Sharing our 10 days in 3 cities itinerary. Osaka Kyoto and Tokyo.

Osaka Itinerary

1. Average 15,000 steps per day

Disclaimer: There’s no taxi and cab involved in this tour.

We walked 15000 steps average per day.

Yet I still gained weight because of the way the Japanese make dessert. Only the first few days were more than 20,000 steps.

One attraction per day

Itinerary

Refer to bottom of the post

Itinerary Day 2 _ Osaka

My first sight of Japan. Osaka. It was even a little smelly haha. We arrived in the morning, right at the exit of the subway, there’s a huge pile of garbage. I had to stand there to google map, so I sniff in the smell and generated by first impression to Japan. It was smelly and unlike what people say. But a minute later, I changed my mind. With that huge pile of trash and matching with a low level of unpleasant smell, Japan was amazing afterall. If the same pile of garbage in KL, it will smell horrible and way worse. The fact that I could stand there and search google map calmly.

Itinerary Day 3

writing in progress

Day 4

writing in progress

Day 5

writing in progress

Day 6

writing in progress

Day7

writing in progress

Day 8

writing in progress

Day 9

writing in progress. 在AI 横行的年代坚持手搓

Day 10

The last day of our stay in Japan, gonna make use full use of it. That’s what I thought the previous night before I sleep. When I opened my eyes it was already 8:30am. Check out time was 10am. I jumped up and turn on the bathtub tap, start packing, choosing what to wear and hydrate myself with the hotel green tea while waiting for the water to fill up.

We checked out right at 10:02am. The delayed two minutes was because I trashed the QR code they given us the first day, Thankfully my mom snapped a picture of it when we moved in. So, keep your receipts.

I dragged the remaining luggage and set foot to find the nearest Matsuya （松屋). I would really try out the most famous chain breakfast outlet. They gave a large portion of rice and a very salty piece of salmon. It’s my first cooked salmon the Japan, so it disappointed me a little, especially when I didn’t have rice to go with it. I ordered it as a side to my mom’s breakfast set. I even chocked on the fish bone. The further let down was the place did not have free rice refill haha, but the balance it with free flavourful hot green tea.

I can’t bear to leave busy Tokyo just like that, so we wonders around with the luggage with no clear destination, we can;t really go anywhere with noisy luggage wheel. My mom suggested we go to the building right next to train station because she needs to use the loo. I sat down at the Starbucks, surprised that this one is unlike the one in Kyoto, it has Konsento! Charging port at every table. I ordered a short size ice latte, something that we dont have back at home. It is so small I can wrap my hands with it. Not just the kawaii size, the volume was just nice as well.

I sat down and check where else we can go, soon decided that we should head straight to the final hotel.

We hopped on a “rapid” train, while we should go for a “semi-limited”. Semi limited don’t stop at every station. So we hopped out and wait for the next semi-limited. On the train I checked in our flight home. Turned out check-in on web saved us a good queue at the airport the day after.

The final town, Narita, looks quite different than all the other cities we’ve been to. Wider street, very minimal pedestrian, feels like we’re in Europe. I didn’t notice by then, the people seems to drive a car rather then walk or cycle.

The vibe felt so different I kept turning my head left and right just to absorb in the scenery. Even the walk from station to hotel is far. One whole kilometre. The largest distance of 10 days. Knowing my mom and my own walking capability, I wanted to pause and sit down for lunch. A guitar across the street attracted me, bringing me to the best Ramen restaurant (to me) throughout my stay in Japan. It’s possible because its my final day so the ramen taste extra good to me.

Their shop sign says closed at 2pm but it was already 2:10, I saw guest are still inside eating, so I tried to ask “Chikaii desu”, are you closed? Only after I realised Chikaii means close, but not “that” close. Chikaii means close in distance. I wonder how the owner can understand and he signaled us to come in.

Out of habit I always ordered a beer along my meal. But I choose to go with lemon sour again. The boss told me their lemon sour is out from the can. I study the can in disbelief because it has more alcohol than a regular beer, yet the calorie is control within 50kcal. Once our meal was served, the waitress went home. The shop owner continues to work on cleaning and preparation for his next evening round. I love watching people work with focus, very meditative. Haha, of course it is. People work while I sit down and watch.

