Sunday, April 12 & Monday, April 13 – transit from Chiang Mai to Tokyo

My journey to Japan begins with a flight at 7:30 tonight. Check-out from the apartment was at noon, and I was able to store my bag with the security team there, so following that I made my way down to the (air-conditioned) mall to have one final meal of potstickers and a smoothie. And then I just hung out there, doing some reading and getting a little work done until I went back to the apartment complex, grabbed my bag, and hopped in a cab to the airport (200 THB = 6 USD).

I booked my trip with Cathay Pacific, but the first leg from Chiang Mai to Hong Kong was operated by their low-cost subsidiary, Hong Kong Express. It was only a 2 1/2 hour flight though, and I had a window seat in the exit row. No problem! The plane was an A320 (3×3 seating), and it was full.

Travel Note: When I checked my bag for the flight, the Hong Kong Express agent didn’t ask me whether I had an onward or return ticket out of Japan.

I had a 2 hour layover in Hong Kong, with the Cathay Pacific flight scheduled to depart at 1:20am (Hong Kong is one hour ahead of Chiang Mai). However, we ended up being delayed by 2 hours due to a mechanical issue with the plane. I wasn’t too bothered; I’d now be arriving in Tokyo at 9am instead of 7am. No worries.

(Tokyo is 1 hour ahead of Hong Kong, 2 hours ahead of Chiang Mai, and 14 hours ahead of Madison)

And I have to say that I’m actually impressed by that 2 hour delay, because it was achieved while switching our flight to a different plane! That meant all of the luggage, cargo, catering, etc. had to be moved from one plane to another. In under 2 hours. In the middle of the night. Well done Hong Kong ground crew!

I had a window seat on an A330 with 2x4x2 seating. And the 4 hour flight was full. I started watching the movie Song Sung Blue, but ended up dozing off about halfway through it. I liked the part I was awake for though; I’ll have to go back and finish it at some point! (probably just start over…)

Sidenote: My cheap self likes overnight flights (and train rides); no hotel to pay for!

The cost the trip was 598 USD. A little pricey, but part of that is down to my lack of advanced planning. And, as I talked about previously regarding some other flights, I could have saved a couple hundred bucks by going with a low-cost carrier for the entire itinerary from Chiang Mai to Tokyo, but declined. (My cheapness has its limits!)

Travel Note: I took advantage of an option that Japan now provides for international visitors, allowing them to complete their embarkation form online in advance of arrival, rather than having to fill it out by hand upon arrival (or during the flight). Once the information is submitted, a QR code is provided to the traveler which can then be scanned when meeting with the immigration agent. Slick! (Considering it’s been 9 years since my last trip to Japan, I’m not sure how new this service really is!)

Sign at Narita Airport.

Upon arrival at Narita, I had a few transportation options to choose from that would get me to Tokyo Station, which is close to where my hotel is located. I ended up going by bus; not the fastest, but the cheapest! The 90 minute ride cost 1,500 JPY (9.50 USD). And I even slept a little on the way!

My ride from the airport. There were only a dozen of us onboard.

My hotel is a 15 minute walk from Tokyo Station. I couldn’t check in until 3pm, but I went there anyway to drop off my bag.

I chose to be near Tokyo Station because I’ll be departing from there tomorrow, traveling north by train. So, after dropping off my bag, I made my way back to the station to become reacquainted with its internal maze of corridors!

I also wanted to pick up my tickets for tomorrow’s trip. Yes, that’s plural; I’ll explain shortly.

In Japan, train bookings for Shinkansen (bullet trains) and Limited Express trains generally follow a “one-month rule,” meaning if you want to travel on April 15, bookings open at 10:00 AM on March 15. I have four such trips coming up, and I utilized that window to book each segment.

I used the JR (Japan Railways) East website to purchase my tickets. Once the purchase was complete, I received an email from JR East with a QR code. I would then use that code to pick up my tickets at the train station, either via a ticket office or kiosk.

Today I stopped by one of the ticket offices within Tokyo Station to collect my tickets for tomorrow’s trip.

And here are the tickets (plural) that I referred to earlier. To ride the Shinkansen, both a basic fare ticket (top) + a super (limited) express train reserved seat ticket (bottom) are required.

Following my Tokyo Station errand, I still had time to kill before I could check in at the hotel. I took advantage and did some roaming around the area…

The iconic Tokyo Station

The station opened in 1914, and was badly damaged during the bombing of Tokyo on May 25, 1945, but soon resumed service. The Tōkaidō Shinkansen, the world’s first dedicated high-speed rail system, opened between the station and Osaka in 1964. It is the busiest station in Japan in terms of scheduled trains, with more than 4,000 arrivals and departures daily.

Fun Fact: In terms of passenger throughput, Tokyo Station is the 7th busiest in Japan, and 9th busiest in the world. The world #1 is Tokyo’s Shinjuku with more than 1.1 billion passengers per year! The world’s top 15 busiest stations are all either in Japan or India. Paris Gare du Nord breaks the trend at #16. London Waterloo is #38, and the busiest station in the U.S., New York Penn Station, is #94 (107 million passengers per year, 1/10th of Shinjuku). Think about that if you ever complain about how busy the train stations are in New York City!

Just a couple blocks from the station are the Imperial Palace grounds. This is a view of the Palace moat and guard tower.

I’m continuing my walk around the circumference of the Palace grounds.

This is an end view of the Palace Side Building. This large white cylinder isn’t just for show – it houses the building’s elevators, emergency stairs, and restrooms. This design was revolutionary when it was built in 1966, as it moved the “guts” of the building to the outside to leave the office floors completely open and unobstructed. (There’s an identical cylinder at the other end of the building)

This is Inui-mon Gate. This is as close as I could get…

…it is one of the gates used to enter the Imperial Palace. Authorized Personnel Only!

