Serenity in KYOTO

Look how clean the stream is!

Bad luck go-away

 Next stop is Kyoto. We took a 2 hour-ish train ride to Kyoto. I am glad to sneak Kyoto in between Osaka and Tokyo because it is truly beautiful. We stayed at Enso Ango Yamato I Hotel, A complete contrary of the city vibe, the interior has contemporary modern look (I don't really like Japanese traditional style hotels anyway) The hotel was very unique and nice.

Kinkakuji Golden Temple

We visited Kinkakuji Temple on the first day, the weather was gloomy all day with a slight rain. Too bad the photos aren't the best, but the temple looked majestic and very impressive. Try to visit this place early to avoid crowd. Unlike busy cities like Tokyo and Osaka, here in Kyoto we take bus to go around the town. There are a lot of shrines and temples around the city that you could visit so plan well ahead.

Houses in Gion

We finally get to try the conveyor belt sushi for the first time in Japan here at Nishiki Market. Unfortunately, I totally forgot the restaurant name was, but it is easily noticed when you stroll around the market. The first bite of salmon sashimi I taken was glorious. It is super fresh, sweet and buttery soft, it melts in your mouth. You can also check out the review here.

Somewhere in Nishiki Market

We also visited Maruyama Park early in the morning since the 1st day was a total failure due to heavy rain. Almost all places we wanted to visit was either parks, shrines, or temples and it was also really cold. Although it's not spring yet, the park still looked beautiful and serene.

Maruyama Park

Shiba Inu!!

Partner in crime😻

A pleasant view

It was really a pleasant visit to Kyoto and I don't mind to come back again to fully experience the city.

O SA KA

So, let me tell you a story. Before Europe, I've always dreaming of going to Japan, so when the time has come a.k.a travel fair 😜 I went to get the airplane tickets, 6 months prior the travel date. Although we (me and my finance, and now husband) did not get the cheapest price possible, which is 4,5 mio all in, we managed to get 5,5 mio all in with Singapore Airlines.

To be completely honest, I did not do a very deep research and preparation like I did before Europe, so here goes...

First off, better book local/ connecting train tickets, all kinds of tickets (if possible) in advance. You will save a lot. I recommend to look onto KLOOK for these. (see how that rhymes? 😋)

What's Osaka without this photo right?

We arrived at Osaka around 11 PM, the bad news was, I book a connecting train ticket from Kansai Airport to our hotel through klook but the ticketing kiosk closed at 11.30. Once I get my luggage, I ran to find the kiosk and luckily it still opened! then the intimidating "ticket machine" part comes...of course you can choose English for the menu but since there were a long queue on the ticket machine, I feel rushed to finish my booking, so I ended up failing to buy my first ICOCA card (basically similar to E-money in Indonesia) on that day.

Somewhere in Namba

Osaka

G

The next day, we first went to GLION Museum, where old iconic cars were displayed. Ticket price is around IDR 80K and bought it from TRAVELOKA. Initially we went here to find the iconic AE 86 car from Inital D cartoon, but unfortunately the car has been sold 😞. Nevertheless, the car collection was interesting. Then we went to UNIVERSAL STUDIO OSAKA! to be completely honest, this place is the reason why we went to Osaka on the first place. Obviously to experience the Harry Potter land. We bought our ticket though Traveloka as well, because it's cheaper than Klook. Again, it never disappoint you in any way! SO MUCH FUN, although I cannot stand the cold, It was around 10C during the daytime and get so much colder at night. Foods are overpriced, but that was expected.

A must right?

Hogwarts Castle - Universal Studio Osaka

Trying to look fine when it's freezing

The highlight of the Harry Potter land was definitely visiting the Hogwarts castle and trying out Butterbeer. Although it was basically root beer with foam, it still tasted really good. I wish they made a canned version to take home as a souvenir. Oh, you may refer to this video for Universal Studios Osaka Food Review!

The next day we went to Dotonbori, which is a shopping district in Osaka. First thing first, I went to Apple Store to get a pair of iphone charger/ cable. 20% cheaper than Indonesia, FYI. My friend also told me Japan is the only Asian country that has has 1:1 price compared to US. Second is Hongkong and third is Singapore, and somewhat true, because my husband also bought a 2017 secondhand touchbar macbook pro for 30% less compared to Indonesia price and it is physically 90% new. So Much WIN!

This is what we came for

To be completely honest with you, this Japan trip is very rushed, so I don't really have a day-to-day itinerary list. After strolling around in cold, we stumbled upon a random ramen shop. I did not even look for the shop name as I can't read hiragana. I only saw that they serve chicken ramen (i don't think it's halal tho...) and the picture seems very appetizing so we went straight in. And IT IS SO GOOD!

