Sunday in Sydney we started our day super early, because we had a special breakfast to attend. We had to be up and out of the hotel by 6:30 AM to make a train, but unfortunately we JUST missed it (like Sliding Doors missed it.) Since we were worried we’d be late, we opted to hop in a cab.
Our breakfast was at the Wildlife Sydney Zoo, located in Darling Harbour. There are 2 zoos in Sydney, and this is the smaller one. After looking at reviews, we opted to go to this one for several reasons:
The larger zoo is more of an all day affair, and we didn’t want to dedicate the time.
Tne larger one requires a ferry ride to get to.
The larger one does not offer breakfast….with KOALAS!
So yes, our special breakfast was with these furry friends, but before that, we got to tour around the zoo in a small group, which was also great! Later in the week we went to the aquarium during Gen. Pop. Hours and experiencing the crowds made us appreciate being in the zoo before the masses even more.
Koala montage!
It’s B.
Along with the koalas, we also saw a crocodile, kangaroos, wombats, Tasmanian devils, “the most dangerous bird in the world,” and other assorted weird Aussie animals.
The breakfast was buffet style and they had vegemite, so I gave it a try. I will not be making any vegemite sandwiches anytime soon!
After the koalas, we took the ferry out to Manly Beach for a few hours. It was very crowded, but we still managed to go for a walk along the beach, and pop into a brewery for lunch!
Fish and Chips, and Sunday roast- loved the British influence on the pub food.
A combination of being up early, being out in the sun, and drinking beer at lunch made us sleepy, so we returned back to the hotel for a nap. Later on, we headed out for a cocktail at a local 1960s themed lounge, and then sushi at a neighborhood joint which was also BYOB. (Something a lot of restaurants do in Sydney.)
The people who were sitting next to us in the cramped restaurant were oldies who had been going to this particular restaurant for 15 years, and while John was at the corner store getting a bottle of wine, they tried to convince me to get the terikyaki shrimp combo platter. Alas, I did not heed their advice. (And was glad I didn’t! The sushi was great, and actually a pretty decent value.)
From dinner we went over to the Surry Hills neighborhood for a night cap, and then eventually a late night snack at an Indian restaurant- bread filled with potatoes and cheese: yum!
Next up: Invasion at Scenic World and hiking the Blue Mountains
Friday was our last day, so we had to get packed up and out of the apartment by 11. We also said goodbye to another member of our group, so then there were 3.
On our way out of Shimo we happened across the “curry man” promoting that evening’s Shimo-town curry festival. Would’ve been fun, but we decided we needed to have sushi as our last meal in Tokyo.
Can you spot him?
One negative about doing an Airbnb stay is that you don’t have anywhere to keep your luggage after you check out, which was a problem for us, since our flight didn’t leave until 1 AM that evening. Luckily, our hosts had told us that we can find lockers in the Shibuya train station. Unluckily, the lockers are scattered all over the place, and there are very few that can fit normal size luggage (and by normal size, I mean, carry on suitcase size- Hollers don’t check bags.)
After what seemed like a neverending scavenger hunt, we managed to find one locker that would fit one suitcase and 2 smaller bags. Eventually we found a hotel in the train station that allowed us to stash our last bag for a small fee. (All that could’ve been avoided had the lady who got to the locker bank RIGHT BEFORE US not put her shopping bag in a giant suitcase locker!)
After the locker fiasco, we had lunch at a little place in the train station and then bid “Adios” to group member 3.
Deep fried chicken dumplings
It was such a nice day out, so John and I decided to hoof it from Shibuya to Yoyogi Park to visit the Meiji Shrine. We were discouraged though when we saw all of these signs:
…and then just gave up and went to Kiddyland to marvel at all of the Japanese toys and figurines.
Kirimi!
Hm, not sure this toy is for kids.
My favorite figure was a new Sanrio creation- a magical salmon filet named “Kirimi.”
While we were on Omotesando, we saw cat man! I thought he was some bum who drugged his cats to get them to behave, but apparently he is a bit of a street icon. This was the only snap I got-
After Kiddyland, we headed to the Meguro neighborhood, but on our way there we passed by the “Garrett Popcorn Shop.” Now, I’ve never had this popcorn, but it must be amazing, because check out the line into the store!
Meguro is a relatively residential neighborhood, but we had a special reason to go there. Since we were without our pocket wifi (a portable wifi that allows up to 4 users to connect anywhere…we got to borrow it for free with our apartment!) we were going based off of our friend’s Lonely Planet book for directions/locations of places. In the book it mentioned a free Parasite Museum, and since I’ve always had a fascination with parasites, we decided to check it out.
I was pretty pleased with myself, navigating the streets to find it with very little to go off of.
Seeing all those organisms really worked up our appetites, so we decided to head back to Shibuya for dinner at the train station, specifically at a place we saw earlier where there was a long line. We figured we didn’t have any where else to be, and might as well check out a place where it appears a lot of locals were going to eat.
Surprisingly, the line went rather quick and we were in after about 30 minutes. What followed was definitely the best sushi we had in Tokyo- we didn’t mess around and went straight for eel, tuna, and sake.
After that we walked through Mark City…
Somebody was too full to take the stairs.
And then hung out in Shibuya on a bench outside a little bar and just people watched for a while.
After that, we popped into a cool bookstore where they had a lot of neat (overpriced) knick knacks.
…and then into a pretty legit British pub that had great English ales.
Then it was time to head back to Shibuya train station via Shibuya crossing to get our stuff and haul off to the airport.
We got to relax in the lounge, which was lovely, especially since our flight was delayed until 1:45 AM. It may have been the nicest lounge I’ve been in. There was a shower area, where you could rent a shower compartment, complete with spa like toiletries and towels, and very nice selection of food and bev at your disposable.
Since our flight was late, we dipped into the whiskey selection and made a little tasting (for research purposes of course.)
Once on the flight we lucked out with the “bulkhead” seats, BUT they are right next to the bathroom, so it was a push. We were both so exhausted though, I dozed in and out the entire time.
And that’s that! Back in the ‘ha now. A wonderful trip, and I’ll leave you with these personal thoughts after being able to reflect upon everything we saw and learned:
Tokyo is HUGE. It is a lot more sprawling and massive than any of us expected. Each neighborhood truly is unique and there is lots of “character” everywhere you go.
Because of the massiveness, plan to spend a lot of time in the train station, on the train, and figuring out how to get to the train. Luckily just doing this provides you with a real “cultural” experience.
Rush hour!
The train system itself is a work of both science and art. When you look at a map, it looks like a colorful plate of spaghetti.
The bullet train is expensive. We had planned to make a daytrip out to Kyoto, but at about $280 per person, decided to opt out.
In fact, the entire city is pretty expensive. We definitely got spoiled in other Asian countries. Tokyo is much more “European” type pricing.
That being said, some of the best food we had was at “cheaper” type restaurants- ramen and yakitori especially. (And fried chicken….I don’t think I’ve ever eaten so much fried chicken.)
If you have the time, wait in line! Despite our Tsujiki experience, two of my favorite meals were ramen and sushi, both in train station restaurants with significant lines.
A little bit of Japanese goes a long way. I learned probably 2 things, and feel it was appreciated every time I even attempted to say “thank you” in the local language.
Get a pocket wifi. Most places don’t have public wifi, so either rent one when you get to the airport or stay in a place (like we did) that allows you to borrow one fo’ free.
And lastly….do karaoke, and go to Robot Restaurant.
Hollers in the 'ha 