Before the long train ride from Tokyo to Kyoto, Brody, Vincent, Maddy and I went to the Shinigawa Aqua Park. We saw many amazing aquatic animals I had only seen in movies and video games (mainly Animal Crossing). Afterward, we hopped on the train, where I spent the whole time gawking at the scenery. We ended the day with a 10-course meal at our welcome dinner in Kyoto.
Pictures from the day
To start out the day, I had a matcha cake roll that I got from 7-11 the previous night. It was super yummy and only a little sweet. It was effortless to eat before Maddy and I headed out to meet up with Vincent and Brody for an actual meal
Matcha cake roll
In terms of real food, I ended up getting pork fried rice. The green onion, egg, and pork combination was incredibly satisfying to eat. The addition of the rice make the dish filling, making it perfect to have before the long train ride that awaited.
Pork fried rice
The last meal of the day was the 10-course meal that we had as a part of our welcome dinner to Kyoto. We started out with a few small dishes including squid, pickled vegetables, bok choy, and pork. As the soup was cooking, we were given a small assortment of sushi. The soup was a type of fish soup, but I, regrettably, do not recall what it is called. After that, we had more pork that we dipped into hot oil to cook ourselves. That was followed by a salad that I did not end up eating due to my allergy to raw vegetables. After that, we had shrimp tempura with fried lotus and pepper. That was followed by more sushi, which we got to see prepared by a professional chef. After that was a tofu dish with a gelatin soup base on top. After that was another soup that was followed by ice cream. Everything that I was able to eat was delicious. I wish I was able to eat more of the delicious dinner, but sadly, I am allergic to life.
On the first day, Maddy and I went to Shibuya. We saw the famous crossing and explored the area. We went to the Mandarake in Shibuya and other stores, such as the Pokemon Center, the official Nintendo Store, and the Mugiwara Store known for its One Piece merchandise.
More importantly, for breakfast, I went to 7-11 and got a melon Fanta and a tuna and mayonnaise rice ball. It was a very good start to the day. The melon Fanta was very refreshing and sweet drink, and the rice ball had an umami flavor that paired well with the drink. The rice ball was also incredibly easy to eat and was almost criminally convenient.
For lunch, I ate pork oil noodles with a side of rice. We were able to order our food using a screen, so there weren’t any issues ordering our food. The noodles were savory and filling, so I wasn’t able to finish my side of rice. Still, the pairing fit well together because the rice helped balance out the strong flavor of the noodles.
Pork oil noodles with a side of rice
Second Day: Harajuku
The next day, we headed out to Harajuku. We did a lot of walking around, checking out shops, and looking at the amazing outfits people in the area were wearing.
For breakfast, we stopped by 7-11 again. I picked out a ham and cucumber sandwich, steamed bread with egg, and a yuzu and lemon soda. The cucumbers on the sandwich made eating it feel more refreshing to eat in the warm morning air, and the ham added the necessary flavor. The yuzu and lemon soda was very tangy and unlike any soda I’ve ever had in the U.S. Lastly, the steamed bread with egg was sweet, light, and fluffy; a perfect way to finish off breakfast.
Pork ham and cucumber sandwich steamed bread with egg, and yuzu and lemon soda
After walking around for a couple of hours before the stores opened, Maddy and I wanted to sit down somewhere so we didn’t burn ourselves out. So I got Maddy to go into McDonald’s because an enticing ad depicted a delicious-looking peach drink. The ad worked because that’s what we both got (plus hashbrowns). The hashbrowns were typical McDonald’s hashbrowns: yummy and salty. The peach drink was lightly sweet with a strong peach flavor, and there were peach chunks on the bottom that added a refreshing feel to the sugary drink.
McDonald’s peach drink with a hashbrown
For lunch, I got udon with spicy cod roe and a side of rice. Thankfully, I was able to eat everything this time around. The strong umami flavor of the spicy cod roe was nicely balanced out by the rice. Sadly, although good, it was not spicy as I was expecting it to be. The egg yolks made the dish more savory, and all the toppings added more texture and umami flavor to the dish.
Udon with spicy cod roe and a side of rice
Third Day: Shimokitazawa and Shinjuku
On our third day, we went to From Software headquarters to bask in excellence and pray some of their game design skills to impart to us for just being in their presence. After getting a glimpse of a Sanrio-themed train, we went thrifting at Shimokitazawa. Afterward, we went to Shinjuku on a whim and experienced the lively nightlife there.
More importantly, the first meal of the day, which was in Shimokitazawa, was an omurice dish with demiglazed beef that came with some broth and a small salad. The salad had a tangy dressing that paired well with the lettuce which was a good way to start off the meal. The beef made the omurice incredibly savory, and combining it with the ketchip-covered rice helped to lessen the strong savoriness.
