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こんにちは!
The number of things to do and places to see in Tokyo is limitless. There are shops, shrines, temples, museums, cafes, etc. Once in a while, it’s nice to experience something a little different though. There’s so much in Japan to see outside of Tokyo, and I want to see as much of Japan as I can. That’s why at the end of September, I spent the weekend in Yokohama.
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Yokohama is Japan’s second largest city and is about an hour south of Tokyo. It’s right on Tokyo Bay, so it has a great view of the sea.
One of its best attractions is the Sankei-en gardens. The gardens were built in the 1800s by a Yokohama businessman named Sankei Hara and have been open to the public since 1906. At 175 thousand square meters, it has a wide variety of ponds, streams, flowers, trees, etc.
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The gardens also have a wide variety of Japanese architecture, including houses, tea houses, pagoda, etc.
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There are also stray cats that roam around!
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My favorite part about Yokohama is its Chinatown. It’s the largest Chinatown not only in Japan, but also in Asia. My friends and I stayed at an Airbnb right in the middle of it, so we had the perfect opportunity to explore.
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There are many shops and restaurants, but the real highlight is the street food. My personal favorites were the chashuman (steamed pork buns), and Xiao Long Bao (grilled soup dumplings).
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Another Yokohama highlight is the Cup of Noodles Museum.
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It’s a great museum that teaches the history of cup of noodles. The best part is getting to make your own!
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If you ever find yourself looking for a new place to explore, I highly recommend Yokohama!
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Sara Macconnell
<p>Hi! My name is Sara MacConnell and I'm studying abroad in Tokyo in Fall 2018. I've been taking Japanese classes since I was a freshman in high school, so I'm very excited to spend a whole semester getting to put my language skills to use! I'm a rising senior at the University of Puget Sound where I study Japanese and Business Administration. On campus, I'm involved in greek life, I'm the publicity chair for Students Against Sexual Assault, I do costume design for the theater department, and I work in my school's study abroad office. My favorite things to do are photography, hiking, cooking, trying new restaurants, and watching Netflix with my friends.</p>