After spending exactly one month traveling up the Australian east coast — surfing, diving, chilling in the sun — it was time to head north to Japan. Transitioning from Australian summer to Japanese winter was not exactly ideal, but I figured my Norwegian genes could handle it.

Before going I was really unsure whether to spend two or three weeks in Japan. In the end I chose two, and spent the last week of the trip in South Korea. Two weeks was enough to see the essentials — but you could easily lose yourself in this country for months or years.

Reunited

Even though the hostels of Tokyo are rumored to be extremely good, I couldn't pass up the chance to stay with a local — a friend I'd met years earlier was kind enough to open his house to me and my travel buddy. What an experience.

On my first full day I explored the west side of the city, including famous districts like Shinjuku and Meiji. After my first traditional tempura dish with another friend, I ended up at the top of the Tokyo Municipality building for a skyline view — just as good as Tokyo Tower, except it's free.

Tokyo is more than an urban jungle — sprawling parks filled with shrines and temples everywhere. Standing in the middle of one, it's hard to imagine the 30-plus million people just outside it.

A marvel of engineering surrounded by beautiful nature

After a lovely 8-hour night train ride, I woke up to an early morning in Hiroshima (not the shot). Considering the city was basically leveled in 1945, it's incredibly impressive to see it today.

One of my favorite parts of traveling is meeting extraordinarily interesting people, and Hiroshima was especially good for that — my travel buddy and I had the good fortune to keep bumping into the same group of fellow travelers over the following week. If you're ever in Hiroshima, definitely check out the island of Miyajima just outside town.

Mechanical crabs and ancient castle gardens

After the relatively small city of Hiroshima, I once again found myself somewhere big. Osaka isn't as large as Tokyo, but it's still huge by Norwegian standards — by any standards, really. Just like Tokyo, it still manages large parks you can get lost in for hours. We were about a month too soon for the Sakura, but got some nice colorful pictures of the other flowering trees anyway.

Wandering Osaka at night is truly something — about as close to walking through a real-life anime as you'll find. The city is famous for its mechanical street signs littering almost every restaurant, so the endless movement of people in the streets is matched by rotating signs and huge mechanical arms sticking out of the walls.

The castle town in the middle of Osaka was a real marvel — walking around, you find yourself imagining what life was like there hundreds of years ago. You can even get a photo with a samurai, though trust me, it never looks as good as you think it will.

Cold days and warm springs

After a day in Osaka we took the train to the ancient capital of Japan. Kyoto is far more quiet, walkable, and even spiritual than any other city on the trip. You can spend days visiting countless temples, but my favorite experience by far was walking the Fushimi Inari trail through 10,000 torii gates.

I'd also really recommend an onsen while you're there — traditional Japanese hot springs, and if you're prepared for a small culture shock, worth every bit of it. We spent three nights here, but you could probably do Kyoto justice in two days if you're in a rush.

Ancient temples and abandoned amusement parks

This has got to be the most bizarre place I've ever visited. Nara Dreamland was an amusement park abandoned in 2006 and left untouched ever since. You're not technically supposed to go inside, but no one's really stopping you either — if you're not faint of heart, check it out. (Update: I later learned the whole park has since been demolished for good. Too bad.)

Nara is also home to a large park with free-roaming deer, and some of the largest temples I've ever seen.

Not a cloud in the sky

No trip to Japan is complete without a trip to Mt Fuji, or Fuji-san as the locals call it. Be aware the weather is seldom as good as I got — the real pro tip is to check the live weather the morning you decide to go, rather than trusting a forecast from a couple of days out.

The mountain's beauty can definitely be enjoyed alone, but I'd recommend going with friends, or at least tagging along with people from a hostel. I'd met this particular gang back in Hiroshima, and we got lucky enough that our paths crossed again on the way out to Fuji. Lake Kawaguchiko down below is beautiful too — I'd bet it's even better in summer.

Because you can never get enough of this city

After making the most of our Japan Rail Pass over the previous seven days, we were back in Tokyo, ready for new adventures — because you can never get enough of this city.

We celebrated our grand return by hitting an izakaya with some old and new friends. Izakayas are a special kind of Japanese restaurant where you pay for a fixed menu and get free drinks for a couple of hours — never meant for a European clientele, maybe especially a Norwegian or German one, and we absolutely made the most of it.

Just as a trip to Japan isn't complete without seeing Mt Fuji, a trip to Tokyo isn't complete without a bizarre maid cafe. The cuteness — kawaii — factor is dialed to 200%, and the food has enough sugar in it to give you diabetes in a heartbeat. You can only stay for an hour, but honestly, that's enough. Don't forget a photo with the maids as a memento; it's not creepy unless you make it so.

Tokyo, Tokyo, Tokyo. Just when you think the stereotypes can't possibly be this real — you're wrong.