Omurice with demiglazed beef
For dinner in Shinjuku, I had fried rice and pork dumplings. The fried rice had a very subtle flavor, but was filling and delicious. The pork dumplings were very juicy and paired well with a good dipping of soy sauce.
Fried ricePork dumplings
Day 4: Meeting Up with the Class
On our last early day, we traveled over to Shinigawa to meet up with everyone else. After struggling with our heavy suitcases and miscommunication about which hotel we were in, Maddy and I decided to visit The National Art Center (mainly because John Wick 4 took place there).
For breakfast, I had some discounted goodies for 7-11. The first thing I ate was a chocolate-coated donut. It was sweet and crunchy, but it was a little bland. For the price, I would be willing to buy it again. The second batch of goodies I had were honeyberry and cream cheese-filled rice cakes. Although the flavor was wonderful, I did not enjoy the texture of the cream cheese. However, for the price, I cannot complain.
Chocolate coated donut and rice cakes filled with honeyberry and cream cheese
For lunch, I had soba noodles with shrimp tempura. It was amazing. No qualms at all. There were seasonings readily available, so I added some to add a little more flavor. I didn’t believe the dish could get any better, but the seasoning made it reach new heights. I may also be biased though because I was incredibly hungry and tired, and food always tastes better when hungry and tired.
Soba noodles with shrimp tempura
After meeting up with the rest of the crew, we all got dinner together at a food court near the Shinigawa Prince Hotel, which is the hotel we were staying at for the night. I got takoyaki with spicy cod roe. The spicy cod roe was also not spicy this time around, and there was nothing to balance out the strong umami flavor of the cod roe. The takoyaki itself was delicious and I highly recommend it, but everything together was not as good as the spicy cod roe with udon and a side of rice I had a few days ago.
Takoyaki with spicy cod roe
After this, Maddy, Vincent, Brody and I went on a little night adventure around Shinigawa, had a meeting about Magic Makers, and then head to bed. The official trip begins!
Similar to our first day with an early start, my friend Fabian and I embarked on a memorable journey. I woke up at the early hour of 3:40 am, engaging in some productive work on my blog after grabbing a cup of coffee from a vending machine. Meanwhile, Fabian discovered that he had misplaced his travel bag, prompting him to search for it unsuccessfully.
It wasn’t until we ventured outside the building to have breakfast that he checked his phone and received a notification indicating that his AirPods were located inside the bag. Thankfully, with the assistance of a helpful individual near the eastern entrance, we managed to recover the missing bag. For more detailed information, please refer to Fabian’s blog.
Finally, around 10 am, we enjoyed a delicious breakfast comprising bacon and eggs. The bread was particularly noteworthy, boasting a delightful cake-like texture.
To occupy our time, we embarked on a journey through the local area, during which I purchased some gifts for my family. Along the way, we unexpectedly stumbled upon a quaint shrine and encountered an intriguing garden as we made our way back to the hotel. We took a short break at a nearby 7/11 to quench our thirst.
Subsequently, we reconvened in the hotel lobby, eagerly awaiting the arrival of the rest of our group.
I had a fascinating encounter in the lobby with an individual who happened to be a car drifter. He shared that he was currently filming a Netflix documentary on drifting and had recently met Keiichi Tsuchiya, renowned as the drift king himself. Naturally, I found this conversation quite cool, and I even started following him on Instagram. It will be interesting to watch the documentary once it becomes available.
As a group, we then embarked on the shinkansen (Bullet Train) to commence our journey to Kyoto. During the train ride, I dedicated my time to working on completing my latest blog post, although the internet connection proved to be less than ideal. Additionally, I attempted the Peridot experiment, but encountered difficulties updating the app until after we arrived at our destination. I must mention that the train ride was an exhilarating experience due to its remarkable speed, causing the images captured by any camera I used to distort from the sheer velocity. It was truly a wild experience.
Upon our arrival in Kyoto, we dropped off our belongings on the bus and proceeded to a group dinner. This particular meal overwhelmed me with pure emotion, as we were treated to a traditional Japanese 10-course feast. I never imagined I would have the opportunity to partake in such an experience, even if I were to visit this country on my own. I am immensely grateful to Stephen Jacobs, RIT, and KCG for organizing this unforgettable dining experience.
Following the dinner, we made our way back to the hotel, where I am currently writing this account. Tomorrow, on the 23rd, I plan to post this entry, as I am quite tired and in need of some restful sleep.
Today was an interesting day, to say the least. I woke up early once more, and while most people opted to stay near the hotel and take it easy today to rest and recover from all the activities this week so far, I felt ready to go still and so decided to take the Shinkansen to Osaka! I went with Liam, and so together we managed to get a ticket from the JR Service counter and catch one. The ride was surprisingly short, only 30 minutes! Once there, we navigated the Shin-Osaka station and manged to find the subway. I refilled my Suica card that I had purchased earlier on Day 2, and honestly I can’t believe I didn’t fill it up sooner, it’s so convenient! Although I did almost put it in the ticket slot and get it stuck in the machine conveyor.
