Day 1 - Travelogue - The First Night In Tokyo

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After you disembark from the plane at Terminal 1 (international arrivals) at Narita Airport, you have a lot of hallways to walk before you get to Immigration, then luggage pickup, and customs.  On the way to Immigration you get treated to a big escalator ride through Nintendoland.  It is a big red stairwell/escalator descent.  You get to see Mario, Princess Peach, Donkey Kong, etc., all welcoming you to Japan,.  Nice touch!

After getting all of the arrival stuff out of the way which included picking up my Japan Rail Pass, purchasing a ticket for the NEX Express Train to Tokyo Station, and getting my 15 day unlimited data SIM card, I was able to sit down on the train for the hour long ride into Tokyo.  I always arrive in the evening and never really get to see the countryside / suburban landscape as it is always dark outside.  I didn't manage to hit the Lawson before boarding the train so I depended on a few snacks I had with me for the trip.

Interior of the NEX Express with your progress on the screen above.

The trip to Tokyo Station was pretty uneventful.  I spent a bunch of time putting in the data SIMM and setting it up so I could message the folks back home.  The SIMM worked perfectly in my Iphone after I figured out it was working when I thought it wasn't.  I did worry about my foot which had an irritated ligament on the top of it.  All the walking in the airport made it hurt quite a bit.  Not a great way to start a walking holiday.

My first view of downtown Tokyo looking west out of the Yaesu side.

Tokyo Station is a pretty busy place as it is a hub for all the long distance trains and bullet trains.  I had some familiarity with the place from my previous trips to Japan and found my way out pretty easily.  I do get confused inside still, but it has gotten much easier to go between the west and east sides of the station.  You can now use your SUICA card to get into the paid fare areas (which has shops in it) and exit back out without going anywhere else.  Years ago, the turnstiles wouldn't work and you had to talk to an attendant to exit if your tried this. There are far fewer reasons to head to the North East-West passage to go from one side of the station to the other side now.  If you need a coin locker to store your luggage, there are many coin lockers in this passage that seem to fill up later than the others scattered around the main sections of the station. 

I walked the three blocks west to my hotel and checked in.  I'd definitely stay at the REMM Kyobashi hotel again.  The morning breakfast (I had it included in my discounted room) was the nicest I had on this trip, the amenities provided (try the honey tea satchets they give out) were good, the room was small, but nice, and the shower was really good.  There are many dining options nearby starting with a 7-11 store just outside the hotel.  Across the street are a luxury food department store, and on the underground level is a tourism centre, a LAWSON and a number of restaurants including a Coco Ichibanya curry house. Finally, the location is close to Tokyo Station for easy access to any place in Tokyo, and the hotel is right above Kyobashi Station on the Ginza Line (get to Shibuya on one train from here!).  The hotel is also not far from tons of underground dining in the mall at the Yaesu side of the station.  There are outlets of Sushiro conveyor belt sushi, Tenya, and many other chain and non-chain restaurants here.  Above ground, it looks like there isn't much outside the Yaesu (west) side of the station, but if you go to the underground level of Tokyo Station where all the shopping and dining is, use the central Yaesu exit to get to the underground mall and walk around to find all these restaurants.

Nice little hotel room  Rooms are often small so you need to open your luggage on the floor as there is no place to put it other than the bed.

My first bowl of tasty ramen in Tokyo this time.  First in five years!

After I settled in at the hotel, I went out to get a quick dinner at Tokyo Station Ramen Street.  I was quite tired by this time on this trip as I had been up early to get to the airport and then there is all the stress / tasks to do on arrival, and of course I worried about my foot.  I didn't do much wandering around the station as I wanted to rest my foot.

7-11 near my hotel.

I washed up and headed to bed relatively early as I was tired.  I iced my foot (yeah for ice machines) and let it rest.

You can tell it was the Christmas season from all the trees.  There are lots of Xmas decorations up in Tokyo and other places in Japan.  This was right across the street from the hotel and there is a small mall under here with the Lawson, Tourism Centre, and restaurants and it connects to Kyobashi Station.

 

Continue onto Day 2 of my trip!

The Japan Trip 2022 Posts

1. Planning My Tokyo 2022 Trip Highlights and Attractions (for Anime and Regular Tourists)
   
2. Highlights From My December 2022 Trip to Japan (with links to daily pages)
3. Day 1 - The First Night In Tokyo
4. Day 2 in Tokyo - Visiting Ikebukuro, Shinjuku, Shibuya, and Taking a Taxi 
5. Day 2 in Tokyo - Evening with Godzilla and Christmas Lights
6. Day 3 - Back to Shibuya for New Parco, Nintendo Store, Pokemon Center, Miyashita Park 
7. Day 3 -  Views From Shibuya Sky, Shopping at Tokyu Hands and Don Quijote
8. Day 4 - Nezu Shrine, Ameyoko, Ni No Kashi Candy Store, Yamashiroya Toy Store, and Ichiran Ramen in Ueno
9. Day 4 - Sensoji Shrine in Asakusa, Tokyo Midtown Christmas Illuminations, and Pokemon Store and Cafe Nihonbashi
10. Day 5 - Yokohama, Giant Gundam at Gundam Factory, Landmark Tower Shopping, Harry Potter Christmas Trees
11. Day 6 - Yokohama , Nissin Cup Noodle Museum, World Porters Mall, Landmark Tower Shopping Area
12. Day 7 - Kyoto Part 1, Kiyomizudera and Yasaka Shrine
13. Day 7 - Kyoto Part 2, Kodaiji Temple Night Illuminations and Yasaka Shrine at Night  
14. Day 8 - Travelogue - Kyoto Part 1 - To Fushimi Inari Shrine and The Mountain Summit 
15. Day 8 - Travelogue - Kyoto Part 2 - Kennin Ji Temple and Evening at Kyoto Station
16. Day 9 - Travelogue - First Visit to Nara for Deer, Pikachu Donut, Daibutsu Temple, Kasuga-Taisha, Kohfukuji Temple 
17. Day 10 - Osaka - Seeing Osaka Castle, Pokemon Center, and Dotonbori 
18. Day 11 - Seeing Himeji Castle, the Most Beautiful One in Japan, and the Umeda Sky Building
19. Day 12 - Osaka Aquarium (Whale Sharks!), Den Den Town, Shinsekai, and MOS Burger
20. Day 13 - Travelogue - Back to Tokyo - Akihabara - Shinjuku at Night
21. Day 14 - Underground to Ginza, Shopping, Ginza GoldFish Aquarium, and Tokyo Skytree
22. Day 14 - Tokyo's Underground Labyrinth 2 - Walking From Tokyo Station to Ginza
23. Day 15 - Travelogue - Museums Close Monday - Ueno Park - Narita - Flight Home

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