Over the course of spring break of my junior year, I was a participant of the Japan 2025 trip that Heritage took part in. The course consisted of 6 total overnight stays spread out in Tokyo, Hakone, and Kyoto at three different hotels: Hotel Azur Takeshiba, Hotel Oyado Zuiyo, and Hotel Loisir Kyoto Toji respectively. The tour consisted of 8 shrines, 4 restaurants for dinner, and multiple activities/excursions spread throughout each city.
Tokyo was the first city in which we stayed; there we visited two shrines: Sensō-ji Temple and Meiji Shrine. There were wishing tablets in a variety of handwritings that reminded me of people coming together for goals and a sense of community. The travel group was even taught how to properly pray at these shrines/temples, standing with hands clasped and mentally conjuring their wishes to come true. The tour guide also allowed for some free time at each of the shrines/temples as they all have their own shops and booths where talismans and other souvenirs are sold. We also visited some popular Tokyo tourist landmarks such as Shibuya Crossing, Harajuku District, and Akihabara (Electric Town). Shibuya Crossing was a sight to see as the sheer amount of people in the area cannot be exaggerated, and due to the sea of people, additional to the standard four crosswalks, there also is a diagonal one! Harajuku District, the major fashion areas, consisted of one large shopping area with one main popular shopping street. Finally, Akihabara was similar shopping, however, I spent my time in Akihabara in a cat cafe as it was a much needed mental break from all the activity. There was also a full-day excursion in Tokyo Disneyland, which safe to say did not require a full day to experience. While their were many rides, the whole park could be visited in almost half that time.
Hakone, which was a town in the mountains, was our next destination, but we only stayed there for about a day which seemed to be just right. We went to Owakudani Boiling Valley, took the Hakone Ropeway, visited the popular Lake Ashi (Ashinoko), and toured Hakone Shrine. The trip there through the mountains was up high elevated sides of the mountains, and we got to see Mount Fuji with clear clouds luckily. The Ropeway went over the Boiling Valley, and the smell of sulfur from the hot springs was abundant. The highlight of Hakone was our stay at the Ryokan, a traditional Japanese hotel where we slept on a futon; here, the rooms were exceptionally spacious in comparison to our other two hotels in Tokyo.
The last few days were spent in Kyoto, the old capital of Japan. We visited Nara Deer Park, Todai-ji Temple, Kasuga Grand Shrine, Kinkaku-ji Temple (Golden Pavilion), Kiyomizu Temple, Ninen Zaka, and Fushimi Inari Shrine. In addition to the tourist areas, we got to experience a traditional tea ceremony and had our lunch in Nishiki Market. Nara Park has a lot of deer roaming around, and they even bow their heads when people feed them food. We visited Ninen Zaka, a small shopping district connected to Kiyomizu Temple full of souvenir shops.
In conclusion, the trip was both informative and fun. Except for the 17 hour flights, the experience was great. Japan is a beautiful place to visit, and the citizens are so very welcoming to foreigners. There are a few cultural shockers like the lack of trash cans in the streets, but that also surprisingly keeps the streets clean. It is not hard to learn a few basic phrases either, so it is ultimately be a extraordinary place to visit abroad.
