Hello readers! We enjoyed our 2025 Asia trip so much that we are back again! We hope you enjoy following along as we revisit some places and also, have lots of new adventures!

Once again, we took advantage of WestJet’s direct Calgary to Tokyo flight. All went smoothly and we returned to our same hotel, the Tobu Narita Airport Hotel.

Day 1: A fairly restless sleep and a rainy day so we took it quite easy while we get adjusted to being on the other side of the world. A leisurely breakfast at the great Tobu breakfast buffet, some downtime and then we hopped on the hotel shuttle bus to the town of Narita. If you are interested in what we saw last year, you can read about it here. The rain continued and the wind blew so we enjoyed a lovely coffee break at the Hashira Deli & Cafe and then headed back to the hotel.

Day 2: The rain stopped and we had a date with Posh, our guide from last year. We rode the metro system to Shinjuku where we met Posh. Across from the JR Shinjuku Station’s east exit is a display of a 3D calico cat located on a unique digital billboard that measures over 150 square meters. Known officially as the “Shinjuku Higashi-guchi no Neko” (The Cat of Shinjuku East Exit), the cat’s model is based on an actual cat named Natsuko, a beloved pet of writer Mariko Satake. It was amusing and quite amazing how lifelike it was.

Posh then suggested that we visit the Gotokuji Temple, a short metro ride away. In 1659, the name Gotokuji was given to the Kotokuin temple that had stood on the grounds since 1480. The temple grounds are quite large (about 50,000 sq m) and include a number of temple halls, shrines and altars as well as a bell tower and a three-story pagoda.

The burial ground is the largest national historic site in the Edo (Tokyo) area.

The maneki–neko (beckoning cat) is a common Japanese figurine which is often believed to bring good luck to the owner. In modern times, they are usually made of ceramic or plastic. Although these statues are everywhere in Japan, it was unusual to see the vast array of the statues on the temple grounds, available to look at and to purchase. Posh indicated that this is a new phenomena as he hadn’t seen them there before.

The Gotokuji neighborhood was interesting to walk though, including a yummy bakery stop.

We then took another metro ride to visit the Japan Open-Air Folk House Museum. This museum was established in 1967 with an aim to preserve the disappearing vernacular houses in Japan. We enjoyed walking through the area and exploring the architecture and history of the twenty-five traditional buildings.

In a number of the buildings, there were demonstrations of crafts and life-styles.

We had a great lunch in the Soba Restaurant in one of the buildings. This traditional meal was a highlight of the day!

It was an enjoyable day, with new off-the-beaten path sites to see and a chance to reconnect with our Tokyo friend, Posh.

Day 3: Off on the metro Skyliner again to the area of Kanaka. We strolled though this traditional neighborhood, taking in the local shops, snacks and numerous temples. It was a relaxing way to spend a morning.

Next to Kanaka is Ueno Park. We visited this park last year on its busiest day of the year (see this blog) so it was nice to enjoy it without the hordes of people on this visit.

Day 4: For something different, we hopped on a train at the Narita Station and headed to the countryside to the historical town of Sawara. Sawara is known for its canals and well-preserved buildings and it was enjoyable to wander along the Ono River canal in the sunshine!

Of course, we also had a couple of snack breaks along the way. Most interesting was the baked sweet potato cart – a very tasty treat and a visit with a very nice man!

On this second trip to Tokyo, we felt so comfortable with the area and thoroughly enjoyed the new sights and the wonderful people! We would definitely recommend a visit. Once again, we were very happy with the Tobu Narita Airport Hotel. The rooms are great, the people are helpful and friendly, the food at both breakfast and dinner is excellent and there are even some traditional sites just a short walk away.

Now on to some new areas….

Cheers,

Bev & Harvey