Once we rode the subway into Osaka, we moved on to our main goal: finding the Rikuro Cheesecake Store and buying some fluffy cheescake! Pavel really wanted to have their cheesecake, but was too tired today to make the trek, so I offered to go and bring some back for him. We walked through the city, and it was shocking how urban and reminiscent of NYC it was! There were so many stores, and once we entered into a shopping street district, it felt somewhat similar to Nishiki market in terms of spacing. A bit farther down, we found Rikuro’s! They were selling their cheesecakes, but I wanted to try going to their café upstairs, since we had came all this way I figured we should sit down and enjoy their cheesecake before bringing some back. But then we learned that their café only opens at 11:30am! It was about 10:15am when we arrived. so we wandered around the area a bit. We found a Book-Off store, but it was infortuantely closed until 1pm, and we also found a small temple nestled in a side street near the shops. It was very quaint, and I was even able to get another stamp for my stamp book!
Osaka had quite the interesting style of architecture!
Finally, it was 11:15am, so we headed back to the café and got in line. But then the worst happened; the café cut off the first batch of guests right before us. The wait was an hour, and that wasn’t quite worth it for us a that time, so we settled for getting a cheesecake to go and found a place to eat it by the river in the city. The cheesecake was super light and fluffy, but also wasn’t too sweet either. It was warm, and honestly tasted pretty good! It was about 18cm in circumference, and I ate about 1/3 of it, then packed up the rest for Pavel. After that, we took the train again down to the Osaka Pokémon Center! It was very cool, and I bought my first piece of Pokémon merch from there.
The famous Rikuro Cheesecake!
Liam went back to the hotel a bit earlier while I stayed behind to look at the Nintendo and Capcom stores there, and then I made my way down to Umeda station there and found a JR ticket machine to get a Shinkansen ticket back. However, the machine gave me an error when I tried to verify my JR Pass, and so I had to go on the in-person line and get a ticket from the counter. Once I got it, it was for a 2:18pm train, and it was currently about 1:50pm, so I had time.
Or so I thought.
I walked back to the main plaze of the station, and realized my first miscalculation: I had no idea where the Shinkansen platform was. I ran around a bit trying to get my bearings, before finding stairs that led to JR Lines, and on those platforms I saw signs for the Shinkansen. “Good” I thought, but then I noticed that it didn’t look similar to the other platforms I had been on before. I found a transit officer and asked him in Japanese if I was at the right platform. He pointed down the tracks, and said that I had to be at Shin-Osaka station to catch it. I was at Umeda station. But, he told me, I could catch a train here to Shin-Osaka, but it was on the platform next to ours. So I rushed over there, and was still confused because I wasn’t sure how this would work, like if I had to pay a fare for this local train? So I asked another transit officer nearby, and he said the same thing, and pointed to track 7 and said to take that one. Track 8’s train arrived first though, and the sign said both trains stopped at Shin-Osaka. Track 7’s train even said it was delayed a few mins, so I opted for track 8, thinking it would leave sooner.
I was wrong, turns out, and the other local train arrived and left before mine, and mine moved much slower for some reason. When it finally arrived at Shin-Osaka station, I sprinted out and weaved through the crowds, frantically searching for my platform, but alas to no avail. I finally asked one last ticket officer nearby where to find my platform, and he looked and said that it had left already, and I should take another train arriving at 2:54pm instead. It was 2:21pm, I had missed my train 3 minutes. Tired and a bit defeated, I walked up the escalator to the new platform, and waited until the Shinkansen came and boarded.
The Pokémon Center, Nintendo Store, and Capcom Store were all close to each other!
After the whole bullet train fiasco, I had about half an hour to decompress at our hotel room before heading back out to our first meeting with the KCG students and the first session of the Game Jam! After receving a great tour of their new building, we met with the students in a casual snack and pizza social, and I had to put my Japanese lessons to the test. Since many of the students didn’t really speak a lot of English, I tried my best to use my Japanese to conversate, and I think it went somewhat well! I was able to hold a few longer basic converstations, and any phrases I didn’t understand I was able to somewhat decipher through context clues. I met Shoma and Reo (both from my Game Jam team) as well as Oono, Kento, and Ryotaro. During the meetup, Shoma and Reo introduced me and the team to an old Japanese snack, deep fried sugar that was similar in texture to cotton candy, in the sense that it was very airy, but had a crunchy shell to it. It was very good, probably my favorite snack of the night! After food and socializing, we worked a bit in teams to set up projects, and then we all headed home at around 8pm. Some of the KCG students rode the bus with us to get dropped off at the train station, and I had a great converstation about Gundam with Kento!
Team and group pics!
Overall, it was a very eventful day, and culminated in a great experience! Now on to see what tomorrow holds for us!
