Chasing Sakura Day 3 - Sensoji Temple / Nakamise-dori

Assalamualaikum. Konnichiwa.

Destinasi hari ketiga adalah sekitar Tokyo. It's impossible lah kan untuk cover the whole Tokyo in a day. So kita buat mana yang termampu dek kaki & selama mana masa mengizinkan. Ndak mau rakus sangat; semua tempat mau diterjah. In the end, satu hapa pun ndak enjoy. Rushing adalah tiring. Jalan santai², kan kunun misi adalah chasing sakura. 

Sometimes the concept of "been there, done that" needs to be put aside. Well, for me that is. Tapi tipulah kan kalau aku ndak pernah adhere to that concept. Especially when time is so limited for me to explore & observe. As I said, ada masa perlu abaikan juga konsep tu. Hayati apa yang ada depan mata. 

Back to story about my trip. This time akan try to minimize penceritaan panjang lebar. Suddenly penyakit M-to-scribble came visiting. Aku story-telling based on pictures jak lah kunun. Sila percaya aku ndak kan menceceh benda ndak penting. 

6 April 2014

Sakura Asakusa Hostel, Tokyo

Day 3. Breakfast. Paling best dapat melepas rindu sama cheese cake Ms H. Berbulan ku rindukan! As usual, ada breakfast orang lain mensebok. Kena cakap, nanti orang ingat aku mentekedarah awal pagi. Motif mengelak.

After breakfast, while tunggu yang lain siap aku berjalan pi Lawson. 3 minutes from the hostel jak. Untuk kirim postcard kununnya. Stamp boleh beli terus dari sana. And postbox pun ada diorang sediakan depan kaunter. Senang kerja aku. 

Postbox comel. We found this in front of the Hanayashiki Amusement Park. A children theme park opposite the hostel we stayed at. Tapi sebab masa tu still awal. theme park belum buka. Tengok entrance berpagar jaklah.

Smoking is strictly prohibited in the temple area. Hence they provides one smoking spot just outside the temple. Sila lepaskan segala asap anda di sini. 

Sensoji Temple, Tokyo

Alhamdulillah weather adalah sangat bekerjasama haritu. Bright sunny day. Tapi ada masa angin tetap sejuk menampar pipi. 

Melayan blues sendiri. Suddenly mood mau buat pose breakaway muncul membuak. So buat deal sama Ms P. 
"Kau amik gambar aku posing poyo, aku amik gambar ko poyo gak. Pastu muntah bersama²."

Selalu nampak orang pigi sini mesti upload this colourful bananas. Hence aku pun mau juga. Masa ni ada someone yang sembelit gila & memang pasang misi cari pisang. Sekali nampak pisang ni, terus cancel misi. Takut sembelit naik level paling bentingal a.k.a degil pula. Mau tanya either Makcik tu jual pisang semata, macam segan. Ended up, snap gambar jak lah. Quite creative a way of selling banana I shall say. Benda comel macam ni serah jak sama dorang. Memang jadi jak kalau dorang.

Sensoji Temple's main hall. 

"Built nearby the Sumida River for the goddess of Mercy; Kannon. It was completed in 645 making it the oldest temple in Tokyo."

The place was already crowded with so many people when we arrived. It was Sunday for God sake Bie. Haruslah ramai orang. Ada yang datang untuk sembahyang & ada datang melawat.  

Hozo-mon (Treasure-House Gate). The inner of two large entrances of the temple. History has it that this gate was built by a military commander whose prayer to become the Lord of Musashi province (now Tokyo) was fulfilled. 

Exiting the gate, we finally arrived at this infamous street. Senyum lebar ahli lain. Masa melabur Yen untuk souvenir & whatnots.

Nakamise-dori, Tokyo

Beautifully blooming sakura lining one side of the street. Sumpah cantik kelopak² sakura tu berterbangan bila ditiup angin ah.

Can't get enough of this view.

Jalan cuci mata. Despite the ocean of people, we managed to stopped by at few of the shops. To see the method of producing Japanese snacks. Rupa macam kuih baulu pun ada.

