We’re back in Tokyo! Which means we’re nearing the end of our Japanese adventure that we’ve been on for the last two weeks or so. Let me just say, this is not enough time to explore Japan (or even scratch the surface), there are so many places I still want to visit here and it’s definitely on my list to return too as a country. We managed to explore five different areas of Japan which were all really cool and I definitely have some favourite spots which I’ve fallen in love with. However, I came just as a last minute detour on my travels around South East Asia and what I got to see in the time I had was truly incredible.

We didn’t do too much when we was in Tokyo at the beginning, just a few bits to introduce us to the city, so this time round, we had three days to fit in as much as possible. It was a busy schedule ahead! Sunday morning came and I had loads lined up that I wanted to do and see. First stop was Kabukichō Central Road to see the Godzilla Head on top of one of the buildings. It was proper cool, just really random but also wicked to see. The Godzilla head is a life size model and is about 12 metres high! It is from the movie ‘Godzilla v Mothra’ and a real touristy highlight to visit whilst in town. We snapped some pics of that and the surrounding areas too as every single street here looks super quirky and is definitely photo worthy, before heading off to stop number two of the day!

We headed on the train to one of the other districts of Tokyo as next up was Tokyo Bay, which is just stunning and provides a panaromic view of the skyscrapers all around. It was beautifully sunny whilst we were there so it made for awesome viewing. We walked the skyview bridge to catch a glimpse of Odaiba Statue of Liberty, which again was super cool. Having been to the one in New York too, this one is smaller, but as with the one in the states, has great views around it and was really nice to look at. We managed to get a more upclose full view of it too as it’s a bit smaller, which meant seeing all the features properly.

I found it really fascinating to learn how it came to be here, and found out that it was originally placed here temporarily as a tribute to Japan’s relationship with France, but it become really popular so was made a permanent feature a few years later. What’s most interesting about the Odaiba Statue of Liberty is that she is not the only one in Japan, she also has sisters in Shimoda and Osaka too!

Whilst here we also caught a glimpse of Rainbow Bridge again, we saw it briefly on our bus tour around Tokyo when we were here at the beginning but it was cool to see it again, in daylight this time round. At night it lights up which is proper awesome, but in the daytime you could see some of how the roads all link around and inbetween eachother (it’s quite mental really). Stopped for a late lunch and when headed back out to the bay rady for the next stop, saw the sunset over the skyline which was just incredible. I love a sunset and this was another one to add to the highlights.

Next stop in Tokyo Bay area was teamLab. There are two teamLab’s in Tokyo, Planets and Borderless, I managed to get a ticket to teamLab Planets which was just out of this world. I had heard so much about it but also discovered that usually tickets sell out weeks in advance so I felt super lucky to be able to snag a last minute ticket for the next day! I don’t even know where to begin with describing how much I loved this. It was insane, and every sense was touched in some kind of way through the exhibitions that were here.

TeamLab Planet’s is an interactive art exhibition. You walk through the whole experience barefoot (which is just insane too) and there is different senses which to interact with throughout, including waterfalls and rooms filled with water where you can get wet up to about your knees, which different projections which is incredible, as well as live flowers and moss, lots of different light interactions, bumpy and bouncy walkthroughs, as well as opportunities to lie-down and just look up at what is happening. I enjoyed the whole experience and it really did give me a chance to escape the hustle and bustle of Tokyo for a few hours.

From here I got the train up to Ginza to walk around at night which was really cool. I swung by a few shops, including the flagslip Uniqlo store which had twelve floors! I don’t know why I tempt myself by going to the shops, as with Osaka, I could have bought so much but because I just have a backpack, I have zero space and a lot of countries still to get through, so it was mainly window shopping! Definitely another reason to come back with an empty suitcase though.

Day two in Tokyo and first up was a quick trip to the post office (a surprise pending!) and navigating how to send international post was easier than I thought it would be, as well as significantly cheaper than what it would cost in England! On from here I headed to Asakusa & Senso-Ji Temple. A really famous temple in Tokyo, and one of the oldest. It was incredible to see, but I found the whole area really overstimulating, there were lots of incense sticks and there was smoke, lots of people, big crowds and loud noises. As much as it was lovely to see and experience, I was very excited to leave too. I took some snaps and explored some different parts before heading off to my main activity of the day.

I did a Mario Kart adventure around the streets of Tokyo, which was out of this world. On arrival we got to pick out a costume to wear if we wanted to, I opted not to, and just chucked a baseball top on, and regretted my decision as I was cold for the whole experience compared to others wearing their onesies! Following costume picking, we had a quick safety briefing and demo on how to use the go-karts, and by now I was getting slightly worried! I’ve driven on the roads in a few different countries via various modes of transport, quad bikes, mopeds, scooters, etc. but go-karts seemed the scariest. Very low to the ground and very small compared to other vehicles, and very busy roads!

The whole experience was incredible though, loads of people were stopping to take photos and videos and wave to us as we were driving through the streets of Tokyo, and we had over two hours of driving around exploring, taking pictures and making stops at some really cool areas! I covered way more of what I wanted to see and definitely would not have seen as much as I did if I tried to explore on foot. Hands down one of the best things. I was umming on if I wanted to do it for the whole time we were here and didn’t book until last minute as I had a ‘you’re never gonna get the chance to do this again’ moment. I’m so glad I did though. Amazing and once in a lifetime experience.

After Mario Karting I headed to Shinjuku and met up with the others for some drinks and we headed to a British Pub first off before making our way to Golden Gai. A village where there are lots of micro pubs and bars all contained within about six streets. There are said to be over 300 in the tiny area! Definitely worth checking out. We grabbed some dinner too which was nice, headed to a cool little restaurant which had lush food.

Tokyo at night is insane, it genuinely reminds me of Time Square in New York but on steroids, because every street is lit up like a Christmas Tree, and its endless, there is so much to explore. We stopped by Godzilla Road again to see it all lit up which was really cool to see. Lots of pinch me moments happening at the minute.

Final day in Tokyo but we had time for some last minute exploring as we didn’t need to be at the airport until around 5pm as we had an evening flight. After checking out, we headed to Meiji Jingo, did some last minute scanning to see if there was anything that we wanted to buy (not that my backpack has *any* room in it at all) and grabbed some food. We headed to a really nice restaurant to have Omu Rice, which was amazing! Headed back to our hostel and grabbed our backpacks before beginning our journey back to Narita Airport for the next stop.

Japan over! I still cannot believe that this is the life I get to live each day and that I’ve been gone for seven whole weeks already. It feels mental. Next country is super exciting and also a bucket list one, we’re heading to Seoul, South Korea for a few days! See you there, Mads x