We went on a visitor/tourist day trip with “VIP Japan tours today” which can be found at this link:
We met the bus at Shinjuku Post Office and it was all fairly easy, – small group, allocated seating, clear instructions, and we left exactly on time (I love you, Japan). The tour order got flipped because of traffic, so instead of finishing at Enoshima, we started there.
Enoshima Island was a beautiful first stop. It has that relaxed coastal feel, little streets you can wander, and plenty of spots to stop and take in the ocean views. The shrines are tucked into the greenery and feel unexpectedly peaceful for somewhere that apparently is so popular in peak times. And on a clear day, you can even spot Mt Fuji in the distance…sadly our day wasn’t clear.
We paid $5 AUD to use the escalators going up and walked back down the stairs. I considered it $5 well spent.
After that we headed to Kamakura and visited Hase-dera first. The gardens are gorgeous, the temple grounds have these sweeping views over Kamakura, and there is an eleven-headed Kannon statue although somehow we missed that? I was very happy to see some cherry blossoms though! Not sure how they are surviving in the middle of winter but I’ll take them.
Then we went to Kōtoku-in and the Great Buddha. You can also go inside the statue, which I didn’t expect to be so interesting…and now I can tell everyone I’ve been in Buddhas butt. It is just a quick peek, but was cool to see how they made all interlocking plates. It started to snow properly while we were at the Buddha (not that common here) so we went back to the bus a bit early and I got to feed a tiny wild squirrel that likes to hang out with the parking attendants.
Our last stop was Tsurugaoka Hachimangū Shrine, walking through the big torii gate and into a space that’s all ponds, bridges and gardens. From there we strolled down Komachi Street as well which is apparently shoulder to shoulder in tourist season (spring and summer) but was nowhere near as busy in cold/snowy type weather. I ate a Buddha cake with custard which was tasty and felt slightly sacriligeous.
I was also very happy to get a new beanie here with proper ear coverage as I’m struggling with the cold!! It was 5C and snowed today….we aren’t even officially at the snow yet and I’m freezing.
The bus dropped us back in Shinjuku around 5:30pm and this time we were on the same side as Omoide Yokocho skewer alley (memory lane). We walked up and down to check the whole alley out as it wasn’t too busy, then we settled on a small bar that still had seats at the front counter. You have to squish in tight and they cook the food in front of you! We had chicken yakatori and a beef one as well….plus delicious plum umeshu with Soda. It’s also normal to have a seat charge here (about $3 each) so don’t panic about it being a bar scam if they have one when you visit.
Steps: 16590
Japanese food: Lawson fried chicken, miso soup, rice, octopus tentacles (for B), Buddha cake, yakatori and some umeshu in Soda.
Mel's Travel Blog 