Jet set in Japan

One of my favorite countries in the world is Japan. I've had the opportunity to finally visit the country last March 2013 with my sister for her Suzuki convention. (read one of my early travel blog entries about it here ^_^) Although my interest in Japan started out childish because of the anime and the music, I grew to love everything else about the country as I learned more about the Japanese culture and history. After my first visit, I was already eager to go back.

If there's something I'm greatly thankful for, it's the opportunities I've had to travel to other countries and visit places not a lot of people can travel to. I was able to go to Japan again this year with my friend vanillux, when she won tickets to Watanabe Mayu's concert. Mayu is a member of the popular Japanese group, AKB48. While I missed AKB events last time in Japan, this time I was able to join their handshake event, which is similar to a meet-and-greet. I'll explain more about this in my next entry.

Japan in September is actually a nice time to visit for foreigners from more tropical countries (like me). The last warmth of summer meets the early chills of a fall, mixing sunny days with refreshing nights. Interestingly, Japan is apparently also another humid Asian country. So if you'll be visiting during that time, wear light and comfortable clothes for the day but bring a jacket or two to keep you warm at night.

For all my 10 days in Japan, these are my top 10 highlights.

1. AKB48 Handshake
2. Tachibana
3. Harry Potter in Universal Studios
4. Going Around Osaka
5. Shibuya
6. One Piece in Tokyo Tower
7. Pokemon Center in Ikebukuro
8. The Apartments
9. Bullet Train to Osaka
10. The Japanese

Next time, I'll talk more specifically about my experiences in Osaka and my second time around Tokyo. I'll also talk about my AKB experience in more detail. I've taken a lot more pictures of my trip but most are artistic shots, which I won't post here. Instead, you can view them on my Flickr account.