Japan

Osaka

April 18th

We were up and off the boat from Busan by 7:15 a.m. All the passengers headed to Osaka were brought by bus to Hakata Station, where we caught the shinkansen, the bullet train.

Once we finally arrived in Osaka, we quickly realised how lovely the area we were staying in was—peaceful, local, and full of charm.

April 19th

We made our way to the 1970 Commemorative World Expo Park, roughly an hour away. This park was the site of the 1970 World Expo. The park was blooming with colourful flower fields.

Plus, we had a tasty lunch at a restaurant there to fuel up before visiting the ethnographic museum.

The museum was very interesting as it showcasesd indigenous cultures from across the world. Although I did not get very many pictures haha.

Afterwards, we headed back into the city to wander around lively Dotonbori.

April 20th

After checking out of our guesthouse, we took part in a matcha-making class—an interesting and calming experience, though I must admit I’m not a huge fan of unsweetened matcha (a little too bitter for my taste haha).

We dropped off our luggage at the station, which gave us the freedom to enjoy a bit more time in Osaka.

We visited a shrine in Dotonbori and took in the atmosphere again before hopping on the train to Kobe.

Kobe

Our top priority upon arriving in Kobe was clear: try the world-famous Kobe beef. And wow—it absolutely lived up to the hype. So soft, so juicy, so worth it.

April 21st

We had a full-day trip planned to the stunning Himeji Castle.

After a lot of walking, we set out to find some tasty lunch and found this lovely brunch place not far away.

Satisfied, we made our way to the Koko-en gardens, which were so beautiful too.

Finally, our hour-long journey back home was very welcomed as we got to sit and enjoy the scenery.

Back in Kobe that evening, Margaux and I explored the local Chinatown and indulged in so many tasty treats.

Overall, a very picture-heavy day.

April 22nd

After checking out of the hotel, Margaux, Sam and I spent the morning walking around Kobe and doing a bit of shopping. We saw so many adorable things, but with limited space in our backpacks, stuck to small souvenirs like jewellery.

Margaux even scored a digital camera for a great price.

As we were making our way back to meet with the rest of the group, we stumbled upon a “Paul” bakery, we were so happy to find some good bread after travelling for now 7 months without any.

Good bread and pastries is a simple thing we never knew we would miss so much.

Kyoto

After an uneventful train ride, we checked into our hotel and saw we were right next to the famous Fushimi Inari shrine.

We headed straight to the nearby red torii gates and later treated ourselves to some delicious Kobe beef burgers. A very bready day, haha.

April 23rd

We started the day by visiting the “Nijo Castle“, then headed toward the Geisha district for some lunch and more sightseeing.

We stopped at a lovely Thai place called “Baan Rim Naam” and were very impressed.

While we were exploring the Geisha district and enjoying the views despite the rain,…

disaster struck—my dad dropped his phone and the screen completely shattered. Since he’d been planning to switch to an iPhone for work anyway, we headed to the Apple Store, and he ended up getting a new phone.

While we were there, my brother also picked up a new iPad to replace his broken one.

To try and recover the old phone’s data, we then visited a phone repair shop called “Smahospital Kyotoekimae“. An unexpectedly pricey day!

April 24th

In the morning, we headed to Nara to visit the famous bowing deer and the large temple complex. One of the deer even tried to chomp Xan haha

That evening, we reunited with Kevin and Debbie (my parent’s friends from back home in Switzerland), as well as Elisa—an old classmate of mine from secondary school who’s now studying in Japan.

A fun, social evening all around.

April 25th

We had a full day ahead as we went to explore the World Expo 2025 in Osaka! It was packed with fascinating exhibits and creative displays, and we had a great time collecting stamps from the different pavilions.

We didn’t bother waiting in line for the major ones, but since we’re Swiss, we got to skip the whole queue for the Swiss pavilion—what a great day to be Swiss!

April 26th

Sam got up at 6 a.m. to go see the famous Fushimi Inari shrine, which was only a five-minute walk from our guesthouse.

After packing up, we made our way to Nagoya—but the journey wasn’t exactly smooth. We missed a connection and boarded the wrong train at one point. We still got to see the beautiful views of the Japanese countryside.

Thankfully, the helpful staff at the information desks got us sorted, and we eventually made it.

Nagoya

We checked into “Glocals Hostel”, a clean, comfy place with a great vibe.

Plus dinner was tasty—we tried lots of different things at the restaurant downstairs and had a good night’s rest.

bus tour

April 27th

We had signed up for a guided bus tour and were super excited. First stop: “Takayama“, a picturesque mountain town with lovely streets and famous for tasty Hida beef.

Next, we headed to the “Ogimachi Castle Observation Deck,” which offered sweeping views over the traditional “Shirakawa-go” village, known for its steep thatched roofs.

We then explored the village itself, where we stumbled upon these gorgeous cherry blossom trees near an open-air museum.

That little detour turned out to be a highlight—we got to step inside the traditional houses and feel how cool and fresh they were inside. It really gave us a sense of how people lived there and how cleverly designed the homes were for both storage and insulation.

It made me want to explore even more of Japan’s rural mountain countryside.

April 28th

Before leaving Nagoya, Sam, Isa, Margaux, and I joined “Grandma Junko’s Cooking Class“! We learned how to prepare a traditional Japanese meal and took part in a tea ceremony to wrap up the experience.

She even posted a video of our session on her Instagram—make sure to check it out! If you’re ever in or near Nagoya, it’s definitely worth doing.

Fuji

We took the shinkansen to Fuji, where our hotel was right across from the station. After settling in, we braved the rain and went in search of dinner.

We ended up at a cozy little BBQ restaurant inside the station, where we enjoyed a private booth and some very tasty food.

April 29th

Luckily for us, the weather cleared, and when we woke up, we were greeted with a picture-perfect view of Mount Fuji right out the room window.

How lucky are we? Aside from admiring the view, we spent the day relaxing and catching up on some much-needed rest after all the sightseeing of the past few days.

April 30th

We dropped off our luggage at the station and made our way to the “Mishima Skywalk“, which gave us even more incredible views of Mount Fuji. We took our time enjoying the fresh air and the scenery.

It felt like being in front of a greenscreen.

Although I have to say that Mount Fuji is beautiful, but I’m not so sure it beats the Niesen mountain back in Switzerland, as Neni (my grandpa who travelled through Ghana with us) reminded us haha

We are very lucky with our mountains back home.

Shuzenji

From there, we continued to the peaceful village of Shuzenji on the Izu peninsula, where we strolled through charming streets and even tried vanilla ice cream with freshly grated wasabi —a surprisingly tasty combo!

The town had free public foot onsens (thermal spring water bath), which added to the relaxing vibe.

That evening, we had some delicious ramen recommended by our hostel and walked back through the lovely bamboo path.

May 1st

We spent the day in full relaxation mode—walking around town, sipping tea, and enjoying the calm.

Margaux and I went to a wonderful onsen with both indoor and outdoor baths, which we had completely to ourselves.

That evening’s dinner was particularly amazing—every single dish we ordered was perfectly prepared and absolutely delicious.

Tokyo

May 2nd–5th

Our last stop in Japan: Tokyo! On our first night, we visited Jamila and her two children, Raphael and Paloma—family friends who used to live in our village in Switzerland.

We spent so much time chatting and catching up that we completely forgot to take a picture together! All I have from that evening are a few photos of the beautiful night view from their balcony. Thank you for such a fun evening and the tasty pizzas and nibbles!

We spent the rest of our time in Tokyo doing a lot of walking around (including the crazy Shibuya crossing), enjoying the mega-city atmosphere, and doing a bit of tax-free shopping before flying out.