Tips on Traveling to Tokyo

Here are some humble tips from me in case if one wishes to travel to Tokyo as first timer.


1.Train System

There are 2 main train systems in Tokyo,one is JR train and the other one is Metro/subway.Last time we were in Tokyo,we used Metro most of the time because from Asakusa,where we stayed at for several days,only Metro is available and no JR nearby.That made us stick to using only Metro for a couple of days when we were there.Besides,if I am not mistaken Metro is cheaper than JR.

Also,if you plan to use a lot of train,it's always recommended to buy the SUICA or PASMO card so that it's easier for you to top up the ammount of the fares as much as you like.But for us,as we were not in hurry,so we would rather buy ticket by ticket everytime we wanted to take the train.

 In the Metro/Subway

 Buying Tickets at the counter

2.Special Train line

There are also many other train systems/lines,either the sub of JR or operated by other companies.For example,when we wanted to go to Odaiba,we have to take a special train on the YURIKAMOME LINE at SHINBASHI Station.This is like a short train line operating to connect the main Tokyo to Odaiba crossing the Rainbow Bridge.

Inside the Yurikamome Train bound for Odaiba

Also,going to Tokyo Skytree,we used the special TOBU ISESAKI LINE from Asakusa to TOKYO SKYTREE Station,although one can also take the normal Metro train to Oshiage Station.

3.How to get to the central Tokyo from aiport?

For the record,there are 2 big international airports in Tokyo.Narita and Haneda.Narita is a bit far from central Tokyo,taking around 50 minutes of train ride and Haneda is a closer airport to Tokyo.Last time we landed at Narita Airport and from Narita there are few alternatives of transports to get to/from the airport to/from central Tokyo.Central Tokyo here refers to several main stations that connect to the airport.For example,Shinjuku,Ginza,or to our stay place which is Asakusa,we took direct Keisei Limited express,going straight from Narita Airport to Asakusa Metro station.It's cheaper than Keisei Skyliner,but we didn't mind much since we also cannot check in just yet upon our arrival at Asakusa :P

Inside the Keisei Limited Express from Narita Aiport

Others inlude NEX(Narita express),the most expensive one,but very fast,or Keisei Skyliner amongst others.

4.Accomodation

Well,when I was studying in Japan,it was not a big deal at all to find accomodation when going traveling in the country,because I can simply stay at friends' houses who were scattered all over Japan.But,since I lived in Japan,everytime I went to Tokyo ,I prefered to stay at backpacker hostel or hotel.And Asakusa was always my choice.Why?Because Asakusa is a lovely area,less high sky buildings or business district,making it silent at night.

 Asakusa area at night

But,I'm sure any other districts also offer many hotels,be it expensive or budget hotels.For us,as we didn't stay the whole day at the hotel,we didn't mind to stay at a cheap hotel,but comfortable as we traveled with a small baby.

5.Food

This is always a hot question for muslim people who travel to places that Islam is not a major religion.Fret not.Japanese are very much aware of Islam,they understand mostly what we can and can't eat.The awareness of Islam in fact has increased a lot since I left Japan.Last time we were in Japan,I found several halal japanese restaurants serving authentic Japanese food.And the experience of tasting the local food everytime we travel make it more meaningful.In Asakusa area,I found a halal Japanese restaurant Shabu shabu(The japanese style bbq).

Or,even if one eats at a non-halal-certified restaurant,one can still eat seafood,or vegan/vegetarian friendly food.It is always recommended to ask the waiter/waitress what are the ingredients in the menu,because in japanese food,sake(alcohol) is considered as a major ingredient to increase the taste of the food.Even for certain menus,we can always opt to not have the sake in the preparation of the menu.And as a japanese culture,customers are considered as kings and will be served the best,so the shop can always prepare the food according to what the customers ask.

Ebi Furai/Fried Shrimp set I ate at Tokyu department store in Shibuya

Or,if you're on budget,there are endless number of convinience stores all over Tokyo,be it Lawson,Family Mart,7Eleven amongt others,so you can always buy snacks,onigiri,sandwiches...

It's always better to check the ingredients each time,or when one doesn't understand what is written,can always ask from people around or simply ask directly to the salesperson.They might not be able to speak good english,but poor english would help as well :)

All kinds of drinks sold at convinience store

Or,you can simply check Zabihah.com for more infos on halal restaurants or cafes.

