The intern went international

The intern went international, and there was no better place to do it than Japan, the mecca of cuisine, cleanliness, anime, fashion, and kindness. I haven't gotten that many smiles in my direction since I hit a buzzer beater for my sixth grade basketball team! In my twelve days in the country, I analyzed the trip as only the intern could do, with the eye of a newbie learning the travel business. I’m going to break this down into four separate categories - food, hotels, tours/guides, and culture.

Food:

Let's get this out of the way quickly, I would be lying if I said that I did Japan the “normal” way. I had Diane “Shogun of Travel” Sherer planning my trip. It's like having Michael Jordan on your team, you can just give her the ball and get out of the way. We trusted her, and as always, she didn't disappoint. 

And in the most Diane Sherer way, we of course started our trip by waking up at 5 a.m. to go see the famous Tokyo fish market where the highest end sushi chefs buy their products each day, starting in the wee hours of the morning. We even got to sample some tuna straight off the bone. I called it God's nectar. That set the tone for the entire trip and over the course of the next two weeks, we started to get the lay of the land, food-wise.

We jumped from pizza spots to omakase sushi meals to ramen places, where you ordered off a vending machine! I was so confused by this I almost left, only to be pulled back by a friendly cook who worked there and walked me through it - not the first time a Japanese person came to the rescue of a confused intern. Of course, we also tried A5 Kobe beef, had gourmet izakaya, plenty of 7-Eleven lunches with the best convenience store egg salad known to man, and dug into delicacies like fish eye and shark. Look, I'm an American, I'm a burger guy, yes I'm adventurous, but I didn't love every single thing I ate, and chances are, you won't either. But how many times in your life do you get to take a chance on fish eyes and shark?! It's a chance to step out of your comfort zone while sitting down and eating, which is my favorite way to leave my comfort zone. Food: A.

Fatty Toro: my dream come true

Hotels:

I don't know how the trip would have gone if my first step in Japan wasn't into a Suite at the Bulgari Tokyo, in maybe the best hotel room I've ever stayed - modern yet authentic, exuding luxury and transcending relaxation, an incredible spa, and top notch hospitality. It was truly special. We then moved on to the Four Seasons Otemachi to wrap up our trip in Tokyo. My brother and I call the Four Seasons our home now. I know, it's bad, don't cringe, maybe we're just spoiled, but they make you feel like it’s home there so that’s on them. The Four Seasons breeds excellence and you feel it every time you set foot in the door. We also stayed at the Four Seasons Osaka, and each hotel was not only beautiful, but the service was impeccable and we felt so well taken care of. 

In Kyoto, I had the honor of staying at the Ritz Carlton, and unlike Tokyo, the first floor of rooms wasn't 450 feet in the air. It was grounded, quiet, and utterly stunning, creating an experience that embodied Kyoto to a tee, making it my favorite city of the trip. 

Have you ever heard of an Art Island? Well, welcome to Naoshima, people! Staying at Benesse House, an actual museum, we felt Tadoa Ando’s brilliant architectural vision seep through the hotel with every step we took. One night the four of us had to share a room (horrific I know!), but even that indignity was made up for by Benesse House’s special location, art, and beach views. 

A night at luxury ryokan Espacio in Hakone was extraordinary, a highlight of the trip with its own natural hot spring, a sauna, and a truly special dinner served to the family in our room while the four of us lounged around in Espacio pajamas. Unique. 

We finished the trip at the Capitol Hotel Tokyo with its amazingly central location and absurdly friendly service,  the perfect way to end our trip and a night of comfort to get ready for our long travel day the next morning. Hotels: A.

Espacio: Our own little heaven

Tours and guides:

Our tours and tour guides, provided for us by Japan’s greatest destination management company, Wondertrunk, made for some of my best memories on the trip, and our family’s best laughs as well. We started off with Nanami, a 25-year-old who showed us around Tokyo. Better than her guide skills (which were awesome), was her perspective on Japanese youth and the culture surrounding it. She gave us insight into the culture she lived in and helped us better understand Japanese society. 

Then there was Hiro in Kyoto. Oh Hiro, you are a special person. Every time we would relay back a fact that we learned from her she would go “bi bom!” in a high pitched, excited voice to indicate we were right, and “boo boo” if we were wrong. So what if we got more boo boos than bi boms, Hiro created a perfect learning environment to tour Kyoto's greatest historical sights. Temples that are hundreds of years old, the vermilion gates at Fushimi Inari Shrine that span kilometers (there are more than 1,000 of them!), and a bamboo forest that blew our minds. 

Then there was Akemi, who led us through an incredible culinary tour of Kyoto’s Michelin star restaurants. She was so knowledgeable about Japanese cuisine and never lost her cool, even taking us to just “pop in” to meet some geishas after dinner! 

Naoshima, which was probably the most enlightening tour of the trip, had me walking around a museum filled with Monet and James Turrell pieces, some of the most eye opening art I could ever imagine existing. Yoji was our guru for the art island, and this guy was just the best. He was the perfect tour guide. He could not only answer every question about the Island, all religions in Japan, and the museums we were seeing, but I also got to know him a little deeper. We talked about his amazing children and his stories from his life in Japan. He lit up the tour and made it a blast. 

Also, shout out to Shyun in Osaka who gave us a delicious street food tour and all of our drivers and greeters who took such great care of us. Tours/guides: A (are you seeing a pattern here? This is a Diane Sherer planned trip, after all!).

Touring the shrines: Hero shows us around Kyoto (my mom is happy)

Culture:

They say Japan changes your life, and it sure did for me. The culture of Japan is specific and incredible, and so all over the place at the same time. The people couldn't be nicer - the smiles, the laughs, the genuine respect they have for you, without you even earning it. The country is clean, it's collective, everyone's goals revolve around not only themselves, but the whole entire society. They pick up after themselves, every restaurant or business feels like a family business with knowledge and craft passed down from generation to generation. They build with common knowledge, not with selfish intention. 

But there is a side of Japan that is quirky and fun as well. My favorite story is when we went to a whiskey tasting at a beautiful Buddhist temple. Yes that sounds backwards, but we meditated with a monk before getting drunk, so it cancels out. The monk, James, was also an incredible person, don't want to exclude that. Anyway, as we were tasting this whiskey, our instructor told us that the maker of whiskey was like the Godfather of Japanese whiskey. Every night after work he would sit down in his chair, but instead of pouring himself a glass, he just drank the whole bottle - every day, every year, for five decades. When he got older, he moved down to half a bottle. Responsible guy. Japanese drinking culture is huge, their party scene is amazing, their fashion scene is different than any country I've been to, and if you go to the right places, they love to laugh. 

Japan has everything, you will always find something to suit you. I compare it to shopping with my grandmother. You have all day, you have her credit card, you have her love and she has mine, and if you go to enough stores and experiment with different types of clothing, you're probably going to find something you’ll like and get it. If you have a day in Japan, and you just walk around, experiment, inhale the air, try to join the culture's consciousness, then you too will probably fall in love with it. Japan overall: A. 

And here are some extra photos for fun!