One of the things I really like about being sponsored on a trip is that I get to stay at really posh hotels. It’s something I usually don’t have the luxury for when traveling on my own since they cost as much, or probably more, than my whole trip expenses combined.

Sony Philippines was generous enough to host us at one of the nicest hotel around Tokyo, the five-star Okura Hotel in the city’s Minato ward. The area is pretty quiet for my taste, being surrounded mostly by office buildings and foreign embassies (49 embassies to be exact). Good thing it’s just a hop away from various train terminals so getting around through subways isn’t a problem at all.

Cherry blossoms fell like snowflakes along the sidewalks of Tokyo along with the incessant drizzle. It was our second day in Japan and the country’s weather was apparently not on our side.

My no-sleep plan was put on hold as rain started to pour after our Tokyo Tower night shoot. I was able to rest for two hours before my alarm blared its muffled tones below my pillow. Like a zombie, I groggily went to the window and fully awakened to a gray Japanese morning. It was still raining.

I told myself that I won’t sleep while in Japan. I’m absolutely serious. We only have three days in Tokyo and the first and last days of those three aren’t even whole days. Time is of the essence and I probably won’t die of sleep deprivation if I forget about closing my eyes for two nights. Err… I wouldn’t, right?

I originally planned on walking all the way to Shibuya where Tokyo’s iconic crossing is on my first night in Japan but the sky was foreboding of rain. The megalopolis that is Shibuya is about an hour away by foot so I scrambled for a Plan B.

One of the things I really like about Tokyo is their appreciation of history. You’d think that since the city’s real estate is highly valued, they’d tear down every old useless structure they have and supplant it with glitzy office buildings. Well, politicians do that in Manila, but not in Tokyo.

Along with Sony Alpha’s camera ambassadors Pilar Tuason and Manny Librodo, we strolled down the streets of Toranomon after our very Japanese banquet at Sakura Jaya restaurant en route to Hotel Okura. It was quite cold as we navigated the sidewalks, stuffing our bare hands inside our jacket pockets.