JAL Flight to Japan
Time to go to Japan!
Salmonella and I arrived early at YVR and spent an hour or two in the Plaza Premium Lounge in the international departures lounge. We had a chance to grab some refreshments and relax before the 10 hour flight.
The flight itself was uneventful and smooth. I have to give props to JAL on such a great in flight experience. I’ve had the chance to fly on some great airlines and JAL is right up there with the best of them! The Dreamliner we flew was set up in a 2-4-2 cabin configuration so It was nice for Salmonella and I to have the row to ourselves.
Additionally the food was amazing. I always look forward to seeing what the different airlines have to offer and JAL impressed! We were served both a miso soup with the meal and a follow up broth at the end. In between we had a fresh assortment of fruits, a very crisp salad, an average potato salad (the only let down if I was being nit picky), a great pork and rice dish and a cold noodle with a noodle dipping sauce. I wasn’t expecting the dipping sauce noodle, but it was a great little treat that made the meal unique and prepared us for the Japanese adventure ahead.
Narita Airport
We arrived at Narita airport and passed through immigration and customs without incident. We then went to the airport post office to pick up our pocket WIFI devices. Normally, I would pick up a local sim card for internet. However it seems common in Japan to rent pocket wifi “eggs” that provide internet to all your devices in the vicinity of it.
Generally, you enter the rental period and they can mail it to the airport post office to pick up when you arrive or straight to your hotel. Included is a self addressed envelope that you use to mail back the device when you are done. There are many companies that offer this service. I went with Japan-Wireless. At the time they seemed to provide good value for the performance. They also provided a portable battery (unexpected) to keep the device charged. I noticed that Salmonella’s rental didn’t come with one, so that may be additional value if you don’t already travel with a backup power supply.
Express Line to Shinjuku
Our next task was to get from the airport to our AirBnb. Our AirBnB was located near Shinjuku station, and there was a convenient express train that gets you there. If you’re a foreign traveller to Japan, and you’ll be returning to Narita to fly out, you can purchase a round trip Narita Express ticket. Normal trips to and from cost around 6000 yen together, however the round trip ticket is a flat 4000 yen. So if you have a non-Japanese passport you may find this method of getting to and from the airport worthwhile.
Dinner at Araumi
It was a short 10 minute walk from the train station to our accommodation. Like most apartments in Tokyo, our place was TINY! But since we wouldn’t be spending much time in our room, it worked for us. It was early evening in Tokyo and because we wanted to fight the Jet lag as quickly as possible we stayed up, grabbed some dinner and walked around Shinjuku.
After leaving our room and wandering a bit. we saw a small alley that had a few small restaurants. We decided to check out the menus, and chose this small Tsukemen/Ramen shop called Araumi. It was very cool in that there was a single cook and a bar that sat at most 8 people. You order and pay from a vending machine that prints a ticket which you give to the chef to start your order. We both ordered the Tsukemen ( a noodle you dip into a small bowl of sauce) . It was really good! From what I hear you can’t really go wrong with food at any place in Japan and if this was any indication, Japan and I were going to be good friends by the end of this trip.
For a first meal and first introduction to Japanese cuisine I was super impressed!
This experience in general was a very different dining experience than anything I’ve seen in North America (Or other places in the world) From the small shop atmosphere to the vending machine ordering, it was very neat to try!
Walk around Shinjuku
With our bellies filled we thought it best to walk around for a little bit. If only to digest the very full meal we just had, but explore a little too! We ended up wandering the streets and checking out the area around Shinjuku station. The neighbourhood is incredible but also really hard to describe. Firstly the place is bustling with people, especially around the station. Shinjuku is the busiest transportation hub in the world and so it makes sense that the surrounding area is equally as busy. There was a sea of people moving like a river everywhere we went!
Secondly, there are so many lights. There are advertisements, huge LED screens and neon signs everywhere! I would say its a little like Time Square New York but on steroids. Its a very unique place and I’m eager to see what the other wards have in store!
Sadly the fatigue started to take its toll. Salmonella and I made our way back to the hotel to crash. Tokyo is a pretty special place and I was eager to see what the next few days have in store for us!