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/ The Avanti Group Inc/ The Avanti Group Inc - Ultimate Travel Guide Tokyo Hong Kong Malaysia: Tokyo on a budget
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ISN'T Tokyo expensive? That's always the first question each time the topic of visiting the Land Of The Rising Sun is brought up. My answer is "it used to be".
The Japanese yen dropped significantly against the ringgit last year, making Japan a lot more attractive to the traveller on an average budget.
My friend and I spent time working out a good itinerary to achieve more with the yen. In the end, I spent RM4, 000 for an 8D/7N Tokyo trip, including return flight tickets, lodgings, ground transport and meals.
Tokyo is not only a vibrant, hospitable city but its also affordable.
GRUB, CHOW, FOOD!
The number of restaurants in Tokyo is mind-boggling - about 160,000! We chose wisely through research and recommendations from friends who had lived in or travelled to Tokyo.
Sushi: Our first taste of a sushi breakfast was at the original Sushi-Zanmai in Tsukiji Market. We were almost crushed by the busy morning crowd before we joined the queue to get into the packed double-storey restaurant. Though not the best, the sushi sets were fresh and reasonably cheap. Said to be one of Tokyo's best sushi restaurants, Sushi-Zanmai gained popularity when its boss, Kiyoshi Kimura, made a record bid of Y155.4 million (RM4.97 million) for a 222kg blue fin tuna at the market auction last year.
Soba noodles: While in Japan, do as the Japanese do - eat soba noodles on New Year's Eve. We chose one restaurant in a train station. The noodles were quite a different experience from those in Malaysia. Called yamaimo soba, the noodles came with a separate serving of ground yamaimo root with raw egg and rice. The root was a yam variety that tasted like gooey potato.
Set meals: The Ootoya chain of restaurants serves freshly cooked teishoku (set meals) at affordable prices. The calorie count is stated on each set. We spotted a branch in Shinjuku while shopping. I had a teriyaki chicken salad with miso soup and brown rice, which left me feeling healthy and more than satisfied.
Traditional Japanese dinner: The Japanese-style inn we stayed at in Hakone National Park served a delectable traditional Japanese multi-course dinner (kaiseki ryori) with a multitude of courses in bite-sized portions. It was a well-balanced meal prepared with fish, meat and vegetables that were steamed, boiled, fried and grilled. It was a perfectly satisfying meal before we headed for the Japanese hot springs (onsen).
HOT SPRINGS
Sitting in natural hot springs is an old Japanese tradition of public bathing. There's a set of procedures to follow and manners to abide by - most which almost put me off my first onsen experience.
The hardest was taking off my clothes to join similarly unclothed strangers in the spa pool. However, it got easier as I took each step and by the time I slipped into the pool, I thoroughly enjoyed the experience. The waters at the hot spring were from a volcanic source at Owakudani and contained chloride and sulphate.
We stayed at Fujimein in Hakone National Park. Fujimein is a popular resort town about an hour's train ride from Tokyo.
Though it was the peak New Year season, the hotel offered a package of a night stay, a traditional multi-course dinner and the use of its hot springs spa at Y10,450. The pool in the spa faced the beautiful Mount Fuji and I had a spectacular view.
My room also faced the mountain and it was a double delight to see the mountain in both the most relaxing and intimate spots in the hotel.
CULTURE VULTURE
City culture vultures will feel at home in Tokyo. There is a long list of world-class museums and charming shrines and temples. But a visit to Tokyo won't be complete without a visit to Meiji Shrine in Shibuya.
Since it was the New Year holidays, a visit to a shrine or hatsumode was timely. We shuffled along with the crowd towards the main prayer hall and spotted a few women dressed in traditional kimono, as was customary during hatsumode.
Despite the crowd, the shrine was enveloped in an atmosphere of serenity and respect.
The New Year celebration also meant a host of free events and activities such as an exhibition at Edo Tokyo Museum, a museum of the history of Tokyo located at Sumida.
We took 11/2 hours to view the exhibits of the Edo period. Elaborate architectural displays of old Tokyo and models of shoguns, merchants and craftsmen were carefully arranged into lifelike scenes.
On the first floor of the museum, we found a colourful kabuki theatre and got caught up in a lively demonstration on various wooden mechanical dolls.
A series of free cultural performances was held at Tokyo National Museum in Taito. We caught a show put on by skilled drummers. A Japanese lion dance started later in the afternoon, followed by a master paper cutter who created pictures in a matter of minutes in front of a crowd.
Tips
Transport costs on the metro vary, depending on your route. Plan your route at www.hyperdia.com to determine whether individual tickets or a day pass is more cost-effective.
For those who can't live without being connected, rent a mobile WiFi router rental. A router is handy as free WiFi is not widely available.
Grab Time Out Tokyo as the magazine features a comprehensive listing of weekly events.