So many snacks to choose. Boleh buat souvenir as well. But macam biasalah, price ain't cheap. Bertabah beli, dalam hati remind diri banyak kali "Choose, pay & walk away. Never convert the currency."

Tapi haruslah kepala ndak cooperate sama hati. Tetaplah laju aktiviti mengira dalam kepala. Nasiblah bukan selalu datang, jadi pejam mata jak bila membayar. 

Range of goods sold at the shops along the street. Kalau ada barang untuk meow kan best. Boleh shopping rare stuffs for the children at home. 

Banyak benda boleh pilih untuk jadi souvenir. Tinggal mau beli or ndak jak. And cukup duit ka ndak. Sob. I bought few fridge magnets here. Harga sini lebih kurang jak semua. Ahli lain memborong shot glass/fridge magnet/key chain at this one shop right behind Kaminarimon Gate. Diorang lah yang gigih buat price comparison at every shops they stopped by. So when they told me "Sini murah" I immediately took things I've planned to buy...bayar...and terus keluar dari kedai. Malas aku bersesak dalam tu. Pun satu cara untuk avoid aku dari menambah belian. 

While tunggu yang lain invest duit, aku cuci mata tengok orang berlimpasan. Luckily they didn't spent much time at the shop. So aku pun ndak lah tunggu lama. 

The big lantern at Kaminarimon (Thunder Gate). Outer gate of Sensoji Temple; also symbol of Asakusa. 

A dragon etched under the lantern.

A construction is currently undergoing near the gate. Jadinya aku malas mau snap full picture of the famous gate. Instead the sign at the construction site caught my attention. Comel!

Next destination is to meet the loyal dog in Shibuya. Apart from the world's famous crossing; main reason I so wanted to go there is because of that dog. Statue pun statue lah. 

Airmata duyung mengalir non stop ok masa tengok cerita tu. Ntah berapa kali aku ulang tengok, tetaplah emo level eterniti. Pasal tu gigih mau juga jumpa anjing setia tu. Dapat statue pun jadi.

Next destination punya cerita aku continue entry lain. Pictures below taken malam tu. Saja mau tunjuk macamana rupa Nakamise & Sensoji di kala malam. Sunyi sepi. Time ni mau berphotoshoot-ing pun best. Confirm ndak da photobomb.

Laluan kami every night selama bermalam di Tokyo.

Erk ada juga lah yang sempat enter frame di belakang tu kan...

Lawa lanterns ni di kala malam. Aku ada snap gambar waktu siang tapi hmmm hasil ke laut. So ndak payah lah tempek sini.

Same case with the lanterns. Gambar waktu siang adalah ke laut. Inilah five-tiered pagoda yang famous di Asakusa. 

Last shot before masuk kamera dalam beg...sumbat tangan dalam poket jaket...and jalan super laju balik hostel. 

Apahal ntah angin malam sungguh rajin menampar muka aku. Ndak dapat cuci mata tengok surrounding tau. View kiri kanan on the way pigi hostel tu sikit punya klasik. Lawa. Time malam lagi feeling² macam balik zaman Edo tau. Erm, bila masa pula kan pernah hidup zaman tu sampai boleh tau the feeling. 

eryantierdabdulkarim

Chasing Sakura Day 2 - Disney Store, Aqua City / Tokyo Trick Art Museum, The Decks

Assalamualaikum. Konnichiwa.

Just got back from an impromptu trip to Brunei! Although it is located few hours away from Kota Kinabalu, that was my first time visiting the country. Boo hoo! 

And I was ecstatic when Bunda told me that I have to accompany one of the worker to Brunei...to get her working visa & passport stamped. 

Fact that I have to enter Brunei via Labuan FT made me even more excited! Labuan is much closer to KK compare to Brunei. BUT I have never visited that island either! So yeah, killing two birds with one stone. Sambil 'iring' pekerja, sambil cuci mata makan angin. 

