A Tokyo Affair

[orangedial]

[02.04.09] Our fourth day in Tokyo! We requested the hotel concierge to book a day-tour to Mt Fuji & Hakone from The Gray Line, a popular local tour agency. The coach tour cost 16,000 yen per pax inclusive of a jap-style western lunch & a Bullet Train ride on the return journey. It was nice that the tour agent picked us up from the hotel early in the morning and I coudn't wait to see the Japan's no.1 summit...

111. A shot of the 'rural japan' taken from the coach while on the way to Mt. Fuji

112. This shot was taken at the 2nd station of Mt. Fuji. Clear day, clear summit! How lucky... (heard that it is cloudy most of the time)

113. Yes! The snow had not melted and it was my first time touching snow!

114. Admiring the snow-capped summit

115. A peaceful small town with spectavular view

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[emlee]

[02.04.09] Our fourth day in Tokyo! We requested the hotel concierge to book a day-tour to Mt Fuji & Hakone from The Gray Line, a popular local tour agency. The coach tour cost 16,000 yen per pax inclusive of a jap-style western lunch & a Bullet Train ride on the return journey. It was nice that the tour agent picked us up from the hotel early in the morning and I coudn't wait to see the Japan's no.1 summit...

112. This shot was taken at the 2nd station of Mt. Fuji. Clear day, clear summit! How lucky... (heard that it is cloudy most of the time)

114. Admiring the snow-capped summit

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you are $#%@# lucky to get such clear sky indeed
did you do USM for local contrast? I thought I see blue halo around the mountain. I thought it is nice as is, no need to add more local contrast. just my preference only. great shots anyway.

 

[orangedial]

you are $#%@# lucky to get such clear sky indeed
did you do USM for local contrast? I thought I see blue halo around the mountain. I thought it is nice as is, no need to add more local contrast. just my preference only. great shots anyway.

Yes, $#%@# lucky indeed
Thanks for pointing out the blue halo. I've made some adjustment to correct the photos. Cheers! :thumbsup:

 

[orangedial]

[02.04.09] Here's one of my favourite shots of Mt Fuji... The majestic snow-capped summit, the tiny pine forest on the mountain, the saturated clear blue sky, the christmas trees decorating the foreground... I just couldn't explain that perfect harmony with my limited english... Mt Fuji is really breathtaking!

116.

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[evilking24]

Nice pics. It make me feel like going to Japan also.:thumbsup:

 

[orangedial]

Nice pics. It make me feel like going to Japan also.:thumbsup:

Thx! I feel like going back again...

 

[orangedial]

[02.04.09] After a short stay of about 0.5 hour at the 2nd Station of Mt Fuji, we moved on to Hakone for lunch before taking the Hakone Ropeway across the amazing Owakudani Valley. It was 10x more exciting than taking the cable car at Sentosa...

117. Our first Snowman! (ok... I know it is ugly, but it's not his fault )

118. Hakone Ropeway

119. Climbing

120. Hakone's mountains

121. Owakudani Valley... look at those sulphur!

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To be continued...

 

[nikkie]

wow. very nice! your pics are first class.

 

[fws1981]

Wah...really very nice pic taken...

 

[orangedial]

wow. very nice! your pics are first class.

Wah...really very nice pic taken...

Fwah! Thanks for your kind words! Really make my day :lovegrin:

 

[theshooter]

really nice pictures

 

[theshooter]

hey bro your night pics at disney are spectacular. how did you do them? did you use a tripod?

 

[orangedial]

really nice pictures

hey bro your night pics at disney are spectacular. how did you do them? did you use a tripod?

Hey, thanks for your compliment! All shots here are taken without tripod

 

[orangedial]

[02.04.09] The cable car took us to the Owakudani station, where we had a short stay of about 30 minutes. This is a famous destination for "onsen", or hot spring. The air was filled with strong sulphuric smell due to the many active sulphur vents in the valley. Mt Fuji was clearly visible from Owakudani as we were blessed with a great weather! *happy*

122. Owakudani Station

123. A distant view of Mt Fuji from Owakudani

124. Owakudani = Great Boiling Valley

125. Great weather and many happy visitors!

126. Owakudani Station

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To be continued...

