4 days in Nagoya alone🇯🇵 best restaurants & cafes, scenic garden (and trip to Kamikochi + Tokoname)

4 days in Nagoya alone🇯🇵 best restaurants & cafes, scenic garden (and trip to Kamikochi + Tokoname)

[Music] It’s a bear bell. [Music] Hello guys, good morning. Welcome to Nagoya. You might be wondering why Nagoya because I feel like for most people when they think of Japan, Nagoya is definitely not their first choice and a lot of people probably won’t even be able to locate Nagoya on the map. But guess what? Someone managed to find very cheap flight tickets from Shanghai to Nagoya. As per usual, that’s probably just one of my superhuman skills. Also, given that my beloved roommate is out in Europe enjoying his life, having loads of fun, so I was just like, I don’t want to get stuck in Shanghai. And that’s why I’m here solo traveling for a couple of days. So, yeah. Hope you enjoy my vlog. [Music] So, one thing that’s pretty unique about No Goya is the Kisan culture. You know, basically these old school Japanese coffee shops. A lot of them have been around for decades. And actually here when you order a coffee, it often times comes with a little side dish. It can be something like okura toast or as simple as just a few peanuts. This tradition is called morning goo which literally means morning. Um cuz I guess it’s most common during breakfast times. [Music] [Music] [Music] [Music] I think [Music] Honestly, this place has really good vibes, but the okura toast is just a little bit dry, especially the wrapping paste. So, yeah, a little bit disappointed. [Music] Let’s check out the guided map. So, we are here at Kosen Kio Kosen Bridge. Uh, so I think we should probably go around the little lake and there’s a waterfall, too, you guys. Okay, we’re definitely going to see that. We are now at Toku Gawan Garden and it really feels like the epitome of a traditional Japanese garden. You know, the place is center around this pond with little bridges, waterfall, and tea houses along the path. It’s super calm and every single corner honestly feels like a painting. It’s a little bit hard to believe that this place is actually situated right in the center of the city. It used to be a Samurai family’s residence and after many years of restoration work is now open to the public. [Music] [Music] And guys, this is attention to detail in its finest. Look at this. free insect repellent for everyone to use because apparently there are quite a lot of mosquitoes here and I just got bitten everywhere. [Music] And I saw the shatama came. Yeah. [Music] [Music] Okay, sorry guys if I’m kind of whispering, but it is just so quiet in here, so I don’t want to be disturbing other people. Um, but this is hands down the most aesthetic tea house I’ve ever been to. Like, the whole place is kind of situated in this very nicely decorated Japanese garden, um, with a lot of beautiful trees. And the food is pretty amazing too. So I ordered the tea tasting set which come with three different types of green tea. Um like there is uji tancha, hoji cha and some kama roasty green tea. Um and also I try out the amitsu which is some sort of a Japanese jelly dessert. Yeah, everything in here just feels like a dream. [Music] Okay. Uh this one [Music] I’m having this huge craving for hitsu mabushi today which is essentially thinly sliced grilled unagi over rice. Um and I think it’s also kind of a thing here in Nagoya. Like it’s pretty popular. So, I just walked into a branch, but it’s a little bit too touristy, so they’re fully booked. Um, I think now I’m just going to try my luck and walk into a different branch. Fingers crossed. [Music] Uh, can you just get a hit? Okay. With larger rice. [Music] Oh my gosh, I am so very excited. Oh my god. [Music] Normally, I am not a huge fan of pouring the dashi soup into the wagi rice, but since they strongly recommend this, you know, method, I’m just going to give it a try. [Music] [Music] [Music] Okay. [Music] Wow. This station is giving Very interesting vibes. Like it’s kind of like the middle of nowhere with a lot of buses. Now look at my hotel. [Music] [Music] Oh, well, as you can tell, the weather today is pretty horrible. Oh, I mean, I expected it to be raining, but I didn’t think that it’s going to rain so heavily that I couldn’t even walk without an umbrella. Um, which I obviously didn’t bring. So, I had to stop by a souvenir shop and I spent 1.5k yen on this tiny little thing. I guess life be like that sometimes. [Music] [Applause] [Music] Oh my god, black beer. I hope I don’t run into that. I think this is a bear bell. [Music] Oh my gosh, you guys. It’s getting a lot prettier. Um cuz I think the rain has died down a little bit. So, you can see the mountains from across the river. Oh, wow. Now, this is pretty. [Music] at this point. I am just seriously questioning my decision to go all the way because, you know, I’ve been hiking non-stop in this heavy rain since 3 hours ago. So, my legs, my shoulder, everything is getting sore. But also, I’m kind of like in the middle of nowhere. So the only way is to go forward. [Music] [Music] [Applause] For the last day of my trip, I decided to swim by Tokco Name, which is this small coastal town just outside of Nagoya. I guess there isn’t much going on here, but I heard that there are quite a lot of like viby aesthetic cafes. So, yeah, let’s check them out and spend a chill day here in Toko Name. Just stumbled across this very interesting cafe. [Music] Maybe [Music] more. [Music] [Music] Tokonama is also known as a pottery town with a lot of pottery shops here and there. Um, and you can just see all these kind of things everywhere. [Music] [Music] I just picked up a few handmade manako. You know, it’s the backing cat, like the cat with moving hands you usually see at Asian shop entrances. Um, do you know that they actually the guardian cats of Tokan? Like, I had no idea until I saw so many packaging cats at different shops here and then I realized that. So, fun fact. [Music] [Applause] [Music] [Music] My name and famous. Made it to the airport. Um, so I’m currently just waiting for my flight back to Shanghai, which I’m honestly pretty excited about because my beloved roommate, he’s also back in Shanghai from Europe, so I can finally see him tonight. So reflecting on the solo trip actually even though a lot of people said like this part of Japan is pretty boring but I don’t think so like I had a lot of fun um even though the vibe is kind of different from Tokyo or Osaka but definitely Nagoya has its own charm and kamic culture as well. It’s kind of like a different world. That being said, I hope you guys enjoy this solo travel vlog. And if you do, please remember to give it a thumbs up and subscribe to my channel if you are new here. And I will see you guys in the next one. All right, bye. [Music]

Spent 4 days exploring Nagoya on my own — a city that’s often overlooked but full of surprises. From cozy kissaten cafés and the best local eats to a peaceful morning stroll through Tokugawa Garden, this trip turned out to be one of the most grounding ones I’ve had in Japan. I also took a little side adventure to Kamikochi (yes, the views are unreal) and wrapped things up in Tokoname, a small pottery town filled with charm and stray beckoning cats 🐾

If you’re planning to visit Nagoya or just love calm, slow-paced Japan travel, this vlog might give you a few hidden gems to add to your list — plus some cozy solo travel vibes. Grab a coffee, sit back, and come along for the ride 🇯🇵

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For those of you who are new to my channel, my name is Adrian. I recently moved to Shanghai after spending three exciting years working in Singapore. Before that, I went to college in the U.S. and have lived in various corners of the world. I make videos about travel, adulting, mental health, and everything that comes with life in your 20s.

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#nagoya #japan #travelvlog

0:00 yes to solo trip!
0:36 why am i in nagoya?
1:20 kissaten morning
2:57 most aesthetic garden i’ve seen
4:51 sozanso
6:45 find the best unagi rice with me
8:47 excursion to kamikochi
12:43 a lovely day in tokoname
15:41 time to go home