Cerita pasal Labuan & Brunei aku akan update nanti. For now, I am totally out of mood to bring up stories about that short trip. Still worn out after what happened there. Drama sangat pun. Actually nothing bad happened just experience aku tu macam ndak berapa manis for first timer. Gitu. 

Cut the story short, lets continue with my Japan trip. Bertangguh² ni nanti ada bangas juga ceritanya. Bangas is basi by the way. Ngeks. 

As I wrote in my previous post, we took the Yurikamome Line to Odaiba. Ni rupa seatings dalam train. Silap aku ndak pilih the first car. Kalau ndak, dapat view railways tu. Ish kenapalah selalu lupa info penting. Fyi, Suica/Icoca Card can be used for this line.

Else, boleh nampak view macam ni. Picture(s) from inside the train would have turned out better. Less reflection. Ndak apa, sila bersyukur Bie.
Picture credit to en.japantravel.com

We alighted at Daiba-kaihinkoen Station. And jalan kaki towards Aqua City via the promenade that runs along Nikko Hotel. 

That's the head office of Fuji Television Building; the landmark of Odaiba. The building will be lit by colourful lights at night. Said to be fully earthquake proof. There are 10 studios inside the building & it is open to visitor. More info about the studio tour, please refer here. 

Sakura! After lepas gian posing sana, posing sini barulah kami masuk Aqua City ni. Actually, kelam kelibut masuk sebab suddenly angin penampar datang. Sejuk gila.

Tujuan masuk Aqua City ni untuk purchase ticket to Disneyland Tokyo. 

Kalau ikut planning aku, Disneyland ni memang confirm ndak kan masuk list place-to-go. Tapi aku ni ndak lah kejam sangat *ehem* so masa draft itinerary, aku siap² tanya if there's somewhere yang diorang teringin mau pigi. And third fifth of us wanted to go to Disneyland. Aku pun start mencari info about this place. How to go here, where to buy the ticket etc etc. Paling penting, when is the perfect time to go! Crucial!

Basic lah kan when it comes to theme park, haruslah weekend dielak seboleh mungkin. Kami sampai Tokyo on Friday night...so I suggested that we go on Monday. The last day we're in Tokyo before we departed to our next destination on Tuesday. 

Bab ni semua pun "Ikutlah kau lah Bie. Janji sampai Disneyland."

Tips: The best way to avoid the crowd at the ticket booth is to purchase the ticket beforehand. 

Dapat info ticket tu boleh beli di Disney Store. Any branch of the store in Japan. Aku plan untuk lepak Odaiba on our first night in Tokyo...jadinya alang² di sana, aku carilah store paling dekat. Luckily, there is one Disney Store in Odaiba. Located inside the Aqua City Mall, Level 3. Latest ticket price for adult is ¥6,400 but they haven't change this in their website. Increase in price is due to the 8% of tax inclusion in Japan. 

A picture with the cashier lady. Cute gila budak ni. Biasa salesgirl or promoter ni Jepang ni suka bercakap ala² suara macam dalam kartun tu ah. Yang suara kecil, macam disengau²kan. Nasib kawaii. 

Quoting Ms P "Dah kenapa suara semua terpenyek ni. Aku pula yang rasa sakit hidung."

Settled beli tiket, we moved to our next destination; Tokyo Trick Art Museum. Masa ni jugalah si Err tunjuk bingai buat kesekian kalinya. In my itinerary, I clearly wrote that this museum is located on the 4F. But I forgot to write the exact locations. There are so many malls in Odaiba for God sake!

And I assumed this museum is located in Aqua City. Padahal before tu sudah baca dua blogs yang mention its location. B to the Ngai tahap level paling eterniti! Kami ronda Aqua City dari tingkat atas, then turun, then naik. Pastu singgah 1 bookstore...upon hearing the word 'museum', laju dia keluarkan map & tanda which floor we should go. Kami pun ikut lah arahan. Kena keluar from Aqua City, pastu ikut dari entrance bawah, naik to 6F. Berputar map yang dibagi tu kami pusing. 

Sekali sampai memang banyak deretan muzium. Tapiiiiiii!!? Semua pun bukan Trick Art yang kami cari. Sob sob sob!! Sabar jak manusia² sekalian ni yang mengikut langkah aku time ni.

