Melbourne time

Hello, こんにちは Kon'nichiwa

Well hello, Kon'nichiwa, or should I say こんにちは.....

This blog is about my trip to Japan later on this year. The countdown has begun, today is Easter Sunday, 27 March, I fly to Japan in 70 days, 5 hours and 10 minutes! I know three words in Japanese - hello, thank you and goodbye. I don't drink beer and I don't like raw fish. But I love meeting people, seeing new places, culture and history. I will only pass this way but once and I feel the need to try and see as much as I can in as little time as I have. .
Cheers. 乾杯

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Wednesday 13 April 2016

15. I've got a little list

Thinking about how I have to get my skates on and make a final decision about which accommodation I'm going to choose, I started to write a poem in my head to the tune of "I've Got a Little List" from The Mikado! I didn't get very far, only the first verse but it's enough or at least a start for you to see the tempo. With the video clip underneath it makes for a bit of light entertainment and good all round fun.

BTW, for those dreadfully un-edumacated folks who don't know one end of an operetta from another, the Mikado is set in Japan (very appropriate) Nanki-Poo, the son of the Mikado (a rich dude, the local big-wig with pots of money and power) flees his old man's court cos he doesn't want to marry Katisha - an old bat old enough to be his grandmother! He dresses up as a minstrel and falls in love with the new kid on the block Yum-Yum who he reckons is a bit of alright and who he 's got the hots for.


As some day it may happen that accommodation must be found,
I've got a little list - I've got a little list
Of guesthouses and hotels in the cities I'm around
And they may have been missed - they may have been missed.

I've got 'em on the list--I've got 'em on the list;
And they'll none of 'em be missed--they'll none of 'em be missed.
Because I've made a little list!





Today's quote: I'm really very sorry for you all, but it's an unjust world, and virtue is triumphant only in theatrical performances ~ W.S. Gilbert, The Mikado

14. Tokyo accommodation to get sorted

I really need to make a decision on where I will stay in Tokyo. The first place I booked was a hostel, but my finances have changed and I can optimistically look at staying in a hotel. Still need to budget though and not splash out as if money grows on trees.Yes well, the first place I looked at was a hostel in Shinjuku and someone said Shinjuku is a good area for transport, it's a transport hub, you can go anywhere from there. And my JR Pass will still be valid, so if I get the JR train from Shinjuku (Yamonote line) I can use that to get on and off and travel around seeing Shibuya, Harajuku (for grannies?) Ueno. It can also be used to do a Yanaka walk by getting off at Ueno, following the walking map and getting back on the Yamonote train line at Nippori.

I also think I would like staying in Asakusa but I cannot use my JR Pass there so would have to be buying metro or subway tickets. I had thought to spend the first day in Tokyo, the second day out of the city on a day trip, and my last full day in Tokyo. Another thing to take into account is the distance from hotel to train station. As I'll have a nearly checkout this needs to be factored in. Staying in Shinjuku, I would have to leave earlier than if I stayed in Asakusa and of all the hotels, only the Dormy Inn EXPRESS Asakusa does breakfast from 6:30am. This of course should not be a reason to choose this hotel, there are other, cheaper hotels.

Shinjuku

East of station
Imano Tokyo Hostel 6 bed female dorm $179 - ( 11/12 mins 900 m)
Tokyu Stay Shinjuku - $562 - (7 mins 550m)
Toyoko Inn Tokyo Shinjuku Kabuki-cho (RED Light district) $398 breakfast (13/14 mins 1.1km)

West of station
Nishitetsu Inn Shinjuku $471 - (11 min 950m)
Kadoya Hotel - $577 - (6 mins 500m) nice colours


Shibuya
Tokyu Stay Shibuya Shin-Minamiguchi includes breakfast, microwave, washing machine - $567 (8 mins 650m)
Shibuya Granbell Hotel - $596


Asakusa
Richmond Hotel Asakusa $493 (9 min 750m)
B:CONTE Asakusa $534 (7 mins 700m)
Red Planet Asakusa Tokyo Single Room with View $544 (8 min 650m) **

Via Inn Asakusa $376 (7 mins 600m)

Asakusa Central Hotel Ladies floor $405 (5 mins 400 m)
Dormy Inn EXPRESS Asakusa breakfast included Double room station side view $561 (2 mins 190m)

I've since done some more editing, cancelled some, kept some and have four left in Shinjuku, one in Shibuya and six in Asakusa. The easiest way to check their locations is from the maps I did. The red X'x show the hotels I selected. I am leaning towards Shinjuku rather than Asakusa.

Shinjuku



Asakusa