Narita to Seattle August 6th to August 6th

We finally got to the gate around a half an hour prior to boarding. During boarding I thought I heard something close to my name over the intercom. I didn't go check, should have. So when they started boarding priority 1 seating I went in and got my bag settled in the overhead. There was exactly one empty seat on the flight. So everyone gets on board the doors are shut and I see one seat in Business class that doesn't have anyone in it. I think that is odd because if anything that seat should be mine.

Well ... one of the flight attendantes came back to Economy Plus and looked at the different seats. Saw me handed me another ticket stub that had the empty seat in business class on it. So I got my stuff sans the overhead bag and went up to Business. A little awkward to get up in front of all those people. Then all the people in Business class where like, who is this guy. Johnny come lately just sitting down. It was a Great thing though. I had Filet Mignon and Strawberry Ice Cream before they started serving dinner in Economy. I was asleep before they finished. I was in the middle so I had to navigate around people to get up, but it was well worth the 12,500 miles to upgrade. The only downside is that at SEATAC my bag did not have the prioirty labels from being Business from the beginning, so I had to wait. Although that was better than the Delta flight from Tokyo, they were waiting for their luggage when I got through customs and still waiting when I left.

One funny note is that leaving Japan I had to show my other ID because the guy was questioning if my Passport was me. Then at SEATAC I had to smile and take off my hat before the guy would let me go through. Oh good times.

Good to be back home, but Yuzu and Dark Mocha Chip Frappucino's I will miss thee.

Narita August 6th

Back to Narita - August 6th

The time has arrived once more to make the journey back across the Pacific to Washington State. I woke up around the same time as always, always seems to happen. For breakfast I went of the Yokosuka Chuo Starbucks and had a delicious Hojicha latte. After getting back to my room and finishing up packing it was downstairs. The hotel took me to where the bus picks us up from. Traffic was very heavy and it took probably twice as long as if I had walked it. On the other hand it was air conditioned and that is just great.

My coworker arrived shortly after I did and we both got checked in. I went over to Starbucks on base and got a Yuzu Green Tea Frappuccino, as it always is, very good. There were a total of 20 people on the bus today, so everyone got their own seat. The other nice thing was that everyone was going to the same Terminal so it was a straight shot. The route we took today was different than I had taken before we went on the Tokyo Wan Aqua-Line expressway. We must have been traveling for around 6 minutes in a tunnel under Tokyo Bay. It was very close to Narita that we got onto the same road we normally take.

At the airport we walked around for a while and then went to check in. I am get to wait until I go to the counter to see if I get upgraded to Business. I do not have my hopes set too highly at this point. Immigration took around 20 minutes to get through, the line was to where the escalators come down. I made a sad discovery when I got through that Starbucks was closed on the other side. My next Dark Mocha Chip Frappuccino will have to wait.

After making that sour discovery it was off to the Red Carpet club. After taking a relaxing shower it is just time to wait until boarding is closer.

Back to Narita August 6th

Thursday - August 5th

Another trip almost in the bag. Tonight we met up with a mixture of Japanese and American coworkers and had pizza. Of course this lead to a second dinner at PepperLunch, which is good because I almost missed it this trip. Packed up and ready to get going in the morning.

Thursday August 5th

Wednesday - August 4th

Took it easy tonight. Dinner at Nirvana, shopping at Uniqlo and then packing. Oh, and of course catching up on Psych.

Wednesday August 4th

Yokohama Once More - August 3rd

One last trip up to Yokohama during this trip. Caught the 5:12 Red Train up to Yokohama. Had a seat the entire way up. Once at Yokohama station I promptly left the wrong exit and had to walk around the station, but it was the first time that I had done that. New experiences are fun.

Tokyu Hands was the first location. I find it interesting that each store has a slightly different inventory. It is good to check out a few if you are looking for something in particular. After shopping it was back on the train to MinotoMirai for another walk around Landmark. The view from the top was pretty good. You could barely make out Fuji's shape. After walking around the Sky Garden it was time for dinner. Ramen is always a good choice on a nice hot day.

The ride back to Yokosuka was fun. Every time one is in Japan they need a packed train experience. It is not for the claustrophobic but it can be fun being pushed inside of a train for someones fear of missing this particular train.

Yokohama Again August 3rd

Monday August 2nd

After work I headed out to Homes. I have it figured how to quickly get to Home's. If is always interesting to see what they have at Homes. All the animals they had for sale looked like they were on the verge of expiring as they were really hot. I finished up the evening by going to the 100 Yen store at the Prime.

Monday August 2nd

Great Tokyo Tour - August 1st

After sleeping in, it was off to Tokyo one last time on this trip. I met Bryan at the Yokosuka Chuo station at 9:57 and we were off. The first stop was Akihabara, so after arriving at Shinagawa we transferred to the Yamanote line. We noticed that there were a lot of school age children riding the line. At each station they have a Pocket Monster (Pokimon) stamp for a book that they hand out for free. This is an interesting way to drum up business, as you have to get out at each station to collect each stamp. To travel from one stop to the next it is around $1.50 and there are around 20 stops on the Yamanote line.

At Akihabara we tried to get into the Gundam cafe but There looked to be a 45 minute to a hour wait to get inside. It was off to Yodabashi for another Black-Out doughnut from Doughnut Plant. This time we stopped by the camera section which is on the third floor. It can be a place that one could be separated from money quickly. The nice thing is that they have almost every camera currently on the market, so you can try it out for yourself.

From Akihabara it was off to Shibuya, which happens to be 28 minutes on the Yamanote line. A benefit of being on the opposite side of Tokyo. On the way to Tokyu hands I noted that there was a store called "Three Coins" or a 300 Yen store. After Tokyu hands we went back to the UT store. The T-Shirts were still on sale for 990 Yen. During that walk we saw a Perrier Stretch Hummer Limo twice. From there it was off to Roppongi, but it was getting rather warm. I lead the way to the nearest metro station. After two transfers in air conditioned tunnels we arrived at Roppongi.

The sole purpose of this stop was to get lunch at the Hard Rock. I had chicken and steak fajitas, the tortillas were branded with the Tokyo Hard Rock logo. After lunch it was time for some coffee, as I am only able to savor the Dark Mocha Chip Frappacino for a few more days that was my selection. After this refreshing beverage it was off to Yokohama.

One of the oldest tricks that I employ every time coming back from Tokyo is to get on the Asakusa Toei line. This subway line turns into the KeiKyu line at Shinagawa. This results is being able to set for the train ride back. When we got to Yokohama we switched to the JR line and went to Sakuragicho (Cherry Tree Town) station. It was packed, there was a big fireworks display held tonight in Yokohama and everyone was out. It was the only time I had seen security directing traffic inside of a train station. After walking to World Porter's it was time for another trip to Montbell and then through the Nissan building back to Yokohama station.