Tapi aku ndak mau give up lagi. Sudah alang² sampai, biar kasi jadi planning yang sudah dibuat. Gitu! Semangat aku cari. Nasiblah ada sewa pocket wifi, so aku pun gigih buka balik blog yang aku baca tu. Tapi kenapa dalam kalut cari tu ndak pun terlintas di kepala kau untuk buka blog tu ah Bie?! Kenapa perlu terbuka hati untuk search after berkeliling, berkeluaran & bermasukan mall? Pffft!

The DECKS Tokyo Beach. To its right is Aqua City. This mall also house the Madame Tussauds Museum. Picture credit to yahoo.image

Turned out, Tokyo Trick Art Museum is actually located inside The DECKS. On the 4F, Island Mall. 

From the entrance facing the lake, we took the escalator to 4F. And crossed the 'street' above to get to the Island Mall. 

Alhamdulillah. Berkat keazaman ndak mau give up...akhirnya jumpa. Ticket price is ¥900 (adult). 

This was my second time entering museum of the same concept. My first time was at Trick Eye Museum in Hongik, Seoul. Aku saja suggest tempat ni, kunun kasi feeling 3D gitu. Padahal di iCity, Shah Alam pun ada. But before tu, aku sudah tanya yang lain mau masuk ka ndak. I don't mind if they disapproved my idea because this museum is just an option to kill time. Didn't expect they will agree with my suggestion.

Masuk tempat gini, marilah kita start bermain dengan imaginasi.

Gedik sama Mr Skeleton pun jadilah. Bak kata Che' Ta, janji bukan laki orang. Gitu kan tiba mau quote dia.

Ms P told me, this kinda place suits me best. Almaklum dulu ndak lulus kan jadi pelakon, banyak betul cabang & cabaran. So, masuk tempat macam ni haruslah lepas gian. Tunjuk segala macam reaksi muka. 

But I've made a promise to myself that this would be my last trick eye museum visit. Lepas ni fokus tempat lain pula kalau jalan mana². Cukuplah masuk trick art museum sampai dua kali. 

Kami keluar dari muzium few minutes before it closed. Exit doors at the DECKS tu pun sudah banyak tutup. Terpaksa ambil jalan jauh untuk keluar dari bangunan tu. Tapi heran bin ajaib, we managed to go out from the building without getting lost. Padahal masa masuk tu sikit punya sakit kepala mau faham each level. 

Odaiba Rainbow Bridge. From here, nampaklah the city of Tokyo yang bergemerlapan di waktu malam. Angin pun masa ni belum ganas sangat bertiup. Kasi chance kali kami menikmati keindahan Odaiba.

Boleh jak berjalan pi tempat orang tu semua berdiri untuk dapat clearer picture of the 'Statue of Liberty'...tapi malas. Datang jauh², tiba² malas? Penyakit kan. 

Aku mau cari gundam besar tu...tapi macam ndak sempat mau melilau cari lagi. Padahal one of the main reason datang Odaiba is to take picture with the gundam. Haruslah cuci mata jak tengok gambar orang di yahoo.image. Sob lagi banyak kali.

Picture credit to kanpai-japan.com

According to my initial plan, after Odaiba is Shibuya Crossing. Tapi tengok jam, macam sudah lewat. But it's Friday night so I assumed mesti lagi ramai orang di sana. Sekali aku tengok ahli lain, muka masing² macam penat gila. Almaklum seharian mengukur jalan. Or was it penat naik turun platform untuk tukar train. Therefore, after Odaiba I called the night off. 

Moh ler kita naik train & balik hostel. Esok boleh start ukur jalan balik lepas recharged. Sampai hostel, sempat juga kami lepak di lobby. Dinner secara berjemaah. Lepas tu semua naik bilik, zzZZZz. Aku? Suddenly datang rajin mendobi di tengah malam. Sekian! 

Tamat kisah hari kedua di bumi Jepang!

eryantierdabdulkarim