>>3289520What's recommended is to determine the most you are willing to spend on camera body and lens, and then find a minty copy of a camera a bit above your price range that's a few years old and deprecated down into your price bracket.
If I look at the D5300, as a guide for the money you're willing to spend, they sell new for just the body for $550. ESPECIALLY in the case of where you "don't want to jump in too deep at first," a used camera is easier to flip without much loss if you decide you want a different/better camera later. If you want to go with Nikon, look for a minty used D7100 with a shutter count under 10,000. They routinely go for $450-500 used on ebay, which should leave you a bit more money for your lenses.
If you really want to get something special, you could even look into a used D300S for around $350, which was a class-leading APS-C camera body back in 2008, and although its 12 MP sensor might seem measly, in reality, a beginning photographer is not likely to be taking photos in any kind of situation where the image size is critical. Keep in mind, they make billboard photos out of 2 MP photos. Meanwhile, the more advanced autofocus will serve you well as you grow into your hobby.
For lenses, it sounds like you don't have a clue what you need. That's fine. There's no need to make up your mind right away because fortunately Nikon has a solution for people just like you. It's called the 18-200mm zoom, and it could be just what you need for your trips to Tokyo and Vancouver. I'd take just that one lens and then after those trips, run your photos through Lightroom or some EXIF viewer to figure out what focal lengths you found most useful in your picture-taking. THEN, you can start thinking about what other lenses you might need or find useful, while keeping in mind your photo-shooting preferences and habits.
