Day 5 – Tsukiji Markets & Shinkansen bullet train

After a well earned lie in, we stepped outside for our last day in Tokyo and were promptly covered in sweat! It was the sunniest and most humid day to say sayonara to our petite and perfect Air BnB apartment in Ningyocho, before heading to Tsujiki.

We caught the subway to crowded Tsujiki Fish Markets and had a quick look around, before making a reservation for a popular sushi train. The reservation was made under Caitlin’s new Japanese name “Hatsu”(unisex and means ‘beginning’). This lunch was a unique experience and the wait staff were kind enough to give us an English translation menu and explanation of the process. You set yourself up with soy sauce, green tea, beverage, hot hand towel and pickled ginger (for palate cleansing) and then commit and select a plate of sushi as it travels past. Each coloured plate on the sushi train represents the price of the dish. The empty plates get stacked up and digitally tallied up at the end of the meal. Personally I really enjoyed the unique dining experience more than the raw fish!

Afterwards, we caught the subway to Tokyo Station and had a second unsuccessful attempt at the visiting the Imperial Garden, before climbing aboard the Shinkansen bullet train from Tokyo to Hiroshima (with just 1 stop). It was a journey of 676 km in 5hrs. The scenery whizzes by but not at a disorientating pace, and it’s more difficult to believe that the train is travelling at 320k/hr at all.

Hiroshima greeted us with a torrential down pour and lightning show! We immediately bought umbrellas and trekked to the cutest 4 story backpacker hostel in the world, looking like drowned rats!

Tomorrow a visit to the Hiroshima Peace Memorial.