MOSAIK: Japan II

When my best friend Steph and I decided to book this trip, we were like “Hey do you wanna go to Japan? Yeah sure thing.” And the rest was history. To be honest we didn’t really have much planned for the holiday. But we were met with wonderful mix of neon lights and beautiful temples, and a hustle and bustle of a city that was unlike any other. Here are some of my recommendations if you ever find yourself planning your own trip:

DO: Tokyo Disneyland and DisneySea

The Japanese absolutely love Disney, both children AND their parents were decked out in Minnie and Mickey ears and the awesome printed t-shirts they sell. There are no expenses spared here, with the amazing street parades and night time light shows. They have some pretty awesome rides and nothing is more magical then seeing your favourite Disney characters in the flesh. I lost count of the times I fan-girled over them.

If you have time, please do both the theme parks, you won’t be disappointed. You simply can’t miss out on the Arabian Coast and the Mermaid Lagoon in DisneySea. And if you have the money stay one night at one of the resorts, that way the magic never ends.

STAY: Airbnb

Before this trip, I had a vague idea of what Airbnb was, but now I swear by it. We booked all our accommodation through it and we stayed in some really cute apartments. It gave the whole trip a more homely feel, rather then just staying your standard hotels or hostels.

EAT: Genki Sushi

Each region in Japan is full of their own traditional meals and street food, so you will not be disappointed. But we found Genki Sushi, on a whim while looking for another place to eat one night in Shibuya. And after that night, we were hooked. We pretty much went there everyday during our stay in Tokyo. In was so easy and convenient; we ordered our sushi on a little touch screen and it came out to us on a little conveyor belt. It took the stress out of trying to order food or feeling rude by simply pointing to the menu, and it was such delicious food of course.

SHOP: Everywhere

When it comes to shopping, Japan has everything. From Daiso to Alexander McQueen and everything else in between. And man do they love their department stores.

Omotesando is were the high rollers come out to play. The streets are lined with every luxury brand you could think of. If you are planning on splurging on one item, this is the place to do so. Harajuku is also the next suburb over which made it super convenient to have a big shopping day.

Shimokitazawa is the Brunswick of Tokyo. The streets are filled with dozens of second hand and vintage stores, as well as cute little artsy boutiques

HANDY TIP: Google Maps will be your best friend. Without this nifty little app we would definitely have not been able to navigate our way through the streets of Japan. It even told us what trains to get on and what platforms they were on (which was half the journey itself).

- Sarah