Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Narita. Sort by date Show all posts
Showing posts sorted by relevance for query Narita. Sort by date Show all posts

Day Trip in Naritasan

Our 2017 Philippine vacation had at least 30 hours of layover in Japan, a country that fascinates me for a long time. To make our brief visit to the anime land worthwhile we really did our research thoroughly and worked around from our hectic flight schedule. 
Mt. Fuji from plane
First glimpse of Mt. Fuji


Airport locker in Narita
Airport lockers in Narita International Airport


Coming from Oyama Station heading to Narita Airport; we woke up early to avoid the rush hour of Tokyo's transits. It was a hectic ride; several transfers and relying on transit workers for directions. 
Once we arrived in the airport, we placed our luggage in a locker, had a quick Starbucks breakfast and waited our tour guide from Narita Rainbow Tours in the designated meeting place.


Few hours in Narita Airport and want to do something cultural?


Akane showed on-time, warm greetings were exchanged, she gave us a brief information about our trip was about, and we hopped in to our train heading to Downtown Narita.


Naritasan Omotesando -- a charming shopping spot

Omotesando, Narita
Lines of shops on the way the temple

The road leading to the historic Naritasan Temple (Omotesando) was filled with rows of shops and restaurants, according to our guide that the road has been busy for centuries; the pilgrims would stop by these shops on their way to the temple and later on tourists came as well. 

The side street of Omotesando is decorated with sculptures of Oriental zodiac, i regret that i was not able to take photos at least one of them πŸ˜’. Some shops were setting up, some were closed. Akane was enthusiastic introducing us to the shops' products: from rice crackers, bbq eel (the area's specialty), pickled vegetables and interesting kitchen gadgets; she was very informative about which shop offers samples and which one are popular.
We saw a stand that sells dorayaki--- a small pancake filled with red bean! My πŸ» bought one for us to share; for someone who is used to having sweet bean for a treat, this one is has a subtle sweetness into it and i can taste more of the red bean—it’s soo yummy!

red bean dorayaki
Red bean dorayaki

The entrance to the temple was quite busy with both worshippers and tourists; crowds filled the cleansing stations. 
Cleansing station Naritasan  temple
First cleansing station 

As we walked along Akane explained everything from the rituals of the believers and the brief history of some of the buildings. 


She pointed at the thick piles of wood plaques and explained those are the wishes of the devotees, it ranges from finding significant others, luck in employment, financial and health improvement and passing an exam!


Naritasan wishes
devotees's wishes
Three storied Pagoda
Three storied Pagoda
The building that caught my eye was the Three-storied Pagoda, built in 1712 the bright colours of the pagoda were eye catching, we took a closer look, our guide pointed that the pagoda's ceilings were not just painted, it was painstakingly carved, It created a cool 3-D effect! 





three storied Pagoda
Three storied Pagoda's 3-D ceiling

Avoiding the crowd for a little while we walked along the Naritasan garden park, where we fed the healthy inhabitants of the pond---the Kois, it seems that they know what to do when there's human presence nearby, they all swim fast beside the bridge because food will be automatically provided! 





We left the kois satisfied with the crackers, and went to climbed the stairs leading to the Great Pagoda of Peace which housed several historical relics, from old calligraphies, several Buddhist statues, a grand altar, and a time capsule that was signed by several world leaders during the early 80's. It's scheduled to be opened on 2034. 
Great Main Hall
Great Main Hall

Goma Ritual


Akane informed us it was time to go to the Great Main Hall; following the crowd to witness the Goma Ritual. When we reached the door of the Main Hall, we were instructed to keep our phones and any instruments that could take videos and photographs and remove our footwear. 
Respecting the temple's ettiquette, we joined the crowd who were all kneeling and getting ready for the ceremony; we knelt down and quietly observed what was happening. 
When the ceremony started, we listened to the solemn chanting of the monks, a large drum beaten as they chanted, wood being thrown and burnt, and later on there were monks who collected handbags and purses to wave over the smoke. Must be their way of asking the deities for prosperity and luck.

It was a great honour to be able to experience such a solemn event and learn a bit of history, 


Naritasan compound
Naritasan Compound

As we were heading out of the Naritasan compound, I was looking forward to seeing the shops along Omotesando once more and planned to take a look inside some shops that were closed when we arrived earlier. Along the way, she showed me more interesting goodies from the other shops.

raw chestnuts
Chestnuts
treats in Omotesando
Treats in Omotesando
Flavoured peanuts
Various flavoured peanuts!

We checked a shop that specialised in desserts and tea ceremony treats and also checked out some of the souvenir shops, I was considering grabbing a Daruma doll but bought myself a kokeshi doll instead and magnet masks for me and my sister. Our tour guide told us to show our transit ticket to the vendor so we can get a discount.
With so much great memories from our day trip, and quite satisfied with our souvenirs; it was time to head back to Narita airport, Akane rode with us going to the airport and we exchange our goodbyes (or till we meet again) when we reached the airport's entrance; the next time i visit Japan for vacation, i will be booking my day trip with Narita Rainbow Tours again.

More of my 2017 Japan Trip check my Facebook Page!

Flying with ANA

ANA in YVR airport
Our plane approaching
All Nippon Airways claims to be the inspiration of Japan. If that's the case, I hope they are inspiring other airlines too.

I have flown back and forth between Philippines and Vancouver a couple of times and ANA is the first airline company that had me looking forward for my next flight.


