日本之旅第一天：6月2日2013年, 星期天 - 御台場
Japan Trip Day 1: 2 June 2013, Sunday - Odaiba
日本の旅行第一日：６月２日２０１３年（日曜日） - お台場
Day 1 of our 2013 Japan Trip officially started after the clock struck 12 while we were on the plane. It should still be in Singapore timezone. Japan is one hour earlier than Singapore in terms of timezone difference. I can never sleep well during midnight flights. I think I probably watched movies until 12am plus, when we were served our meals.
Our supper, at 12:30am.
Then we tried to sleep... But we were treated to breakfast in less than 4 hours after our supper lol. Some bread and muffin and fruits. By the time we finished breakfast at around 4:30am, the sky was getting brighter, and look what we found?!? Mount Fuji in sight!
Mt. Fuji like you've never seen before.
It was a breath-taking moment as the awesome view of Mount Fuji appeared right before our eyes. Never would we have thought to witness the splendour and gracefulness of Mt. Fuji as our first item on our list of must-sees, on the plane itself! Truly wonderful sight. Dear and Nut were pretty excited as well. It was my second time seeing Mt. Fuji up-close, but never on a plane. Awesome!
After touching down and on our way to collect our luggages.
After we have safely landed on the tarmac of Haneda Airport, I could see Dear and Nut so excited to finally be in Japan. We hurried off to collect our luggage and as soon as we stepped out of the arrival hall, the rows of service counters to purchase our bus tickets to our first hotel was right in front of us.
Various services conveniently available at these counters.
Our first tickets purchased in Japan. Airport limousine to our first hotel.
I then approached the friendly counter staff to purchase our airport limousine tickets to our first hotel, Sheraton Hotel. It costs 810 yen per person. As we still had about an hour to go before the bus arrives, we decided to explore around the airport. It was still early in the morning and hence the retail shops were not opened yet.
Dear and Nut fascinated by this huge information panel.
You can even take selfies and send it to yourself.
There's a small Japanese-themed area containing shops selling all sorts of stuff.
Dear couldn't resist taking a pic with the Hello Kitty shop, even when it's not yet opened.
Then we went out in the open to breathe in the fresh Japanese air. It was quite cold but that didn't stop us from venturing outside lol. I suggested taking jump shots. And after numerous attempts, and getting us all exhausted, we managed to grab a good shot of all three of us in the air.
We went out in the open. The weather was so cool. Probably 20 degrees or so.
And we tried doing jump shots. Finally got a good shot after numerous attempts.
After our exploration of the airport, it was time to catch our airport limousine service to our hotel. The bus was pretty comfortable and not crowded at all. It stopped at Disney Ambassador Hotel to let some occupants of that hotel to alight. We also got a chance to have a preview of Tokyo Disneyland as our bus drove past it.
Waiting for our bus to our hotel.
Our bus is here! All the way to Tokyo Disney Resort.
Saw some weird-looking shrubs or trees along the way.
The Disney Ambassador Hotel was along our way to our hotel.
First thing we did when we reached our hotel, Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel, was to check in of course. Nut also made a phone call to Liezel, her friend who was staying in Tokyo for studies, to arrange a time for us to meet her later in the day. I also tried to ask the counter staff to check whether they have received the Mifi from Japan Wireless that I had ordered to be sent to the hotel. After much explanation to the staff, she finally understood what I was describing and managed to retrieve my package.Woohoo! Internet on the go! Never tried using such a device. But it was came in handy for us to check our routes and search for information. The whole package includes the Mifi device, as well as a pouch, a spare battery, a charger, and a return package to place all these items to be mailed back to Japan Wireless, all sealed in a plastic package. It also came with instructions on how to use the Mifi and how to return it to them on our last day of travel.
Nice parcel containing our Mifi waiting for us at the hotel.
The contents of the parcel.
The Mifi could connect up to 5 or probably more. Had no problem for all 3 of us, including Liezel later on, which makes it 4, to connect to the Mifi. After we were done checking in and had left our luggages with the hotel staff who then helped us to move them to our rooms, we set off on our itinerary's first place to visit, Odaiba!
