2021

 For 2021, I have an optimistic view that I will be going back to Japan.  A plan that was stifled at many points along 2020.  Because of my pessimism, I have some back up plans.

Plan A, Japan during the Olympics.  Am I crazy to go to Tokyo during the Olympics?  Yes, but I will not be staying in Tokyo during the last week of the Olympics.  I plan to fly into Tokyo, stay for the night, then make my way to Aomori/Hirosaki the next day.  During the first week of August, the neighboring cities have their Nebuta/Neputa festivals.  If I can plan it correctly, I can attend both festivals and possibly browse the apple orchards.  The area is well known for its apple production.  By the time I head back to Tokyo, the clamor for the games will have died down and everything has back to normal.  One of the things on my list is to visit the Gundam Factory in Yokohama.  There is a more animated life sized RX78 Gundam statue that debuted very recently.  I have been to a majority of the locations where Gundam was erected.  While still in construction, the original RX78 statue at a park in Odaiba.  The fully built statue repositioned to Diver City Mall.  And Unicorn Gundam which replaced the RX78.  Other agenda items to be formulated

Plan B, Tokyo in Christmas/New Years.  With the holidays falling the way they are in 2021, a week plus a few days will equal 2 weeks off.  I plan on flying out on Christmas Day hoping flights and airports to be light.  This will be my first time to observe the "illuminations" that happen throughout Tokyo at this time of year.  Lights are strewn around everywhere giving the city a festive feel.  A big deal is made of welcoming in the new year with midnight pilgrimages to temple/shrines.  A few days in Hawaii on the way back to help transition back to my time zone will round out the trip.

Plan C, may not need it but will have one in case A and B fall through.

Nothing is written in stone and the situation is still fluid to the point all plans will go out the window.  Posts this year have been few and far between as travel has been halted.  Like everyone else, Im eagerly awaiting the start of 2021

Done and done

This was previously written in January and supposed to have been posted.  But the lame brain in me did not click on the right buttons.



Return flight has been booked and I opted for the quickest, single layover, itinerary.  All theres left to do is finalize what Ill be doing in Japan and to wait for the corona virus to subside.  Two months ought to do, right?

There have been several times where I have been awake well past 24 hours on a number of overseas trips.  As I age and get older, it does not make these situations any better.  I have less energy and do not recover as quickly.  In as much as I wanted to stop by in Hawaii, I think that may have to be a short trip later this year.  Yes, fears of falling asleep in my poi haunt me.  Not being able to get to my final flight home because I fell asleep and missed my stop at the airport is totally conceivable.  For that matter, falling asleep on the inbound bus and landing up who knows where.

With this more direct flight, which lands in the afternoon, I can return home to rest and get readjusted to the time zone.  Yes, Ive heard its bad to do that because it prolongs the jetlag.  But, I will still have a few days to recover and it starts when I hit the bed.

A little insight into the trip:

I cant fly into Japan without visiting Tokyo.  Typically, the trips start and end there but this time it just ends in Tokyo.  This time I will be venturing further west than I have been before.  I am flying into Osaka and travelling as far west as Okayama.  Visit Osaka and Kyoto for a few days as well.  Head out to Nagoya where I will also visit Gifu over the weekend.  Finally wrapping up in Tokyo.

The first step has been taken

Outbound tickets are purchased.  Quite a bit of a departure from my usual tickets of trips past.  I found it most difficult to find an inexpensive nonstop flight on both outbound and inbound legs with a single airlines.  The airline that I had taken on previous flights was proving to be very expensive possibly due to different cities where I would land and take off from.  The matter only got worse as the prices kept creeping up as time went on.  As of this writing, close to $2000.


I am forced to book different airlines for departure and arrival.  In addition, a layover is required to bring the cost of the ticket down.  In flying to Japan, I waited too long and missed out on the last seat on the set of flights leaving on Saturday.  No worries, I will be departing a day later.  The flight leaves just past midnight with a stop in Asia, 3.5 hour layover, then te final leg to Japan arriving around noon.  I have taken a midnight flight to Japan before with not so great results.  I had to fly down to LAX to catch this flight.  Weather delayed arrival in LA and my luggage didn't make the flight.  Ive stated before that I cant sleep on airplanes.  This was no exception.  I landed in Tokyo half dead at 6am.  Since I could not check in yet, I had to slog through a wet and cold Tokyo for a few hours before I could check in.  I imagine the same scenario.  Hopefully, I can refresh myself a bit with breakfast and a nice bracing cup of coffee on my way to the connecting flight.  Im expecting that a bright sunny day in Japan will help to keep me energized until I can check in and check out on the bed.


The return flight has not been established.  There are 2 possibilities that I am pondering, a more direct flight or a layover in Hawaii.  The first option would involve a layover in the northeast before heading home.  The second option would involve a 8 or 12 hour layover in Honolulu.  The flight would leave as early as 2130 or as late as 2355.  A rather short flight at 7.25 hours.  As enjoyable as this short stop would seem, I am haunted by the spectre of little to no sleep.  I was imagining having lunch, maybe, before doing some souvenir shopping.  Cap it off with dinner before heading back to the airport where the flight leaves just before 2100.  The bus ride to/from the airport is 1 hour each way.  I can sleep while riding in ground transportation so this might lull me to sleep very quickly.  And possibly make me miss my stop.  But, if I can get over that, I think that I will be fine for the rest of the day.  Fingers crossed that I can sleep during the first leg if I choose Hawaii

2020-What up

We are already several days into the new year.  A nice round number, 2020.  Double 20's.  Several years since the start of my blog.  In the beginning, I tried to post something, on average, everyday.  Frequency later dropped to once a week and once a month.  Eventually it came down to my yearly post when I would travel abroad.  Looking to change it up a bit.  I will still be posting about my trip, more on that later.  But I will also try to upload other musings or observances that cross my path.  Daily?  Weekly?  Monthly?  Who knows? 

2020, a leap year, indicates a summer Olympic year.  Tokyo is where its all going to be happening this summer.  And, I will be there...in April.  Summer has always been a tough time for me to get to my favorite place in this world.  Hot humid weather, soaring airline prices, staggering crowds keep me away during the busy travel season.  I hope to get a glimpse of the preperations for the games in the months leading up to it.  I had already noticed some of the changes from last year and year before.  Small as they were but more noticable as it draws near.

After the Olympics in London, I went to see what was still standing.  Unfortunately, the Olympic village was closed to the public and there was little left to see.  I hope things will be different for this pre-Olympic jaunt.  Expect to see alot of cherry blossoms as well as castles.  Some you've seen before and some I havent been to before.  Always a mix of things Ive done before with a sprinkling of new places and things to do.  A departure from my usual routine is to fly into KIX in Osaka.  HND, Haneda, is my preferred airport due to its close vicinity to Tokyo.  Not to mention its one train ride to my lodgings.  Narita is nice but its an hour train ride.  While I dont usually have to transfer, there was a time where the Narita Express didnt stop at Shinagawa.  So I had to transfer at Tokyo station.  I will hit some sites in the area before going back to Tokyo via Nagoya.  A weekend in Nagoya coincides with a festival in Gifu.

Direct flights are a bit pricey at the moment.  So, I will have to spend some time in a layover before final at KIX.  Return flight is much the same.  I am contemplating an extended layover in Hawaii.  If I could get some sleep on the plane, I would have enough time to grab a meal and do a bit of souvenir shopping before hopping home.  Otherwise, I may find myself passing out on a bench in Ala Moana shopping center and suddenly wake to find Im late for my flight home!!!!

This counts as 1!!!!!