The land of the rising sun.
I had waited my whole life to visit Japan. I dreamed of the culture, the food, the landscapes. Everything.
Video games, movies and martial arts were my only early exposure to their culture, but something told me that I loved this place before I ever stepped off of the plane.
I was right.
As I arrived at Narita, I was terrified, alone and absolutely clueless. The language barrier was immediately obvious and I was lost as soon as I landed.
As I asked what felt like every stranger in sight if they speak English, eventually a nice woman told me she knew where I was going and that Asakusa was two stops after hers.
I followed her like a puppy until she got off the train. The doors closed, we smiled and waved goodbye and the overwhelming feeling returned.
I was on my own.
Tokyo is a sensory overload for any first time visitor. I wandered the streets in awe, utterly confused, curious and eating everything in sight.
Not much, but this sums up my first few days pretty well.
The sushi, ramen shops and Japanese pubs should be an obvious must see. I also found Mos Burger to be a pleasant surprise if you want to try a Japanese fast food joint.
After drinking most of the night in Roppongi, I woke up at 6 AM immensely hungover and headed for Fuji Kawaguchiko with my roommate Kat on an astounding 2 hours of sleep.
She spent the bus ride rather amused at my state of impairment and tried to convince me to climb Mt. Fuji with her. I persistently declined, insisting that I had indeed come to see Fuji, just not the top of it.
Her resolve was unwavering, she won.
We decided we would climb overnight with our new friends Eric and Vanessa and summit for the sunrise. I already committed to the hike in jeans and sneakers, with little sleep and a hangover, so why not, right..?
After Fuji, I parted ways with everyone and made my way to Kyoto.
Some of my favorite sights were the Golden Pavilion, Fushimi Inari Taisha and the many gardens and walkways the city has to offer.
For relaxation, I also recommend taking the train to Kurama Onsen if you are curious to check out a traditional style Japanese bath.
After Kyoto, I hopped on the Shinkansen to Hiroshima and in 2 hours time I arrived, hungover again and slightly ready to go.
I didn’t find my time in Hiroshima to be as eventful it proved to be a more relaxed pace than the other cities I had visited. I walked around the city for 2 days exploring its bars and historical sights.
From here, I took a day trip to Itsukushima, also known as Miyajima.
Miyajima is a mysteriously beautiful island, with delicious black bean maple cookies, savory grilled oysters, thousands of stone statues and the famous floating torii gate.
From there, I completed my trip by returning to Tokyo for my last 3 days, exploring the Ueno Zoo and shopping district, clubbing in Shibuya and taking another look at the Asakusa streets.
Tokyo is much easier to navigate once you have a better understanding of PASSMO and how the culture in general.
While Japan is still the greatest culture shock I have had as a solo traveler, it remains my favorite trip to this day.