Everyone must have been in Yokohama because we were able to sit down on the way back to Yokosuka. This is the first time I have ever been able to get a seat right away at Yokohama. After we got back I headed on base for a little bit and then met up with Jean for dinner at Nirvana, always good.

Overall physical condition I am doing pretty well. I have a few blisters on my hands and feet. Other than every stair feeling terrible things are going well. It was interesting going into some of the outdoor shops today and seeing people gear up for Fuji.

Great Tokyo Tour August 1st

Fuji-San July 31st

Until 10 minutes ago I was covered in sweat and dust. To sum up the trip the wise words below are really applicable.

He who climbs Fuji-san but once is a wise man;
he who climbs it twice is a fool.

-Japanese proverb

The trip started out early we were to meet at the Outdoor Recreation Center at 130-145 Saturday morning. I managed to get around 5 hours of sleep Friday night before waking up. After signing an all encompassing waiver they let people of the bus. Through no planning there were 5 people from work on the same trip. It made sense to hike up Fuji together. MWR had chartered two buses to make the track to Fuji. The trip takes somewhere between 3 and 4 hours. After everyone was on the bus they briefed us and told us to get some sleep. We woke up at a truck stop just prior to where the bus begins to climb to take you to the fifth station. Fuji is broken down into stations, most people start at a 5th station the top is the 10th station. The truck stop is basically like a UK rest stop, where it is operated by a company for monetary gain. There is some logic to this as it was very well kept.

We arrived at the Kawaguchiko fifth station at 4:45 and started the hike at 5:10. It is an interesting progression as you start walking down for around a mile before heading up the Mountain. After half an hour we had reached the sixth station that currently is nothing more than a closed building. Clouds engulfed Fuji for the majority of the day. It was nice as they were not rain clouds and added a cool breeze at times. On the downside it did take away some stunning views. The trade-off of SPF protection from the clouds is easily accepted as at the summit you are over two miles above sea level.

We reached the seventh station an hour after starting. The elevation is 2700 Meters and the 5th station sits at 2305 meters. The oxygen content of this air still high enough to move quickly. The terrain was also decent. At the 7th station hut two guys started talking to me about WSU. One was a foreign exchange student at WSU and the other at OSU. In total I saw 4 Cougars today on the mountain. The stations of Fuji are elevations set on routes. On the routes as you travel up you pass mountain huts. That will see you a variety of things from the standard bananas to the puzzling oxygen and beer. All of these huts have brands that they put onto your hiking stick for 200-300 Yen ($3-4). I collected all on my journey as I only want to make the trek once.

After the seventh station the terrain became more difficult you would have to use your hands to pull yourself up. I bought trekking polls to make this journey, they are amazing. My knees which have been bothering me were not a problem during the entire trip. The up is a lot easier than the down as I will go through.

Another thing that you notice when you get about 10,000 feet is that your muscles start to ache. A good sign that they lack oxygen. So often breaks were taken on the way up. It was amazing how much difference a 2 minute break could make. Your muscles felt fine and you had your breath. That was the most difficult part of the ascent is dealing with the lack of oxygen.

Staying hydrated is always a battle, but I had purchased a 3 Liter camelback last week. By the time we started our descent it was gone. Which is why I also packed an additional liter of liquid. An average person burns around 7000 Calories to hike up and down Fuji. To stay ahead of the curve you are snacking a lot, even when you don't think you need to. Part of the lack of appetite is the lack of oxygen, but to make it an enjoyable trip you have to eat.

Traveling with a big group can slow one down, but that can be a good thing as it can make sure that someone who would burn themselves out is kept in check. Also that the person who might not make it is given motivation to continue once things become difficult.

We reached the Eight station (3020 Meters) at 750. Per the schedule provided we were 2-3 hours ahead of schedule. At this station is where the one foot in front of the other policy started. It is amazing how crippling not having enough oxygen can be. Things that were normally easy became very difficult. We all took pain medication at this point because headaches are known to set in when you get much higher than the elevation.

The terrain between the eight station and the Original eight station was difficult. The Fuji-San hotel sits at 3360 Meters. To gain 340 Meters it took another hour. Which is still better than the 80 minutes that they give you on your trip guide. The important thing was to reach the Fuji-San motel before 11 or they would not let you go to the summit.

The Ninth station sits at 3600 meters. It was another hour before we reach this point. The two guys in better shape took off up to the summit and I hung back to make sure the other folks were making it okay. There were some interesting moments when you come around a corner and see no guard rail and a 700 foot drop. It gets your heart racing even more.

The final push to the summit was interesting, there were around 200 people in line getting their picture taken at the Torri gate which sits as you summit. So you were moving 2 feet every 20 to 30 seconds. I bypassed a lot of traffic and was able to reach the summit at 10:23. Total travel time of 5 hours and 13 minutes. I could have done it faster, but it is always good to look out for others well being.

The summit was interesting because it is littered with buildings. Lots and lots of stores selling you overpriced Fuji trinkets that you can buy for half the price at the airport. We walked over to the Post Office and left the summit around 12:00. It was at that point that everyone in our party save me was having horrendous headaches.

The nice thing about descending is that you have more pore with each succeeding step. The downside is the manner is which they make you travel. This was easily the most difficult portion of the trip. They are effectively slide fields. Everyone in the party save me fell at least once. The trekking polls made a huge difference. I would have fallen several times if not for the extra balance from the polls. That was 11,000 Yen well spent. I didn't get many pictures because there was a lot of fog and I was trying not to fall. It took the first group two hours and fifty minutes to get to the bottom with a good 15 minute rest to allow the stragglers to catch up. The second group arrived 10 minutes afterward.

The amazing thing was to see all the tour groups heading up, it was a solid line of people. Now the fun started we got dinner at an overpriced but decent restaurant. One person said the buses had moved to somewhere else. I decided to find where that was, turned out it was 10 spots down. Buses are the way to get to the fifth station as they make cars park between 1-5 miles away. We got changed and got on the buses. The instructions were very clear as to be at the buses at 5Pm. One women in the group was taken to the hospital with an ankle injury (later we found out that she had twisted it and was dehydrated). They other bus waited until they had taken her away and then left at 5:45. Two people on our bus decided it was a great time to not show up. Eventually they found them at 6:45. We stopped at another rest stop on the way back. This is to comply with the consecutive hours rule for bus drivers. We arrived back in Yokosuka around 10 PM. It was a very long day. I would suggest hiking Fuji to anyone who is interested, but know this, it is difficult and the way down is harder.

Fuji-San July 31st

Fuji Prep - July 30th

I finished packing and am getting some sleep before getting up at midnight to get to the pickup by 130. A very long day is starting very shortly. I have plenty of snacks and water. I will pick up a lunch tomorrow at 7-11 before heading out.

Fuji Prep July 30th

Rain commith - July 29th

Total and complete down pore walking into work today. Rain coat is great, but not so great when not coupled with rain pants. It continued the cycle of rain to calm several times during the day. Fortunately that ended before I went back to the hotel.

