Tsurugaoka Hatimangu / Kamakura Kanagawa

Get there:

Take JR Yokosuka Line from Downtown Tokyo such a Tokyo Station. It takes approximately 56 minutes to get to Kamakura(鎌倉) Station from Tokyo Station.

From Kamakura Station,

Go straight until the end of the street and then turn left. You are ont the WakamkiyaOji Street.

You will be arrive at this entrance gate which called Torii in ten minutes.

You need to take a walk more five minute to get to Tsurugaoka-Hatimangu from Torii.

Tsurugaoka Hatimangu

Fortunetelling

Casks of Japanese rice wine as celebration

Go back to WakamiyaOji Street and just go down the street for more than 20 minute. you could go to the beach.
According to the information on the net, there's a public bus services from Tsurugaoka Hatimangu to the Yuigahama beach. but the bus running only Saturday and Sunday. Moreover, the bus running only once an hour until the afternoon.

From Hatimangu(八幡宮）to Yuigahama(由比ヶ浜)
9:45
10:25
11:05
11:45
12:25
Every Saturday and Sunday

How do you get to the bus stop?
From entrance gate which called Torii. you can see the traffic light. Take left side of pedestrian way for 100 meters. you can find a bus stop when you went through the Hotel Ajisai.

If you were not ablet to catch a bus, Don't worry about that. you can take a walk for twenty minutes to get to the beach. On your way to the beach, you can enjoy browsing some shops.

Patagonia stores which sells outdoor equipment.

Look around local organic vegitables and some unique shops at this Market place.

On your way to the beach, you feel the nice smell from Kua-Aina which serves tasty Hawaiian burgers.

Yuigahama beach.

<< PREVIOUS | NEXT >>

Kenchoji / Kamakura Kanagawa

Get there:

Take JR Yokosuka Line from Downtown Tokyo such a Tokyo Station. It takes approximately 47 minutes to get to Kita-Kamakura(北鎌倉) Station from Tokyo Station.

From Kita-Kamakura Station, Take this way along the railway track about ten minutes.

And take left at railway crossing, take a narrow pavement for ten to fifteen minutes.

You will find a Kenchoji Temple(建長寺).

You need to pay admission fee for 300 yen at the booth.

 

<< PREVIOUS | NEXT >>

Conveyor Belt Sushi Restaurant

Everytime I went to over sea, I stunned what a expensive its prices at Conveyor Belt Sushi Restaurant. You came all the way up here in Japan, I recommend you come to Conveyor Belt Sushi Restaurant which offers reasonable prices.
Hamazushi, which are very popular among local people are Conveyor Belt Sushi Restaurant Chain. I think it will be confused you how to order a meal that let me explain how to order a meal like a local people. You are not new comer in Japan anymore.

These plates are 100yen for per plate on Saturday, Sunday and National Holidays. If you visit there on Weekdays, you are luckey, these plates are 90yen for per plate.

100yen

100yen

100yen

Visiting Hamazushi:

1.
When you enter the Hamazushi, Take a ticket from the machine to get a number. Wait until your number is called then follow the staff to your table. Be careful that if you didn't show up when the staff called your number, you are skipped and call for the next party.
Hamazushi are so popular that you must keep waiting for around of thirty minute. I have a tip for you that if you visit there before 5pm, you might avoid to being crowd of people those who waiting for the table.

2.
When you have seated, 1.Take a cup/ 2.Pour hot water from the tap/ 3.Add instant green tea on the hot water/. Green tea ain't charge for you. so You don't have to order any drinks anymore.

3.
You can order from the touch screen, English menu are available. If you have any question, press the green button which surrounded red frame. Staff will come to your table and ask for your question. I guess they don't speak Japanese though.

4.

Let me explain how to pick up a plate showing some pictures below. You may pick a plate which surrounded blue frame but gold colored plates which surrounded  green frame are bit expensive, these are 150yen each. A plate which surrounded purple frame, You can not pick up the plates which on the blue stands are the dishes which someone ordered unless you placed the order.

