While browsing old spring trip blog posts, I realized that I was always traveling during this season since I first experienced Japan's famous sakura in 2015. It only stopped in 2020, because of you know what!
Looking back, maybe spring made me fall in love with traveling. ♡
My first experience of spring was in Japan in 2015. Wala padin syang katulad!
I can't believe it has been four years since my winter trip in Hokkaido (2019). It was one of my favorite media trips coz we were able to experience full-on Japan snow!
My recent Japan trip felt short, but it already included a lot of activities and touched three cities of Kyushu. As mentioned several times, this is my first time traveling to the south side of Japan, and through this trip, I was able to appreciate it for the mild weather, unique foreign influences, and rich history.
Sharing our 4 days - 3 nights Kyushu Island itinerary, covering Fukuoka - Nagasaki - Saga - then back to Fukuoka for our flight to Manila. All pictures used in this post are taken from our short detour at the Yutoku Inari Shrine in Saga--a unanimous favorite stop of the group.
I remember how my high school commemorated the Hiroshima-Nagasaki nuclear attack every August, with a mass in our campus field and extensive history classes. St. Scho has always been like that, a bit too revolutionary for youngsters with no idea of the world at that time. I think this was my very first encounter of these two cities in Japan, made known by a tragic incident in 1945. My early exposure lead to a long-term thirst for knowledge and understanding.
And like in any place, there is more to Nagasaki than being the last city in the world to experience a nuclear attack. After two nights in Fukuoka, we were on the road for 2 hours to get to our next stop: Nagasaki. Here are some of the places that you can visit when you find yourself on this non-touristy side of Japan.
Have you ever thought of traveling to Fukuoka?
I've only read about this southern city from travellers who've already done the usual Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto Japan tour. To Filipinos, Fukuoka is one of the alternative Japan destinations when you want to go back to the land of the rising sun, but without the inconvenience of connecting flights (since we have a direct, 4-hour flight from Manila to Fukuoka Airport via Cebu Pacific Air). I also know of Fukuoka for its Wisteria Tunnel (purple flowers) during April to May.
Since it is located in the south, Fukuoka is Japan's sunny side. It is the gateway of the Kyushu Island, its largest city, and was once a prosperous port town where foreign merchants come and go.
Hokkaido is more known as a travel destination during winter season (December to February). For Filipinos, we visit the northern side of Japan to experience the thickest snow, wear our heaviest coats, and participate in snow activities like skiing, snowboarding, and even just to create a snowman and snow angel! 😁
The second popular seasons to visit Hokkaido is Spring-Summer, where you can see fields of flowers in full bloom either in Furano or Biei. Fall is often the least traveled months as people opt to go to main cities like Tokyo or Osaka.
On my third time in Hokkaido, there is still so much to see and do.
What I like about this trip is that I was able to experience new things, and even new things from sites that I have already been to before but in a different season. I still find it amusing that any changes of the colors of leaves, a drop in temperature, or the appearance of rain or clouds changes a whole place in its entirety. It's always as if it's my first time! I will always be a fan of the magic of four seasons.
Autumn is coming! Here are some commonly asked questions I get from those traveling during fall season.
It rained for a day during my November Tokyo trip:
Clear skies and mild temperature during the day, November in Sapporo:
What To Wear During Autumn?
I get questions including "malamig na ba ng October", "what to wear in Korea on November", etc. Honestly, I am still confused myself!
First is because hindi ako lamigin. When I decide to wear full-on wool coat with extra layers of heat tech garnments underneath, then that means MALAMIG NA MALAMIG na talaga nun! Haha! This usually happens when I travel during winter. But for Autumn (October to early November), I can actually still wear my usual midi or maxi skirts! 😅
Secondly, no brainer: weather changes every year! It's so hard to predict if it's going to be super cold this year, although I already traveled on the same place and at the same month a year or 2 ago. It still varies. A tip is to constantly check your weather app--a few days before your trip when you're packing, AND on the day of your trip before heading out of your room. It's not super-duper accurate, but it's the best guide where you can gauge if you'll need more layers for your outfits.
There's also day in my November Sapporo when it drizzled!