The nearest train station for the Disney Resort Line from our hotel is Bayside Station. It's just a short 2-minute walk across the road. We bought our first train tickets of our Japan trip for this short journey to Resort Gateway Station. The whole of Tokyo Disney Resort, which comprises of Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea, is served by these four train stations of the Disney Resort Line. Therefore to go from one place to another around the resort, one would simply hop onto the trains on any of these four stations. The railways are only one-directional. Therefore, as can be seen on the map, if we wanted to go to Tokyo Disneyland Station from Bayside Station, we would have to go past the other two stations as well. One round around the whole circuit takes approximately 13 minutes. Every trip on the train, regardless or where you alight or board, costs 250 yen.
Our first tickets for Japanese trains.
As we waited for our train to arrive, the friendly staff would welcome everyone and tell us that the train was arriving shortly, and then waved to us as we hopped onto the train. The trains were all Disney-themed. The windows, ceiling, walls, even the handles. As we traveled along the resort, we could see the various parts of the two theme parks. The place was just so huge. We couldn't wait to visit DisneySea the next day lol.
The whole train is Disney-themed. Just look at the windows.
Can we bring one home?
Seems like they don't wish to alight.
Plenty of merchandise on display on the train.
Upon reaching the Resort Gateway Station, we cut through the Ikspiari, where the station was located, and walked over to the Maihama Station of the Keiyo Line. There, we bought tickets to Shin-kiba Station, which cost 150 yen each.
Tickets for the ride from Maihama to Shin-kiba.
Normal trains you see on the Keiyo Line.
Once we reached Shin-kiba Station, we had to purchase another ticket to reach Tokyo Teleport Station of the Rinkai Line, which costs 260 yen. That's a total of 660 yen just to reach Odaiba from Tokyo Disney Resort! Slightly more than S$8!
Every ticket has a serial number, and tickets of every line look rather different.
We saw this poster saying adults have discount of 5500 yen instead of the normal 6200 yen!
But it's only meant for locals. Tourists do not enjoy such discounts! T_T
But it's only meant for locals. Tourists do not enjoy such discounts! T_T
Couldn't resist getting something good from these vending machines.
Chose green tea and red bean ice-cream.
Upon stepping out of Tokyo Teleport Station,we were surrounded by huge structures. There is the DiverCity Tokyo Plaza, Decks Tokyo Beach, a huge ferris wheel, Fuji TV building and many more. Our first objective was to find Liezel! She had been waiting for us for more than an hour from the last time Nut made contact with her at our hotel. She was waiting for us at Odaiba-kaihinkoen Station of another subway line. Therefore we had to cross the streets and walk over to that station from Tokyo Teleport Station. And there she was, standing right outside the station. Sorry Liezel!
DiverCity Tokyo Plaza
Decks Tokyo Beach
We then walked towards the shopping malls area along the coastline of Tokyo Port where Decks Odaiba and Aqua City Odaiba were located. These two shopping malls are pretty huge and contains several floors of entertainment, restaurants and shopping. The outdoor area overlooks the Tokyo Port area and the Rainbow Bridge. There's also a preview of the trick art museum.
A preview of the trick art museum
Welcome to Aqua City Odaiba!
Nice view of the Rainbow Bridge.
Wonder whether these two polar bears are the mascots of Aqua City or something.
Saw a Capcom retail shop selling all kinds of Capcom merchandise. Almost wanted to buy a Megaman T-shirt lol. There was also a Capcom promotional event going on at the atrium. Took a few pictures before I realized that photography is prohibited, after I saw some staff holding signs showing that cameras were not allowed lol. No excuse even if you're not Japanese cos they used symbols instead of words.
Capcom retail store!
There's a Capcom promotional event in the atrium area.
A life-sized figure of Phoenix Wright, a character in the Capcom game Ace Attorney.
A pirate-themed restaurant.
