Day 3: Tsukiji Fish Markets, National Museum of Emerging Science and Technology, and Toyota Megaweb
Peak travelling season for cherry blossom viewing means booking accommodation near Shinjuku (the busiest subway station in Japan) was nigh impossible. Despite the low availability, we managed to get accommodation just near the Tsukiji subway station and only about four blocks from the famous Tsukiji fish markets. The markets are famous for its amazingly large area spanning several blocks and comprised of really fresh seafood and associated seafood products. You can tell how fresh the seafood is by the writhing life of live crabs, prawns and other varieties of sea creatures all with the saltwater smell but without the really bad fishy odours accompanying less fresh varieties. It is also here that each fisherman prepares their freshest tuna and puts it on display in only the way that the Japanese do so elegantly.

If you can make time to visit the National Museum of Emerging Science and Technology, it is certainly worth it, at least even for the few rides that you get to go on. Probably the most exciting science museum I have ever visited, they had a number of exhibitions and interactive demos including Honda’s famous human-interactive robot, Asimo. They had a number of motion simulator rides there was well (think Batman ride if you know movie world) and one was even a 3D simulation of the real world but on a ‘Honey I Shrunk the Kids Scale’.

There were many other things to do in the Mitaka area, but we only really had time to fit in Toyota’s Megaweb. Amongst holding the latest models of all makes in Toyota’s range of vehicles (including the latest Landcruiser!), it also contains a number of futuristic concept vehicles (although when we went, there was only one but I assume the rest were at the Aichi World Expo). They too had an exciting racing car simulator ride for free which was heaps of fun. Traveller’s Tip: If in the vicinity, visit the upper levels of Palette Town (a shopping centre) and enjoy its amazing decorations and day/night sky themes.

Day 4: Mount Fuji and Hakone Tour
This day was our first of two Hato Tours further out of Tokyo. Our first one involved a combined trip visiting both Mount Fuji and Hakone. Mount Fuji (also called Fujiyama or Fujisan) is the tallest mountain in Japan, measuring 3776 metres tall. Approaching its base made for some spectacular landscape views, and with some freshly fallen snow from the day before keeping its top all snow-capped, also made it pretty much perfect for some great photo taking. Although the snow prevented us from going extremely far up the mountain, we still managed to get a good view of the Japan Alps from where we did get and had a bit of fun throwing a few fresh snowballs about.

We visited Hakone after having lunch near the base of Mount Fuji. This place is famous for its hot springs, outdoor activities and just natural beauty and this retreat’s popularity is evident by the vast number of corporate-owned houses spread all throughout the hills. Its placid lake is spectacular, and there is a golf course here that is apparently the most difficult to play in Japan. A good view of the area can be taken by taking a cable car to an outpost overlooking the entire region and where a Shinto shrine can also be found.

Day 5: Nikko
Nikko is an area of Japan that contains a lot of historical value so much so that its famous Toshogu Shrine is World-Heritage listed. I highly recommend going on a tour for this area because we got so much more out of the buildings when someone was explaining its significance and relevance to the Japanese. Each of the buildings in the area had amazingly intricate details and many Buddhist monks still work there today, maintaining all of the surrounding environments and facilities.