Tokyo, Japan: All Things Kawaii and Sugoi (Part One)

What started out as a spur of the moment decision boiled down to six days of absolute kawaii and sugoi adventures in Tokyo.

I didn't even feel the excitement yet as the days rolled closer and closer to our flight date because of the extremely busy schedule for everyone in the family. Missing a weekend trip to Pampanga with one-half of the fam bam and Adam Young a.k.a. Owl City play live for free in Bonificio Global City was worth the rest before flying off! 

Packing all my stuff the day before, it was only when they gave us our plane tickets at Ninoy Aquino International Airport that I felt the sudden surge of excitement. 

And what better traveling companion could we have? A storm left the Philippines and was headed to Japan with us! Thank God, despite the flight attendants and pilots' warnings of turbulence, Captain Tsubasa (hehe that name), our pilot, managed to land us safely at the airport without experiencing any turbulence, whatsoever. 

Four and a half hours of watching The Theory of Everything and munching on this bento meal and Haagen Dazs ice cream mid-air later ~

Touchdown Narita Airport! This map of Tokyo Subway Routes welcomed us. Luckily, we did our research. All those years of being an avid fan of Japanese culture already gave me a hint of what was to come hehehe. No need for a tour guide ~

Count on Japanese trains to come on time! My first encounter with them was an ultra smooth ride. My brother also finished downloading an entire movie in just five minutes while waiting for the train. Railway system and internet speed = impressive. 

It took us about forty-five minutes to get to Tokyo from the Airport via train.

When we got to Tokyo, the storm was raging badly. The wind was strong, it rained hard, and it was so cold. Our umbrellas were no match and our luggage were getting wet. We took cover inside a convenient store. 

It was only after we settled in our hotel and managed to get some rest that the rain stopped just in time for a very late dinner.

Dinner was at an American restaurant. We easily got into a conversation with the Taiwanese woman and Bangladeshi man manning the place exchanging jokes about the storm of how it loved us so much it followed us here. The woman was a university student in Taiwan who wanted to learn the Japanese language. She taught us a few basic phrases. 

Each night of our stay in Japan, we would pass by their restaurant on the way home to our hotel. She and the Bangladeshi man would always spare us a smile and a wave. 

P.S. the food they served was amazing too. If ever you're in Ueno, please drop by their place. I'm wondering if they're still there and I wasn't able to get their names. 

Panda on the streets. A delightful design on the sidewalk. More designs spotted all around the city.  

We spent the night of our first day wandering around the streets and the night life of Tokyo, familiarizing and absorbing the fascinating culture I've always admired.

Onigiri in one of the many convenient stores. Since the packaging was in Japanese, we had a swell time guessing what filling is inside. 

Just like the surprise first bite of this rice ball, delightful surprises awaited us for the rest for the trip (to be posted).

...

faith

#ilovetokyo

All photos taken during this trip are unedited to retain its authenticity. 

All photos are mine unless stated otherwise.