It’s good to be back, but damn, the jet lag is rough! Been to the gym twice and it feels like it’s the first time ever hahahah… Note to self: don’t skip the gym on holidays! Good to have Hunter jet lag with me, and he likes the Japanese cat treats I bought him 🙂
Anyways, here comes the rest of my Japan trip. Before heading to Kyoto I had breakfast with some people still left in town from the wedding. Not your usual eggs & bacon…
Then jumped on the bullet train that took a little bit more than 2h straight to Kyoto. Not a problem when you bring a few(?) snacks. The breakfast didn’t quite hit the spot.
Guess train rides build an appetite so I got a Wagyu burger for my dinner in Kyoto. Super tasty and it was nice to have something else besides sushi and yakiniku.
Strolled around after and checked out Nishiki Market at closing time. The market is packed with food stalls and other little stores.
Straight for coffee the next morning and starting with Goodman Roaster. Thumbs up!
Then walking in the rain and checking out what Kyoto has to offer. Everyone was on the look out for cherry blossoms. Wherever they were there were always people taking pics. Why should I be any different 😉
Then more coffee and tried Okaffe Roasting Park. Here they don’t rush to make your coffee. It was almost like an art form and there was always some latte art in the milk. Another superb coffee spot!
After a nap I headed back to Nishiki Market to eat dinner. WOW, the amount of people! It came to a total stand-still at moments. Tried some different seafoods and it was amazing!
Finished off with some sake at the room 🙂 Iit’s party-o’clock somewhere in the world, right?
Headed to the famous Fushimi Inari Taisha Shrine the next morning. I knew there would be people and I think half of Kyoto was there at 8am in the morning! Still a beautiful hike up and and lit a candle for family & friends who have passed at the top 🙂
And some things that caught my eye on the walk back…
All the fresh air, the climb, and heat made it necessary for a coffee stop and then a sugary waffle-thingy on top of that…
Walked by a place called Skål which means ‘cheers’ in Swedish. Nothing Swedish about the place. Had to go in and check to make sure. Looked like they had good food so I decided to try it. The portions were really small, and super good, so I ordered a 2nd plate. The guy that took my order and payment looked impressed 🙂
Also found Stumptown coffee at a beautiful outdoor mall, bought a new perfume after a lot of testing, impressed by the selection of kimchi and noodles at the grocery store, bought a seal-vibrator at a sex shop, ate more yakiniku saw more shrines… And bought this superb second hand kimono for $15.
I loved all the great coffee places in Kyoto. For me it was the wrong time to be there as I think it was too many tourists. It was hard to get a table at restaurants at night because everyone was fully booked. I see the charm with the small alleys and maybe I would’ve liked it more if I visited another time…
Decided to check out Hakone on the way back to Tokyo. Wow, this was my spot! This is right after getting off the train and going to my Airbnb.
I was so excited to get a bedroom with the Japanese style where you just unfold a mattress on top of these mats. I sleep better on hard surfaces so this was perfect for me. I had to google about this and supposedly it’s a better way of sleeping for your body and posture. Maybe my future bedroom 🙂
Hakone is famous for their onsens. They are bath houses with hot springs. After I checked in I went straight to one called Tenzan. Wow, it was so nice and I liked it since they had baths outdoors. You put your clothes in a locker. No swimwear needed or allowed. Then you wash yourself and visit the different pools and saunas. It was so relaxing and it only cost $10. No photos allowed from inside so got these from their website. There were more pools, but my favorite was sitting inside the cave 🙂
Starving afterwards and decided to grab food at the restaurant there. I saw there was raw horse meat on the menu and went for the safe bet ordering fish, shrimp and veggies. The shrimps were tiny little things with shell, head, and everything. The fish was tiny too, but good. Maybe not my best meal of the trip but I had some chips and cookies from 7-Eleven after hahahha…
Was supposed to head out and see The Hakone Open Air Museum the next day. While I was having coffee I discovered there were hikes in the area. Opted for a 3 hour hike instead and it was a really nice trail along Lake Ashi.
