Pre-Kyoto

Mum and Keith were here over two months ago, so in timely fashion, here is a little summary about what we got up to in the Tokyo area. I'm not going to focus too heavily on this part, just skim over with pictures, as most of it is things that have appeared on this blog at least once before.

The first evening we met in Shinagawa, and went to an Izakaya for dinner; a selection of Japanese delicacies. Some went down better than others, but kudos to them for trying nearly everything the whole time in Japan*.

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The first full day was Sunday, which meant the best and only real opportunity to do the Shibuya route and see the Harajuku girls. We started at the Metropolitan Government Building in Shinjuku. Luckily, there was a kimono display and an area to try one on for free.

Unfortunately, it rained on and off but we still got to see a mix of sights, from Meiji Shrine to the Hachiko crossroads. And as a treat, we even saw Fuji at sunset back at the top of the Government Building.

That evening, we went to Kawasaki, the third biggest city situated on the edge of Tokyo and Yokohama (the cities never really end - they are only formally divided by rivers) with over a million citizens, for dinner. We also sat outside the cinema in the Latin Quarter to watch the water and light show. Free and fantastic.
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The second day, we went to:

a) Kamakura to see the temples,



b) Hase to see the revolving bookcase temple and Daibutsu (the Buddha) - even going inside!**,

c) and past Fuji to Enoshima to walk the whole way across the Island. And back. Stairs. Lots of stairs. So many stairs.

A very long day and we were all absolutely shattered by the end, but we managed to see some early blossom.

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The third day, we started at Hama-Rikyu park and saw the rape flowers.

Afterwards, we took a boat up Sumida River to Asakusa, stopping briefly at the "Penis Statue" Building for an Asahi beer. A brief stroll along the river to the Sumo area, Ryogoku, to attempt the impenetrable Edo Tokyo Museum. So much information and never enough time.

That night we ate at the conveyor belt sushi bar in Tsunashima and walked around the freezing but modern Minato Mirai area of Yokohama.
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The next two days were an overnight trip to Hakone, staying in a ryokan (traditional Japanese style hotel) in Yugawara. We met up with Keiko in Yokohama and took the train along the coast to the rural area South of Tokyo. After arriving, we all walked along a waterfall-lined river, had a relax at the foot spa - nearly burning ourselves in one of the freshly heated-up pools - and then checked into the hotel.

A pleasant onsen on the roof-top later, we were treated to kaiseki-ryouri, many different seasonal dishes, served by a lady who did the whole routine with the sliding doors etc.

A few plum wines and some sake later at the nearby "old men's pub" I took a quick onsen and then slept soundly.

Getting my money's worth, another bath in the morning before heading off to Hakone. Unfortunately, it was a little overcast so Fuji was hidden for the larger part of the day, although at some points at peaked over the clouds which created the incredible impression that it was floating in the sky. So dramatic. So impossible to capture on camera.

We drunk some sake in front of a mostly-covered Fuji, ate sulphur-style eggs in Owakudani (Hell Valley), rode the cable-car and sailed the boat across Lake Ashi.

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The last full day in Tokyo was, in hindsight, over-packed. But then again, we all survived and I would've been disappointed not to have shown my guests everything. We started by climbing Mount Takao which, not in the same scale as Fuji, was still a mean feat before lunch. I have some fantastic videos of Mum dancing to a strange Russian-Japanese song*** but I'm divided whether to post them.

My timing wasn't great so we didn't get to the yakiniku restaurant in Shibuya until late but it was worth it. Oishii! That afternoon, we had a look around some electronice stores and then took the Yurikamome (driverless monorail) to Odaiba; seeing the infamous red sun setting, walking along the beach-front, and exploring the Toyota Showroom.

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For regular readers, most of the above must sound like old news now, but I hope that for those who have actually been here that it brings back some good memories.

*I'll let Mum off for the baby squid in the ryokan.
**The statue itself inside was really hot in parts, and there was some clever explanation about the structuring of it. I've forgotten since. A case of in one ear, out the other.
***I've heard stranger: techno-accordion in rural France.

Tales From An Office Window

Yesterday, I was at work minding my own business. A pigeon was sitting on the ledge outside the window and, out of nowhere, another flew down and started going at it. The debacle only lasted a few seconds but it was enough to sow the seed. So to speak.

Pigeon love. What a beautiful thing.

With A Little Understanding...

...You can find the perfect blend. Or should that be Channel?

Absolutely nothing to do with Japan, but I heard that Neighbours is moving to Channel 5. The BBC have been the main factor to keep that soap going all these years, and then Fremantle try to charge them over double per new episode. Rather mean, methinks.

Scott and Charlene. Neighbours and Five. A match made in heaven?

Actually, I don't really care.