For dinner I tried a Yakitori place that I had seen on my last trip. It has more room to sit and is a little cheaper. It does not hurt that the Yakitori is also very good. Which is the key to any great restaurant, having good food. Afterwords I went to the Sakiya Food court to get the pancakes which are filled with custard. Still awesome. There was a little confusion as the entrance I normally would enter from has been locked down since my return. I found another one tonight though, order has been reestablished.

Rain July 29th

Angry Whopper - July 28th

The temperature and humidity dropped off today. Combined with the wind it was actually comfortable at times. For dinner I decided to take the plung and have an Angry Whopper. I went with the hottest version they would sell and it was pretty hot. I counted around 15 Jalapenos on the burger. Coupled with the hot sauce it turned my mouth into a sauna for a couple of minutes. The Coke Zero did nothing to help on that count, but what could one expect.

angry whopper july 28th

Tuesday - July 27th

The big excitement of the evening was going to the Mount Fuji safety brief. The room was packed out. Everyone going through MWR on base needs to attend one of the briefing sessions. There are currently 37 spots left for Saturday's trip. After you complete the brief you are handed a slip to allow you to sign up for the trip. MWR is closed on Wednesday's so a special trip will be made Thursday morning to sign up. I think I have everything that I will need to get up and back down. The mental aspect is one that I will find if I have it only during execution.

Tuesday July 27th

Back to Yokohama - July 26th

I met with a coworker and headed up to Yokohama after work. The first stop was back to Mont Bell. I found a shirt that is specific to that store that I just couldn't see not having in my collection. After that we walked to the Worldporter's mall on the other side of Minotomirai.

I wanted to get some night shots of Landmark and the surrounding buildings so I went to the roof to check the line. It was good so I decided after dinner I would head back. We ate at a Mexican restaurant named Salsa. Instead of tortilla chips they bring out tortillas and you go get your own salsa. They had them ranging from mild to burn your sinuses out. I sample the variety. The combo platter was much smaller than in the US but it turned out to be the right amount of food. During dinner there was a lighting storm that looked very impressive.

After dinner we headed up to the roof and got some pictures. Fortunately the lightning was done for the most part. This is good because I have no desire to ground that much energy and I am not yet ready to take nice pictures of lightning in action. It eventually stopped raining on the roof and we headed back to the train station. I got more pictures in the place where I have had good returns in the past. I played around with the rear flash feature. You get two successive flashes. The concept is that the light from the first flash is returning around the time that the second flash goes off. It turns into a light painting situation.

The train ride back was packed and I was able to make myself as small as possible to allow as many people on the train. A tripod is never your friend on a crowded train but I made it work.

Back to Yokohama - July 26th

Another Hot Sunday - July 25th

I have never slept better in a hotel than I did last night. I am mainly focusing on the insane amount of stress my body went through yesterday. Walking that many miles is tough under normal conditions. When the added bonus of oppressive heat comes in it sets a new standard. The navy uses different temperatures as gauges for the amount of activity one should do. Anything over 92 is suspended activity. From 10 to 6 it was over 92 yesterday, so lesson learned the hard way.

As a result I decided to scrap the plans for today and take it easy. I only made it 8 miles today. I started out breakfast at Starbucks with a Blueberry and Cream Scone. I then walked over to the JR station and caught the first train to Kita-Kamakura. This is one stop past Kamakura and it has several Temples right outside the station. I checked out Engaku-Ji which is one of Five main Rinzai Zen temples in Kamakura. The grounds were very well kept. At times you can continue walking up to the top of the hill, but service was being held so all the monks were occupied. After I finished I started to head for Jochi-Ji, but waived off after realizing that it would not be a good thing to keep hiking around trails when the temperature is over 88. I decided to ride the train into Yokohama.

I spent more time exploring the Minato Mirai area. I was in search of a Mont Bell close to the station. After exploring for a while I found it. The shop did not open until 1030 so I decided to walk over to a park that I had not seen yet. Rinko park grounds were decently kept, but the fountain area was shut down. I headed back and got fitted for a pack and picked up trekking poles. Imagine skiing poles, except for hiking. I headed back to Yokosuka by taking the JR from Sakuragicho to Yokohama and switching to the KeiKu line. I was heading the right direction.

Once back I decided to take a nap that turned into another night of sleep. I had been hearing about an Indian restaurant called Delicious since I have been back. I decided tonight was the night to check it out. I had the garlic nan and spinach mutton. It was larger portion sizes than Nirvana, but I prefer the nan and curry. The one thing decidedly in Delicious's favor is that it is on the street level. No matter what Americans will not expect to look up or down to find an eating establishment. It takes some time for calibration.

Sunday July 25th

Super Tokyo Tour July 24th

A very long day started out very early. I met up with Bryan at the Yokosuka Chuo station at 550. The plan was simple, go do as much stuff as you can in one day in Tokyo. Several key places were put on the itinerary, but it would be a free flowing trip. The first thing on the list was the Tokyo Sky Tree.

Tokyo Sky Tree is now the largest structure in Japan. The current height is 398 Meters, the next closest structure is Tokyo Tower at 333 Meters. It is an interesting trip to get out to the location. From Yokosuka you just stay on the train after it turns into the Asakusa Line. It is the Seventh stop. From the station it is around a 10 minute walk to the base. It is all cordoned off currently to prevent any falling debris from hurting passers by. The aspect of the structure changes as it goes up, it is pretty interesting to see. The official open date will be sometime in 2012, so still a while before one can get some good shots out of one of the two observation levels it has.

The next stop was Asakusa for a quick trip. They have removed some of the covering over the shrine. I found out that they are installing Titanium shingles to save weight. From Asakusa we walked over to Kappabashi to see some kitchen shops. From Kappabashi we headed to Ueno and walked from the station to the lakes. The lakes are currently full of lily pads, which are sticking around 8 feet above the water. Impressive to see this lake full of them. From Ueno we went to Akihabara and had a Doughnut Plant Pineapple doughnut, very good.

We then headed back to Ueno and on towards Kashiwa. Kashiwa is around 30 minutes outside of Tokyo by train. The only reason for this end point is the fact that a Gyoza restaurant is hidden in one of the back ally's. There are around 50 different types of Gyoza. It was an interesting experience, I had my first Curry and Dessert Gyoza. The table next to us ordered the spicy gyoza, they bring it out and light it on fire. Interesting. After lunch it was time to start walking.

We arrived back at Tokyo station around 1500, the plan was to head to the Imperial Palace East Gardens and then to the War Museum. It took a little longer than expected we walked around the outskirts of the palace. Although this did lead to a guy coming up and telling us that he went to WSU in 2007. It was around 94 by the time we got into the gardens. We found the rest house in the grounds and sat there for a while. Then it was off to the War Museum. They have streamlined some of the exhibits, but some of the facts are not fully developed.

