CODY SHIMIZU

A look into my life, a journal to look back on, a blog for others to see.

WHAT!? Japan!? I was super excited to go to Japan I havent been back for 8 years! It was going to be nice to see my cousins, and furthermore I was excited because I would be doing a 2 week backpacking trip while I was there. After watching many YouTube videoes of backpackers I packed as light as I could and set off. After a long day of travel, it was absolutely amazing to be coming into Narita during the golden hour.

The next day I had a full day in Tokyo, the plan was to just enjoy the atmosphere in Shinjuku, Harajuku, and Shibuya. Due to the time chage I woke up earlier than I needed, but I went out anyways, and to no surprise the stores were still closed. After strolling around and a quick cafe stop I got to Jins where I got some new glasses made (eye exam, frame, and lenses for under $100!) Afterwards was Harajuku, it was essentially the young, hip part of town. It was interesting looking at and taking in all of the different sub-cultures of Japan. After exploring the backstreets of Harajuku I made my over to Shibuya. There I was first greeted by the Shibuya scramble crossing right infront of the train station. It was pretty cool to actually see it in person, I was there in the middle of the week, mid day and the crossing was always full of people covering the whole street with people.

The next morning I left the house at 4am for the train to Nagasaki, it was much easier than it sounds due to the fact that I was still jet lagged. It was my first time riding a bullet train so I was a bit excited to experience the 300+ km/h speed, It was awesome to see all of the small towns zip by outside the window.

By the time I got to Nagasaki it was already close to 3pm, so I rushed to my Hotel (yes a hotel, my parents were worried about me staying at a hostel right off the bat so they got a hotel room for the first two nights, I really prefered a hostel, but it was free accomodation so couldnt say no) dropped off my bags and went to Glover Garden, it was really beautiful there with a cool mix between Japanese and European arts.

After Glover Garden I made my way to a cable car up a mountain just on the outskirts of Nagasaki, where it was recognized as the 3rd best nightview in the world back in 2012, and it was right, it was really amazing, you could see the entire city from that one vantage point. Parts of the city built into the little valleys inbetween the mountain surrounding Nagasaki. Only thing was that many many other people had the same idea of going during sundown, and it was quite crowded.