Here's a practical list of stuff that I will pack or wear with on a October-November autumn trip:
(1) Heattech. You can never go wrong with this extra thin layer! There will be days when it's not super cold ("Baguio weather"), but it's still cold. You'll need the extra warmth when it gets windy or when you stroll outdoors at night.
(2) Bring a jacket or coat. This can be your denim jacket, leather jacket, knits, and even long coats. Again, this depends on your tolerance for chilly weather. But during autumn, I seldom see locals in puffer jackets and heavy wool coats--usually they take these out during winter pa. But then again, it's all up to one's individual preferences, style, and needs.
(3) A cap, bucket hat, or any headgear that protects your eyes from the wind, or your hair from always getting on your face. I also just wear a hat or bonnet during light drizzles.
(4) Scarf, face mask, gloves. Again, these accessories will come in handy when you need the extra warmth. You can also buy heat packs in convenience store and place them on your pockets before heading out.
(5) Water resistant bag + passport holder. I experienced autumn rains so make sure to protect your things from getting soaked! You can also bring a small foldable umbrella with you, but I prefer buying one on the spot during my travels.
Where To Go / Things To Do During Autumn?
Of course, although it gets chilly, this is the best time to enjoy the outdoors! For Korea, go to theme parks like Everland where their displays turn autumn themed! Visit Nami Island, and see lanes of maple leaves in oranges, red, and yellows. Or simply go to the nearest park from your hostel!
Same with Japan, I enjoy park visits for the autumn foliage. My favorites are Ueno Park, Shinjuku Gyoen, and Yoyogi Park. Make sure to schedule your Mt. Fuji tour during autumn too! We had a clear visibility of this mountain, and we witnessed beautiful fall colors during our stopovers.
And lastly, make sure to schedule an onsen or jjimjilbang day, a ramen or ramyeun meal, cute cafes hopping, enrol in cooking classes or workshops, and have an art museum day -- activities that you will enjoy even when it's too cold outside!
Personal Favorite Autumn Sites:
1) Shinjuku Gyoen Park
2) Sapporo
3) Nami Island
4) Jeju-do
5) Everland
6) Mt. Fuji Tour
When all else fails, remember that convenience stores, malls, and night markets are just around the corner in Korea and Japan! It's the perfect excuse to shop a little!
Are you flying for autumn this year? Do you have other questions for your trip? Feel free to comment below and will try my best to answer them!
Watch my vlog guesting on Tin of Real Asian Beauty!
Winter-Autumn Travel Essentials:
If you only have a few hours in Tokyo, where will you go?
Our winter in Japan trip was from February 14 to 17. We left the night of the 13th, and slept on the plane (Japan Airlines). It was around midnight when we stepped foot in Japan (Haneda International Airport), took the free airport shuttle to another airport terminal for another plane ride to the underexposed side of Japan. This is my kind of Valentine's! 💖
Would you believe, this trip is about 2 months in the making! I received the first email invitation while I was in Japan with my sister Cea around November last year. I felt a little sad that we were a bit too early for snow, and then suddenly I received an email from Japan Airlines inviting me to experience winter in Japan with them!! Napa-iling nalang talaga ako in awe, I will always be amazed with how God works. The timing is perfect, and all His plans and surprises are really the best. This media trip turned out to be one of the most unforgettable I ever had!
For my first blog post, I will try to explain why I prefer JAL's new MNL to Haneda flight, show the inflight meals they serve for vegetarians, and a few tips on how I survived this -10 to -20 trip without spending too much on winter clothes I won't even use back in Manila. It's going to be another loaded post, so enjoy! ❤
It's my fourth time in Tokyo, and Cea's second, so we've been to the usual must-sees. Although our main agenda for this Japan trip is to go to Hokkaido, we both agreed that we will not leave Japan without spending a day or two in the big bright city.
If, like us, you can't get enough of Tokyo but want to steer away from the usual Harajuku, Ginza or Shibuya, here's an alternative itinerary that we did on our latest trip.
Hay nag hihinayang ako. I lost some of my Japan phone pics. I have a whole lot more in my phone compared to my camera for those "instant" moments where I don't need to fuss so much about composition, but just to keep a piece of the memory. I think hindi ko nasave yung photos ng maayos sa laptop kong mababa ang memory (Macbook probs huhu). Mabuti nalang talaga most of these pictures and videos landed on my Instagram, IG Stories, or my family's private FB group. The more that I am grateful na I am the real time poster that I am!!