Once we were finished with the Museum it was on to Harajuku. We walked to Yoyogi and then caught the train to Harajuku. It was around 1700 by the time we arrived at the Meiji Shrine. It closed at 1820 so we moved with a purpose. Which worked out great until we came out another entrance and had to walk about 3/4 of the way from Yoyogi station to Harajuku. Once in Harajuku we walked around for about an hour looking for the UniQlo T-shirt store. Turns out we took a wrong turn. The store is interesting they have all of the current selection of T-Shirts in bottles on the wall. You pick out which one you want and you are off.

We stopped an ate dinner at TGI Friday's in Shibuya and then it was off to Tokyo Tower for some night shots. There were quiet a few people around the tower. The wait time to get to the second observation deck was 65 minutes. The way back was pretty easy we caught the train from near the tower to Daimon and got on the Asakusa line and found a seat. It was a long ride back the trained pulled into Yokosuka Chuo around 2252. A very long and hot day. Hard to say how many miles were walked but more than 14. Time to catch some sleep.

Super Tokyo Tour July 24th

Hot and Humid - July 23rd

Amazingly enough I managed to sleep until 5 am. That is pretty awesome, so I will have to try and repeat this same routine the next time I travel westward.

I had forgotten about the oppressive heat until I opened my door in the morning. It was like stepping into a heated room. The entire day it was extremely hot. The temperature at 1600 was 92 degrees F as we were walking out.

I decided to head back to Kamakura to see if the tree that had fallen in March was put back in place. Sadly the tree is no more, but just as Rock beats scissors so does wind beat tree. The city was fairly empty as we walked from the Shrine to the beach. The vacation season is upon Japan so the beach restaurants and bars were setup. It was interesting to see the makeshift city that has camped out for the month. On the way back to the train station I noticed that the same Hawaiian burger joint that I had gone to in Tokyo had a location in Kamakura. I had a Turkey Avocado Sandwich, that was pretty tasty. The next priority is to rest for the Tokyo Tour tomorrow.

July 23rd

Travel Fun - July 22nd

Another long travel day. I am currently entering hour number 24. The flight was uneventful save the fact that it was less than half full. I suppose that can be chalked up to the midweek travel. For about half of the way it looked like I might be able to catch the first bus to Yokosuka. We hit some turbulence and the arrival time got pushed back just outside the window where I could make it.

Faced with the decision of whither to wait for the bus or ride a train and switch. With the additional information that it was like an oven outside I decided to wait. The piece of information that I did not have was that all of the major roads were locked down to transport the North Korean spy to the airport. It took an extra half hour to get to Yokosuka. If I had taken the train I would have arrived an hour and a half earlier. Information for future travel.

It did lead to seeing the roads less traveled, so all was not lost. At the end of the ride I have never seen people escape the bus as quickly as they did. I met up with a coworker for dinner at Nirvana. Still very good and the three is just the right amount of spice to make you appreciate a nice warm day. A little unpacking and then the attempt to sleep.

Travel Day 7 22

Once More - July 21st

Japan in late July and early August can be described as many things. The one that I will focus on in this post is hot soup. Being from the Northwest makes one not like hot and humid weather. Currently the weather in Japan resides in both categories. Staying cool is not something to aspire too, staying hydrated is. At least I know that it will be shorts weather, so all is not lost.

One of the events which will occur over the weekend in Japan is that Gundam will turn 30. That is to say that it has barely hit its stride. This image below is from a wedding at the base of the 1:1 scale Gundam, crazy.



The lounge at the airport is always a nice way to start out a trip. As it is nice and quiet. Plus free WiFi that is decently fast is also appreciated. The flight is scheduled to take just under 10 hours to arrive at Narita, so another long day is already underway. I have been awake for five and a half hours thus far, hopefully I will be able to get some sleep on the plane. That really isn't the best expectation based on previous performance, but one can try.

It is the official season to climb Fuji-San right now so that will be one of my goals during this trip. Also there is a number of places in Tokyo which I have not visited. I should be able to pick up some of those in the evenings. It is impossible to prepare for the severe temperature and humidity difference, so one must drink as much water as possible. In addition to air travel not being conducive to staying hydrated, and it will be during the hottest portion of the day when I land. Will be an experience to remember, onward...

So Long Farwell ... Japan - March 24th

Took at taxi from Bryan's apartment to the bus pickup on base. It cost about 1000 Yen extra than train hopping in between taxi's. The straight shot was well worth it, as it has been raining all day. After getting a number, I headed over to Starbuck's and McDonald's to get ready for the trip. It was absolutely pouring when I was going around base. When the bus pulled up I was in the right position to be the first person on the bus. The bus was very foggy so no good pictures where to be had to day.

The computers for United decided that today was an excellent day to take a vacation. It took just about an hour to get checked in. For the most part I am an ocean of patience, but with the thought of the United Red Carpet Lounge just on the other side of customs I got a little perturbed. Which the woman at the counter sensed and got me through before some other folks. It also didn't hurt that I was easily a head taller than everyone else in line.

The loading time is about an hour away and I am enjoying the lounge, hard not to.

So long Japan - March 24th

Kyoto Trip End - March 23rd

We decided to get in a walk around an area that we had not gone yet. The most interesting thing we saw was the original Nintendo Playing Cards company building. We had lunch at the first place we had eaten in Kyoto. The Ramen was still good. We got to the platform about 30 minutes before the shinkansen departed. During the ride we saw about the bottom third of Mount Fuji. We got on a packed train from Shin-Yokohama back to Bryan's apartment which was an interesting experience trying to balance three bags while not falling over or bumping into anyone. After dropping off the bags we went to back to Yokosuka for Nirvana dinner.

Kyoto End - March 23rd

Kyoto Day Four - March 22nd

The first stop after eating breakfast was the Fushimi Inari Shrine. Which you reach by taking the JR Kobe line two stops. The shrine entrance is directly outside the station. This Shrine is open all the time and it is free. Dawn to Dusk are the normal hours that people visit. There was more Torii gates in this small area than I have ever seen combined. Each one was sponsored by someone, from the largest to the smallest. You could get a small one for 4000 Yen. The large amount of foxes can be attributed to them being the messengers of the Shinto god of rice Inari. There were many people running/hiking it is about a two hour loop to complete. After seeing pretty much half of the path we headed back to Kyoto.

We walked from JR Kyoto station to the Imperial Palace garden. That took around an hour with a pitstop at the Starbucks Concept store. The Sakura look like they are within a week of blooming. The plum trees were in bloom as you can see in the series of photos of people taking photos of flowers. We even got into the fun of it. It was pretty funny to see people with lens worth several thousands dollars taking pictures of flowers.

After walking back to the city hall area and getting lunch it was a quick walk through Gion. This area is the most famous area in Japan for Geisha. Our quick walk did not find any, but I do like to keep a steady pace. We then headed through the area we had walked through on Friday night.

The next stop on the fast walking tour was Heian Shrine. This shrine is made to look like the Imperial Palace of the Heian era. It was built in 1895 to celebrate the 1,100th anniversary of the time that Kyoto had become the capital of Japan. There were two very cool washing stations on the grounds. One I will say it looked like a cougar and the other a dragon.

