Miyazaki's Sky (A Dream Journey to Izu, Kamakura, and Tokyo, Japan)
This is already my fourth time in Japan, and I really get more experienced each time. This time we booked our flights half a year in advance, saving 25% compared to the same period last year. After booking the tickets, I really enjoy checking the fare for the same flights again; if the price is higher than what I originally paid, I become deeply immersed in that feeling of snagging a great deal and can't stop myself. I suddenly feel a bit twisted (〃'▽'〃)
Little Tips:
As before, you must make a solid plan before going to Japan. Besides flights, hotel prices in Japan also need to be booked well in advance. If you book at the last minute, it's not 100% guaranteed to be more expensive, but over 90% of the time it will cost more than booking early. So after finalizing our itinerary, we started looking at hotels.
Day 1) Strictly speaking, this day was spent on the road and in the air.
Day 2) I considered all possibilities: monorail connecting to JR, then bus to Izu. But considering our family of four dragging two suitcases, it wasn't convenient, so we booked a private car in advance for a day trip from Haneda Airport to Izu. That way we didn't have to worry about luggage storage or missing the JR, after all, Izu is quite far from Tokyo. Since we landed at Haneda Airport, we set off directly for Izu from there. (Haneda Airport is relatively closer to the city center compared to Narita. We usually choose to visit faraway places first, and on the last 1-2 days of the return trip, we always stay in central Tokyo to make sure we can catch the return flight easily.)
Itinerary: Omuroyama (Izu) – Cactus Park – Jogasaki Coast
Omuroyama admission: 1000 yen per adult
Cactus Zoo admission: Best price at Izu-Kogen Station, 2500 yen per ticket.
Jogasaki Coast: Free
Day 3) One-day exploration in Shinjuku
Actually, we were too tired from yesterday. I didn't want to go anywhere after waking up. After eating, we just started strolling. Since we were staying in Shinjuku, we just followed Google and went to Shinjuku Gyoen. It's a very pleasant Japanese garden. Just the right place for some oxygen, a great spot for relaxation.
After lunch, we took the train directly to the legendary SHIBUYA, eating and drinking...
Day 4) The weather wasn't particularly good today. We temporarily put aside the original plan and did another deep dive into Tokyo...
(Many attractions in Tokyo require reservations, like tower climbing and some popular museums. They all need advance booking, which is not friendly for those who change plans on a whim like us. But at least food never lets us down...)
Day 5) The night before, we checked that Mount Fuji's weather would be clear. So we got up early and went to Shinjuku Station to buy direct bus tickets to Fuji Five Lakes (Kawaguchiko). Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned—because of the bad weather the past few days, the earliest tickets available today were 12:15 PM. Considering the round trip would take over 5 hours, we canceled the Fuji trip and instead bought Shinkansen tickets to Kamakura. This impromptu decision was the right one, because Kamakura did not disappoint—the endless Pacific Ocean was so healing...
(It takes about an hour from Tokyo to Kamakura. It instantly brings you back to that summer of your youth—Slam Dunk.)
Kamakura is actually not big; you can basically finish exploring it in half a day. On the way back, we got off at Yokohama Station since it was on the way. It turned out that Yokohama is also a nice place, with fewer people compared to Tokyo. The gentle October breeze, strolling along Yokohama's streets, brought an extra sense of ease.
Day 6) As the TOP 2 of Tokyo travel guides, how could we give up Ueno Zoo? Following Google Travel to Ueno Zoo...
(Simply put in eight words: small but complete. The variety and scale of animals are not as large as our Chimelong Safari Park, but it's suitable for a short family outing.)
Day 7) Took the plane back to our lovely home.
This trip was different from what we originally envisioned. Especially when you experience some sudden changes, it makes me deeply realize that we should live in the moment and cherish everything we have...
In life, we often comfort ourselves with the phrase 'there will be plenty of time,' as if all good things will naturally come at some future moment. But in reality? Many opportunities, once missed, never come back. So don't wait, do it now! To quote Liu Zhenyun from 'One Sentence Is Ten Thousand Sentences': When fifty-year-old you flips through the photo album, the mountains and rivers of your twenties will answer for you: Why the journeys of youth outweigh ten thousand sighs of standing still.
