The 23 days that I spent in Japan was absolutely amazing; one that I will always remember for years to come. I got back into Toronto about 2 weeks ago, and slowly working on my blog posts about my vacation. I started my itinerary about one month prior to my trip and I am happy to say that I managed to complete at least 85% of the things that were on the list.

I was talking to a few friends of mine who are interested in going to the Japan in the future, and they wanted to see my itinerary and planning. So I have decided to post up a small guide for anyone who is interested as well, and hope that it will somewhat help in their planning (coming soon)!!

Tues, Dec 10, 2013 (Day #1)

My boyfriend and I landed at Narita International Airport (NRT) on December 10, 2013 around 3:30 pm. Going through customs and baggage claim didn't take as long as I thought; about 30 minutes or so. However, we were both exhausted from our 13.5 hour flight, and was pretty much starving. So we decided to go to the food court located on the 5th floor of the airport with a fellow passenger whom we were seated next to on the plane.

Since we were in Japan and will be eating a lot of Japanese food in the days to come. I decided to order some pad thai at a place called Jai Thai located on the 5th floor (terminal 1). The shrimp pad thai was ¥1000 and the glass bottle of coke was ¥250. The noodles were decent except that the pad thai dish wasn't spicy at all, even though there was a pepper sign beside the item on the menu.


We finished our meal and went upstairs to catch the complimentary shuttle bus to our hotel, Mercure Narita Hotel. We quickly checked into the hotel, took a shower, and then went straight to bed due to our exhaustive state.

Wed, Dec 11, 2013 (Day #2)

Bayashi Ramen (lunch)

I was really surprised that I didn't suffer from jet lag after we landed as I was able to wake up at 10 am the next morning.

So anyways, we woke up around 10 am and got ready to explore the downtown area of Narita. The first thing that was on my list to explore was the shopping street, Omotesando. Luckily, it was only a 5-10 minutes walk from our hotel. We started walking towards it when we came across a small ramen shop called Bayashi Ramen.


The menu had a small selection of ramen, fried rice dishes, appetizers, and drinks, and all are reasonably priced too. Their customers consist of both locals and tourists, so I was very glad that they were able to provide an English menu.

I ordered fried rice with chicken and small salad (¥800) and a side order of deep-fried gyoza (¥420). I really enjoyed the fried rice but some pieces of the gyoza were slightly burnt on the bottom. Overall, it was a very filling meal and a good way to start the day.

red chili pepper soup noodle topped with sliced pork (¥980)

Address: 533-9, Hanazakicho, Narita city
Hours: 11:00 am to 8:30 pm
Transit: A 5-10 minutes walk from Keisei Narita Station
Payments: Cash only.

Omotesando

The Omotesando is a pathway between JR Narita Station and Naritasan Shinshoji Temple. It is a shopping street full of vendors and restaurants, and they normally open until 5:00 pm. We went into the nearest souvenir shop, and bought a couple of things for family and friends. Most of the key chains and charms were on par with the prices found at Narita Airport which were between ¥350 to ¥600 each item.

The mascot for the city of Narita is an airplane crossed with an eel named Unari-kun. His name is inspired by both the Narita International Airport and Unagi (grilled eel) which is a local food here. There are several souvenirs available with the mascot imprinted on them.

Compared to the Omotesando that I have visited in other cities; I found this one to be rather quiet. We explored the area around mid morning to afternoon so I am assuming that people were working or attending school; hence why the area wasn't crowded at all. Tokyo wasn't like that this at all; it was crazy packed at all hours of the day and night, but I'll blog more about that later on.

Naritasan Shinshō-ji Temple

 Naritasan Shinshō-ji Temple is a large Buddhist temple founded in the mid-10th century and dedicated to Fudomyo-o. It is located a short walk from the Omotesando street in Narita, Japan. The temple grounds are free to explore, and it was a spectacular view to me. I was amazed at the structural design of the three-storied pagoda. If you happen to be in Narita, and have some free time, then this is a great temple to check out. 

Address: 1 Narita, Narita-shi, Chiba
Hours: 24/7
Fee: Free 
Transit: It is 15 a minute walk from JR Narita Station or Keiseinarita Station.

 The Sōmon entrance at the front of Naritasan Shinshō-ji Temple.

 Naritasan Shinshō-ji Temple (Great Main Hall).

Three-storied pagoda.

Shotoku Taishi Hall.

AEON Narita Shopping Center

Aeon Mall is a large shopping mall located in the heart of Narita; it boasts over 160 shops. If you want to drop by the mall from the airport, there are direct shuttle buses that takes you straight to Aeon Mall.

Address: 24, Wing Tsuchiya, Narita, Chiba. 286-0029, Japan
Hours: 9 am to 10 pm
Transit: Take the train to Keisei Narita Station, and go outside to board a pink colored Aeon Mall bus that depart every 10-2 minutes. The ride costs ¥200 per person.

Saizeriya

Since we were already at the Aeon Narita Mall; we decided to stop by Saizeriya for dinner, and then head back to the hotel to rest. Saizeriya is a chain Italian restaurant with multiple locations throughout Japan. They specialize in providing Italian cuisine for the family. The prices are amazing for its value and the food was really good for a chain restaurant. I was very surprised that they had a separate non-smoking and smoking areas, as there is no smoking indoors allowed in Canada. This turned out to be a very common thing in Japan, and smoking in restaurants is more than acceptable.