It's time to finally have a decent meal on our first day in Japan! We decided to try out the ramen at the Gotochi Menmatsuri, literally Local Noodle Festival, at Aqua City 5th floor. It's an area containing several ramen stalls and a gyoza stall. We all tried different ramen from different stalls. The ramen were pretty good and prices range from 800+ to 1000 yen. After we'd had our fill, the chemical reactions of the food with our stomach acids made us feel lethargic. And of course after all the traveling, all of us were pretty exhausted by then. So we decided to take a breather at the Starbucks nearby and ordered some drinks.
The entrance to the Local Noodle Festival.
Some tonkotsu and egg ramen.
Some bite-sized gyoza.
Another tonkotsu ramen from another stall.
This comes with butter and corn.
Tsukemen, ramen that you eat by dipping the noodles into the gravy.
Some normal-sized gyoza.
Some thirst-quenching tea and a much desired break at Starbucks.
After the break, we ventured outdoors to check out the beach area. There was this replica of the Statue of Liberty right outside Aqua City, with the Tokyo Bay and the Rainbow Bridge in the background. Along the beach was the Odaiba Pier where you can board the Water Bus and cruise along the waters along Tokyo Bay. We strolled along the seaside park where locals happily walked their dogs. Plenty of tourists and locals also lined the paths enjoying the cool breeze and wonderful scenery. Even though the wind was cold, the sun was actually scorching hot. Certainly not good for our skin and health.
A replica of the Statue of Liberty and the Rainbow Bridge in the background.
A close up of the Statue of Liberty. Looks like the real thing eh?
The Odaiba Pier for the Water Bus ride.
We took a picture with The Fuji TV Building, the back of the Statue of Liberty and some giant anchors.
The futuristic-looking Fuji TV features some light shows at night on its exterior.
Locals walking their dogs along the park. How relaxing.
Many people gathering at the beach area.
Decks Tokyo Beach. The distinctive colourful decks that face the beach area.
We then ventured back indoors to Decks and explored around the shopping
mall. There were really many attractions within Decks itself, such as
the Legoland Discovery Centre, Madame Tussauds Wax Museum, Tokyo
Joypolis and so on. We wondered into the shopping area Odaiba 1-Chome
Shopping Street. It is sort of like a theme park or funfair, with
various mini attractions and shopping streets, which are all indoors. We played some air rifle games, ate some takoyaki at the Takoyaki Museum. There were a few stalls to choose from so we randomly chose one of the stalls to try out its takoyaki.
The Sega Joypolis inside Decks. Look at the crowd.
Odaiba 1-Chome Shopping Street inside Decks.
The Takoyaki Museum inside Decks.
Some haunted house for you?
Endless shopping.
Not enough of shooting during NS? Yea so decided to try out this air rifle game.
Takoyaki! Oishii!
After the snack, we finally went to the Trick Art Museum. Tickets are at 900 yen for adults and 600 for children. Free for 3 years old and below. There were several trick art pieces outside the museum itself for a preview. The following pictures were all taken outside the museum. Yes, you could see them for free.
Looks real doesn't it? Everything except Momo dear and the signage is painted. LOL
A trick art piece placed outside the museum. Can you find 5 animals in this picture?
Hint: Panther, rhinoceros, gorilla, elephant and giraffe.
Hint: Panther, rhinoceros, gorilla, elephant and giraffe.
Momo dear disturbing two geishas.
Beautiful designs on each ticket.
Spoiler Alert: I have created a separate post for most of the trick art pieces in the museum itself.
Don't click if you wish to go there and see it for yourself some day.
Go to my dedicated post on the Trick Art Museum.
We spent about an hour inside the museum taking pictures of the fascinating trick art pieces. By then we were all so spent that all we wanted were to sit down somewhere and rest. That was when I decided to take a pee break in the nearest toilet. To my amazement, there was this toilet peeing game. I HAD to show them what it looked like. Therefore I went back in again to take a video of the whole process. (not of myself peeing of course!) Then I showed them the video. I doubt there's such a thing in the female toilet lol.