From the Heian shrine we walked towards the Path of Philosophy. The path is next to a small river and is covered by various types of trees. At the head of the path is Ginkakuji (Silver Pavilion) which is not actually covered in silver. It was built as a complement to the Gold Temple on the other side of Kyoto. The funding never came together to make the outside silver. One reason may be that it is a 2 hour walk from Kyoto station. The grounds were very well kept and it was my first time to see a Zen pebble garden. The flan shaped object was about 4 feet high and 8 feet in diameter. We headed out to the hotel after that, it was a half hour walk to the subway station. For dinner we went back to the city hall arcade. I did some long shutter time shots with my camera near the station.

By rough estimate we walked 12 miles today. I will be feeling it tomorrow for sure. The shinkansen leaves at 1400 so we can get in a little more of Kyoto in the morning.

Kyoto Day 4 - March 22nd

Osaka/Kobe/Kyoto - March 21st

Osaka:
We left Kyoto around 752 on a limited express train bound for Osaka. At the same exact time a Special Express left. It was very strange because both trains arrived at around the same time at JR Osaka station, but were making different stops. The trip took around 33 minutes to complete. Once outside the station we found a information station and got a map. We also asked where the closest MontBell was, which resulted in about five minutes of the guys in the information area saying Mont Bello before realizing it was right next to the station. Being in Japan nothing opens early so we had some time to burn.

The only major thing we did in Osaka was go to the Umeda Sky Building. There is a path to get from the station to this building, but there is no English instructions. That is one thing that we noticed in Osaka, there was very little in English. At 1000 we went to the 32 floor in a glass elevator. There was a woman in the elevator who was saying scary in Japanese and had her eyes closed the entire time. The final five floors is a ride up an escalator the next five floors. The escalator is in between the to buildings and you can see out and up. This activity is not suggested for those who do not like heights. They let you on top of the building it was very windy and cloudy so I didn't get too many shots. Later in the day it became very nice, so timing was a little off. If you are in Osaka and it is a clear day be sure to check this out.

We stopped at a Starbuck's to buy an Osaka city mug and then it was off to Kobe for lunch.

Kobe:
The train ride to Kobe was interesting. We got on the first train that was on the correct platform and headed the correct direction. We soon realized that it was the type of train you need a ticket to ride, so we hopped out at the next station. Did not want to run into a "No Ticket" situation Once in Kobe we spent 10 minutes looking for an information station before deciding just to head up to lunch. It was just one station on the subway line to the Ana Crowne Plaza hotel where the restaurant was located. We stopped in the restaurant and were told that it would be around a 30 minute wait. So we decided to try and find the Starbucks Concept Store in Kobe.

Kobe was the first sister city to Seattle back in 1957, so it is only fitting that it should have an awesome Starbuck's. It is located inside a house that was constructed at the turn of the last century. The house was destroyed in the 1995 earthquake that killed 6000. The American owner donated it to the city after the earthquake. The building has since been rebuilt and reinforced to prevent destruction by earthquake again. After picking up a city mug it was time for Kobe in Kobe.

Kobe steak is something between extreme excess and an art form. When you walk into the restaurant you will see posted by the door the different grades of beef available that day. With each grade you will also get a number, which can be entered into a Japanese Beef Lineage website. This way you can know exactly where the cow was raised and slaughtered at. The cows for Kobe beef are feed only the choice grain, Sake, and massaged many times a day. It is said the meat is so tender you could cut it with chopsticks.

Well it wasn't that tender but you didn't need to chew it. It was both the most expensive meal I have ever had (13,700 Yen) but also the best steak. For obvious reasons of pocketbook and health you couldn't do this too often, but for an experience it was awesome. The steak is presented to you to verify that is what you want and then the chef cooks it right in front of you. It worked out to be a 7 coarse meal. It was back to Kyoto after lunch.

Kyoto:
We got to the JR Sannomiya station at got on the 1610 train bound for Maibara. In the scrolling Kanji I figured that the train would stop at Kyoto so we were good to sit the whole way. We arrived at the JR Kyoto station at 1730. Quick stop at the room and it was back to the festival of lights area. The stop tonight was
Kiyomizudera (Pure Water Temple). It is famous for the fact that it is built on scaffolding. I finally figured out how to control the shutter speed and brought the tripod so great shots were had. After spending an hour of so we headed back to the hotel room after grabbing so McDonald's for dinner. Tomorrow is the last full day in Kyoto so time to recharge once more.

Osaka Kobe Kyoto March 21st

Kyoto Day Two / Nara - March 20th

We headed out this morning around 700. Getting going took a little more effort than preparing for one of my Tokyo trips. I attribute it to the running around we did after getting in last night. After having breakfast at Starbucks at the base of Kyoto tower to was off to Ni Joo-Joo. To get there we bought a one day pass for 1200 Yen, they also sell a two day pass for 2000 Yen. The one day pass gets you access to most buses in the city and all subway lines.

Ni Joo-Joo:
This is the castle that is just north of Kyoto station. It was built in 1603 for a shogun Ieyasu. The interior floors were made to make noise as an alarm system (nightingale floors). It was interesting walking around hearing the floor constantly squeaking. The interior was fairly large, no photography was allowed inside. There are striking similarities to the castle design here and what I saw in the UK. After finishing up we decided to go check out the Kinkaku-Ji.

Kinkaku-Ji (Golden Temple):
To get to the Golden temple we got on a bus right outside of Ni Joo-Joo. On the approach to the entrance there is a hill off to the right where the Kanji for big was. They lite it on fire at night, this is a ways away from where we are staying so I doubt I will be getting a picture of it on this trip. The Golden Temple was in a very good place for picture taking. The lake that it sits on was still so there are a few very nice reflection shots. There was a good amount of walking around this area. The next stop was lunch.

Okonomi-Yaki:
We found an Okonomi-Yaki place in the mall right next to the city hall. This is an interesting dish and this was the first time I had it prepared at the table we ate at. It is mostly cabbage with batter and then fish flakes. It took a little longer than I had thought to eat, but it was a decent meal for a good price. After we were fueled up it was off to Nara.

Nara:
If you want to travel from Kyoto to Nara there are two different train lines you can take. We decided on the JR line. This was mostly based on the fact that I have a Suica and it is really easy to get around. The express train takes 44 minutes from Kyoto to Nara.