I’ve missed peak cherry blossom (sakura) time in Tokyo, but there are still a few blooms on display.

Approaching Soto Sakurada-mon Gate.

Originally built in the mid-17th century, the gate was damaged in a 1923 earthquake and subsequently restored.

I’ve now diverted away from my palace grounds circular walk, and over to Kita-no-maru Park.

The Flute Player (clever name!)

She’s rich!

This is a statue of Prince Kitashirakawa Yoshihisa (1847–1895). He is primarily remembered as the first member of the Japanese Imperial family to die outside of Japan in modern times. He passed away in 1895 while leading troops during the Japanese invasion of Taiwan.

Adjacent to the park is The Nippon Budokan, often shortened to simply the Budokan. It was originally built for the inaugural Olympic judo competition of the 1964 Summer Olympics.

While its primary purpose is to host martial arts contests, the arena has gained additional fame as one of the world’s most outstanding musical performance venues. A number of famous acts have played at the Budokan. The Beatles were the first rock group to play there, in a series of five concerts, each lasting 30 minutes, from June 30 to July 2, 1966. ABBA ended their last tour and held their final live performance there in March 1980. The album recorded here that sticks in my brain from high school is Cheap Trick at Budokan.

It’s now around 4:30pm and my sleep-deprived self is about ready to collapse! Time to check-in at the hotel. (ended up walking 23k steps today!)

Tosei Hotel Cocone Kanda

My tiny Tokyo hotel room! 122 USD for the night.

Travel Note: It’s about 25 degrees cooler here than in Chiang Mai, with a high in the low 70s. A nice change!

1 USD = 159 Japanese Yen (JPY). The ratio was 1/100 when I lived here in 2011. At 60% difference! Great for U.S. tourists.

My Spectrum Mobile Plan has worked like a champ throughout the trip, providing me with a strong signal and free international data and voice coverage at every stop.

Tuesday, April 14 – transit from Tokyo to Aomori City

My train doesn’t depart until noon, so no need to rush this morning.

Today’s 3 hour, 11 minute ride on the Shinkansen train offers 3 class levels:

• Ordinary: Provides 2×3 seating
• Green: Seats have more leg and elbow room with seats 2×2 across (+38 USD from ordinary)
• Gran: Features reclining leather cradle seats arranged 2×1 across the car width, with food and drink service from a personal steward. Also included is access to the View Gold Lounge at Tokyo Station. (+44 USD from Green)

Which would you choose? I threw my usual cheapness to the wind and went with Gran!

The Gran class ticket allows for access to the View Gold Lounge beginning 90 minutes prior to departure. That’s perfect! Check out time at the hotel was 10am. My train departs at 11:56am. Fifteen minute walk from the hotel to the station. Enter the lounge at 10:26am!

Entrance to the View Gold Lounge

I have to admit, I was expecting a little more from the View Gold Lounge, but that’s okay!

I had some nice tea and biscuits.

I left the lounge about 30 minutes before departure, just to make sure I had enough time to find my way to the correct track!

Looking for my train on the board…

And here we go!

(Impressed that I was able to figure out where to go, while deciphering the Japanese? Don’t be! The displays throughout the station rotated between Japanese and English. I just thought photographing the Japanese versions would be more interesting! And deceptive!)

The Hayabusa Shinkansen Train

Nice!

Seat 4A

A bottle of Sake and a bento box meal.

Left to right…

• Fukushima beef Hamburg steak; Rapeseed buds wrapped in tofu skin
• Fukushima-style fried potato mochi in shiso miso; Sardines simmered in soy sauce and sprinkled with bonito flakes
• Amazake manju tempura with savory Fukushima miso; Ostrich fern lightly sprinkled in soy sauce
• Thick fried tofu simmered in tuna flake broth; Sweet seasoned egg yolk with shrimp; Tohoku-style shiso miso roll

As we approached our final destination, Shin-Aomori, we were served a dessert.

This was a fun trip! I’m happy I splurged for the Gran Class. Just a couple disappointments:

• When I’ve previously traveled on high velocity trains, the speed would be displayed inside the car. Not so this time. (Gemini informs me that the top speed reached on this route is 320 km/h (200 mph).)
• The view along the route was mostly industrial, and in parts it was obscured by noise barriers.

There were only three of us who made the entire trip from Tokyo to Aomori City. About six others came and went throughout. The cost of the trip was 159 USD.

I arrived at the Shin-Aomori Station, but my final destination is Aomori Station, which is one stop away via a local train.

Travel Note: For public transportation in Japan, a prepaid Suica/PASMO card can be used to tap and go for the train turnstiles or bus boarding. This was in place 15 years ago when I lived here. Well, now there is a digital version. I have added the card to my iPhone wallet, and funded it with a credit card that is also in the wallet. I can top it up that way as well. Handy! And finally, putting my phone in “Express Mode” allows me to tap the ticket gates without waking the phone or using a FaceID/Passcode. It even works for a few hours after the battery “dies.”

(“Express Mode” is a function of the iPhone, not the Suica/PASMO digital card)

The train from Shin-Aomori to Amori (only 2 cars!)

(the cost of ride was 199 JPY / 1.25 USD)

On the train. (Nice and clean, like Singapore)

The view as I exited Aomori Station.

The Aomori Station

My hotel is a 10 minute walk from the station…

HOTEL MYSTAYS Aomori Station

The room’s a little bit bigger than the one in Tokyo! 151 USD/night for 5 nights.