After the amusement from peeing, we went out to the open area to see the evening sky of Odaiba. The view was simply gorgeous. The multi-coloured ships had lighted up with their corresponding colours, and it seemed like they were intentionally parked evenly apart from each other in the waters. We spent almost half an hour taking pictures and admiring the view from the upper decks of Decks. The weather was getting colder by the minute as the sun disappeared behind the buildings in the distance. The next target was of course...dinner!
Where can you get such sights in Singapore?
Did a HDR version.
We walked over to DiverCity Tokyo Plaza to get dinner. Along the way we saw the ferris wheel in all its glory as it sparkled against the night sky. It was getting really cold by then and we rushed over to DiverCity to get some warmth.
Beautiful ferris wheel.
Saw this flyer at one of the information booths in the mall.
Saw a shop selling all kinds of anime related stuff. Bought myself a One Piece souvenir! It's actually a metal container shaped like a barrel, and in it contains some biscuits. Decided to buy another one for a friend of mine who is a big fan of One Piece. I'm sure he'll love it. You can see what it is in the souvenirs post.
We went around choosing a good restaurant for dinner and ended up at this Premium Kaiou sushi restaurant. What's unique about this sushi restaurant is that it doesn't just come with a conveyor belt, but you can also order and get your sushi delivered right to your table via a toy shinkansen! Definitely provides some amusement and fun for the kids and even adults.
Our sushi arrived on this toy shinkansen!
They have many interesting sushi not found elsewhere.
Looks damn good doesn't it?
The meal cost the four of us about 3400 yen, which is about $10 each! That's considered quite cheap for a conveyor belt sushi restaurant. What's more, you get to play with toy shinkansens! Good bargain!
The signboard even features the outline of a shinkansen.
And after the awesome sushi meal, we explored the other levels of this huge shopping mall. It was pretty late already and therefore most of the shops were closing. There is this Gundam-style cafe located at the top floor, called Gundam Front. Too bad it was closed by the time we were there.
Too bad it was already closed...
Nevertheless, what awaited us was the ultimate treat. It was the life-sized Gundam right in front of us as we exited DiverCity through the food court at the first floor. You can see the lights shining onto its armour, showing its intricate details. The eyes were glowing as well. Only in Japan can you find such a structure, based on an anime which is so popular that they actually erected such a monstrousity right in the middle of a man-made island.
This is every Gundam fan's dream sight.
Look at all the little details.
Even a non-Gundam fan would be awed by this majestic masterpiece.
After getting wow-ed by the gigantic robot, we decided to head home, but not before admiring the beauty of the night lights of Odaiba. The view was simply breath-taking. Our hearts wanted to stay but our bodies were exhausted from the whole day of activities. We took the same trains that we took in the morning back to our hotel, which consists of three trains and at a cost of 560 yen each.
Took some night shots of the Rainbow Bridge.
And in front of it, a passing train on its railway can be seen on the right.
And in front of it, a passing train on its railway can be seen on the right.
Night view of Rainbow Bridge and the replica of the Statue of Liberty.
Tickets to get back to Sheraton Hotel.
And the final surprise for the day had to be the cute decoration in our hotel room. The hotel staff had brought our luggage into our rooms earlier on in the day so it was the first time we had a glimpse of our hotel room. It sure would brighten up any kid's day the moment they step into the room, which consists of wallpapers of dolphins, clocks with whales, and even a coffee table made of children's playing alphabet blocks. What a great way to end the first day of our tour of Japan.
Cute dolphin wallpaper for the kids.
Kimono bathrobes
And a cute clock to go with the theme.
Looks really comfy. Sure brings sweet dreams sleeping in such a room.
Felt like being in a kindergarten.
To make a hotel booking at Sheraton Grande Tokyo Bay Hotel, click here.
To make a hotel booking at the some of the other non-Disney hotels near Tokyo Disney Resort via Agoda.com, click the following links:
Links to my Japan Trip 2013
Great Japan Travel Info you have shared with us. It’ll help people a lot planning a trip to Japan.
ReplyDeleteThank you.