I started planning my trip to Japan almost a year ago and booked my flights during BA's Christmas sale, but I only really got down to fleshing out the details a couple of months before I left. I booked only a ten-day trip because I was worried it was going to be very expensive, but it was a lot more affordable than I expected, especially outside Tokyo. 

Part of the reason I took a slightly bigger than cabin-approved suitcase to Japan was so that I could indulge in a little retail therapy if the mood took me. I was particularly looking forward to a) the stationery and b) the weird and wonderful 'only in Japan' type items. Here are a few of my favourite places.

Make no mistake: Japan is a tea country, and when coffee is available, it's often served iced. However, coffee fans shouldn't despair because it is possible to find places that serve good specialty coffee coffee, even in the unlikeliest of locations. It's all about the research, and I did a fair amount so you don't have to!

It was a lovely experience to spend Saturday night in a traditional Japanese ryokan, Ryoso Kawaguchi, although the noisy Spanish group in the next room seemed to be ignorant of how well sound travels through such thin walls. Yesterday morning, I rose early and went out in search of coffee, this time visiting Cafe Sarasvati, just down the road from my ryokan. 

As I was about to leave my hotel room this morning, there was a huge — to my British mind — wobbling. For a split second, I thought I had some rowdy upstairs neighbours but when I got back to the wifi this evening, I confirmed that it was a brief 5.0 earthquake. Just what you want when you're heading off to explore a volcanic region!

I wanted a proper 10k run this morning and by the time I was back, changed and caffeinated (thank you, V60!) it was almost 10.30. Before my trip, I was dead set on queuing up at the Tsukiji fish market at 5 am to try to get a place to watch the daily fish auction, but I think the early start is better suited to people with jetlag. But you can go down to the wholesalers' market between 9 and 11 am (or 11.15, in my case) to watch the hard-won fish being prepared. Although you would probably see more action earlier on, going late didn't work out too badly. It was less busy, for one thing, and I still enjoyed the experience.

This morning, I woke up early and ran two laps of the lovely Imperial Palace gardens, 10k in total. I might have been faster had I not had to carry my empty coffee cup most of the way due to the lack of bins. In any case, the long list of running path rules, included "do not run too fast," so it was probably for the best. I was also pleased to discover, near my hotel the Hanzomon runners' satellite, which offers coffee, snacks, running kit, showers and lockers. A very nice idea. The coffee was mediocre but at least it wasn't tea.

After a long flight, where I managed to sleep reasonably well, I made it to Tokyo's Narita airport this morning. Immigration was a little lengthy, and when they take your photo for security reasons, the little monitor gives yo the impression that you will be superimposed over a manga background. I was picked up at the airport by a family friend, so I didn't have to get to grips with public transport. In fact, I arrived at my hotel too early to check in, so I changed, reorganised my daybag and headed out into the sunshine.