When finishing I went straight back to the same onsen as the day before. Perfect after a day out sitting in the hot water just relaxing…
I wish I would’ve had more days in Hakone. Smaller and more chill than Kyoto. Not as crowded and there were more things I would’ve wanted to check out. I would’ve done hot springs every day! One can always hope to visit again 🙂 Took the bullet train back to Tokyo while snacking on chocolate shroomies 🙂
Dropped my bags off at the hotel and headed straight to brunch with friends from the wedding… I think I visited the dessert table like 4 times 🙂
The next day I went to a micro pig cafe. They have so many different animal cafes in Tokyo with owls, hedgehogs, capybaras and snakes for example. I started wondering if Hunter would accept a micro pig as a buddy, but I think he’s happy being the only one getting attention so it’s a no 😉 But they were very cute…
A photographer wrote me on IG and asked if I wanted to shoot while in Japan. Why not? Got to put in a little bit of work while travelling 🙂 I wanted to shoot at a love hotel. Basically a hotel where couples can go and hang out, (and more), away from home as many live with their parents. They have them here in Mexico too. You book them per hour. So after cuddling with the piggies I met the photographer at Lapia Hotel and booked a room. You get free popcorn and can pick a costume to wear too. There are vending machines for lingerie and toys too. Very cool! It was a great shoot and the photographer was great. Here are a couple of behind the scenes pics and a couple of shots I put on IG. More coming 🙂
I had initially planned to go to a snake cafe after, but opted to join some friends at a Muscle Girl Bar instead. It is just what it sounds like, a bar with muscular girls. You get a protein shot when you came in and for about $30 USD you could drink as much as you wanted. The girls danced, poured shots in peoples mouths for tips, did pole tricks and pull-ups. There was a whole menu for what you could buy for tips, butt kicking, face slaps, being sandwich between 2 girls (only for girls though) etc… It was a fun experience and the girls were fun.
I was pretty beat and a bit drunk when I made it back to the hotel. Put on a face mask and my April fools joke was that I had adopted this bird I found. I actually found it while shopping for fun stuff for my shoot and thought this birdie would look good on my head 🙂
The last day in Tokyo was spent walking around and I bought some gifts. Walked by the famous Shibuya Crossing, the iconic intersection. Traffic is stopped in all directions where everyone can cross in all directions…
Coffee break and spotted some cherry blossoms…
I got an reservation at Sushi Nakamura for my last dinner in Tokyo. A friend who spends a lot of time in Tokyo and loves sushi recommended the place. It was Omikase style with sake pairing. It was definitely in the top 5 of food experiences in my life! The sushi melted in my mouth. Also the first time I tried uni, but not my favorite. There was so much food ands sake I rolled/wobbled out of there hahahaa…
Needed a boost of coffee before heading to the airport so I relented and made a cup of instant coffee, having to use the free toothbrushes the hotel offered to stir it with. Very classy…
Took the train to the airport and the flight home felt super fast since I slept most of the way 🙂
It was a great trip. I’m amazed how clean everything is. Even the public bathrooms are spotless! No smell, no paper on the floor or drops of whatever (most likely piss on the floor)… And I love the toilets that wash all your holes, fan that dries you and some even had music that you could play for privacy! Also something I’d like for my home! A picture of one of the toilets where the water was filling up from the top after flushing. Or was it for washing your hands? LOL
The train and subways was the same way. No litter or stained seats. People stand aside orderly when you exit and even if it’s crowded there’s no pushing. Maybe due to all the signs they have up…
There’s also no smoking on the streets. There are designated areas, street corners or smoke rooms at hotels and malls. There was a lady who used clothing rollers to clean up the entrance mat at the hotel…
Here comes the usual leftover pics…
Such a beautiful wedding and great to see friends I don’t get to see often. I loved Hakone and hope to explore more of Japan one day.
Hitting the gym in a bit and got Lesha coming over later to teach me some more Photoshop and Lightroom. Got a lighting class this week too and hope my sleep will be back to normal any day now!
Wish you a fantastic week!
XXX Puma
Puma Swede Blog 