2018 New Year Japan Trip Itinerary: Day 2 Osaka - Tokyo

****Day 2: Osaka - Tokyo****

Shinkansen experience was really nice. It took us only 3 hours to reach Tokyo and the journey was smooth. When we reached Tokyo station, we went to search for subway pass before we check in to the Airbnb place. We bought the 2-day Tokyo Metro pass with JPY 1,200 (~RM45). The 2-day pass is only available for tourist as you need to show your passport in order to purchase the pass. Luckily we bought this pass as traveling out from the Airbnb place to Tokyo city would cost us more if we didn't buy this pass. 

The Airbnb place was near Nakano-Shinbashi station and it was hostel-like. The room was very small tbh but I guess that was why the price was much cheaper than other hotels/hostels. After unloading our luggage at the Airbnb place, we headed back to Shinjuku area for lunch. First meal in Tokyo - super large bowl udon @ Tsurutontan Shinjuku. 

Why they have such complicated crossing??

It was quite difficult to find the restaurant as it was at basement. We reached the place and didn't realized that it was just right in front of us. XD But was fated to try as we thought to randomly try the udon shop in front of us and realized it was the shop that we were searching for when we were queuing. There was a long queue and waited for about 20 minutes.

I ordered a bowl curry katsu udon, with 1.5 portion of udon. 

Sorry for not taking care of my image XD Yours truly was really hungry!

After that, we walked around Shinjuku area before meeting up with my friend's friend. We went to check out Omotesando area near Harajuku station before heading to Meiji Shrine (Meiji Jingu). This is a major luxury shopping destination and the trees along the street are famous for street photography. However, as it was winter, it wasn't as beautiful as the photos taken during spring. 

Oh well, trees during winter are still worth enjoying. Where do you find this scene in Malaysia?

And that was my OOTD for new year eve! Loving my Aldo boots as it is so comfy and only costs me RM200! Such a brilliant consumer. =P Behind me was a long queue for either Garrett popcorn or gyoza. I don't understand why the queue was that long! 

After a few photos, we walked to Meiji Shrine (Meiji Jingu, 明治神宫). It is usually close at 6pm but for new year eve and a first few days of new year, they open till midnight. Especially that they have prayers at midnight for new year. But we did not join that ceremony.

2018 New Year Japan Trip Itinerary: Day 1 KL - Osaka

It is always my dream to travel to Japan. Never thought it would happen so soon and with a friend that I've never thought of. But well, it was a wonderful and memorable trip! Japan is really a beautiful country and rather huge to explore! Can't wait to visit Japan again!!! 

So I'll start with detailed daily itinerary and then a summary. =)

Day 1 (30th Dec): KL - Osaka

Departed to airport around 9.30am for afternoon flight to Osaka. Spared some time at airport to grab brunch and collect the wifi router from Travel Recommends counter. I would suggest to rent one wifi router as it is necessary and cheaper than getting SIM card in Japan. The one that I booked cost RM200 for 9 nights (RM100 per pax). This saved us from getting lost in Japan! XD 

View from the flight. This is so beautiful!

We reached Osaka airport around 9.45pm and started our adventure! We tried to grab a midnight train to Tokyo, which we couldn't managed to book online. Rushed to JR office to change our JR pass and tried to book the train. It was freezing cold! Unfortunately, it was fully reserved and we had no place to sleep at night =( Lesson learnt -- Don't try your luck especially during peak season like New Year.

So, we decided to go with Plan B, which is to find a place to stay in Osaka for the night and also to hunt for supper. Instead of wasting one day of our JR pass, we bought the train ticket to Osaka station, which costs us JPY 1190 (~RM45) each. The train took about 30 minutes to reach Osaka station, reached there around 12.30am.

Ticket for the last train to Osaka station from airport! 

Suit up to combat the cold weather for the night! Don't know where to sleep yet XD

As we were starving that time, we decided to grab a bowl of ramen as supper before we hunt for a place to rest. Hence, Ichiran Ramen @ Umeda which opens for 24 hours was our first food stop in Japan. My friends have been telling me how great it is. So excited to have it as my first meal. =D

Guess what, there were people queuing at midnight for ramen!

Once we got into the restaurant with our huge luggage, the waiters helped us to store the luggage aside. Then, we ordered our ramen using the machine. Once you paid, the machine will give out a receipt. After that, proceed to the seating place to wait for a seat. You will then pass your order to the kitchen for ramen preparation once you are seated. The procedure is so systematic and the ramen was served quite soon that day.  

Ta-daa! Ramen served with soft boiled egg (JPY 1020 = ~RM38). You can choose the flavour of the soup and also with toppings. So individualized! And, they also have individual seating. I love the concept so much! Eating alone wouldn't be awkward anymore! 

After our supper, we went to hunt for place to stay. Found a kind-of-weird hotel and rested for 3 hours before we catch the 6am Shinkansen to Tokyo. That 3 hours stayed cost us JPY 8000, which was the cheapest that we could find. 