5.
When you are able to hear an announcement and sounds from a touch screen, your meal what you ordered will coming soon. You can pick it up a plates on the blue stand. If you forgot to pick up a plate, it won't charge you. You can order again if you want.

6.
When you finished your meal, press the yellow button which surrounded red frame. a staff will come to your table.

7.
A staff counts the pile of plate and establish your bill. You bring the bill and pay at the register.

...
See also more information:
https://gurunavi.com/en/japanfoodie/2016/02/hamazushi.html?__ngt__=TT0c98cb2fe001ac1e4a0c18fVGfboAgS4CEiD-MzjtU1w

<< PREVIOUS | NEXT >>

Surf & Snow at the same time

Sand skiing:
Touji Sand Skiing Area, Shimoda Shizuoka is a nature made dune that slide of 70 meters long with 30 degrees steep angle and its width has 100 meters.

Get there:
Take the Odoriko Super express Train from Tokyo Station which directly take you to Izukyu-Shimoda Station. It takes approximately less than 3 hours. Then get on the bus from bus terminal in front of the train station. you can wait for the bus at No.2. However, the drawback of this plan, the bus running only once a day at 3:45 pm. It's gonna be struggle to get to Sand skiing Area as long as you have got the rent a car.

The best scenario:
You are taking a trip to Kisami Ohama Beach that is beautiful nature around with amazing blue ocean and white dune that is well known for westeners those who lives in Tokyo and you are staying at the accomodation there.
You are having fun to take a relax at the beach, tried to Surfing and take a hot spring and so on.
You are very active person, but you want to enjoy something aside from water activities. Why don't you ask for a manager at the hotel where you stay that you want to try Sand Skiing and ask for that "I wonder if you pick me up to Sand Skiing Area and want to borrow snow sledges if possible." I guess a manager would be happy to accept your offer because from Kisami Ohama Beach to Touji Sand Skiing Area is very close.

Tip:
I tried Snowboarding at there that was a good experience to me. However its feeling like a dump snow and going down 70 meters long is not good enough to me. Maybe you should better choose Snow sledges than Snowboard because when you sit on the Snow sledges, you feels its speed which is more exciting than Snowboarding because your face is more closer to the dune.

NEXT >>

All-You-Can-Eat Pizza at Shakey's



When you went to eat out here in Japan, I think you wouldn't satisfied your appetite for its small amount of meal. Why don't you look for a restaurants which serves buffet and get full until you can't eat another bite with reasonable price? 

Shakey's, Although I hardly found out in the States is the American chain of restaurants which serves All-You-Can-Eat Pizza. You can have a meal with reasonable price especially at lunch time.

Find Locations:

↓↓
http://shakeys.jp/store/

Each locations has its own price and service hours.
Shibuya offers the cheaper price for Lunch Buffet than any other location.

Location/Shibuya
Day/Monday - Friday
Time/11:00am - 4:30pm
Fee/930 yen

How to order:
1.When you get into the restaurant, the staff ask you that how many person and       take your order. then you say "Viking" that mean Buffet in Japanese language.
2.Pay first for lunch fee.
3.The staff show you to the seat or if the staff ain't show you to the seat, you can     have a seat anywhere you want.
4.Go to the kitchen counter and take food.
5.Go back to the table and enjoy your meal

Pizza

Included Chili beans, Nachos, Cream soup, spaghetti, fried potato and curry

Included Salad

Refill free

<< PREVIOUS | NEXT >>

Suicide Train

Were you being late because of train accident? It must be make you feel a bit tired and stressed you out that you were not able to arrive your destination on time. I think someone tried to commit a suicide to clash into the train. The train that I use often causes resulting such a kind of accident that oblige me stuck for a while. It's happen quite oftern here in Tokyo.

Although everybody try to rush into the alternative transportation, I don't recommend it. The train which you try to get would've be over crowded.