Makotoya Ramen

The broth is super flavorful, the chicken charsiu were also very tender, it tasted heavenly on a cold weather. They also serve kimchi on the side to cut the greasiness.

Few tips that might help:

1. Most restaurants offer refillable water/ ocha for free
2. ABC mart prices were cheaper than Tokyo, so if you are looking to buy sneakers try Osaka ABC mart first
3. Most hotels (even hostels) have hairdryer, so you don't have to bring your own
4. Try to avoid coming home around 6 or 7 pm as trains are really packed

So that is all of my highlights on Osaka, and see you at Kyoto post!

MUNCHIN' IN MUNICH

Back at it again to finally finish my final Eurotrip post, and we're finally arrived at our last city, Munich, Germany.

To be honest I kinda don't remember how I get to this city, I can only remembered arriving at the Hauptbahnhof station around 7AM. First impression, this city was freakin cold, I think it was 10C when I'm arrived. We also saw a lot of Bayern Munchen supporters roaming around the station yelling their chant over and over again only wearing shorts in that cold weather.

Our hotel was located 5 mins walk from that central station so it is very easy for us to access anywhere. I also managed to find my favorite food in Munich which is pretzel with cheese filling and chunks of salt on top at Yorma's. SO GOOD!

Yorma's Cheese Pretzel

We first went for a stroll around Marienplatz. See these buildings and colors? Welcome to Hogwarts! JK, this is not England. I noticed the city has a lot of old Medieval style building. FYI, I hate movies and TV series that takes place in Medieval era. But still, it was cartoon-ey and aesthetically pleasing.

Marienplatz

DISCLAIMER: we basically went for palace/ castle -hopping during our visit here, and all of palaces we've visited prohibit cameras during the tour, so for sure there were not much pictures to show but all of these palaces are VERY OVER THE TOP. comparable to Versailles.

First, we went to Schloss Nymphenburg. This palace was used as summer residence by the rulers of Bavaria, also known as House of Wittlesbach. Too bad the weather always gloomy during our 3-day visit there. The architecture style in Bavaria castles are mostly done in Baroque style. Very intricate. The highlight was the marble hall, it was beautiful.

Entrance

Marble Hall

The only room we can take photos at

"Backyard"

And then we went to BMW museum! You cannot go to Germany without looking for their crazy architecture and technology. Although I cannot do any test-ride on these cars, i am happy to just to be able to sit in  the car and play around with the interior. 

By Henry Royce

Luigi and Guido?

The second day we went for 30 mins train ride to Schloss Herrenchiemsee. This palace is CRAZY! First of all, it was located in the middle of a lake. We need to switch for a 10 mins choo-choo train ride, and then switch to a boat to arrive at the small island. You think we've arrived? not yet. We still have to go through this small forest by foot to get to the palace. Was it worth it? YES. 

This castle was built by the crazy King Ludwig II. He is famous for his interest in technology and I think this also the reason why Germany always linked to technology. The king's bedroom features this blue crystal ball which I totally forgot what it was meant for but pretty sure it has something to do with the king's love for the sun and universe-thing. The rest, you can pretty much google about it and get fascinated by how lavish this palace was.

Source: pinterest

Pro-tip: pre-book tour tickets beforehand to avoid crowd.

Either Front/ Back Entrance

Those fountains represent greek mythical gods

How amazing!

Fountain overlooking the lake

On the last full day we're on Munich we decided to go to the Schloss Newscwanstein. To get here, we went for I think 1 hour train ride, followed by a bus ride for a cheaper option to get to the bottom  part of the castles/ hills. First stop, Schloss Hohenschwangau. This castle was built by King Ludwig II father, King Maximilian II of Bavaria. Out of all other castle/ palace I've visited, this one is the most "basic" one, built in Medieval era. The view was absolutely amazing in here!

Medieval Style

Beautiful lake view

Sneak peek of the Neuschwanstein Castle

Next stop is the famous Schloss Neuschwanstein! Fun fact, this castle was the reference of Disney's Cinderella castle. It's real guys. To reach this castle we need to either hike for 20 mins or take a bus ride. We of course opted for the bus ride 😜

This is the craziest castle I've ever visited! It is basically King Ludwig's dream land. It features flushing toilet (imagine, in that era!), a telephone line, a theatre, an artificial cave and waterfall. Although this castle still remains unfinished, it was definitely worth visit!

Front Yard

So that's the recap of my visit to Munich, most of it was definitely unforgettable experience. We've encountered racism, walking on rain due to missing the choo-choo train schedule and getting that "such a cheapskate" look from a waitress because we shared a ginormous size of a chicken schnitzel. 

That freakin ginormous chicken schnitzel