He even helped us to take a picture, and he told me I am “comel” while I returned with “Kakkoii desu. Honto ni desu.” I hope he understands what I said.

Our next hotel looks like real hotel. From the 90s. Haha. It’s the kind with huge lobby, round revolving door, the ones you used to have to push yourself, but nowadays they sense you and rotate automatically.

We checked in to our first and last hotel with a window!!!!! The hotel is truly with quite some age, I can tell by the odour and the colour of their plastic toilet and bathtub. The plastic has already turned yellow.

Next, I HAVE to see kids play baseball, I just had to. So chatgpt suggested the nearest field (almost 2km away) but I thought, why not, our last day here, I wont jalan kaki for the rest of the year, I’ll go back to the comfort behind my steering wheel.

About 0.5km I gave up. There’s a park near us, and a few teenagers playing football, which I told myself. The japanese are World Cup player, we dont have to watch baseball, football is good enough. About 2 minutes later I ended the watch, the sun is too scorching hot, which explains the boy’s tanned skin. I also sensed that the boys noticed us. Weird aunties watching them play football, how creepy. I decided to go for another attraction, another pagoda, because it’s less than 1km away. 1km is a lot for us. So I had to stop and take pictures for my mom on and off, so she will forget the pain of walk.

All hotels are impressive

Tokyo station and Ume station can be confusing

Luggage lalamove (delivery)

Shinkansen

Duolingo

I started practice in Duolingo apps from the week I booked the ticket. I wasn’t enthusiast. I got through to level 17. Hiragana was manageable I sucks at Katakana. I keep the streak for ten months, thinking that I dont need to learn to speak, I just want to use the apps to learn reading the character.

I was surprised that a lot of vocabulary that I learned in Duolingo came into use. There’s no regret spending my time with the apps. I can even construct whole simple sentence with all the wrong grammars. For example, I said “tomorrow, booking, 6pm?” “Ashita, Roku-ji, yoyaku dekimasuka?”

Pre-loved fashion and bags

One tourist attraction per day

Minimal shopping

出片文化

This utterly disgusted me and causing me to explode multiple times in Japan.

Itinerary Osaka Kyoto Kyoto

Hotel The One Shin-imamiya (far away and quiet and lots of bicycle and elderly residents) & Sotetsu Fresca Inn Osaka Namba (busy like Pavillion KL)

Day 2 – Breakfast at Nakau – Tsurumibashi street – Horikoshi Shrine (堀越神社) – Tennoji Park – 燕 Ramen Hanazono Kita (recommended) – Supermarket

Day 3 – Breakfast at Nakau – Coffee at Lawson – Osaka Castle Park – Dinner at 御sushi Suehiroya – Teamlab at Osaka Nagai Park

Sotetsu Fresca Inn Osaka – Namba

Day 4 – Breakfast at Kissaten – train to next hotel – Kadoya pork trotters and yakitori – Shopping at GU – dinner at Namba Izakaya – then Uoshin at Sennichimae (Recommended)

M’s Hotel Kyoto Station Kizuya (Spacious)

Day 5 – Search for Perry no Ikudon (it was closed) – Breakfast at Namba street – Train bound to Kyoto – Kiyomizu & Sannenzaka & Ninenzaka – Tea time at Matcha House – Dinner at the wagyu ramen right outside Yasaka pagoda – random supermarket grab supper

Day 6 – Fushimi Inari (free and recommend the hike) – Takumi no Yakata – Tsutaya Yakitori

Day 7 – morning latte at Kurasu Nishiaburanokojicho – Free rice refill breakfast – Dong-ji temple 东寺五重塔 – Omakase at Sen-ryo – wonder around at Aeon Starbucks and bookstore – dinner at Teppan Okonomiyaki –

Lumi Hotel Toyko Shinkoiwa (even more spacious but far from Shibuya, 30-40 mins by train)

The Hedistar Hotel Narita (Free 24/7 hourly bus shuttle to Airport)

Author: Dona Liew