We arrived at Tokyo Haneda International Airport at around 0450h, local time (0650h AEDST) and joined the long queue through Customs. Baggage collection was a breeze, as our bags arrived (all together) just as we stepped up to the belt. We then waited for the JR Rail Office to open so we could collect our one week Japan Rail passes.
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| Arrival into Tokyo Haneda International Airport |
In the meantime, we explored the airport and discovered the magnificent aircraft observation deck, capturing some great aircraft shots just as the sun was rising.
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| The Observation Deck |
We then collected our Rail Passes and headed to the Monorail, travelling to Hamamatsucho Station, where we changed to a train to take us to Tokyo Station, where we boarded our Bullet Train.
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| Mount Fuji from the centre of Tokyo |
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| On the Monorail |
While waiting for the Bullet train we had a light snack for Breakfast, which included these awesome sandwiches, some containing Pork and others, Shrimp. We also got some Dim Sims, which came with cute little ceramic Soy Sauce containers.
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| N700 Series Shinkansen Bullet Trains. That's what I'm talking about |
Once onboard, the train headed south towards Osaka. The Bullet Train was super-smooth and obviously super-fast. Our Bullet Train was a N700 Series Shinkansen capable of speeds of up to 300kph, but usually travelling around 260-285kph.
Along the way we caught stunning images of Mount Fuji, which I have longed to see as far back as I could remember. We also saw some lovely east-coastal views along the way and I couldn’t help wondering if some of these small towns were impacted by the giant Tsunami some years back.
Along the way we caught stunning images of Mount Fuji, which I have longed to see as far back as I could remember. We also saw some lovely east-coastal views along the way and I couldn’t help wondering if some of these small towns were impacted by the giant Tsunami some years back.
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| The majestic Mount Fuji |
The remaining four of our weary travellers slept for much of the journey after our tiresome overnight flight. The journey to Osaka took a little over three hours to cover more than 500km and included some stops along the way.
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| Weary travellers |
On arrival into Osaka-Shin Station, we had time to kill before we could head to our accommodation, so we opted for lunch at Lotteria (fast food), which was the squeeziest place I have ever eaten, even more so considering we were still lugging five pretty large suitcases with us.
After lunch we spent what seemed to be an eternity trying to locate the correct exit from Osaka-Shin Station to get to our accommodation, before we realised that we had the correct exit but the wrong station. Apparently there’s ‘Osaka-Shin’ Station and then there’s just plain old ‘Osaka’ Station. 'Shin' is short for 'Shinkansen'. So it was hastily back to the Station platform and on the next train to travel one stop down the line to Osaka Station. Once there, we did a recce and finally located the apartment. We then headed back to the Station and got a bunch of shopping out of the way…already. The apartment is around a ten minute walk from the station and well-situated in the heart of Osaka, close to shops and restaurants. The apartment is also quite nice. We are here for three nights.
After lunch we spent what seemed to be an eternity trying to locate the correct exit from Osaka-Shin Station to get to our accommodation, before we realised that we had the correct exit but the wrong station. Apparently there’s ‘Osaka-Shin’ Station and then there’s just plain old ‘Osaka’ Station. 'Shin' is short for 'Shinkansen'. So it was hastily back to the Station platform and on the next train to travel one stop down the line to Osaka Station. Once there, we did a recce and finally located the apartment. We then headed back to the Station and got a bunch of shopping out of the way…already. The apartment is around a ten minute walk from the station and well-situated in the heart of Osaka, close to shops and restaurants. The apartment is also quite nice. We are here for three nights.
What a day!
Finally, here's some shots from tonight.
Finally, here's some shots from tonight.
