Taking SQ632 bound for Tokyo Haneda Airport at 8am.
Bid farewell to my parents who dropped me off at the T3, departure door 3.
I picked up the Changi WIFI router from Changi Recommends before checking-in at one of the self-service kiosks. It was a good deal of $5/day (7days trip) Managed to print my own boarding pass and luggage tag before dropping off my check-in luggage at the bag drop counter.
Headed in to the departure area for breakfast at Killiney Kopitiam for Teh-C and Kaya Butter Toast Bread.
Took the skytrain to Terminal 1 where gate C1 was located.
As I boarded the plane, I realised I was flying on the Airbus A350-900, which began flying to Tokyo in December 2016. Neat!
The economy class according to Singaporeair.com website had fresher air as air in the cabin is refreshed every 2-3 minutes, the seats are ergonomically designed and come with leather headrests and adjustable footrests for greater comfort and smart lights that are warm or soothing. The personal screen and Krisworld offers the latest blockbuster movies, television shows, music (Chinese) and games such as pac-man and kids mode. There is even WiFi access onboard and a power outlet to charge your mobile devices.
The flight landed around 3.30pm at Haneda Airport. I managed to locate the JR East Travel Service Centre where I exchanged my JR Exchange order for a JR East pass near the Tokyo Monorail Line
(same level as the arrival hall) just walk straight.
Showed the pass to the staff at the gantry before taking the escalator up to the monorail platform. Taking the train bounded for Hamamatsucho before taking the JR Yamanote Line to Shinjuku.
I waited for J at the West exit as I surfaced to the ground level. She had arrived in Tokyo 8 hours earlier on the midnight flight.
She was lamenting that the instructions given to the hotel was not helpful, but since she could point out locating uniqlo building and the road crossing and park, maybe it was to a certain extent helpful.
It was a 10-15 minutes walk to the Hotel MyStays Nishi-Shinjuku Nishi Shinjuku MyStays hotel.
She brought me to the carpark where the elevator was located and we went straight to the room on the 7th storey.
It was pretty cramped but had amenities like shampoo, bath lotion, toothpaste toothbrush, hair dryer, TV and a mini fridge.
It would be our stay for the first three nights in Japan.
Once, I had deposited my luggages, we went straight to get the 1 Day Fuji-Hakone Pass from the Odakyu Travel office. Upon hearing my plan, the service staff advised me against it and to opt for the 1 Day Hakone pass instead. It was the golden week holiday and many Japanese would be travelling to the area and the roads would be jammed.
I felt abit disappointed but decided not to proceed.
After purchasing the pass, we headed to Takashimaya for some shopping.
We managed to locate the JR east travel service centre to purchase our Tateyama-Kurobe Alpine route option ticket in time before it closed at 7pm.
Along the way, we spotted the blue bottle coffee chain at NEWOMen department store and decided to get an ice coffee.
Bought some wet wipes and water from a 100yen shop and decided to join the queue at Ichiran for a taste of local Tonkotsu Ramen.
It was a long snaking queue and we waited 45 minutes to get our seat. Along the way, there were signages to indicate how long more we had to queue to get in. Once in, we had to make our order from a vending machine. Pass the tickets to the staff for our ramen to be served. There was a choice of ingredients such as egg, spring onions and seaweed.
We were given an order sheet to indicate our preference of our ramen, such as flavour strength, richness, garlic, green onion, amount of red sauce and noodle's texture.
There was a lighted panel that showed which seats were available, but we were assisted by the staff.
We were seated individually at booths and a retractable window where the staff would serve you your bowl of ramen once, you have passed them your ticket.
The ramen was thin, firm and springy! The broth was creamy, had a tinge of spice and rich. The sliced pork was thin, tender and tasty.
I accidentally ordered an extra option of ramen, but managed to finish it as i was famished after a long flight.
Passed by an arcade filled with crane/UFO catchers, many teens trying their hands at winning candies or stuff animals.
We also visited the uniqlo store and GU store before heading to Omoide Yokocho and back to the hotel.
Omoide Yokocho (Memory Lane or piss alley ) located at Shinjuku West gate features tiny bars and eateries between the railway tracks and a way to experience local night life.
We headed back at 10.30 for a good night's rest as we had an early train to catch to Hakone.
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