All smiles service ANA attendants
ANA attendants
I am impressed with the quality of their service. ANA attendants seem to have a genuine grace and warm smiles as they serve the passengers, they were attentive and very organized and their flight meals are πŸ‘.

We flew economy class this time and we are looking forward to the opportunity to fly business and first class in the near future. 

My flight with ANA economy class provided me a service that is more than I expected. 

I was in total heaven when I found lullabies and music-box-style tunes in their media selections--they read my mind--I need those kinds of music to combat my fear of turbulenceπŸ˜“.

We were provided with a bottle of water and a bag of rice crackers with mixed nuts as soon our airplane stabilized in the air, and this was followed by another round of refreshments in a few minutes. Then less than an hour after the second round of refreshments, our meals were served.

Meals from YVR to Tokyo (Haneda)


Flight meals dessert from yvr to haneda mario gelati
Gelato for dessert (above)
(right) baked beef patty and potatoes
edamame and tamagoyaki,
mac and cheese with salmon,
pickled vegetables
multigrain bun, butter and cream cheese.
flight meal all nippon airways

















all nippon airways meal yvr to haneda
My Teddy Bear's meal.
Hot drinks are offered after the meal and the choices were: coffee, black tea, and green tea. I am glad that they make sure that passengers are hydrated during the long flights.

Our breakfast: (Beverages not shown)


flight meal breakfast all nippon airways
Yogurt, cheese in a multigrain bun and apple slices

My Narita to Manila flight meal:


all nippon airways meal from narita to manila
Beef Sukiyaki with tofu and egg slice, cold noodles (sauce provided), vegetable salad with soy and citrus sauce, and chocolate cake for dessert.

My Narita To San Francisco flight menu and meals:

ANA menu
ANA menu from Narita to San Francisco flight

All Nippon Airways Flight meal from Narita to San Francisco
Chicken and mashed potatoes with noodle, sliced fruit, vegetable salad and dinner roll with butter and cheese
All Nippon Airways Flight meal from Narita to San Francisco
Second option menu, mixed veggie and chicken on rice, cold noodles, macaroni with smoked salmon
All Nippon Airways Flight meal from Narita to San Francisco
Our breakfast before landing in San Francisco Airport: Pancake, egg, sausage, and broccoli with mixed fruit and yogurt

I encouraged my dear 🐻 to apply for loyalty miles in ANA by registering our miles from our 2017 trip. We are planning to go back to Japan someday and for sure we will be flying with ANA again.



ANA, you inspired me to travel more!

Few words from ANA's spokesperson πŸ˜ƒ:





The Yakiniku Virgins


Grill that! 

It's the first day of Dine Out Festival and me and boyfriend (my teddy bear 🐻) decided to try a Japanese style barbecue at Gyu-Kaku, it's something new for both of us considering we've been to several sushi places or Japanese style restaurant around Lower Mainland. My 🐻 enjoyed the idea of cooking our orders in our table, it's a novelty to him and it makes you feel of being more in charge of your dining experience, you have the choice- which one to grill and how much you want to have. In our experience the only blunder that we made is placing the veggies directly on top of the grill instead of placing the foil where they where served on top of the grill. πŸ˜… This blunder resulted to a semi charred veggies though i don't really mind because i also enjoy my veggies raw.

We are Yakiniku virgins!


I would say first time trying a new dish leads to a new experience, and new experience is learning something new! After posting another version of this photo in my Instagram account a follower commented "Japanese bbq= Yakiniku". New Japanese word to add to some of the words that i know: Harigato, Hai!, Gomenasai, Sugoi and few more words...
It's a sign that life is really prepping me to my upcoming trip to Manila and i will be in Tokyo for an overnight layover twice and get to see bit of Narita.

Tokyo, can't wait to see you!!!πŸ’•

Back in Japan γƒΎ(o✪‿✪o)ο½Ό


Shinjuku lights
Before Marvel and DC superheroes I had Son Goku and Voltes 5 to rely on when planet Earth is in danger; my love affair with Japan started early, I remember my younger self wishing to visit Japan if the opportunity presented itself.

Then fast forward to 2018...


A year after our short visit to Narita and Shinjuku, me and 🐻 swore to each other that we will come back to spend more time and explore Japan. We were both hypnotized by Metropolitan Tokyo's crowded streets and flashing city lights, we really fell in love with how Japan balances modernization and old traditions.

There are plenty of Japanese restaurants in Metro Vancouver, and we regularly visit sushi restaurants in our area, I am proud to say that I converted my dear 🐻 into a sushi lover.  Even for a short trip, we aimed to dine in a sushi restaurant in Tokyo and we were very happy to find one in Shinjuku area - Kizuna Sushi.

Kizuna Sushi

clam soup

Tuna Sashimi


On March 9 - 21, Japan is our chosen destination for our honeymoon, and me and my dear 🐻, now my husband are looking forward to it; we have already ordered our JR Rail Pass, our sumo tickets, booked ourselves a night in a ryokan with onsen and so much more on our plans, we are now in the process of tweaking our itinerary and for sure it's going to be a busy but lot's fun trip!

Here's one photo of Godzilla greeting us in Shinjuku 
≧(´▽`)≦   γƒΎ(´▽`*;)ゝ”

Godzilla Head in Shinjuku
Godzilla head in Shinjuku

I guess my love affair with Japan goes on, this time I will be sharing it with my dear husband who is the biggest love of my lifeπŸ’•