I’m very excited to be heading off to Japan for a couple of months this spring and alongside enjoying the sakura, I have a few fun activities on my list that I’m hoping to do while I’m out there.
I’ve already got my tickets to visit Ghibli Park just outside of Nagoya, with its (about to be) newly opened Valley of the Witches section featuring Howl’s Moving Castle and Kiki’s Delivery Service. I’m looking forward to seeing the house from My Neighbour Totoro and checking out the amazing set pieces in the Grand Warehouse. I’ve now just got my fingers crossed to be able to get tickets for the Studio Ghibli museum in Tokyo for the end of my trip.
I’ve also managed to get a reservation at the Pokemon Cafe which I’m thrilled about. As a fan of the anime, I can’t wait to eat pikachu shaped food and drink out of a pokeball shaped mug. I’ll obviously be visiting the Pokemon Center while I’m there and I might try and pay a visit to Pikachu Sweets too, which, while linked to the cafe, doesn’t require reservations and sells Pikachu-shaped waffles and other sweet treats. Read Marceline’s post about Visiting The Pokemon Cafe.
The newly reopened and relocated TeamLab Borderless is somewhere I’m hoping to visit after missing out on my last trip. It’s an immersive digital art experience made up of large rooms filled with ‘borderless’ art like moving projections, mirrored rooms filled with lights and art that covers the walls, ceiling and floor. I’ll also be visiting the open air installation they have at the Botanical Gardens in Osaka too.
As a huge Disney fan, I’m so excited to be heading back to Tokyo Disneyland and Tokyo DisneySea. DisneySea is probably the best theme park I’ve ever visited and I’m looking forward to experiencing a few new rides in each park too, plus a new parade. Read my post about The Disney Parks at Christmas. Speaking of theme parks, I’ll also be heading to USJ where they have a Demon Slayer cafe and ride open at the moment and a 4D My Hero Academia experience too. I’m mainly looking forward to heading into the new Super Nintendo World, which looks incredible and takes me right back to my childhood. Read Allison’s post about Visiting Super Nintendo World.
Alongside all of the cute themed foods, I’m also hoping to visit other cafes that have treats that aren’t shaped like characters. In Kyoto there’s a cafe called Kumonocha that sells cloud shaped desserts and in Nara Daibutsu Ichigo has daifuku topped with deer shaped biscuits. I’m also eager to visit Rainbowholic’s Bungukissa (stationery shop and cafe) in Tokyo to browse all of the cute products and maybe get myself a melon soda float. There’ll also be a lot of seasonal snacks to try and sakura season often has some of the best ones, especially when experiencing hanami (flower viewing) among the sakura trees. This is all on top of the amount of traditional Japanese food I’ll be filling myself with too!
Overall, I’m thrilled to be heading back to such a beautiful country, to visit shrines, temples, natural beauty spots, sprawling cities, restaurants, cafes and to experience all of my favourite fandoms in one place. Look out for some posts here on SCK soon and you can follow me on on Instagram too.
Where would you most like to visit?
Emma is an English teacher who travels a lot. Adventuring around the world is her passion, with Japan being one of her favourite destinations. She loves baking, photography, sweet treats, and all things Disney. If Emma was a Pokémon, she’d definitely be a Pikachu.
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