Tuesday, August 22, 2006

Major Update

Sorry for the lack of updates... I keep wanting to do this with pictures, but like I said before, I can`t really find any computers with USB 2.0 ports, so I can`t put any pictures online. Nevertheless, I think I:ll post some snippets of our journal entries until today, which is Wed. 23 Aug. at 815 am. Some of these writings are mine and some are Justine:s.

16.Aug - SFO to Tokyo
Flight from SFO to Tokyo was actually comfortable and the food was really good. We had two meals and Mike talked to a really nice Japanese guy who gave us tips on where to go in Kyoto. Our hotel in Ueno (a neighborhood in Northern Tokyo) is really awesome and super comfortable. It is a tatami room, which means that the room is just a big empty room with tightly-woven straw mats (called tatami mats) on the ground. There:s a big square table with Japanese tea and snacks, and for beds, the hotel staff roll out futons on the floor. For dinner on the first meal in Tokyo, we walked to a place called the Full Length Table and ate Japanese Spaghetti. It was really great and the sake was the best ever! We paid 1700 Yen (or about 17 bucks) to split one plate and drink the sake, so it was kind of expensive, but the atmosphere was really good and the staff very friendly. I think there were only 5 tables in the joint and only one other couple in there.

We both feel like this trip is not really happening... even getting off the plane and figuring out which train to take wasn`t too difficult. But we are so worn down that we were practically zombies bythe time we got to the hotel. We acknowledge that this is likely the nicest place we:ll stay, and it:s no bargin at over $200 a night, but SO worth it as we could only appreciate after getting here. Now, clean and full and with a bed, we both think it might be the best sleep we:ve had in weeks. Mike:s out already!

17.Aug - Asakusa
Today, we took a subway to Asakusa (in northeast Tokyo) and went to the huge Buddhist/Shinto shrine there called Senso-ji. In Japan, most of the Buddhist temples share their land with Shinto shrines, so it`s kind of weird. The temple did not dissappoint, and the crowds were massive. For lunch, we ate soba noodles with Tofu and vegetables. We didn`t really eat dinner, but after lunch we walked a bunch around asakusaand found a huge Buddhist temple/cemetary. It was raining, so we hung out there for a while. On the main drag leading up to Senso-ji (ji means temple), all kinds of street vendors hawk their cheezy wares to Japanese and western tourists, but we did buy 10 freshly-baked cookies filled with that bean paste stuff, which I think is called Azuki. They:re delicious!!!

Walking around Ueno after we got back form Asakusa was strange on the senses... bright lights, tall buildings, pachinko parlors everywhere, and strange smells and sounds. It was Tokyo like I expected.

After today:s walking and sight-seeing, it`s hard to believe that the rest of our trip will be like this. It`s only been two days, and we already need a day to relax! It:s still hard to believe that we:re in Japan... we could be in LA, for the most part: Department stores look the same inside and out, there:s a bunch of AM/PMs, 7-11s, and Denny:s restrauntss.

18.Aug - Ueno to Akasaka
We went to the Tokyo National Museum and saw only two of the 5 bulidings there in 4 hours. Both had excellent exhibits, including a bunch of stuff on Samurai and some excellent screen paintings. As a huge added bonus, most of the exhibits had English explainations, which made the museum much more accessible. After that, we took a train to a new hotel in Akasaka, which is in southwest Tokyo. We ate expensive Indian food for dinner and realized that our bags are really heavy!

19.Aug - Impreial Palace
Buffet breakfast at the hotel is good and cheap! We spent about 6 hours at the Imperial Palace, which was kind of dissappointing. You can:t actually see the palace from anywhere, and we spent a lot of time walking around the outside not being able to get back in after we left from the northern gate. We probably walked nearly 2 miles just to get back to the southern entrance, and decided not to go back in, anyway.

Instead, we walked across the street to this park that has a bunch of water features, one of which sprays mist all over you. Since it`s about 35 C (100 F), we hung out there to recover for a while. Now, at 630pm, it`s off to Roppongi for dinner. But still, why doesn`t this feel any different than regular life? When will it sink in that we:re not going home in a few days? When will we stop observing as tourists and start being a part of the city? We need to meet some people today, Japanese or otherwise.

(midnight)

Mission accomplished. Well, sort of. Roppongi kind of sucked; we could have been on the 3rd street promenade in Santa Monica or on Melrose or the Strip in Vegas. It:s just a SUPER busy housing/mall/office/museum complex of about 5 gigantic buildings and everything is overpriced. There:s also a Cold Stone there, and the line was litteraly a block long! Roppopngi is not the kind of place we`d normally hang out at, so we left promptly, but it was interesting to see once.

We found our way to a back-alley basement restraunt where drunk locals gave us the evil eye for stepping in. A very nice local woman helped us order, though, and the food wasn`t great, but it was a good experience, anyway. They eat mayonaise on salad here, by the way. Later, we made it to a sake bar aclled Tommy`s, which had a Philly West vibe... a kinda dive-y, hole-in-the-wall place that`s just our type! The owner (Tommy?) and locals were very friendly and Tommy speaks perfect English. One guy called me Jack Bauer when I told him I live in LA. Doesn`t that show take place in DC? Anyway, we:re going to go back tomorrow.

20.Aug

Ginza and Shinjuku I wrote about below, and we tried to take Nick (the British fellow we met at our hotel) back to Tommy`s, but it was closed. That:s why we drank at the Cuban joint, instead.


Okay, I:m tired of blogging, so I`ll stop, here for now. Today (23 Aug), we`re leaving Nikko to go to Matsumoto. I`ll try to get pics up as soon as possible.

-Mike

3 comments:

Anonymous said...

Anna says you were telling her about the insects in Japan. When I was there, the Cicadas were in the cycle of love. They were leaving the gournd and breaking free to fly and sing for a mate. Are you having the same concert? Just wondering.

Love you, blh

Anonymous said...

you mean you guys have not eaten at Americatown yet? sounds awesome...

Anonymous said...

I just got back from Mexico and finally checked in to your blog site. Sounds like you guys are having an amazing time! I'm so jealous. I saw the bug post so I thought I should tell you about this website I just heard about. www.whatsthatbug.com You can research bugs as well as send them a picture of a bug you want to identify and an entomologist will write you back with the name. Pretty cool. I'm sure you won't be spending your time doing that while you are gone but if you get bitten or anything it could be helpful.

Send pics soon! Miss you guys...Sarah