Month: October 2005

[Chris reporting, a few days after the fact]

Woke up, got out of bed, dragged a comb across my head … Took the train across town to the main Tokyo train station, stored our suitcases and bought our airport train tickets. From there, we headed over to the Imperial Palace, which is basically an island (approximately a square mile) surrounded by a huge moat. Inside are gardens, huge walls upon walls, and somewhere in there is an imperial palace which we don’t get to see. This picture shows one of the gates through the walls. As you can see, it was raining — crappy weather characterized the last couple days of our trip. Fortunately we did have OK weather at the beginning and fantastic weather in the middle.

Took our first and only taxi ride of the entire trip back to the train station (in soooo much pain …). We had a few minutes to kill before heading to the airport, so I bought us a platform ticket to the shinkansen platforms. If I wasn’t going to get to ride a bullet train on this trip, I was at least going to see one. Saw several, coming and going, Very sleek.

Went to the airport, got on the airplane, saw CRAP movies (War Of The Worlds, Dark Water, please kill me), got home, unloaded all of the SWAG out of our suitcases.

Hey fans, Chris here. Sharon is out like a snoring light so I’ll make today’s entry. This morning we looked at our master list and planned how to spend the last day and half. After a leisurely breakfast at one of the several Starbucks look-alikes that they have here (“Excelsior Caffe”, I kid you not), we headed over to the Shibuya part of town to go look at a couple museums, some shopping districts, more fruit hunting, etc. Most destinations are closed on Monday so half the things we still wanted to see were out of consideration (like the Tobacco and Salt Museum) so we were relegated to things like the Electric Power Museum, which was pretty dull, let me tell you. Sharon wisely sat in their little library and read magazines while I spent a little while wandering the place pushing buttons and dodging elementary school kids. Then we wandered around a few shopping districts, including an encounter with a deeply subterranean Mandarake store and other nuttiness, and ended up at a gigantor department store to buy swag for the peeps back home. My wallet is an empty vessel, my soul is full. And a little damp, it rained off and on all day, sometimes very on.

A few random pictures: first, most restaurants (except for the very upscale) have wax/plastic models of their dishes on display out front. Do not trust the glisten, this is NOT real food!

A closeup of the architecture of the Meiji shrine.

An incredible parade that just popped up alongside the traffic while we were trudging down the Omote Sando in the Aoyoma district. They were doing a choreographed dance to a song that everyone seemed to know. I saw a twenty-something woman come off the sidewalk and jump right into the routine. I think it’s a song/dance that everyone knows, I don’t suppose there’s an American analogy.

Most buildings have signs indicating the businesses that are up on the non-ground floors — most restaurants are not street-level storefronts. There’s not enough storefront to go around, so you have these vertical signs, sidewalk placards (with glistening food photos or glassed in displays), carneys hollering out their restaurants offerings. This isn’t just in the cute tourist districts, this is everywhere.

This is a view of our hotel room. A sizable chunk of it. The one thing we noticed the minute we walked in for the first time (carrying suitcases) was that there were no dresser drawers or even suitcase stands. D’oh. So we improvised with upended chairs and spreading out on the narrow shelf that ran along the window. Noted: can’t take dresser drawers for granted in a Japanese hotel room. Also noted: high speed internet connection (using my laptop seen on left) was a freaking godsend. I love the internet!

The fabulous “Excelsior Caffe”, with fonting, color hues and store layout details to make it look remarkably like a Starbucks; close enough that a Japanese person not familiar with English or Latin characters might not even notice the difference. There was also a “New Yorker” coffee chain doing the same thing. I spent more time in Starbucks-lookalikes in a week in Tokyo than I’ve spent in my entire life in the US (read: none).

The surely-incredible Tobacco and Salt Museum, sadly closed on Mondays.

Wacky architecture.

We have a friend (hi Mark!) who draws for Marvel, and we were trying to find some Spiderman comics (with Japanese translations) that had his art work to bring home. On Monday we stumbled across an entire Spiderman store, closed. Picture taken through front door — flashback is from the mirror at the back of store; mirror’s are used widely to make spaces look bigger.

After a respite at the hotel, we had a fabulous final-night dinner at a well-regarded restaurant 50 stories up a nearby building (note: not revolving). One of the dishes we had was garlic rice. It was served with the papery covering of the garlic on top and it was so hot the papery sheaves were quivering and dancing around on the rice. The server then stirred them into the dish. An amazing presentation.