 

[orangedial]

[02.04.09] After visiting Mt Fuji & Owakudani, we headed for the 3rd attraction of our day-trip: Lake Ashi. It is a very scenic crater lake set within the Hakone volcanic mountains.

127. Another take of Mt Fuji from Owakudani before leaving for Lake Ashi

128. We set sail in a pirate ship from Togendai-ko

129. Our pirate ship "Victory"

130. Hakone Shrine and its lakefront torii. I think the scenery must be very beautiful during Autumn...

131. Approaching Motohakone-ko

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[orangedial]

[02.04.09] Our one-day trip was almost coming to an end with 'Victory' arriving at Motohakone-ko. The tour coach sent us to Odawara, where we took the Tokaido Shinkansen back to Tokyo. It was a fine excursion blessed with a great weather, and I found the pace was just right. My 16,000 Yen was definitely well spent!

132. Victory @ Motohakone-ko

133. Boats

134. Hakone Info

135. Tokaido Shinkansen @ Odawara Station

136. Our Tokyo-bound train...

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Sayonara, Hakone!

(To be continued)

 

[orangedial]

[02.04.09] Food is a big part for me in travelling. I always like to end my day with a sumptuous meal. For this particular trip, we have tried the expensive japanese beef and lots of sushi & sashimi. But our most favourite food was the yakitori! Somehow they just tasted nicer than those available in Singapore...

137. We had this BBQ japanese beef (shamely speaking, I didn't know if it was Kobe or Wagyu...) in Ginza. The 9,800 yen per tray of finely cut beef consists of 6 different parts of the beef, which includes the tongue! We dipped them with salt, teriyaki sauce or lemon juice...

138. Raw beef sushi :thumbsup:

139. We had the beef dinner here

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More food to come!

 

[orangedial]

[02.04.09] Yes! more food here... and this was the restaurant we patronised right after returning to Ginza from our Hakone day-trip. The restaurant is called Tofuro and it was specialised in yakitori! Yummy! v(^.^)v

140. The menu & my favourite Kirin beer

141. Our favourite sticks!

142. Our next favourite: sashimi. It was cheaper than those in Tsukiji, and to be frank, they tasted equally fresh

143. Japanese croquette with cheesy pork filling

144. Isn't this tamagoyaki tempting?

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To be continued...

 

[orangedial]

[02.04.09] There are countless of restaurants in Ginza, and a lot of them are hidden underground. Tofuro is one of such hidden gems which is located at the Basement 2 of an ordinary looking office building. We happened to pass by the building on our way back to the hotel and came across Tofuro's advert poster. We wouldn't have ventured into such a place if not for a sudden craving for yakitori!

There we took the lift to B2 and when the lift doors opened, we were greeted by a group of happily drunken customers ready to make an exit. A polite waitress received us at the humble reception counter and led us to our table. My jaw dropped once entering the restaurant, totally amazed by the incredible setting in this dungeon... I was like arriving at an ancient town in the Edo period...

The dinner was absolutely enjoyable. It was indeed a pleasant surprise to end our eventful day! And yes, we were all geared up for our sakura trip next day!

145. Entrance of Tofuro Restaurant

146. The narrow passage way after the reception counter

147. Stairway leading to the mezzanine level. The restaurant has a lot of private rooms!

148. Ancient setting

149. We crossed this bridge and settled at one of the tables at the upper level behind the bridge

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To be continued...

 

[orangedial]

[03.04.09] There are several parks in Tokyo which are popular for Hanami (sakura viewing), and Ueno Park is the most popular among all. According to the forecast by the Japanese Meteorological Agency, the sakura in Tokyo should reach its full bloom by end of March this year. However, the blossoming was delayed due to an unexpected cold snap. We were extremely excited about seeing the real sakura in full bloom, while keeping our fingers crossed along the way to Ueno Park. Luckily, we were blessed with a clear blue sky again for a perfect excursion!

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More to come...