The trip started with a red eye flight on 30 Oct 2018, via ANA (All Nippon Airways). Realised that it was quite hard to fall asleep yet there's nothing for me to do since lights would be off soon after we took off. ANA has a night pack for passengers, which is essentially a bottle of drinking water, wet wipe and a cake.
Breakfast was served at about 5.30am. The plane was supposed to land in Tokyo by 8am. I'd choose the local breakfast, which was essentially porridge with salmon flakes and cold somen. As usual, there'd be cut fruits and yoghurt.
breakfast on ANA
Was worried of having cold noodles in the morning as that might wreak havoc in my sensitive tummy but it was unfounded. In fact, the cold noodles were refreshing!
cold somen for breakfast
おはよ
Then, the plane touched down at Narita. Felt good to be back in Japan, though at times, still felt a little awkward but I could navigate my way with the help of Google Map and Translation. Hahaa! Of course, I'm those type that needed to research like 100 times, and at the end, may decide not to proceed. =P
arrival
The necessary accommodations have been booked prior to arrival and typically, I used Agoda for that purpose. Flight is usually bought direct from the carrier. Got myself the Japan Rail Pass Ordinary 7D Pass for SGD342 at that time but will only activate it when I'm going from Tokyo to Nagoya.
So first things first, I needed to get to Kinshicho which is a new area that I have not stayed before. Took a normal train out of the airport and direct to Kinshicho.
no one
Stayed at Sotetsu Fresa Inn chain at Kinshicho, booked via Agoda for SGD146 (after 5% discount) for 2 nights from 31 Oct till 2 Nov 2018. This hotel is about 5 minutes walk from Kinshicho Station.
Sotetsu Fresa Inn Kinshicho
shrine next to the hotel
hotel lobby
welcome coffee - self service
bath salt for the ladies
My room was at the 14th floor, and of city view.
searching for my room
Sotetsu Fresa Inn - Double Bed 12 m²
view from room
compact bathroom with a tub
Kose handwash
bath things
Bathroom was well equipped and the only thing that I was apprehensive about, is actually the shower curtain. Being alone in the room makes on imagine things and being behind a curtain, probably exerbated that fear by a bit. However, practically the shower curtain was a necessity to keep the water from splashing out to the floor.
work desk (and bath salts from downstairs)
things kept neatly
my morning things
when in Japan, drink tea
small table to snack on bed
Enough of the room, so I went around exploring the area. There's a Family Mart like next door to the hotel, so that was utmost convenient to get breakfast and whatever nots, when the hunger strikes,
feels like autumn
let's get some lunch
fried chicken? Yes please!
Famichiki~
juicy and hot
I didn't know it then, but the right etiquette was to purchase food that's on-the-go, and have it outside of the shop (unless they have on-site seats). So, there I was... standing outside of the convenience store by its side, and enjoying my hot chic. Hahaa!
Satisfied after having that snack, went walking around the neighbourhood to scout for other food shops. Hehe.
first time seeing a 'box' car (the driver waved at me since I was looking at his vehicle with much interest)
ramen shops seemed popular here
so retro
western food
And, I was happy to see Tokyo Skytree from where I was.
I see you, Tokyo Skytree
stopping to see other interesting things
looks walkable
looking at the flowers along the way
Pretty awesome to be looking at such an amazing structure.
Tokyo Skytree
Night view at the same location.
Dinner that night was a simple meal of oden, bought from Family Mart next door.
The actual location would be somewhere near Fukakusa Ichinotsubocho. It is about 6 minutes walk from the Fushimi Inari Station. Main reason of choosing Airbnb was really because the hotel rooms were all so costly during autumn period. We stayed 5 nights in Kyoto and this Airbnb location was really ideal as it is relatively close to the station, plenty of food option nearby plus it was just 10 to 12 mins walk to the Fushimi Inari Shrine.
It wasn't easy to find this place as it was nestled within the residential area. Luckily, the homeowners made a Youtube video that made it possible to look out for the landmarks (practically need to look out for lamp posts!) Had to loop the video a couple of times to memorise though but it works ;)
Autumn weather means it gets cold when the sunsets around 5pm and by 8pm, the temperature dipped to less than 15 degrees celcius.
Fushimi Inari Station
The homeowner left enough instructions via messaging service so we knew how to retrieve the house key without having to meet up. So cool. The house was nice and one would walk into the living/dining room area along with a small kitchenette. There's a sliding door that separated the dining area and the washing area. There was a washing machine cum dryer in there that we appreciated and used well throughout our stay. This was because as we discovered that the washing area would be icily cold at night and it was impossible for the towels and clothes to dry. So the dryer was really handy!
It was quite cool to see a real kotatsu in the dining area. Unfortunately, it wasn't working so we couldn't warm our legs via that. There was a separate heater though so that was always turned on when we're downstairs in the evenings/mornings.
living/dining area
kitchenette
living/dining area - open the sliding door to the bathing area
bathing area
washing machine cum dryer
The toilet was tiny even for Asians. There was just enough room to manouvre in to sit/stand and do your business. The knee would just be probably one inch away from touching the door.
Upstairs was where the sleeping area was. Though listed as one bedroom, there really isn't any door that separates the sleeping area.
careful on the stairs
decorations upstairs
bedroom (his sleeping quarter)
Since I was travelling with a guy friend, I chose to sleep on the sofa bed instead.
across the bedroom - sofa bed area (my sleeping quarter)
my small cosy hideout with TV (but it didn't have any reception on bad weather days)
my sofabed
The food choices around this area included Kendonya and Ramen Hiwamatanoburo both of which I'd recommend. There's also a Chinese restaurant besides these but we didn't try that. There's a Lawson convenience store in case you'd like to get some oden or instant noodles. My breakfast is usually cakes from Lawson since we'd be up early to go sightseeing and the ramen shops don't usually open till 10am.
matcha baumkuchen from Lawson - breakfast
Here are some scenaries near Fushimi Inari Shrine:
walking towards the shrine, passing by a canal
the path towards the shrine - full of tourist
shops along the way
nearing the Shrine
伏見稲荷大社
The Fushimi Inari is the patron for businesses and is traditionally worshipped by businessmen and merchants.
Since we were staying nearby, we also dropped by Fushimi Inari Shrine during the night.
Fushimi Inari - at night
This was my first experience with Airbnb. Booking was a breeze and selection of the right accommodation was made within one or two nights of virtual discussion with my friend. The photos helped and we did read through the reviews before deciding on one that we thought was suitable for our travel plans. Our main criteria was a safe area, near train station, comfortable place (entire accommodation) and price.
The Kyoto Airbnb that we booked was owned by Shinichi and Yuka. Here's the link to their listing in Airbnb. The response that came upon a successful booking was within the same day. All necessary information pertaining on house rules, how to get there, map etc was shared within the same day.
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