Now we’re just getting some rest in preparation for the long day tomorrow — a little more sightseeing then on to the airport for the 13 hour flight home to Atlanta’s spectacular fall weather and regular life again.

[updated with pictures and more commentary on 23-Oct]

We’ve been doing all sorts of things, but we both got colds and have been doing it all verrryy slowlllyy. So, the condensed version of our last two days: Went to Ikebukuro and spent half of the day there getting planned tattoos (me, not Chris). Went to a mall with used and new manga/anime/gashepon stuff (these pics are just of ONE of the gashepon stores, about 1/20th of the entire place). Completely overwhelming and geeky.

Went to Harajuku looking for the “fruits” girls who dress up in costumes and parade around. It was a bust! It was raining and there just weren’t many girls there. There were some, but not en mass. Boo hoo. All the swank fashion stores are there though: Chanel, Louis Vitton, D&G, etc.

We trekked out to Meguro to see the Parasite Museum. It was so “1960’s educational film” and none of it was translated into English. The pic shows an example of a 30 foot tapeworm found in some poor guy’s stomach. Although the museum appeared to be targeting public health issues, the audience was young hipsters looking for gross stuff (and the indifferent and unsupervised school kids which seem to infest all museums in Japan).

Oh and shrine, shrine, temple, shrine. And a parade.

Random pics:

So very very tired. I guess we’ve been walking 8-10 miles a day and we’re hurting! Everywhere you go is by subway or train and all the stations are well below the city so you have to walk up and down stairs all day to get in/out of the stations. Our legs hurt in all kinds of ways. Seeing an escalator is a blessing. The stations are incredibly busy, the busiest in the world, and it’s fascinating to watch the people come and go (and learn not to get flattened). You figure out which line, which station, how much, buy a ticket, put the ticket in the machine, keep the ticket handy because you need it when you get out, and go go go.

This morning we went to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Towers. It’s a twin set of towers with observatories at the top of each tower about 45 stories up. Here a view of the city from one of them. We were hoping to see Mount Fuji (60 miles away) but the weather has to be just right for that and today it was clear but hazy.

We also went to Ueno, via a marketplace where they sell lots of American goods. (The Japanese are crazy about Mickey Mouse, Sesame Street, Levis and Winnie the Pooh.) In Ueno we went to a park where there were different artists set up along a long promenade. Some were singers, one was a comedian, others were musicians. We turned a corner and a young man was set up playing a theremin! That was a weird thing to come across. We also saw people feeding tofu to a feral cat colony.

We went to a small museum that houses examples of how people in Japan lived in the last eighty years or so before WWII and the big earthquake of 1923. There were replicas of houses and businesses and the materials that are in them, beds, fire places, clothes, etc.

We also went to the National Museum, which houses the historical arts of Japan going back to 10,000 BC. Scrolls, armored clothing, weaponry, embroidery, painted screens, lacquer ware, etc.

Here are some of the goofy signs we’ve seen so far.

A doctor’s office?

I have no idea….

My favorite, a parcel delivery service:

The Japanese food pyramid:

Oh, and best manhole covers EVER.

Hi, Sharon here. It’s very clean here. There are men in uniforms and white gloves sweeping and wiping down planters and sidewalks. Oddly, there are no trashcans anywhere. If you have something to throw away you just carry it until you can find one (and then the complex sorting of recyclables begins). We get back to the hotel at the end of the day loaded down with empty bottles and other trash. The sidewalks are crowded with people walking, people on bikes and delivery people pushing carts. I haven’t been jostled once. Somehow everybody manages to scoot around each other. Here’s a picture of one of the subway exits with loads of people coming home from work. When people get on the trains they pop open their cell phones (to quietly interact with them, no conversations at all) or instantly fall asleep.

In the morning we went to a large temple in Asakusa. It’s very touristy and that includes Japanese tourists from all over Japan. They were all very excited to be there and there was much picture taking. There’s a giant market with all kinds of goods. There aren’t that many Western/European tourists in general.

The only encounter we’ve had with an American though was really special. She came up to us while were looking at a map (about 20% of our days are spent looking at maps — Chris stops to study every single one). She was in her sixties and needed some general directions. Turned out she was from Georgia, had lived in Atlanta for 30 years, had moved from Augusta to Arizona. She had the gentle Georgia drawl though and we spotted it immediately. She’s in Tokyo for six months undergoing an alternative therapy for breast cancer. She’s here alone (her husband is in Arizona), has had recurrent BC since 1997 and has never had chemo or radiation. We talked for long time and she’s very ingrained in the Atlanta art/teaching scene. She has a friend who is having her baby at Piedmont Hospital and I’ll try to find her when I return.