 6.Other interesting places outside of Tokyo

In fact,there are many other interesting places outside of Tokyo.It is just a matter of time and budget.When I was in tokyo during uni days,I prefer to go to Disneyland or Disneysea in Chiba Prefecture,or to Yokohama,a port city.There is also a famous place for flower garden where visitors can view the Mount Fuji when the weather is clear called Shibazakura.One day trip should be ok to access to any of these places.

7.Baby-friendly facilities

If you use train,please take note that not all stations have elevators.Even in the same station,some lines may have,some may not.As from our observation,many japanese people prefer to use small-framed strollers or just use baby carrier.

Not all places are facilitated with elevators,some may only have escalators and stairs,or some other places may only have stairs!

 

Baby wearing is another option to avoid the trouble when at stations without elevators

For the changing rooms,do not worry because at almost every place we went in Tokyo is facilitated with baby changing rooms.But as what we observed there is a preference that for some places which don't have baby room,there is still changing table available,but only in ladies' toilet.This might be from the culture that women are supposed to do the baby thing rather than the guys do it :P

Well,I didn't really find it troublesome,maybe the culture there and in Europe is different.Hehe.Well,a lot better than in Malaysia that finding a baby room,or even a simple changing table is like finding a treasure!If you know what I mean :P

8.Weather

For the record,we went to Japan in Summer,to be precise,hot and humid summer.So,personally I do not recommend people to go travel to Japan in Summer,because I'm sure many people can't tolerate with Japan Summer because it's very hot.But we had no choice because we don't live in Malaysia,and to travel 14 hours of direct flight with an active baby just for the sake of traveling is not ideal at all.

My favourite japanese tea to quench my thirst in hot summer

So,the best time to visit Tokyo or Japan in general is in early to middle April because this is the peak time of Sakura/cherry blossoms season.What is Japan without Sakura.In fact,this country is famous worldwide because of Sakura.

Sakura season from late March till middle of April,picture taken in Nagoya during my uni days :P

Or in middle November till early December as during this Autumn season,one can have chance to see Momiji(japanese maple leaves) in full red color,and during this time,it is not too cold but also not hot anymore to travel in Japan.

 An example of red momiji leaves.Picture taken in Arashiyama,Kyoto

Please try to avoid traveling to Japan in July till late August.

9.Festivals

In Summer especially,there are so so many festivals.Be it the firework festivals that take place in every place in Japan,or the summer festival where many people go to festival in their traditional costumes,and also in some places there are street cultural performances,especially in Summer.

So,if you have time,try to experience going to their festivals.

10.Tokyo Souvenir 

I would recommend Ueno evening market,Asakusa Nakamise shopping arcade,Akihabara Duty free souvenir shops,Tokyu Hands or simply from 100 yen shop haha!

Bought these Sushi erasers,souvenirs for myself at Tokyu hands

Fuh,long entry it seems.I guess that's all some tips on Tokyo Travel from me.Till next post!

Tips on travelling with babies by car

Salam guys,

Other than travelling by plane,we also spend a lot of time travelling by car.Starting with our cuti-cuti Malaysia few months back to the road trip in several places in Europe.So our travel on road normally takes up to 6, 7 hours.

So I'd like to reckon some tips on how to travel with babies by car.

1.Car Seat

In Germany,for parents travelling with babies in car ,they must put the babies in the car seat at any condition.Meaning,there is no time that the baby can sit with one of the parents.I found this as a good regulation,mainly for the safety reason of the babies.

And that's how we did it in Malaysia.Alayna was trained since the first day she went home from the hospital to be seated in the carseat,although there are times when she was being 'baby' and started 'begging' to be seated on our laps.

So,yeah,although carseat is not a cheap stuff,but investing some money on it is none other than for your own kid's safety.

2.Prepare hot water and cold water for the milk preparation

Bring at least 5 to 6 diapers for 5-6 hours of driving period.

Prepare the soft toys and the music toys

Prepare extra clothes

Prepare baby powder,lotion and minyak telon for the baby's comfort

Prepare milk in each compartments in the on-go storage

and so on...