Image Of The Week #39

No sooner has the Spiderman hype calmed down that Pirates 3 is riding the marketing wave. We stumbled upon this model and kids dressed up, ready for the release on the 25th May. The 2nd movie was so bad it was shocking but, seemingly being the prologue for the final in the trilogy, I haven't given up hope yet.

(Shiodome - 5th May, 2007)

Null points

Anyone know the score, so to speak, from last night's contest? Any highs? Any lows?

Did we fly the flag? I guess not.

SIDHTTWU #2

Christmas Eve, 2006. Roppongi Hills is a city within a city, situated South Tokyo. It has a huge rounded building in the centre, with shops and restaurants surrounding it. It's the most famous place to come on the night before Christmas, to see the lights and get a nice ambience. Apparently, everyone in Tokyo knew this as it was packed. Photos are a little blurry because of the constant foot traffic.

Lazy

This is probably my favourite video of my whole time in Japan.

There's a funny joke between foreigners that, during road work, for every worker there are three staff standing around. They guide traffic and pedestrians, but normally they just stand there waving their lightsabre-like sticks. This video is the very epitome of laziness.

Image Of The Week #38

Help. I can't find the way out.

(Shiodome - 5th May, 2007)

SIDHTTWU #1

14th December, 2006 - Todoroki Valley, a natural gorge running alongside shops and houses, is situated about an hour from central Tokyo. It was pretty, serene and, with the end of Autumn, displayed some beautiful coloured leaves and some orange trees.






A cool water-feature, but not sure if they were dragons or snakes:


One of my favourite photos this year:


The river went on for about 2 miles, and there were very few people in sight. You could only hear the occasional car in the distance. It really didn't feel like Tokyo.


The bamboo seemed to go up forever:

Fu-ru-ri-re-ro

The Krispy Kreme fuss is stll going strong, and McDonalds is as popular as ever. In truth, although the Japanese eat healthily at home, they drink a lot of beer, and eat a lot of fried food when they're out and about. So why are they comparatively a thin nation?


Incredulously, I read last night that, on average, Japanese people have longer intestines - reports of up to 3 metres longer! - thus their digestion takes longer. Supposedly, this is the reason, but with no hard scientific evidence, it's difficult to take it without a pinch of salt.

Any other ideas?

Carp A Load Of This

A few months back, I mentioned Girl's Day, where dolls are put on display. Today is Boy's Day, and it's a whole lot more interesting.

In the Edo period, people displayed samurai armour to symbolise the brave soldiers their children could become. At the same time, the commoners wanted to mark this festivity and competed with the elite by displaying こいのぼり - koinobori. You're going to have to stick with me on this one.

Simply put, "koi" means "carp" and "nobori" comes from the stem "to climb". This flag-like item is used as a charm in families with young boys for the week or two surrounding the 5th May. The fish are placed on balconies or in public where they 'float' in the air. Just as a carp struggles to swim upstream, climbing higher and higher even though it's easier to swim in the opposite direction, so does this wish for boys to grow up as strong and determined as the carp. I think it's a really lovely idea, with a clever purpose to it, albeit a warped person to invent it.



There's a song too, of course, to be sung while flying the flag. To listen, follow the link here and then click on the title to start the song.

屋根 より 高い こいのぼり Yane yori takai koinobori
Konobori are higher than the roof
大きい 真鯉 は お父さん Ookii magoi wa otoosan
The biggest carp is the father
小さい 緋鯉 は 子供たち Chiisai higoi wa kodomo tachi
The small carp are children
面白 そう に 泳いでる Omoshiro soo ni oyoideru
Enjoying swiming in the sky

Sagamihara Council is famous for setting up over 1200 koinobori over Sagamihara River, along with a market, stalls and games; most notably winning/eating fish taken from the river. It's a bit of a trek from Tokyo - a 2 hour train-bus combo each way, but it was worth it. I don't think the pictures do justice to the size they were.






Another bizarre occasion in Japan. I think it would've been stranger if I'd seen it a year ago; I'm definitely becoming desensitized to it all.

Happy Boy's Day!

The Amazing Spiderman

Overall, the film was fantastic, and compared to most other Summer blockbusters, this was head and shoulders above the rest. The action, CG, the character development were all top-notch, and the ending was perfect; bittersweet but hopeful.

However, it had its fair share of problems. The biggest was that with so many storylines (maybe 5 main strands) and three, actually make that four, baddies to contend with, it was slightly too much for one film. In the end, characters would pop up every 30 minutes just to appear, so that it became a little like clock-work and often they were all tied together in contrived ways. The biggest disappointment was that the coolest enemy didn't really appear until the very end, and he had little development or screen-time. Who was it? I'll leave it for you to find out.

Still, the end fight scene between the four main super-heroes was great stuff. And surprising.

It's selling out everywhere here, and sure to make back a lot more than it's largest ever Hollywood budget. Let's see how it does in the rest of the World.

Go get 'em, tiger.