We walked from there over to the river boat to take a boat ride down to Odaiba. We rode on this bizarre river boat which looks like the boat from 20,000 Leagues (that’s the “Rainbow Bridge” in the background). The boat went down the Sumida River, which is the most central of several rivers that course lazily through Tokyo. We got to see the back of the Tsukiji fish market, where the boats pull up and unload their catch, I guess. Another cruise available was the “Happy Dog Cruise”, where once again unsuspecting dogs are sequestered to be petted and admired by the pet-starved Japanese. The boat’s destination was Odaiba, which is a manmade island in Tokyo bay built up with underattended entertainment destinations and corporate high rises. Think city planners run amok.

I have to say, I’m pretty obsessed with the concept of people craving the interaction with animals. It’s so charming and sad all at once. Thankfully, Chris allowed himself to be dragged to yet another cat demo store there [Chris adds: when I can’t stand it anymore, I just go sit outside and continue reading my book about Buddhism; a great contrast, methinks]. It’s called Cats Livin’ and it’s like a little house with rooms, like the living room, the bathroom and the kitchen that the cats wander around in, trying to avoid the people who have paid to come pet and play with them.

This picture was taken right before my only (so far) injury: rope burn from the leash when the cat leapt down.

There was also the Sega Joypolis which is a gigantic game center (which we avoided), a gigantic Toyota carporn showroom, and the world’s biggest Ferris wheel (so they claim, true only if you cover your ears starting in 1999). Here we are in a car waaaaay up.

Last night we ate in another alley area, again with tiny seating about 5-6 per restaurant. We had yakatori – grilled chicken, pork, bell pepper, leek, garlic and beer and sake.

Simmer down, you crazy people, Harajuku is coming Sunday. Note to Mark and Lisa: the gashepon are crazy good and the meatballs are HOT.

We started with a breakfast of eggs, salad, big toast and coffee/tea. We headed to the Tama Region which is about 40 miles to the West of Tokyo. It took about 40 minutes by subway/trains. Purloand is a big park in Tama City Center — all the signs there say it’s “Hello Kitty’s Town!”. Purloand is all inside a huge building with 4 stories. It’s much like Disney World: anamatronics, dancing characters accosting children, attendants with smile holders, and LOTS of gift shops all through it.

We saw a show in a theater that held about 200 very quiet adults and children. The show involved some plot about HK being sad and going off to a magical land with fairies. The sets were ornate and the stage revolved. The costumes were either people in fluffy HK gear or people in fairy suits. It was the best singing, dancing, people in costumes show I ever saw. [Chris adds: it was deafening — children were crying; I think they had it so loud both to stun the kids into silence and to drown out the ones who’d snapped].

There is a boat ride that goes through and around the entire building. This is a picture of the monitor where they take your picture as you pass by a camera. We didn’t know this or we would have been acting like fools.

I must say the gift shops were overwhelming, even for me. I saw HK computers, dehumidifiers, ipods, food, clothes, and I’m now content. OH, and I got plenty of loot. Uncle Chris got Bridget some really cute clothes. While I was in the gift shop Chris was figuring out where to go next (as is the case during much of this trip).

We took a monorail from Tama a couple towns over to a Buddhist temple (Takahata Fudoson). At this point we were in the hills that rim the Tokyo sprawl, but still it was completely urbanized — just with some green hills poking out of the asphalt soup.

Then we went even further out, to the edge of the Tama mountain region. We took a cable car halfway up Mt. Takao and then walked up trails with temple and Buddist images all along. It was dusk and cool and at the top of the trail was a large shrine with more carvings.

When we got home (after multiple trains) we stopped at an Italian restaurant in Shinjuku — some franchise chain not unlike a Denny’s, except for the weird remote control button at your table that you pushed to hail the waitress (in about 2.5 seconds, not kidding). It was packed with kids doing their homework together and had feel like a maltshop; very sweet.

Here’s a pic of Shinjuku at night.

