decided to stop by the Oishi Park, on the side of Kawaguchiko Lake. We were lucky to see the seasonal Herb Festival. The purple color and the nice scent of lavender welcomed us. Moreover, the Fuji mountain showed herself floating on the Kawaguchiko Lake. The place was adorably beautiful, we didn’t want to leave it. But the Fuji mountain hid herself once more as the cloud crawled down.
The family spent alot of time shopping for branded items. We were lucky to find that some of them were on sale! We then continue our journey to Kyoto and had some rest there.
The next morning in Kyoto, we went to Arashiyama Bamboo Groove. Standing amids these soaring stalks of bamboo were like being in another world. But be needed to comeback to the real world. We then continue to Fushimi Inari, the shrine with thousands of torii gates. From the calming green bamboos our eyes catched the vibrant red gates which stradle a network of trails behind the main shrine. It was a unique experience to stand there. We then continued to Gion district where the glimpse of Geisha city survived.
After half day strolling Kyoto, we went to Osaka by Shinkansen. Within less than 20 minutes we reached Shin Osaka Station. We were lucky to because the weather was bright that day. Before dark, we got to see the Osaka Castle.
On our last day in Osaka we visited the Universal Studio Japan. The place were magnificent and the employees were so cheerful and welcoming. Unfortunately the rain started to pour again so we didn’t get to see as many studios as we wanted to. Luckily, we got to see the Wizarding World of Harry Potter. I was overwhelmed to be there. I loved how they put attention to the very details. Everything was just as seen on the film. I felt like I was immersed into this magical world. The pouring rain and the cool weather made it even more magical. It was a perfect closing for our long travel in Japan.
The next morning, we went to the airport and say goodbye to Japan. I felt I already missed Japan. I also said goodbye to the family as we have different flight numbers. They were very nice and our one-week-trip has made us feel we knew each other. We promised to stay in touch in the future. Goodbye Japan! Goodbye my friends!
Note: The photos of the family are not posted in this web in respect to their privacy, as their request.
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Here it is their testimony about our trip
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