Beginning in Tokyo, one of the largest cities in the world, it felt overwhelming from day one. I didn’t know where to start so this is where IJ came to the rescue, organizing our first day with an English-speaking Japanese man who began our day by giving us a primer in the subways and trains. After this we felt we could conquer the train system anywhere. Not quite true, but still invaluable (n.b. it gets easier when you aren’t in the biggest train stations in the world!)

After the search for an ATM at a 7-11 near our hotel we, somewhat pathetically, began our culinary tour with a mushroom anchovy pizza at a pleasant Italian bar.  Surprisingly delicious, as was the imported vino. Just so you know, this was the only pizza our entire trip. Breakfast included a buffet and/or a choice of two menu items.

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After a day of Tokyo’s concrete jungle, we were already ready to check out a more rural region. The skies were clear, and temps were favorable. Chichibu-Tama National Park is home to Mt Takao. It was a 3-train ride from our hotel and nearly 2 hours from start to finish. We thought we might have some difficulty find the hiking trails, but all ages and manner of people had the same idea on a fine autumn day, so we just followed the crowd. As eager as we were to hike both up and down the peak, we realized that our leisurely start, the longish train ride, and shorter autumn days meant we better keep to a tight schedule. We opted to take the chairlift up to the half-way point. From here a network of trails offer options that include broad, mostly paved car-free roads and at least one narrower, unpaved single-track trail. We opted for the latter through forests of deciduous, evergreen trees and some rougher sloped terrain but were rewarded with significantly less foot traffic.

The Tsukiji Outer (Fish) Market was our breakfast destination one day. We met our Arigato Travel tour guide at Turret Coffee where we enjoyed the nearest thing to a Melbourne cappuccino in Tokyo. Six of us were shepherded through the fish market that boasts 460 stores for all things related to food. Our first stop at a dive-café with large booths was not especially popular when the other 2 couples said they didn’t really like fish. Boy, were they in trouble on a breakfast tour of a fish market! We spent a couple hours around the market and except for the fact that photos were not allowed inside where the fish are displayed, the market would be a great place to visit when it is less crowded. This is the sort of place where visitors browse, not buy so photo opps would make it difficult to see as much. The variety and size of the fish were incredible, and it was impossible to identify most of them.

The afternoon included a walk through Hamarikyu Gardens. At the end of the day we were scheduled for a Tokyo Harbour dinner cruise. We were the only non-Asians and we had a bit of fun trying to communicate with fellow passengers. It was a perfect evening to be on the water and this experience turned out to be fun.