The night before, we went to Golden Gai, a strip of tiny bars in alleyways about 4 feet wide. There were probably about 8 alleyways, each with maybe 20 bars on each side. The bars are literally tiny; about 10 feet x 5 feet including a bar the owner stands behind and a bathroom. Only 4-5 people can be in one at a time. Each bar identifies itself by posting different pictures or “types” of images on the front door. We passed by one with a Ramones poster and went into one that was run by a young girl. It was pale blue inside and had an Audrey Hepburn picture on the front. We each had a Guinness and it cost $18. A piece. Here’s a section of Golden Gai. Note the calico cat asleep on the boxes in front. It was the pet of the owner of that bar, I guess; it had a collar.

Hi! We’re having a great time. Very tired, over stimulated and getting used to the subways. Overall, the country is very clean, safe and friendly. We can get coffee, beer or whiskey at any time from vending machines! Brilliant.

Today was AMAZING. Chris insisted we get up before the crack of dawn and go to the Fish Market. [Chris adds: up at 3:30am, at fish market at 5:30; Japan doesn’t do daylight saving time so the sky was brightening by 6am]. The Tsukiji Fish Market is a colossal wholesale market where the fish are brought in from the ocean directly to the docks and unloaded.

It’s row after row of vendors selling all kinds of creatures just dragged in from the sea, fresh and frozen. Much of it I couldn’t recognize. There’s also a vegetable market. The restaurants come here to get their ingredients for the day. A tuna auction is held with the frozen tuna right off the boats. The fish have an end flap opened up so the vendors can check the fattiness and freshness of the fish (with a flashlight!) The red paint is used to mark the fish purchase by painting right on the fish.

I had no idea tuna was so huge.

After all the fish is unpacked this is what is left — a mountain of styrofoam crates. They recycle it somehow, as they do everything. Again, small country, lots of people. They figure out a way to make it fit.

After that we went to a Kabuki theater and saw an act of a play. It was beautiful and much more tolerable than I expected. I’ll let the boy give you the details on that. [the boy adds: much like Chinese Opera, especially the music; different stage layout, more subtle choreography, huge audience (at 11am on a weekday!) occasionally shouting out the names of acting schools, or something like that. Sorry we couldn’t stay for the whole 4 hour show!]

THEN. We went to the Dog/Cat/Ferret park, but the ferrets weren’t there or at least no one could tell us where they were. The deal with the Dog/Cat park is that people in Tokyo don’t have enough room/money to keep pets. Most live in rented apartments and the landlord won’t let them keep them. So there are “stores” and parks where people go to pet and hang out with cats and dogs.

The cats are in little individual rooms and rotated among a bigger room where people can go and pet them and play with them.

The dog park is right next door and you can “check out” a dog and take it for a walk. You can also go in a big pen where they run around and just pet a bunch of them. It was charming and bizarre. You should have seen the gift shop! Chris wishes he hadn’t.

Tomorrow, Puroland, home of Hello Kitty. Wish Chris luck. [Chris adds: Wish me luck? Pray for my sanity! At least I might get some mountain scenery out of it, it’s in the western Tama region.]

The boy says: 5 hours of sleep Saturday night. Up for 24 hours Sunday to Monday. Even the airport bathroom provokes culture shock. In Tokyo at last. Will absorb after sleep, beautiful sleep …

Pic 1: pondering the Tokyo subway map; due to separate private lines, this does not actually represent the entire transit system

Pic 2: breakfast from a convenience store; guy in background may in fact NOT be homeless

The girl says: First thoughts at the airport: Wow! Cute shoes! So far we made it to the hotel and it’s even tinier than we imagined. We can hardly walk around the bed without bumping into each other. We walked a few blocks and ate dinner with minimal complications. Now we sleep and try to power up for tomorrow. VERY excited.

OK, so suddenly everyone I know is going to know about this stupid blog. Wooooooooooo.

The Girlfriend and I are going to Tokyo for a 9 day vacation. Harajuku freaks, fish market chaos, buddhist temples and shinto shrines, train stations ad nauseum, crazy food, broken English, bewildering street plan … and let’s not forget Hello Kitty Land, shall we?

We’ll try to post here daily with reports of what we’ve been doing. But we’re going to try to NOT deal with photos because, you know, sitting in the hotel trying to get a photo posted to your blog while in the middle of freaking Tokyo Japan is just plain pathetic.

We’ll take photos, but we’ll probably upload them later, after we get back home. UPDATE: well, obviously not posting pictures was NOT an option …