The trip report by one of my students – Nic Lee
Osaka, Tokyo (Days 1 to 3)
We reached Kansai airport in the morning. After washing up and storing our luggage at the airport, we headed to Osaka as we had time before our flight to Tokyo where our hotel for the first 3 nights was. We went to Namba and walked around Den Den Town, was a fairly eventful day.
For the next 2 days, we went to a number of places in Tokyo such as Asakusa, Shibuya, Akihabara and Shinjuku. One of the highlights for me during these few days was being able to watch a Pro Wrestling show live at the Seibu Dome, being an avid fan and a wrestler myself.
We were also able to meet with some of Sensei’s Japanese friends and converse to them in Japanese. On day 2, Charles and I had to take the train for the first time on our own to meet Sensei and his friend at Akihabara. We actually walked to the wrong station and were then unsure of which line to take. It was definitely not a good experience, but we did understand the train transport system a little better and become more confident to travel on our own.
Takayama, Shirakawago (Days 4 & 5)
On day 4 morning, we headed to Shinjuku to take the bus to Takayama, which was 5.5 hours long, not including the delay on the way. For the next 2 days, we stayed at a guest house. On the next day (Day 5), we took a bus to Shirakawago, a place with beautiful scenery and traditional houses. We spent the rest of the day around Takayama, including an onsen and a game center.
Nagoya (Days 6 & 7)
Nagoya was our next destination for days 6 & 7. After reaching Nagoya in the day time by bus, Charles and I walked around Sakae, an area with mainly department stores, individually.
Day 7 was one of the more eventful days for this trip, covering the Port of Nagoya’s Aquarium and Nagoya Castle.
Osaka (Day 8)
Day 8 was spent with half a day of personal time, during which I walked around Namba, Shinsaibashi and Umeda. For the evening, we met up with another Sensei’s Japanese friends and had dinner at a Izakaya.
Himeji & Kyoto (Day 9)
On our last day, I took a stroll towards Himeji Castle while Sensei and Charles went to do some stuff.
Having half a day before our flight back to Singapore, we went to Kyoto where we spent a few hours, going to Fushimi Inari and Kiyomizudera. Although the time spent was really short, Kyoto has been one of my favourite destinations for this trip due to the elements of Japanese culture that got me interested in learning Japanese.
In this trip, I managed to try many Japanese food, all of which I really enjoyed and would like to try again. The biggest takeaway from this trip, for me, was the understanding of taking the train which would surely be useful in my future trips. I definitely cannot wait to go again, to explore more.
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