August 5, 2015 -- Bayside Hotel, Ichiran Ramen, Hama-rikyo Gardens, and Naritasan
We still have one whole day on our own before joining the land tour group. We needed to check-out of Bayside at 11:00AM before our transfer picks us up at 2:00 to go to Narita where our tour group will stay for the night. I suppose we will find our tour guide there when we arrive at the hotel in Narita.
Bayside Hotel Azur Takeshiba
Breakfast at the restaurant (Ginza) on the 3rd floor.
Condiments on the table
This morning ChC and I both ordered the western breakfast set while MOR kept his Japanese breakfast.
I think I like this better.
The corn soup was delicious and the yogurt refreshing!
After breakfast we went back up to our room and finished packing. Taking some last minute photos from our window. Tokyo Tower straight ahead.
Hama-rikyu Gardens on the right.
Conrad is right across the street from the gardens.
Zooming in the beautiful garden.
Tokyo Waterfront train cars
I really liked this hotel for its location. Staff were all friendly and courteous and it was not crowded.
Again, we left our luggage at the front desk after checking out so we could go and get some lunch. We have heard so much about this ramen place called Ichiran that are all over Japan. This would be a good chance to check them out. I found out that there's one in the Shimbashi area and that was where we headed using the Tokyo Waterfront one more time.
We found it right near the Shimbashi station.
Sign on the left of this picture. I don't remember if we went upstairs or downstairs but you won't miss it.
Once again, we purchased our tickets from the machine before going inside. There is a panel on the wall showing the empty spaces they have inside the restaurant at the moment. When you see a vacant space, go in and sit down. Everyone gets their own cubby, no group tables is available, which is kind of interesting.
I found my cubby hole, filled out the form to indicate how I like the noodle, ie. texture of noodle, amount of oil/grease, how much green onions, spiciness, etc. Then I turned the form with the ticket in and waited. First came the egg.
Ah, there's another form if you want more items to add on to your bowl of noodle. I didn't need this.
After the bowl of noodle arrived, they pull the bamboo screen down so you can enjoy your ramen in private.
Thick, flavorful soup base with tender pork pieces.
Just love those eggs!
One delicious meal in an unusual setting.
All done! I didn't finish the soup because it was a little too spicy for my taste. I marked 'medium' I think, and it was still too spicy.
To tell the truth, I still like the ramen at Yo! Tekko-ya in Odaiba better. This was a good experience though.
We each got our own cubby hole in this tiny restaurant. By the time we finished there was a line of people waiting outside.
A fake platter of spaghetti outside the restaurant next door.
After the ramen lunch, we walked back to the Shimbashi station and took the train one stop back to Shinodome. We wanted to visit the Hama-rikyu Gardens, at least for a little while. ChC decided not go come with us. We would meet him back at the Shinodome station after he checked out the stores there.
This really wasn't a good day to visit a garden. It was just too hot to be walking around in the middle of the day. But, we will be leaving this area and this would be the last chance we had and some members of our group really wanted to go there. There was a lot of construction work going on near the main entrance and it took us a while to find our way around.
The bridge at the main entrance.
In the midst of all these tall buildings...
we found the serene gardens.
Bayside Hotel in the middle. By the time we walked over here, I didn't want to move any more so I just sat at a shady bench and waited for the others to finish taking their pictures. Then we walked back to the station, met up with ChC, and took the train back to the hotel. Again, Mr. Asada was waiting at the lobby ready to take us to Narita. We quickly got our luggage and went downstairs for the one-hour ride to our next hotel in Narita.
Narita Richmond Hotel
When we arrived at the Richmond Hotel in Narita I was delighted to find out that this hotel is actually in the town of Narita and not somewhere near the airport. This will give us a chance to see Naritasan and the town itself instead of being stuck at a hotel with nothing around.
Our tour guide was waiting for us in the lobby and we quickly checked into our rooms.
The first room we got was a small room with just a double bed for the two of us. We quickly got that fixed and they put us in a more spacious room with two separated beds. MOR would be sharing a room with his dad throughout this trip.
Nothing fancy, but practical.
They even had a cell-phone charger by the bed.
Narita and Naritasan Shinsoji Temple
After settling in and freshened up a little, we headed out to town. Local map was available from the hotel and it was walkable to places we wanted to go.
Streets were tiny and narrow with not much space left for pedestrians.
Richmond Hotel is just right around the back of the Keisei-Narita Station where the Skyliner train from Narita Airport has a stop. Free tour of the town may be available from the airport for travelers having a few hours transit time at Narita.
Follow along this road in front of the Keisei-Narita Station is the JR Station on the opposite side which I don't have a picture of.
Then we turned and walked along the main street to Naritasan and looking for dinner at the same time. By now, the town was getting very quiet with most stores closed for the day already.
Then I noticed these stone carvings of the zodiac along the street
I suppose it's like a typical Japanese town.
Continue walking downhill.
This is the tourist information office where they have kimono dress-up sessions for tourists on certain days. Tourists can actually walk around town dressed up in their kimonos.
We finally came to Naritasan
Shinsoji Temple
Looking back at the front gate.
The main temple was still open but I did not go inside. MOR and ChC did, and they said it was pretty. By now, I had several mosquito bites just sitting there. I just wanted to get away from here as quickly as possible.
After the visit to the temple, we went our separate ways for dinner. Some went for the famous eel dinners here, and some went for other things. I was not feeling well, and did not want another episode of the intestinal problem so I skipped dinner. ChC wanted to just get some fried chicken from the Family Mart at the JR Train station because he didn't want any eel. After getting the fried chicken, we walked back to the hotel for the night. By the way, I tried the Family Mart fried chicken later on the week and they were actually quite good! For some fast, good, cheap food in Japan, that can be an excellent option.
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