(This all prepared in a baby travel bag)

 3.We make sure that we will stop at RnR for few times in order to change Alayna's diapers because baby won't feel comfortable when the diapers are full.Either they will start being cranky in the car or crying non-stop.

On one hand,we don't have problem in most places we've been in Europe because baby room is always available everywhere.

4.For travelling around in the destination,we also make sure that we bring both stroller and babycarrier.So,load your car with these two items.

And in Malaysia many people opt for light and small-framed stroller as it's easier to be loaded in the car.

On the opposite,people in Germany prefer the bulky stroller as stroller is considered as a main transport for the babies.Many people here will bring their babies in the city,in the forest,in the park or even pushing the baby stroller while doing some sport or marathon.So,yeah,you can imagine how people here load everything in the babies' strollers.

Our quite bulky stroller,which ended up we used baby sling all the time in Paris because there is not bulky stroller friendly.

We also prefer bulky stroller as in our spare time,we'd like to push Alayna around in the city or even in the park and forest.

5.We only start preparing bottle on demand.Meaning when Alayna started crying for milk,then I will prepare the bottle immeditely in the car,not beforehand.This to ensure that the milk is still warm especially in winter season here,when the milk quickly gets colder,and I will try to feed her with one go so that there's no cold milk left.

 Now that our baby girl has reached 5 and half months old,we started to train her to sit on herself at the back without me accompanying her.Meaning I have started moving to seat at the front.Before, I always sat next to her and we tried to train her to be more independent by leaving her alone at the back seat.

Guess that's all from me.Next I will write some tips on how to travel with babies in the city or in any places we travel.Till next time :)

Tips on Travelling with babies

Salam guys,

How are you guys doing?Now everything is back to normal.Husband is back in the office,leaving the two of us at home and sometimes,I forgot how to handle my baby alone :P

I guess,in this post I'll write a lil bit about how we handle a baby when we went travelling.

Alayna started her first travel by flying back to Malaysia at 7 weeks old.She was the youngest in the flight,but to be honest,we didn't experience it quite nicely.It was our first time ever travelling far with an infant and for that matter,we had done some study on how to handle a baby during our travel in the future :P

Ok,some tips we did in the flight to keep baby entertained because babies,like adults also easily get bored especially when they're on long flight.

 On the way to Germany from KLIA

1.For breastfeeding mommies,you can choose whether you want to nurse your baby directly or pump the milk into the bottle and feed the babies out of the bottle.

I chose the later.Because,apparently I was a lil bit hesitant to direct breastfeed.So,what I did was,I pumped the milk for at least 3 sessions in 12-13 hour-flight.So make sure you have at least 3 bottles with you in the cabin and bring your pumping machine with you on board.

2.Make sure the baby's ears are fully covered during take off or landing.For that matter,it depends on the babies,if the baby is asleep,try to cover his/her ears with fingers but if he/she is awake,make sure that they drink from the bottle of breastfed by the mother.This is to make sure that the air pressure in their ears are balanced because babies apparently are too small to balance themselves.

3.As for us,we also prepare the milk powder in the special storage so that we can easily pour the powder into the bottle without having to scoop out from the packaging.We got the special milk storage at Mydin for RM10.It's very beneficial.

 The on-go milk storage with 3 small compartments to ease parents to store the powdered milk for their journey

Also don't forget to bring a thermos and a bottle to store hot and normal water which we can ask from the flight attendant.

P/S:Milk(EBM or powdered are permitted to go through the immigration scanning,so no worries :) )

4.Bring some toys and music toys for your babies.These to ensure your baby is entertained at any time during the flight.

5.Bring enough diapers for your baby.We bring at least 10 pieces along.And don't forget to prepare at least a piece of cloth and a pair of pants in case if your baby dirts himself/herself.

6.Also bring a changing mat because normally in the flight it is not provided.The airlines might provide only the changing board.

7.Bring the baby cream,baby powder and some oil for the comfort of the baby.

 These 3 items that we always bring around for our baby's comfort

8.The parents should also prepare themselves on how to comfort their baby when the baby is being cranky and times when the baby wants extra attention from their parents.Well,every baby is unique,and only their parents know best on how to give them their comfort on board.

 I guess that's all from me.Next time I will write some tips on travelling by car and when one's travelling in their destination. 

So,good luck guys!