We finally landed in Japan, let’s say the super cheap Alaska-Hawaiian flight be prepared no power, no wi-fi and squeezed in like sardines but that’s what you get being a cheapo with $500 round trip flight! Our luggage disappeared faster than a sumo wrestler at mealtime to our hotel in the Japanese Alps-look for the Black Cat when you land! You want to be like a pro don’t bring all your luggage on the trains and annoy everyone- send them to your hotel and just have a day or 2 worth of clothing in your backpack. Makes travel easy and most Japanese Hotels have unlimited amenities galore (hairbrush, toothbrush, lotions, facials, bath salts, PJs, etc.)

Everyone’s been absurdly friendly and helpful, it’s like they’re training for some kind of niceness Olympics! The shuttle ride from the airport to the nearby hotel was so smooth, I almost needed a wake-up call to alert me we arrived, and by smooth, I mean I drooled a bit on the window. Later we found out it would have been an easy 2 mile walk when we headed to ramen for dinner that was back at Terminal 3-HA! Let me tell you, the cheap $7 a bowl treat at the airport you can’t go wrong! Then, a speedy jaunt to a super clean ramen joint for dinner, my taste buds are doing the cha cha slide! Their zero beer (Asahi) has a fantastic flavor, low calories and a funny quote about making work the next day easy, too bad that’s not my friend today!

Now, off to dreamland for some mountain-snow filled fantasies in the Japanese Alps – woohoo! Check out the size of these twin beds, more like full beds, even better! Highly recommend Narita Tobu hotel by the Airport. One day in Tokyo and then we’re shredding the slopes — here we come!

Day 2 kicked off with a delicious breakfast included in the ridiculously cheap hotel price (look at the spread!) then a casual little stroll to the airport to catch the express train into Tokyo. Honestly, Japan’s walking paths deserve their own fan club. Distances, arrows, instructions on how to be a functioning human in public—my Type A soul has never felt so seen.

On the train, I ambitiously planned out 12 activities. Naturally, we accomplished about… 1/4. Time in Tokyo moves at warp speed, apparently.

First mission: drop a bag at the hotel. Easy, right? Except we took the wrong exit and gifted ourselves a scenic bonus lap around the station. Silver lining: we discovered the hotel lets you pick your own pillows and gives you more tiny lotions and face washes than a Sephora sample bag. I was thriving. Another recommendation, affordable and easy walk from the station-Tokyo Super Premier Hotel!

Next up: Ramen Street back at the Tokyo train station. There are so many- how do you choose? Give up, do iny mini miny mo and step in a long line and just wait. Oh, we choose right! A glorious bowl of broth, pork, and bamboo shoots—order from a menu machine like civilized chaos. You push buttons, you get a ticket, you stand in line, one person out one person in, you slurp noodles. It’s the circle of life. I would try to give you the name of the place to go, but there is no way I can write the congee here.

Then we braved, deep in the basement, lies Tokyo Character Street, where Pokémon, Hello Kitty, and Godzilla live in a state of high-priced harmony. It’s the only place in the world where you can see a high-powered businessman in a $3,000 suit unironically buying a plushie of a sentient piece of fried shrimp. We also battled thousands of people who were enthusiastically buying… characters. Plushies, figurines, keychains, outfits that made Comic-Con look understated. I called it Cuteness Ghetto, Greg called it Dante’s Hell again!

A few fun facts about Tokyo Station:

1. The Dutch Dopple-Gänger: The Marunouchi facade looks so much like Amsterdam Centraal that people have been accusing architect Kingo Tatsuno of “copy-pasting” since 1914. Tatsuno’s defense? He added white granite stripes to the red brick, which is basically the architectural equivalent of adding a mustache to a painting and calling it “original art.”
2. The “Mole People” Mall: If the surface of Tokyo looks too crowded, you can just join the underground civilization. The station is the gateway to a subterranean labyrinth where you can buy a tailored suit, get a ramen bowl, and walk three miles to the next neighborhood without ever touching a drop of rain. It’s perfect for people who want to visit Tokyo but have a personal vendetta against the sun.
3. “X” Marks the Spot (Literally): Most train stations put up plaques for famous snacks; Tokyo Station puts them up for assassinations. There are unassuming tiles on the floor marking where two different Prime Ministers met their end. It’s a grim “Easter Egg” hunt for history buffs that makes your morning commute feel significantly more like a Tom Clancy novel.

We then joined several hundred of our closest strangers for a guided tour of the Imperial Palace. Reminder: Japan is like the UK—walk on the left. My American instincts were fighting for their lives. The gardens were beautiful, though you can’t go inside any buildings, which feels like being invited to a party but only allowed to admire the house from the driveway. A few fun facts on the Imperial Palace:

1. It’s the “Holy Land” of jogging: The 5-kilometer (3.1-mile) path surrounding the palace moats is the most popular running route in Japan. It is often called the “Holy Land of Runners.” Because there are no traffic lights and the scenery is beautiful, you’ll find thousands of joggers there daily. There is even an unwritten rule that all runners must jog in a counter-clockwise direction.
2. The Empress raises silkworms: In a tradition that dates back to 1871, the Empress of Japan personally tends to silkworms at the Palace Sericulture Centre. Each year, she feeds them mulberry leaves and participates in the harvesting of the silk. This silk is then used for the restoration of historical Japanese textiles and as gifts for state guests.
3. It sits on the world’s largest fortress: The palace is built on the remains of Edo Castle, which was once the largest fortress in the world. While most of the castle buildings are gone, the massive stone walls and moats remain. Some of the stones used in the walls are so large that they required dozens of men to move, and you can still see the “signatures” (marks) of the samurai clans who donated the stones carved into them.

After that, it was time for the holy grail: Daimaru Department Store Bento Heaven. Its basement (the Depachika) is a high-end food cathedral. It has a “Bento Street” where the food is often prepared fresh on-site. It’s where you go if you want a $30 wagyu steak bento that was sliced ten minutes ago. I browsed 50 different types of gourmet sushi and then realized I’ve spent 45 minutes looking at pickled radishes. We sampled everything—fried chicken, sushi, steamed chicken cilantro salad, wagyu beef noodles. At this point we were 8 miles in and running purely on carbs and curiosity.

Back at the hotel, we were greeted by the owners Pet Dog! We changed into our complimentary PJs and slippers (peak luxury), but not before hitting the free happy hour and ice cream. Priorities.

Then came the onsen experience. Picture tiny wooden stools, organic soaps, and a little bucket to rinse yourself before entering a steaming natural pool that makes a hot tub feel lukewarm. I had the whole place to myself for 20 glorious minutes. Afterwards, I tested every lotion and face wash in the women’s lounge like a kid in a very polite, very quiet candy store. Greg also had his onsen to himself but he wasn’t an explorer he raced back to the room to shower in peace and not have to figure out how to use the stiil and very short shower head.

Of course we found right outside our hotel a direct entrance into the Tokyo Station…For dinner, we attempted to find a Tonkatsu place… and failed. We wandered, debated, got lost, and ultimately ended up eating at the first soba restaurant we saw when we first entered the station by our hotel. Naturally. Buckwheat noodles and tempura never tasted so victorious.

Back to the hotel for “night night time,” as the locals definitely do not say, and another morning breakfast for the Gods!

Nagano and the start of our Japanese Alps adventure. Perfect timing too—sunny skies for us, and then a Siberian storm front rolling in with a whole lot of snow. Stay tuned…