🇯🇵 JAPAN (Tokyo, Osaka)

A Place Worth Returning To

Japan marked the 18th country I visited, but it held a special milestone that set it apart from all the rest: it was the very first time in my life I got to celebrate my birthday abroad alongside my entire family—my parents and siblings. It was also the first trip where I took full ownership of designing our complete daily itinerary. Unlike previous family vacations organized by my dad or travel agencies, I spent a whole month carefully mapping out destinations, train routes, and transit times down to the finest detail. The travel agency’s only role was booking our flights and hotel accommodations. Unfortunately, one major oversight on their end threw a massive wrench into my plans right from the start.

Our journey began in Tokyo. The moment we stepped into the city, I was immediately struck by how remarkably clean, organized, and efficient everything felt—much like Singapore. However, my excitement quickly turned to frustration when we checked our hotel location. Instead of booking us somewhere central in downtown Tokyo, the agency had placed us at a hotel near Narita Airport—nearly a two-hour train ride away from the actual city center. I tried to stay positive, trusting that Japan’s famous rail system would make commuting easy, but spending four hours round-trip on a train severely cut into our daily exploring time. By the time we finally reached Tokyo on our first night, it was already dark. We headed straight to Shibuya Crossing, where I was mesmerized by the sheer volume of people moving through the intersection with incredible discipline, before snapping a quick photo at the famous Hachiko Statue. I had promised myself before the trip that we would always eat at local restaurants rather than fast-food chains. But because my dad was anxious about missing the last train back to our distant airport hotel, we ended up rushing into a fast-food joint for dinner—something that annoyed me at the time. On the late-night train back, watching exhausted office workers fall fast asleep on the floor gave me my first real glimpse into the intense, workaholic culture of modern Japan.

The next day, we boarded the Shinkansen bullet train to Osaka, an experience I had been eagerly anticipating as a fan of transit and infrastructure. Watching the scenery fly by as we covered the distance between Tokyo and Osaka in just two and a half hours was incredible. Once we arrived in Osaka, we made up for our fast-food night by having lunch at Ichiran Ramen. Sitting in individual dining booths and eating in private silence made for a unique experience, and I can honestly say it was the single best bowl of ramen I’ve ever had. We spent the rest of the afternoon walking through Osaka's vibrant city center, taking photos, and picking up snacks. While I missed out on trying delicacy items like fugu (blowfish) or authentic Kobe beef, the trip was still full of great food. In fact, when we grabbed a quick dinner at a 7-Eleven before taking our overnight express bus back to Tokyo, I was blown away by the quality—it tasted like food prepared in a proper restaurant, completely different from convenience stores back home. The overnight bus itself was shockingly comfortable and smooth, putting our domestic long-distance buses back home in the Philippines to shame.

Arriving in Tokyo early in the morning after our overnight bus trip from Osaka, we went straight to a central Tokyo hotel to check in for the night instead of heading all the way back to our original hotel in Narita, since we needed an accessible base for our planned Mount Fuji trip the following day. With our central stay secured, we spent the rest of that day exploring Tokyo—visiting major spots like the Imperial Palace, Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden, and Ueno Park. The next morning, we embarked on our guided day tour to Mount Fuji, which felt seamlessly organized as we visited traditional villages, sampled treats at local food stalls, learned to prepare ceremonial matcha from scratch, and shopped for souvenirs near the mountain. Returning to Tokyo by late afternoon, we visited Tokyo Tower and went up to its observation deck for a breathtaking view of the urban sprawl. Later that night, after my brother and I managed to grab beers and snacks before the neighborhood shops closed, we sat down in the hotel lobby to vent about how frustrating our original Narita hotel location was. As we drank, our conversation naturally shifted back to our recent trip to Europe, warmly reminiscing about the memories and nostalgia we shared across those countries.

On our next day in Tokyo, we spent our time exploring more of the city's urban landscape, visiting vertical shopping malls built directly into towering skyscrapers—a stark contrast to the sprawling, horizontal malls back home. We picked up another batch of souvenirs before finally making the long commute back to our original hotel in Narita to gather our luggage and spend our last night.

The following day was our official departure. As we waited at the gate to board our flight home, that familiar post-trip nostalgia and separation anxiety began to set in. We landed back home in the afternoon that same day, exhausted from the long travel but carrying a treasure trove of unforgettable memories from Japan. Walking out of the airport, I held onto the firm hope that I would get to return to that wonderful country again someday—to fix the mistakes of our first trip, explore new cities, and experience its beauty in a different season.

Despite the logistical headaches caused by our hotel location, Japan was an unforgettable experience. Its unmatched safety, strict punctuality, and incredible orderliness left a deep impression on me, sparking new ideas that I later incorporated when designing Fitzland. It proved that Osaka is a true food paradise, and Tokyo is a vast, fascinating labyrinth where getting lost is part of the adventure. Looking back on that hot August trip, I promised myself I would return during the colder months—either in winter to experience snow again, or during spring to see the Sakura blossoms in full bloom. Most of all, that vacation holds a bittersweet place in my heart: looking back from the present, I realized it was the very last time I ever traveled abroad with my parents and siblings together. We haven't had an international trip as a complete family since, and more than anything, I truly hope we get the chance to travel the world together again.