Less than RM1800! Hanoi 5D4N Itinerary Part II with Budget Breakdown

****Day 4****

4th day in Hanoi and we finally get to tour the city! First stop -- Tran Quoc Pagoda. We called for Grab to pick us up from hotel and it costs us about RM5 for a trip. It wasn't too far of a distance but traffic is really bad in Hanoi. If you have the energy, some attraction places are actually walk-able. 

Arrived at Tran Quoc Pagoda 

Tran Quoc Pagoda is the oldest Buddhist temple in Hanoi, dated back to the 6th century. It was originally located on banks of Red River and was relocated to an islet within West Lake in 1615 due to the river's encroachment. The main pagoda is made up of 11 levels and surrounded by an incense burning house and a museum housing historic relics. 

Entrance: Free

Opening hour: 7.30am-6pm

Attire: Suggest to wear conservatively

A huge tree near the incense building

Next stop: Ho Chi Minh Museum

Tourist photo right in front of the museum =)

After exploring the pagoda, we took another Grab ride to Ho Chi Minh Museum. It is located in the Ho Chi Minh complex where you can visit the Ho Chi Minh mausoleum, One Pillar Pagoda, Ba Dinh Square and the War Memorial all together. The museum is an elaborate description of Ho Chi Minh's life with collections of artifacts, miniatures and various gifts gathered nationally or internationally. The museum was huge and you might need to spend a morning here to really explore the history. We did not manage to read all in details but glanced through quickly in 1-2 hours.

Entrance Fee: VND 10,000 (~RM2)

Opening hours: Everyday except Mon and Fri - 8 - 11.30am and 2 - 4.30pm

Next: One Pillar Pagoda

This pagoda attracted me the most from its name. XD The pagoda rising from one pillar in the centre of a lotus pond and it is said to represent a lotus flower growing up out of the water. It was built between 1028-1054 during the Ly Dynasty. The little temple is constructed based on a single stone pillar crafted into the shape of a lotus blossom. The shrine inside the pagoda is dedicated to the Vietnamese Buddhist deity Quan Am.  

Entrance Fee: FREE

Opening hour: Daily 8am-5pm

Next stop: Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum

This is the final resting place for Vietnamese Revolutionary leader Ho Chi Minh in Hanoi. It is a large building located in the centre of the Ba Dinh Square. You can visit the mausoleum but we did not check it out as we were rushing to the market. And it was too tiring for grandma to walk around the HCM complex already. 

After a few photos, we decided to check out Dong Xuen market. Heard there a lots of things to buy!

Next Stop: Dong Xuan Market

Dong Xuen Market is the largest, four-storey Soviet-style, indoor market in Hanoi. Here you can find wholesale traders selling everything from clothes to food. Being a wholesale market, you need to bear in mind that it would be packed with people and you will be offered cheaper price when you buy in bulk. For us who are just checking things out, it is a little messy for us to shop. I would think it is much nicer to shop in Ben Thanh market in HCM. 

Crowded market - the clothing area. 

We managed to shop for some dried fruits and lotus seeds to bring home. Then we gave up jamming in the crowd and went out to check out interesting stuff.

Spotted a stall selling local dessert/snacks (looks like our Malaysia's kuih). I decided to buy 2 to try but totally can't understand what the lady tried to explain to me. I bought two which looks safer and I was trying to relate them to any of our kuih. Well, pretty much similar! Hoho.. But I guess the fillings wrongly. XD

Their bikes can sell everything! From desserts to flowers to pots. I was really amazed!

After getting kuih without understanding what we bought, we went to a fruit stall to check out if they have any local fruits. Amazingly, we bought a fruit that we are clueless but it costs RM12 for a piece. Wonder what is that? Continue reading this post and it will be shown towards the end!

After buying from the fruit stall, we were tired of having language barriers and our stomachs were growling. Lunch time! We took Grab to a restaurant that I found, which seems to be very popular among the tourists -- Quan An Ngon.

It is a restaurant with street-stall style within the garden courtyard and interior of an imposing French colonial villa. It serves authentic Vietnamese cuisines and we decided to order 5 dishes to try!

Spring Roll -  is a must!

Banh Xeo Tom Thit - Fried pancake with pork and shrimp

Fried Rice and Pork Chop with rice

Chao Tom - Grilled shrimp on sugarcane

The whole meal costs us around RM120 for 4 persons. And we ordered fruit juices each! I would say it is cheap and nice!

Was too bored waiting for the driver and mom decided to take a photo of me at the restaurant's front gate XD

Next Stop: Temple of Literature

After lunch, we proceeded to Temple of Literature (文庙), the temple of Confucius. This temple hosts the Vietnam's first national university -- Imperial Academy. The compound is huge and surrounded by greenery. It is definitely a nice place to study. When we reached there, there were lots of people taking graduation photos. It is a good experience for us to observe how they dress for graduation.