Things to do at Narita Airport Japan

Last November I went to visit the Philippines for only two weeks. When it was time to go, I didn’t want to leave. I have missed my homeland so terribly and my visit was short. I honestly don’t  feel I got to do everything I wanted to do- see all the places I wanted to see and eat at all the restaurants I wanted to try. But the good thing is I am going back in 2016.

**(Update: I wrote this before my second trip to the Philippines. I had to go back again last January 13 because my dad fell ill. Unfortunately he passed when I got there. My second trip back was so dreadful, a much more painful experience).

I was dreading the more than 12 hour flight from Narita to Dallas but was excited to layover in Japan, even if it was only for 4 hours. I knew I’ll get to eat good ramen there. And if you’re thinking, “it’s an airport food! It won’t be that good!”. Wrong! Japan has good food anywhere you go- even at the airport!

In my last post, I talked about getting ramen in Narita since it is something I’ve been deprived of in Dallas. Well I did……and it was so darn good!

Finally ramen! I’ve waited for this moment. In a way, it was my consolation for feeling sad about leaving the Philippines. I have been craving for ramen. I ordered the soy sauce flavor that came with a couple pieces of tonkotsu, a slice of egg and vegetables. I love the simplicity of the ingredients but not lacking in taste. I was happy and satisfied with my ramen that I can honestly attest good food can be found anywhere in Japan. I wish it didn’t fill me up because I was so tempted to get sushi. But I can’t be greedy and besides glutton is one of the seven deadly sins. I wasn’t about to commit one of them! **On my last layover coming home from my dad’s funeral, I tried the sushi. While I realized the difference in quality of the rice used from what I get here in the States, the sushi was not as great as I had anticipated. Although it was still good, it wasn’t excellent. If I do go back to layover in Narita again, I’d stick with the ramen.

But I was posed with another dilemma: what to do with the next three hours?

Not to worry. Narita Airport’s Terminal 2 had plenty of shops to explore. Just looking at all the many cool gadgets and cute Japanese trinkets will surely entertain. In fact I felt I didn’t get enough time to explore. (Just make sure you explore both sides of Terminal 2, if you have enough time, a short walk from each other)

I saw a few passengers waiting for this presentation to start. Apparently, every Monday to Friday, they have someone playing the koto (a traditional Japanese stringed musical instrument). Music is definitely good for the soul, especially after a long and stressful flight.

If you have money to spare, Terminal 2 has very high end stores such as Bulgari, Gucci, Tiffany’s, and many more.

Or shop for last minute gifts such as the many different varieties of sake found in some stores.

It’s always interesting to tinker with all the Japanese items such as those kimmidolls, yukata, teapots, chopsticks, and many more fun and cool stuff.

If you are curious what wasabi or green tea kitkats taste like, you can purchase one or every flavor you can find. In my case, I bought a box of each flavor: Hokkaido red beans, strawberry, sakura green tea, matcha green tea, a bag of wasabi and rum cheesecake kitkats. (A packet, shown above, costs about 150 yen or $1.27. A big box with 10 packets costs 1500 yen or $12.72). I can’t leave Narita without tasting each of them. Or I will never be able to sleep 🙂

If you are tired from shopping, you can always look out at the window and amuse yourself by watching the planes arriving and leaving. I saw the huge Emirates A380 planes and also thought the murals on the China Airlines was quite delightful.

….And of course, you can always get more food. After all you are still in Japan!