Ashley's Travelogue 2014 - Japan

My super late post after 6 months....

Tokyo + Niseko 2014 My first trip in 2014 was a visit a country which I never thought of going before. As a Korean wannabe, going Japan was not top on my mind. But what changed my mind was a beautiful advertisement on Suiboku that I had come across in a magazine one day. I must say that the photographer who shot for the ad did a brilliant job. I told my friends that I would only join them for their Japan vacation if they agreed to stay in Suiboku in Niseko. Surprisingly Maggie, Adeline and Louise said Yes. And so we embarked on a 9 day Tokyo + Niseko trip. Accommodation in Tokyo: Dai Ichi – Tokyo Dates in Tokyo: 01.02.2014 – 04.02.2014 Currency: 1 SGD approximately 80 Yen (In Jan 2014) I am going to load you with mega tons of photos with no caption as I have forgotten what did we excatly did.



Day 1

Tokyo Day 2

Tokyo Day 3

Accommodation in Niseko: Suiboku Dates in Niseko: 04.02.2014 – 09.02.2014 Price: SGD 9,200 for 5 nights

My activities for Day 1 : eating breakfast, watching Korean dramas, lunch, nap, dinner.

My activities for Day 2 : eating breakfast, watching Korean dramas, lunch, nap, dinner, supper. After Kamimura, Louise was feeling sleepy so Maggie accompanied her back to the loft while Adeline and I continued to drink and be merry! Our first stop was a Japanese place where they offered BBQ lamb. I ordered Calpis sour (Yen 450) which I loved so much that I had to go back and “da bao” again the following day. After 1 drink we proceeded to Ice Bar for more. I saw “Pink Angel” (Yen 1,000) on the menu and ordered it thinking that it was going to be a girlie drink. But alas, I was wrong! The drink was a mixture of 3 different types of alcohol and it definitely wasn’t girlie at all. At Ice Bar we made 2 new friends who brought us to a little Japanese restaurant for supper. The whole night ended at about 2.30am.

 Day 4 : Rise and shine! The weather was awesome that day. The sun was out and it had stopped snowing so Adeline and I decided to walk around the Niseko Village.

 Day 5 : We checked out early in the morning at 9am and headed to the Sapporo Snow Fair. This year marks the 65th year for the Snow Fair festival. The Snow Fair festival is a free entrance carnival with 2 rows of food and souvenir stalls and of course ice cravings along the way. But as the weather was too cold, we left after only spending about 2 hours there. We went on to do more indoor shopping at Daimaru and had our tea break there as well.

The domestic flight from New Chitose to Haneda was delayed but we were so blessed that we managed to make it in time for our connecting flight from Haneda to Singapore. Kudos to all the very helpful ANA ground staff at the airport. This trip has definitely changed my views on Japan. But it isn’t that I’ve fallen in love with the people or the traditions. I just absolutely love all the Japanese food!! All the extra calories and extra pounds that I’ve put on while feasting in Japan were totally worth it. My only regret is not having more draft beers! Now all I can say is, Japan, I will be back! =)