We were in Narita to run some errands. Not the airport that everyone associates with “Narita,” but the actual city where the airport got its name. Specifically, we were at Narita City, near Narita Station. We thought to ourselves—we pass this station so many times whenever we go to Narita Airport, and now that we’re…
Category: travel
Date Night in Manila Before Returning to Tokyo
For the last day of our recent trip to the Philippines, we opted to stay at a hotel near the airport so we could conveniently take a Grab car to catch our flight back to Tokyo the following day. However, since there weren’t many hotels near NAIA Terminal 1, we ended up choosing a hotel…
Gyukatsu Ichi Ni San: Seven Years Later in Tourist-Filled Akihabara
I had a day off work, so I decided to visit Akihabara. I was still on the lookout for a new TV, so I figured I might as well head to the epicenter of Japan’s otaku culture to check out some of Tokyo’s biggest electronics shops. I used to frequent the place, too, so it…
A Day to Myself: Yoshinoya, BicCamera, and Takanawa Gateway
The other day, my wife attended a full-day kyudo event, so I had the day to myself. I could either stay home and do nothing or go outside and be a little more productive. I had to admit, the former option was very tempting, but I had a dentist appointment at 2 PM, so I…
Katsuretsu Yotsuya Takeda: A Birthday Lunch Worth the Wait
Katsuretsu Yotsuya Takeda is one of our favorite restaurants in Tokyo, so when deciding where to go for my birthday lunch, this was an easy choice. The restaurant opens at 11:00 AM, so we planned to arrive a bit early to ensure we were among the first in line. Since it was a weekday, we…
Shogatsu this Year: A Day Trip to Southern Chiba
Shogatsu this year was particularly good since the holiday started on Tuesday, December 31st, and lasted all the way to Sunday, January 5th. Some companies, like my wife’s, even had December 30th off, giving them a full week of holiday. For us, we decided to stay home, do some household chores, and take it easy….
Discovering a Great Tempura Spot in Musashi-Koyama
The other day, I visited Musashi Koyama shopping street, in Shinagawa Ward of Tokyo. This is a long covered shopping street with many restaurants, shops, and cafes, and is maybe one of my favorite shopping streets in Tokyo. It kind of reminds me of the big shopping streets of Osaka, but at least for this…
Exploring Togoshi: Tokyo’s hidden gem of parks, temples, and cozy shopping
Today, we explored Togoshi, a neighborhood that Tokyoites from nearby areas love for its cozy homes and charming shopping street. Surprisingly, even though it’s popular, many long-time Tokyo residents from other parts of the city don’t know about it. We started our small Togoshi adventure at Togoshi Park and then wandered into the nearby Bunko-no-Mori…
Rediscovering Kameido: Tennis, Curry, and Change
Had a tennis event today at Kameido Central Park. I had played here before, but it might have been the first time in a few years. I used to frequent this neighborhood because I was enrolled in a tennis school near Kameido Station called Top Indoor Tennis School Kameido. Much to my surprise, the area…
Six Days in Kobe
We usually plan our vacation in September, primarily to avoid Japan’s August summer vacation period when families with kids are traveling, and secondly to escape the peak summer heat. Prices tend to drop after August, while temperatures remain high. However, in recent years, summer has been extending into late September, so next year we might…
Rainy Kamakura Weekend
In June, we made an early reservation for a beachside pension house for one September weekend. We were hoping we’d be able to enjoy the last few days of summer getting a tan, and staying in a room overlooking the beach. That reservation was for this weekend, and lo and behold, it’s scheduled to rain…
Getting Refund from Viator
“Thing don’t always go as planned. Once we accept this, we become better in dealing with this thing called life.” Enrico Pangan We are heavy users of Viator, and have used it intensively in recent overseas trips. On average, we reserve three tours every trip, and schedule tours every other day. This makes sure we…
Enrico in Tokyo 