Japan

Mix buzzing, winding streets with polite people deeply rooted in customs and ridiculously delicious food and you’ve got Japan.

At the end of January Adam was in Japan for work so I joined him for a long weekend. Taxi prices are outrageous so with some great instructions from Adam I was able to navigate my way to downtown Tokyo by an hour train ride. The train system within the downtown area is a maze of halls and stairs filled to the brim with people. There are so many different lines -Adam pointed out the map of the tokyo metro looks more like a bowl of Ramen noodles than a train map.

The first afternoon we walked around so I could get my bearings and we went up in the Tokyo Tower. It looks just like the Eiffel Tower, but it’s bright orange and covered in electronic equipment. The views of the city were great and we caught the sun setting behind Mount Fuji. It was such and amazing site and was gone in a flash. We would have missed it if we would have taken 2 more minutes anywhere else. I call amazing little moments like that “God winks”.

Amazing views were followed by a FABULOUS meal with two of Adam’s business partners at Tokyo Shiba Toufuya-Ukai restaurant at the base of Tokyo Tower. It was a traditional Japanese meal where we removed our shoes, sat on the floor in a private room, and one waitress dressed in a kimono served us. The restaurant is known for their tofu dishes but every one of the nine courses was a delicious work of art. The entrée was a milky tofu soup. I know you’re thinking, yuck., but it was great.

The next day Adam was working, so I had lunch with one of Adam’s business partners who is on maternity leave. (They get a whole year of maternity leave in Japan!) I spent the afternoon with three babies and their mommies. They were very welcoming and we took a walk around as the weather was beautiful, a chill in the air but very sunny.

That evening Adam and I walked around Shinjuku, the nightlife area for some dinner and drinks. There were many people out and about and we stopped a little sushi place for a bite to eat and then kept walking around. Adam was eager to show me a little bar that he had told me about. I had no idea it was SO little. He led me down an alley that opened up into a maze of tiny alleyways where they have tons of one-room bars that seat around 5 people. Somehow he found the one he knew and we walked in. The bar tender didn’t speak English but remembered Adam… I don’t think too many Americans wonder down that alleyway, but they served a great glass of Shochu (Japanese booze) on ice. We then stumbled upon a restaurant that had the BEST yakatori (sticks of meat and veggies cooked on and open flame) that I have ever had.

The next day we set out to see some of the temples and buy some dishes. We started at the Tsukiji fish market...

Despite the long lines, we did manage to get some maguro (tuna) at another one of the stalls. Next we headed to the temple Sensoji temple at Asakusa.

The structure was beautiful and full of people throwing money in for offering, writing prayers and cleansing with special water and incense. There was also a beautiful garden. During the trip we also saw Meji shrine honoring the previous Emperor. Many people had written prayers on plaques in many different languages and hung them around a tree. The messages had a few common themes – people asking for health and prosperity – not surprising. But the most interesting was people asking for good results on exams, showing how much importance is placed on education and excelling in Asian culture.

We went to Kappabashi next in search of some dishes. Kappabashi is where all the Tokyo restaurants buy their supplies. We found a charming little shop with plates and dishes wall to wall and it was fun searching through all of them. After our river cruise back to the hotel area we stumbled upon a theater and decided to see Sound of Music, in Japanese. It was a good choice since we knew the story and music and it as fun to hear. “So long farewell” turned into “Say-yo-nara”. We then went to a tempenyaki restaurant where they cook the food on a grill in front of you. Sooooo delicious and entertaining.

Believe it or not, that was a quick overview of the trip! We’ve gotten pretty good at packing in a lot in just a few days.

Here are all the pictures from our latest adventure.

The recent earthquakes and tsunami have been such a blow to a lovely country and people. As I watched the news unfold I kept thinking- I was just there. We're counting our blessings and helping where we can. If you’d like to donate to the relief efforts in Japan please go here:

https://american.redcross.org/site/Donation2?idb=0&5052.donation=form1&df_id=5052