Basically I don't take the chance and stay on the train, have a seated, take relax and fritter away the hour with texting buddy or collecting update information about accident for searching twitter. The train will be running again in fifty minutes. No matter you gonna be struggle to get another train which incredibly crowded at last and arrive at your destination, the time between plan A and B are not much different.

The most important thing you do are inform your situation that you had a train accident that someone tried to commit a suicide into the train that why you can not get there on time ASAP. Your partner feels that you are so poor in a harsh and extreme situation in sympathy. Definitely your partner understand about the thing.

<< PREVIOUS | NEXT >>

Tokyoite

When you arrive at Tokyo, Maybe you notice that people around you looks distant behavior.
Even though you met somebody's eyes, you ignored, no greeting. And never say the words even if someone bumped against you in the crowd. In Tokyo, we have no custom to strike up a conversation with stranger that makes our things not going as well as you thought.  Not only the westerners takes it stressful about that but also the Tokyoite like me feels stressful too.

I already accustomed the American way of life that I just hated those who acted like that.
When I was younger, I wanted to make them change such a socially awkward behavior that why I tried to strike up a conversation with stranger in public in order to change the Tokyoite. Unfortunately,  I couldn't make it because many people regards me as a kind of suspicious character. Eventually I closed my mind.

People in Osaka which is the second biggest city in the western part of Japan are not conservative unlike people in Tokyo. They are very friendly even if they don't know each other and has sense of humor. They always thinking make someone laugh when they make a conversation. It's an amazing culture! If you visit to Osaka, definitely you would feel comfortable at there. Although Tokyo and Osaka both city are in the same country, apparently the culture between Tokyo and Osaka are different.

However, maybe we are socially awkward as a first impression, but the people who looks conservative are actually very friendly when they open up their mind, we positively help someone those who needs help and we are very polite to others. I think that because we are being proud of descendants of Samurai warriors.

<< PREVIOUS | NEXT >>

How to order typical Japanese fast food

As for typical Japanese fast food, I definitely think it's a "Tachigui Soba" which serves standing up eating noodle that you can find out everywhere in the train stations.

Usually the Businessmen who are in a hurry eat at there in order to finish the meal quickly and make it cheaper. I guess you have never seen those kind of shops in your country that why you'd hesitate to go into there. However those meals are cheap and healthy.

During the period of your stay in Japan, I want you to eat at Tachigui Soba onece in a while.

Vending machine

How to order a meal:

1.Buy Meal ticket at Vending machine. ※1

2.Give a ticket to the staff in the kitchen counter.

3.The staff ask you that which do you like Soba or Udon?
   You can chose one of those. ※2

4.Wait for a meal at near the staff.

5.A meal would be served in a minute.
   You should better ask for a spoon to sipping broth.

6.Enjoy your meal.
   Add some red pepper on it to taste.

※1
Let me explain some of them：

Kake soba / かけそば:
Buckwheat noodles in broth with sliced scallion.

Tanuki soba / たぬきそば:

Buckwheat noodles in broth with grains of deep fried batter.

Kitsune soba / きつねそば:

Buckwheat noodles in broth with orange colored looks like paper thin made of soy beans, its taste very sweet.

Wakame soba / わかめそば:

Buckwheat noodles in broth with seaweed.

Kakiage soba / かき揚げそば:

Buckwheat noodles in broth with deep fried vegetables batter.

※2

Soba:
Brown colored buckwheat thin noodles which contain a lots of vitamin B and dietary fibers. Having effect on improving blood stream that enable to beauty skin.

Udon:
White colored thick wheat flour noodles which contain carbohydrate has effect on bring energy and absorb nutrition quickly.

In eastern part of Japan like Tokyo, Soba is more popular than Udon. However Udon is much more popular than Soba in western part of Japan like Osaka and Kyoto. Its broth made from benito in eastern Japan, in contrast its broth made from seaweed with lighter taste.
...
I've heard that Lady Gaga often dropped by Tachigui soba during her stay in Japan. She said that her favorite one is Kakiage soba. American celebrity likes Japanese fastfood may sounds interesting to me.

Plastic food samples

<< PREVIOUS | NEXT >>