Nara is celebrating its 1300 year anniversary right now. So if you see a crazy deer human thing in my pictures it is the symbol for Nara and it is everywhere for the celebration. From the station it is a 15 minute walk to the area with most of the sites to see. The first thing was stopped and got pictures of was a five story pagoda. While walking to our next stop we got into the deer park. There are over 1000 deer living in this area of Nara. For 150 Yen you can buy a deer biscuit. This is not to eat but to give to the deer. They were everywhere, we saw an unsuspecting guy leave his hand down with a biscuit and he got nibbled by the deer. He ran away from the deer heading straight for us and basically hiding behind us. I supposed just head for the scary white guys and the deer will know not to step. They did have someone shoot a deer last week with an arrow. That was the third deer that has been shot in the last 10 years. Two with arrows and one with a harpoon interestingly enough. I don't believe that anyone accepts deer as land whales. One of the deer was trying to cross the street and almost got hit by a taxi. I am guessing if you do that very stiff penalties will be enforced. The next stop was the largest wooden building in the world which holds the largest bronze Daibutsu (Giant Buddha) in Japan. Toodai-Ji is very awesome in person, it is hard to believe that the original casting of the Daibutsu was done in 746. After checking this area out we headed to one more stop before going back to Kyoto. The last thing in Nara was Kasuga Taisha. There are hundreds of lanterns spread throughout the approach and inside the shrine.

Kyoto:
We basically ran back to the train station in an attempt to make it on the express. Which we found we had enough time for and it was delayed an additional 4 minutes. The majority of the track in between Nara and Kyoto is only one rail, so if you miss your time you will wait along the way. We got to the second station and were in a holding pattern for 10 minutes. The train was nice and warm with several miles walked already I found myself falling asleep I woke up about 10 minutes before getting to Kyoto. The train had filled up in that time. We had dinner at a Katsu place in the covered arcade area by city hall. It was really awesome once you got inside. It was pretty strange they had a large table which seated 16, so it was like eating at home with a bunch of strange people. I got a custard dish that I thought was going to be a desert. Well I was wrong. It had shrimp, pork, and fish hot dog. I need to quickly cleanse the pallet after that experience so 100 Yen well spent on a soft cream from McDonald's did that job. We walked back to the hotel from that area which took around 40 minutes. We got back just in time because as the forecast had promised rain has arrived. Time to get some sleep to recharge for tomorrows trip to Osaka and Kobe.

Kyoto Day Two Nara - March 20th

Kyoto Day One - March 19th

I walked a lot today, as is testified by the pictures. Before arriving in Kyoto I maybe walked 4 blocks. After I got packed up in the morning I headed to Shiori station and went to Yokosuka Chuo to get Starbucks. After reading up on Kyoto in my Lonely Planet Guidebook I headed back to Yokosuka Chuo. Bryan had left work at 930 and the train was leaving at 952. He arrived at the station out of breath at 948. It takes a little longer than 15 minutes to walk from work to the station. He realized this and ran most of the way. As that was the biggest thing that happened today, it was a pretty good day.

We road the Limited Express to Yokohama and transferred to the JR Yokohama line and road it 3 stops to Shin-Yokohama. It is a much smaller station than I had thought, it just services Shinkansen, Subway, and JR Yokohama line. As we got to the gate we got the tickets out. We inserted them and they came back out with an alarming chime and the wicket gate shutting. After observing a few people go through you needed to use your Suica/Pasmo to get through the gate. After we got on the platform we got ready for the "Bullet Train" which arrived and we had barely gotten to our seats when that train started rolling.

Overall the train ride was extremely smooth. The only times where it got a little turbulent was when the train would pass through a tunnel at the same time another train was going the other way. Fluid dynamics always works. The train was a 300 Series Shinkansen capable of speeds of around 170 MPH. To get the 16 cars moving that fast it takes 25 kV at 60 Hz. The train also stops quickly, without passing scenery you would not know that you were going that fast. It took 2 hours 20 minutes to get from Shin-Yokohama to Kyoto. There were 5 stops along the way. A guy came through the train checking tickets, I was hoping for a "No Ticket" moment but everyone was good on that account.

After we got to Kyoto station we set out to find the hotel which took us around 20 minutes. As we now know it takes 4 minutes to walk from the other side of the station to the hotel. Check-in was 15 minutes after we arrived, so we headed out to get something to eat. We ended up in a mall on the North side of the station. And found a Ramen place that was excellent. We both went with Gyoza sets, I got the soy sauce ramen and Bryan went with the Miso variety.

After lunch we headed back to the hotel and got into the room. The hotel is very nice and has a good location near Kyoto station. If you are going to visit Kyoto the New Miyako is not a bad place to be. We headed out to the visitors center in the station, and got Maps for the bus system and Kyoto. Kyoto has a light festival right now so we also received a map for that.

The next stop was going to Kyoto Tower to get our bearings set. It was 770 Yen to go to the top. The one thing that sticks out to me about Kyoto is how low all the buildings are. The roads are wider and there are a lot more bikes on the road. I got some nice shots from the Tower and then headed to the Starbucks that is in the ground floor of the same building. We then decided on a plan to head North and go up to an Arcade and then hit an Irish Pub for dinner.

On the way up we stopped at a large temple just north of Kyoto tower. The grounds were very large and they had coy swimming around in the exterior moat. One thing I have noticed is that there are pidgins at every temple. The birds know where the food is so it is not surprising. After the temple we found the Kyoto Starbucks Concept store and another temple. It was then time to try out the local public transportation. We found out that for the subway system in Kyoto Suica/Pasmo are not accepted, so we got to buy a ticket.

The arcade was really cool and had many interesting shops. My favorite was an wood block print store, that had a lot of traditional Japanese artwork created using the old method. After walking through two more Arcades it was dinner time. The staff was in the process of taking down all of the Saint Patricks day decorations, seems a little late to me. I went with Bangers and Mash for dinner, Bryn had an Irish Stew. Both were excellent.

After dinner with crossed the river and headed up to the light festival and almost ran into many Japanese people carrying tripods and cameras. It was extremely busy, this coming Monday is a Japanese national holiday to celebrate the spring equinox. It also signals the start of Japanese spring break. It was refreshing to walk around and see non-Japanese people who were not speaking English. In Tokyo almost everyone you see who is Western is speaking Ego-Ga. About a third of the way through the path I noticed that I was down to 1 bar on my camera so I had to ration out the pictures. Tomorrow I will have my spare battery on hand and charged up.

We headed back to the hotel and transferred at one station to a JR line. Bryan found out the Pasmo does not work for JR West trains. At 2320 you can still hear the trains going strong at the station, but they will soon quit. Time to recharge for another day.

Kyoto Day 1 - March 19th

Thursday March 18th

After the last day of work on this trip I met up with some coworkers for dinner. None of them had been to Za Watami. We tried the horse tar tar, which was pretty good. After dinner we tried to go get "Japanese Pancakes" filled with custard but they were all sold out, so we got ice cream instead. After getting desert I walked around and showed them where my favorite spots in the Yokosuka Chuo area were. Then it was back on base looking for Bose QC15 noise canceling headphones. Which the NEX did not have in stock, well something to look forward to for my next trip.

I spent the rest of the evening packing for tomorrow.

Thursday - March 18th

Wednesday March 17th

Top of the Morning to you all. Or from whatever time zone you are viewing this hello. Happy St. Patrick's Day. After work I introduced Nick to the pizza place on base at Club Alliance. They were serving shepherds pie, So I had to get some of that. As I was wearing green I got my soda for free. Talk about luck of the Irish. One more day of work before vacation.

