It's been a year since we went to Japan and now only I'm posting this. The reason why I have been holding back is because the draft has always been sitting in my post, waiting for my hands to seek comfort over it. Here I am today, 4:14AM, unable to fall asleep as my brain fill with thoughts and list of things that I could do.
I have never really thought of going to Japan given that it is on the high end in terms of traveling but somehow, when there is an opportunity, you just jumped at it. A call and that was it. "Nak ke pergi Japan, Eunice?" "Berapa?" "Tak berapa mahal pon. Around RM500 je return" "Okay! Cun!"
And airplane tickets were bought. This was bought way before Covid hits hence, when we went to Japan, it was a mix feelings, decisions were made with risk put on the table.
Malaysia --> Japan
We left Malaysia around 11:45PM on 2nd of March 2020, packed with Dettol spray, Febreze, tons of face mask and hand sanitizer. News reported that Japan were quite high at that time but we decided to just go along since the locations were not exactly close to us at that moment. I remembered, face mask was on the rise and it was always gone before we could get it. I had to drive an hour to get it from a lady who worked at a pharmacy, now don't ask me how she got the goods. I just get it and head home.
After 8 hours journey, we finally touched down in Fukuoka city, a beautiful place I must say. A city that sits on the Northern shore of Japan's Kyushu Island, well known for its ancient temples, and ruins of Castle. The moment you step out, the cold air greets you, waking you up from Malaysia weather.
Once you get to the International Terminal, there's free shuttle bus that takes you to the domestic terminal before you reach the Subway Station. Take the Kuko Line for Meinohama or Chikuzenmmaebaru and you would reach the city in a bit. As expected, their train line is perfecto! I love how simple things are and how easy it was to go around the country, although it could be a bit pricey but with proper planning, you should be able to buy tickets from Malaysia before heading there, which is way cheaper than buying directly in Japan.
The Subway Map
The Subway Ticket
First Meal in Japan
After that breakfast, we head along for some walk and we found some temples along the way and whichever is open, we will try to sneak in to take a quick look or some pictures before running off again. Since Covid was on the rise then, most of the tourist area has been shut down so we were lucky to find some temples to visit.
To be honest, I don't remember which temples was which picture but I do know we visited the following temples:
// Jotenji Temple - 5 minutes walk from Gion Subway Station
// Tochoji Temple - Also walking distance
// Shofukuji Temple - A temple dedicated to cats apparently.
// Kushida Shrine - A shrine dedicated to the Sun Godesss and the God of Sea and Storms.
Tochoji Temple
The weather was good, tons of people were having their mask on and it felt safe walking around so, although we still freak out when we got back to our AirBnB but we still went along, touching things here and there. Diba, our friend had to run along for her own trip so before we said goodbye in Japan, we took a couple more pictures for safe keeping in case anything did happened. #jk
Team picture before we parted ways
We initially wanted to have our lunch in a popular Ramen place in Canal City but decided to be spontaneous and head over to a small but crowded shop instead. The food was good. I can't remember the name but boy - noodles with flavour that you will never be able to taste in Malaysia.
After lunch, the 3 musketeers then head over to our first AirBnB, which is a tiny apartment which has a room upstairs, a room downstairs (but more of an open basement) and one shared bathroom. We got lost along the way and ended up in some weird, sex lane but the uncles and aunties (looks like mamasan and papasan) there were super nice and taught us the right road to the AirBnB instead.
We were supposed to head out to the park but we were too tired so ended up sleeping off the evening. Of course we had to wake up for food so we went out again to try out Yatai, tiny shops that open around 6PM onwards and the food varies at each stall. It's super tiny and only about 6-8 people can sit in one stall and you get to see the chef cook or prepare the meal in front of you. Typical dishes are grilled chicken skewers, oden, and ramen and each district will have their own unique taste. Of course, alcohol are available which makes it great since you are out sitting in the cold with a plastic cover protecting your back.
Interesting fact about Yatai : Only regular customer sits at the left end seat so if you are new, wait for the host to guide you in.
Our first Yatai experience
Noodles, grilled meat - yumyum
Look at our happy faces =D
Given that the meals are shared and in small portions, we head over for more food and we arrived at another Yatai shop which specialized in Tonkotsu Ramen, which is pretty popular in Fukuoka. We also had more food and even managed to try out the Plum Wine which is apparently quite popular in Japan.
Ahh - food~
The last stop was a bar, and if you have me, bar would definitely be in the agenda so we head over to Kumorebi Japanese bar, where the setting of the bar is like a secret hideaway for working adults. The moment we step into the warm bar, a lovely lady approach us and took our jackets and hang it up. She lead us to the bar counter where it could fit up to 10 perhaps. There is a fridge behind the bar which stores tons of sake and I felt like a child in a candy shop as there were so many flavors that I would love to try. Once you make a choice of drink, the lady will gracefully (Yes, you read right. They remind me of geishas' who used to host and entertain in the old days) poured out your drink using her fingers. I don't know how to explain but they way they did it was beautiful, like an art, similar to pouring of tea.
Picture of the 3 musketeers, slightly high on sake and the phone was shitty hence the quality of this picture. Sigh.
The night ended with us visiting 7-Eleven and get more snacks and chocolates. I think we even had ice cream but I don't find the pictures in my hard drive. It was a lovely day and it felt just nice as we doze off on our soft beds (The boys slept on futon).
End of Day One
First time being in Japan brings out an emotion that make me wanna return again for its culture and food. I did not realized how much I enjoy eating Japanese food till I tasted the real thing and yes, I won't be able to taste the exact same thing here but it was a good experience.
Stay tune for Day Two where we haunt down more food and even visit a Castle!
xoxo,
eunicegm
still not sleepy and it's already 5:07AM
*sigh*
2 comments
Its been 2 years i didnt fly to Japan :(
ReplyDeleteI miss it ! miss the environment, miss the smell , miss the sound of the train's announcement !!
me too! i miss the food so bad! the pickles and the snacks around. and of course their 7-11!
DeleteBe nice. Any weird comments will go down the spam drain.
Receiving happy vibes!