Day 0: From Singapore to Tokyo (Haneda Airport)

Whee I'm so pumped and excited to visit Japan again! The last time I went was in 2005, back when the exchanged rate was SGD$1.30 = ¥100. Now it's SGD$1.60 for ¥100! -_- It's probably not the best time to go but we booked tickets back in June when SIA had their Japan promo. Tickets were $730, which is quite reasonable for SIA I believe. We also had some yen left over from the last trip so that evens it out a bit.

The last time we went to Japan, we spent 10 days there, and ALL in Tokyo. We did not even do any research before going, just packed our bags and got all the sightseeing brochures and maps we could at the airport. But somehow we managed to find our way around Tokyo and had a real blast.

We didn't know what was good so nearly all our meals were at ¥399 ramen places and those little shops that were mostly frequented by the Japanese salarymen. It was only later that I learned that Japanese men gave most of their salaries to their wives and only received a small allowance so they dined in the cheap restaurants during lunch hour while their wives would dine in expensive French restaurants lol.

This time I was determined to try some of the best foods in Japan and go sightseeing in places outside in places outside of Tokyo. It took a LOT of research but I had fun planning everything. Is there a job as a professional holiday planner?

We had a 10.30pm flight so we spent the day having breakfast in the park with my dog, cos we weren't going to see him for 9 whole days, and getting our nails did.

From OPI's Christmas collection: Sparkle-icious

 After dropping Little J off at the pet shop, we headed to the airport for dinner. I always have Burger King either before flying off or when I get back to Singapore. It's become a tradition lol.

Burger King with a King sized drink.

Before flying off, on the travelator.

Turns out it was a mistake to have such a big meal before takeoff cos they served us supper about one hour after take off. And you have to put your seat in an upright position during meal service so it's not like you can choose to sleep instead. And being a cheapo I couldn't miss out on free food lol. I had the teriyaki chicken with rice but it tasted quite horrid.

The flight was filled with mainly Japanese tourists returning to Japan. There was no one in the seat next to us so I had an extra pillow to use and was able to sleep quite okay despite the crying baby one row in front.

Day 1