Anyway, moving forward!
We arrived in Tokyo and the sun was already down. It was dark out as I peered through our taxi's window, I think it was even drizzling. It was cold, but not as cold as Hokkaido. Bright lights of Shinjuku greeted us to Tokyo's modern city. I love it, every contrast our next stop is lending us from where we just came from were perfect.
I had my phone's Google Maps out just in case our cab driver starts to do something fishy, but I doubt it coz we're in Japan. As we were nearing the capsule hotel that I pre booked via Agoda, I felt more and more excited and even at home! Hahaha! Welcome to the KOREA TOWN of TOKYO!
Merry Christmas guys! I still have about travel backlogs from this year, but iniisip ko nalang na at least there are so many stories yet to tell in this blog! Hopefully before the year ends, we are down to zero backlogs so we can start 2019 with new pages!
Anyway, we're down to our last few hours in Sapporo, and honestly the days prior this Cea and I were already running out of ideas. We wanted to do so many things but they wouldn't fit the time frame before our flight back to Tokyo. These other things include a visit to an onsen, a few more day-trips outside Sapporo, Mt. Moiwa, etc. But since we only had 3-4 hours to spare before we check out and ride the airport bus for our flight, we decided to just play it safe and visit one of the places I often see in Sapporo blogs: Shiroi Koibito Park and Ishiya Chocolate Museum.
Ahhh again, when weeks passed by after a trip, my brain starts to take out some of the details which is very unfortunate as a blogger. So I will just try my very best to look back on this day to still make a comprehensive blog even with the delays!
Furano and Biei is a city and town in Hokkaido that traveller friends highly highly recommend. If you have time, budget, and energy to hop from one Hokkaido city to another, then you have to include Furano--and stay there for a night or two. I would have done so if not for time constraints and our huge maletas.
Furano / Biei are known for their lavender fields (Farm Tomita) with a wonderful view of the Mount Tokachi, the Blue Pond, and for their ski resorts. If you are into nature and the great outdoors, then make sure to visit Furano / Biei when you're on this side of Japan.
I am so excited to take you around Hokkaido's quaint harbor town of Otaru. ❤
When my sister Cea (the youngest) and I planned a trip to Japan by end of this year, specifically in its northernmost and coldest part called HOKKAIDO, we weren't thinking of movie locations (Kita Kita in Sapporo) or that we're in for dairies overload. We wanted to see more of the snow haha.
A few weeks ago, a dear friend posted an online status that says how much he missed the good old days of blogging when bloggers actually write and not just post heavily filtered Instagram photos. Although I agree with the lack of "writing bloggers" as I myself sometimes find my Macbook's Reading List meh on days when I just need to feed my brain through reading, is it just the bloggers to blame?
I've only been to a Disney theme park 3x in this lifetime.
First one is in Hong Kong Disneyland with two of my long-time friends from high school. It was a little bit delayed as we went there when we were already working and can afford an out of country trip, but we enjoyed our Mickey Mouse-shaped ice cream and indoor thrill rides as if we were kids again.
Second time was in America, in Disneyland California with my family during our 2013 holiday trip. Again, we were too old in age but still young at heart.
Fourth time, and already in my 30s, I still look forward to my Tokyo Disney Sea Day with Deegee! We agreed on setting it on our second to the last day, and came in our twinning swag Mickey hoodies that we bought the night before in Harajuku.I thought it was just going to be a chill theme park day, but I did not realized I was in for a looooong day with a millennial boy who just loves thrill rides as much as I do back when I was his age HAHA!
I've been to Shinjuku before, but it's almost always during nighttime. One time, Sarah and I went there for the Robot Restaurant. Another time I went there to meet up with Gervin after his work, and had dinner in a hole-in-the-wall ramen place. I think that one time I went to Shinjuku during daytime was with my Ate, to see the cherry blossoms and have hanami in the park. It was, for me, the best view of sakura blossoms in my whole life!
This time, I wanted to see Shinjuku while it's autumn. Deegee and I went there early in the morning to put a big check in items from our Shinjuku list:
