We are staying for a total of 16 days in Japan and spent 6 of them in Tokyo. Japan’s capital city is inhabited by 38 million people in its greater area, but in most of the neighbourhoods does not look like that at all. You can of course find districts with high skyscrapers and huge crowds, but we experienced Tokyo mostly as an almost relaxing city and a fusion of different neighbourhoods, which all have their own charm.

Our hostel was located in Asakusa from where we explored the whole city by metro. We visited the Shinjuku district with its numerous bars, the electronic & anime district Akhibara, the Mori Tower, the Tokyo Tower, Harajuku with its “crazy” shops, traditional Asakusa and of course the famous Shibuya crossing. Walking over this huge crossing and getting lost in the crowds was one of Sarah’s point on her bucket list – mission accomplished!

Asakusa

 

 

 

 

Shibuya

Hachiko Statue

Shibuya Crossing

 

 

Akihabara

Tokyo Tower

Mori Tower

 

Hajuku

Shinjuku

 

Rush hour ^^

Since June 2019 Tokyo is also home to the fascinating digital art exhibition “Teamlab Borderless”. The exhibition hall is located in Odaiba and the experience is stunning. Definitely worth a visit!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As Mt. Fuji is only a 2-hours bus ride away from Tokyo, we decided to spend one day there as well. We were very lucky with the weather and could enjoy a full sunny day around the beautiful Lake Kawaguchi. Unfortunately, the view to the summit of Mt. Fuji was covered by clouds almost the entire day. But we did not give up and finally got the see it just one hour before leaving back to Tokyo.

 

 

 

 

 

A full Japan experience is not complete without staying at a traditional Ryokan. So we made our way from Tokyo to Takyama to do exactly that. Takyama is a small and gorgeous city between green mountains, known for its Hida beef. We stayed two nights in the Seiryu Ryokan including halfboard meals and hot spring pools. It is the perfect place to relax and to try very typical Japanese food. Our dinner there was unbelievably delcious and we got it served in our room. You cannot miss out on that!