Wednesday March 17th

Tuesday - March 16th

After work I walked around Mikasa park and got some decent shots. Then headed back on base for dinner and more work. Two more days until vacation. Not that I would be counting or anything of the sort.

Tuesday - March 16th

Monday - March 15th

Tonight I introduced Nick to Yakitori. The place that I normally to go was not open tonight, so we went to the one just down the street. It had even less space, but it was cool to eat Yakitori while watching Sumo.

March 15th

Kamakura to Tokyo - March 14th

This morning we set out to head to Kamakura and Enoshima. After getting to Kamakura we went to the Starbucks Concept store and planned the day. We first headed up to the Tsurugaoka Hachiman-Gu which is the shrine at the end of the major avenue in Kamakura. As we approached we saw that a crane was being used to do something near the stairs. The tree which was rumored to be 800 years old had fallen over during the large wind storms that we have been having. They were attempted to get it set right again.

We decided to go to the Daibutsu (Great Buddha) next. Just as we got to the train station Bryan called and said he wanted to go the the Mega Web in Odaiba. I had wanted to got there so we changed plans and headed back to Yokosuka and then onto Tokyo.

After a quick stop at the hotel we hopped on the Keikyu line from Shiori and headed to Yokosuka Chuo. The timing was perfect as we got to the platform heading to Shinagawa just before the train pulled in. Six stops later we were in Tokyo. To get to Odaiba you have to ride the Yurikamome line which starts at Shimbashi. If you stay on the Keikyu line the train will turn into a Toei line car. This was a green car today so it was better suited for the Toei. Four stops on the Asakusa Toei line we were at Shimbashi.

As we were leaving the station we followed the signs to the Yurikamome line, if I had been paying better attention I would have realized that we were walking to the second station in the line. So after a 10 minute walk we got on the Yurikamome line and head to Odaiba. Lunch time was fast approaching so we got some grub at the Hawaiian burger restaurant in the mall.

After that we headed to Toyota Mega Web effectively the largest Toyota showroom in the world. After looking around the cars we hopped on the Ferris Wheel and got some more shots of the Tokyo Sky Tree. Toyota was showing off some Segway lights, they were pretty cool, just big enough to stand on. After we had seen what we were going to see we got back on the Yurikamome line and headed back to Shimbashi. This time we headed the correct direction and got on the train headed to Yokohama.

We got off at Yokohama and headed to the Nissan world headquarters which also has a showroom. It was about a 15 minute walk from the train station. We looked at the various cars and each took turns sitting in the GT-R that was on the floor. It was a fingerprint magnet and one of the women working on the floor kept wiping them off as each group cleared out.

Headed back to Yokosuka and got dinner at Nirvana, portion sizes are smaller than other alternatives for Indian food in Yokosuka but the Garlic Nan cannot be beat.

Kamakura Tokyo - March 14th

Tokyo Again - March 13th

After breakfast this morning we went to Shiori and hopped on the first train that pulled through, which happened to be a Limited Express. It was a decent ride up to Shinagawa, not too packed. The first destination was Asakusa, the Keikyu-Line turns into the Asakusa Toei line at Shinagawa. The Limited express train had two doors for each car and a rows of four seats between the two doors. This style of train does not work for a subway situation. So as I had expected everyone got off the train at Shinagawa, we waited a couple of minutes and another train came in and we got on that. It is 12 stops to Asakusa from Shinagawa which took around 15 minutes.

Asakusa:
One of my standard stops for showing people on their first trip to Tokyo. It has a good selection of shops with souvenirs and has a unique temple and shrine. The Tokyo Sky Tree is in the process of being constructed, it currently stands at around 300 Meters tall, which is taller than Landmark Tower. We crossed the Sumida-Gawa (River) and got some good pictures from the Asahi Brewery complex. Which also seemed to be home to several homeless people and dogs. There were a lot of people handing out the watchtower around the entrance to Asakusa. After we crossed back across the river we had to stop at Starbucks. We walked around the grounds of Senso-Ji which is the temple for the Buddhist goddess of mercy Kannon. The temple is still being refinished. They are using solid modeling CAD to help in the restoration. The ceilings of the building had some very nice murals. After walking through the Nakamise-Dori (Avenue) shopping area it was back on the train.

Ueno:
A quick change of plans resulted in us hopping off the train at Ueno. I had never been there and I had heard many good things about the park. We spent around an hour walking around the park area. We found the entrance to the zoo and a Totum pole, which was fun. A few plum trees were in bloom Ume, the cherry trees still have yet to blossom into Sakura. This is a great area to go when the Sakura are out, or at least in spring it should be nice.

Akihabara:
Back on track we had to hit Electric Town. We stopped and had Doughnut Plant doughnuts before heading into Yodobashi, I had a berry doughnut this time. It was decent but it does not compare to the "Black-Out" anyone who has an opportunity to try a Doughnut Plant doughnut, make the Black-Out your first stop. I finally picked up a polarizing filter for my Nikon. I spent the rest of the daylight hours playing with it. It is awesome, I am still trying to get the hang of it, but it is another tool to use.

Tokyo:
In another change of direction I decided to walk around the Imperil palace area. It is about a 10 minute walk from Tokyo Station. The day could not have been nicer, clear blue skies. Which worked for the runners who were running around the Imperial palace grounds. This was my second time to visit the area and both times I have seen a lot of runners. The area does have a good deal of elevation change and decently wide paths. After taking some pictures of the guards it was back to Tokyo Station.

Roppongi:
A quick tour around the Roppongi Hills area. I did find something out this time, there is an exit that makes it very quick to get over to the complex. I had been walking 10 minutes to get there, but if you use the correct exit from the station you pop right into the complex. As it was extremely windy I had no desire to go to the top of the building today. We hit lunch at the Hard Rock, with the 15 percent discount we get it is a pretty good deal. I had a chicken club sandwich. They did have a themed meal for the coming holiday. Not sure who would really want Corned Beef and Cabbage, the 25% of me that would care about such things was overruled by the rest of my heritage.

Shibuya:
The last stop of the tour today was the mass crossing. It was decently busy, but nothing like it is at night.

Dinner was Za-Watami. Tomorrow should have more walking so it was an early night in preparation of the fun.

Saturday March 13th

Friday March 12th

Took it easy today in preparation of the two long trips this weekend. Went to the place refereed to as 12 frogs for dinner. Korean BBQ style food. Rode the train back from the Yokosuka Chuo station to Shiori to cut down on the travel time.

Friday March 12th

Back to Minatomirai - March 11th

Now that Nick has had a few days under his belt to digest what it is like to be in Japan it was time for Train riding 101. The ride from the airport does not count because of the semi awake state that one experiences while traveling. The one from Shiori to the outlet mall counts as a 98 level course because it is pretty simple and does not have the traffic that heading into the big city has.

