Mini Travel Log: Yokohama, Japan

It has been 5 years since my last visit to Yokohama. On my last visit, I did not have the chance to visit the famous Ramen Museum here. This time, I was adamant to go there even though I was tired and it was a short trip.

This famous Ramen Museum is actually called the Shin-Yokohama Raumen Museum and they have a website in English here: http://www.raumen.co.jp/english/.  And as the name suggests, it is located at the Shin-Yokohama district, accessible by either the JR trains or Yokohama City Subway (Blue line). I stayed at Yokohama Minato Mirai area so I hopped onto the Blue Line at Sakuragicho subway station. I alighted at Shinyokohama station and took Exit 8. It was only a very short walk by turning left at the exit and then right.

This Ramen Museum features many famous ramen restaurants all over Japan; all under one roof. They charge a nominal entrance fee of 310 yen per person. The interior is a recreation of the old Tokyo which is very beautiful and unique. Each ramen restaurant offers mini ramen bowls so you can try out as many types of ramen as possible with the requirement of minimum one normal sized ramen bowl order. If you're too full and don't have space to try out all the ramen, keep the ticket and come again at night. The ticket is valid for one day.

*Pictures in the gallery below are taken by Lumia 1020 phone in RAW format.

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Winter Wonderland: Yokohama, Tokyo, Nikko

Winter is the time where everyone wants to avoid and stay indoor. Many think it is cold, dull and depressing; so did I. I was wrong. I had a memorable white winter trip to Yokohama, Tokyo and Nikko. It was a wonderful trip to start off my year.

Yokohama is a sleepy town south of Tokyo. Even though not too packed compared to Tokyo, it does not lack behind in terms of entertainment and shopping. It has many big shopping complexes and a big theme park. This beautiful port city offers many picturesque sight-seeing spots like Osanbashi pier and Akarenga Soko. The city is also home to the largest Chinatown in Japan.

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Tokyo: city full of energy and neon lights. I have been to most of the attraction sites last year. This time round, I visited the Tokyo Dome City for its theme park and then headed to Ikebukuro. I climbed up the Sunshine 60 building for a breathtaking view of Tokyo city. I'm like a local resident now. For once, I never got lost and needed to ask any help for direction. Hmm...I'm thinking of getting a part time tour guide job here.

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My trip to Nikko was also my first white snow experience. Although I've seen snow before, this time I was actually there when the snow started falling. Just slight snow for a short while, but it was quite an experience. I was unprepared and was frozen to become a snowman. Lake Chuzenji and Kegon Falls are so beautiful in the white snowy landscape.

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