Yesterday we swung by the JR Yokosuka station after work to pick up a Suica card. This is a card which you can put money on for train travel. You pass the card over a section on the wicket gate and travel through. When you leave the next station you perform the same action and it deducts the difference between the station you entered and exited. This is an extremely fast way to get through the train system here.

So after we got off work we headed back the hotel and then headed to Shiori and hopped on the next train. Which was awesome because it was an Rapid Express meaning it was 5 stops to Yokohama. After three stops you can transfer to a Limited Express, but this does not gain you anything because it is two stops from there to Yokohama. At Yokohama station we exited the Keikyu line and transferred to the Minatomirai line.

After arriving at Minatomirai we walked around the area for about half an hour. Taking loads of pictures as you can see below. Then we headed into the Landmark Plaza Mall. I made a stop at a shop that has many things from Studio Ghibli films. Then it was to the ground floor of the mall to eat some Okinomiyaki, which is really good. I will allow those interested to Wiki item themselves. After words we went and got some Coldstone. As they were preparing our Ice Cream they sung. I rewarded them with a tip which resulted in much bowing and another song. Nick was bright red at the experience, but I was not too many shades off myself. As we walked out a group of Americans were in line and one of them said to me, "You must have tipped them."

We then headed back to Yokohama station and got on the platform to head back to Yokosuka. The green train pulled up and 30 people got off, it was still pretty packed when we got in. Being a Limited Express it was three stops back to Yokosuka Chuo. It is about a 15 minute walk from that station to our hotel. We could have taken a local back to Shiori, but it was a good experience for Nick to see how the stations were related.

Back to Minatomirai

Wednesday - March 10th

After work Nick and I spent an hour or so wandering around the Yokosuka Chuo area. We visited the 100 Yen store in The Prime. For dinner we went to Pepper Lunch. It is a good place to take people to get good fast food, and to introduce them to the vending machine concept.

Wednesday - March 10th

Hail Tuesday - March 9th

Have to love the weather in Japan right now. The cold weather has continued, unlike yesterday where the sun made brief but full appearance it was hidden all day. Hidden by large rain clouds. These particular rain clouds where moving very fast driven by the high wind. All told not the best day to be working outside.

For dinner Nick and I met up with a guy that I had hung out with last year Eric. His wife could not make it to dinner, but we ventured out and tried a new Indian restaurant on Highway 16. I had the Chicken masala Curry super spicy. It was very spicy, during the meal I had to order a Mango Lassi to quench the fire. A fire which was burning in my throat, and demonstrated in water coming from my eyes.

After dinner I went to meet up with Bryan to plan our trip down to Kyoto at the end of next week. On the way there I started to feel like sharp pains on my face and hands. I then realized that I was walking on hail. It is a good ten minute walk from the restaurant to where we met and by the time I got inside I had to go put my hands under water to warm them up. On the way in I noted that the temperature was 34, very cold. A nice white chocolate mocha warmed me up for the journey back to my hotel, but it does feel good to be back inside.

Hail Tuesday

Back in the Groove - March 8th

I am staying at a different hotel this time in Yokosuka. The breakfast is awesome, buffet style and the view is not to be missed in the morning. The weather during the day changed cloudy to sunny. When it was sunny it was okay to be outside, when the clouds rolled back in it got cold. The forecast looks like it is going to warm up Thursday, which would be nice. Tokyo is an awesome place to wander around, but the experience is much better when it is 10 degrees over freezing.

After work Nick and I headed out to the Yokohama Marina Outlet Mall. It was a good experience to teach him how to use the train with tickets. It is important to start with the basics. The Integrated Circuit cards make life very easy, but it is important to understand how and what your card is being charged. I tried a Sakura Steamer when we got to the mall. Not my cup of tea as it turned out. It was sweet and floral, too much so on both counts.

We got back into Yokosuka and headed out to get some food. I asked Nick to name a type of food he wanted. Noodles was the reply, so I then asked Ramen, Soba, or Udon. Ramen won out so we went to a place that also served Gyoza. I went with the Hot Spicy Ramen, a dish which lived up to both of the adjectives. Many glass of water had to be consumed to quench the fire.

March 8th

A very long travel day March 6th and 7th

My coworker arrived at the terminal about 2 hours prior to boarding. We hung out in the Red Carpet Club for an hour. Enjoying such treats as trail mix and yogurt. By the time we got back to the gate they had started boarding seating group number 2. As I was in one I went in and got settled.

All told the flight went extremely smoothly, just a few rough patches of turbulence. Once we had crossed the IDL we were pushing against 130 MPH headwinds. So the total flight time took 10 hours 15 minutes, which happens to be about an hour longer than I like being in an enclosed space. The landing was rough due to high winds and a lack of visibility. As always it is extremely reassuring to have the front of the plane drop in its time after the rear wheels have touched. It just took one bounce before the rear wheels were on the ground.

As the flight was longer than was expected we arrived in Customs at the same time as 7 other flights, it was extremely busy. The only thing that made it bearable was the fact that I was able to get through Immigration without waiting. When we came out of customs we were met by a guy from work who informed us that we had missed the 1730 bus to base. This is something I knew. So the options was to either wait for 2 hours for the next bus or ride the train.

The train won out on the fact that on the way to the train is a Starbucks, and with being awake for 18 hours I was starting to fade. I informed the guy that I would be able to get my coworker and myself to the right place. He was relieved as he lives in Yokohama and it would have been very time consuming to travel down to Yokosuka and then back. Taking the train also proved to be the perfect opportunity to use the NEX Narita Express. It used to take three hours to get from Narita to Yokosuka. It took two and a half hours today with about a 20 minute delay at one station.

The one thing I failed to account for was how could it was going to be, it was 38 when we got in. Sitting on the platform waiting for the train to come, it got pretty cold. The luggage did not bother me like I thought it might have, but we were traveling at a lower demand time.

We arrived at the hotel at 2200 local time, 500 pacific. The check in process was a breeze, after getting set in the room. We went out for a walk around town. There is nothing like a hot curry to warm you up on a cold day. So we ate at Nirvanas, I had the Spinach Chicken Curry and Garlic Nan as always.

As I am posting this I opened my luggage to discover a nice not from the TSA about searching my bag. Everything is there, it is packed a littler better than I had managed. I should have known not to put a bag of 10 yen coins wrapped around my tripod with some wires. I can only imagine what it must have looked like. It is the slightest bit reassuring that they checked it.

Here are some photos

Travel Day

Trip Number 7 Begins

Well it is that time once more to enjoy another Journey to Japan. Long flight and lack of sleep always start off one of these trips. I am enjoying the quiet of the Red Carpet Lounge at SEATAC while waiting for a coworker to arrive. This will be his first trip to Japan. I always find it enjoyable to introduce someone to life in Japan as a Gaijin. The easy part of the trip is completed, now for the fun part.

The hardest decision today will be deciding where to eat dinner.