Home from across the seas

Well, I'm back.  Jet-lagged.  Already behind.  And absolutely love Tokyo!  Thought I'd share a few highlights of the trip.  (And you thought the days of being dragged over to see your neighbors vacation slides were over!)

After a fourteen hour flight—which is far too long to spend in an airplane no matter how many movies they show—we arrived in Japan tired, but excited.  Our hotel, the Prince Park Tower, was lovely.  Located in a quiet part of the business district, the hotel is next to a temple and park and across the street from the Tokyo Tower, Japan's answer to the Eiffel tower.  (They also have a miniature statue of liberty in their harbor (a cast from the practice version of ours).

The hotel was lovely, with a delightful bakery on the first floor where we had snacks and breakfast almost daily! The room was fabulous and the staff so friendly and helpful.  

The first day we took a tour of the city.  With highlights at the Meiji Shrine (Shinto) and the Senso-ji  Temple (Buddhist) in Asakusa.  The Meiji shrine was one of my favorites.  Beautifully situated on parkland, it was peaceful and the perfect place to come to recharge one's batteries.  People in Japan often practice both Shinto and Buddhism.   In front of Senso-ji is a lively shopping street, lined with booths selling both food and wares.  We had great fun trying new things and doing a little shopping.  From there we moved on to the Tokyo harbor for a cruise on one of the most luxurious ships I've ever been on.  Was great fun to sit by a window and just let the sights go by.  That evening we ate Yakitori, skewered meat, grilled and served on a wooded stick.  Traditionally chicken, we also had pork, and beef.  Also had sashimi which was melt in your mouth fresh and delicious.  And then we had a drink at the top of the hotel with an amazing view out over Tokyo and all it's amazing lights. Many parts of the city are lit up like Times Square, and the neon is almost overpowering at street level, but magical seen from so high up.

The second day we hit the electronics district.  I've never seen so many wires and devices, and tiny little computers.  There were also anime stores and bookstores.  And a Starbucks –which I admit I ran to, and ordered iced tea.  Overall we had great fun exploring and came back with sensory overload!  That evening we headed for Disney Tokyo.  What can I say, we're Disney nuts.  The park was almost an exact copy of the Magic Kingdom (the second half—a sea themed park was closed for the night when we got there).  And we hit our favorite rides.   But the best part were the teenagers sporting hats and cloaks (it was cold) and anything and everything Disney.  It's impossible to fully describe it.  But picture hundreds of kids all decked out in furry mouse ear hats, Donald heads, and other character gear.  It was amazing.  Seriously.  Oh and we broke Space Mountain.  Well, at least our car.  We were scuttled off to a secondary track, unloaded (with a lot of hand gestures and bowing) and reloaded onto a new car.  Never did figure out exactly what happened.  But it was an adventure.

The third day we spent the morning being lazy. After a leisurely brunch, we toured the Zojoji temple next to the hotel, even catching the monks in prayer which was really wonderful.  And then that afternoon we headed for the Ghibli Museum ( Hayao Miyazaki's world of anime).   Miyazaki and friends envisioned and designed the place to house a collection of Miyazaki (Spirited Away, Howl's Moving Castle) art and memorabilia.  The only way I can think to describe the building is to imagine a mix of Lewis Carroll with a twist of Tim Burton.  It was marvelous!  I could have spent hours there.  After the museum we headed to Shinjuku a wonderful shopping district.  And ended the evening with shabu-shabu—a Japanese version of fondue-or do-it-yourself soup.  Absolutely the perfect way to spend an evening.

Day four started out wet, but we didn't let that daunt us, heading for the train to Kamakura, a city on the sea with numerous temples and shrines, including the famed Big Buddha at the Kotokuin Temple. It was an adventurous day as we went forth armed only with train tickets and a map.  We managed beautifully though (with a few minor missteps—one involving a group of people—none of whom spoke English—who couldn't agree which way we were supposed to go) and saw absolutely beautiful temples and shrines and scenery.  The hawks (or possibly falcons) were lazily circling overhead as we walked up steps amid budding trees and ancient architecture.  It was serenely beautiful.  We also saw the Hokokuji Temple which has the most marvelous woods filled with bamboo trees.  It's a wonderful garden, and off to one side there are the tombs of Ashikagas housed in caves.  And after successfully maneuvering our way back to the center of town we even managed to order (point and nod) in a local restaurant with fabulous food. I had a bowl with delicious tempura shrimp and fish and sweet rice.

For our final day, we headed for Mt. Fuji (which we actually saw—a rarity) and the first station.   The view was amazing, although we didn't get to go as high as usually allowed because of snow.  Afterwards we stopped for a traditional Japanese bento box, which came full of artfully arranged food I never would have recognized except for the English cheat sheet provided.  Suffice it to say there was some very odd stuff – but most of it was quite tasty.  From Mt. Fuji we headed south to Hakone where we headed up the mountain on a gondola to Owakudani, meaning the Great Boiling Valley.  Once there we climbed up to the hot springs (sulphuric geysers) to eat black eggs.  Legend has it that by eating a black egg (so called because the eggs are boiled in the sulfur springs and the shells turn black) you add seven years to your life.   They're really very good!  After our hike, we headed down again to Lake Ashi for a cruise in what was outfitted to look like a pirate ship.  We amused other passengers by singing "Yo ho, yo ho, a pirates life for me," perhaps a little too enthusiastically.

For our last dinner we headed to Roppongi—which is a district renowned for nightlife.  We settled into a lovely Korean Barbeque place and ate fabulous short ribs that we cooked ourselves at the open fire at our table.  Great fun. And absolutely my favorite meal of the trip.

Two wonderful side notes about Tokyo:  First, they are mad for their vending machines.  They boast the most of any city in the world, and I totally believe it.  And if you can imagine it, it's probably available—hot or cold—from a machine on some street in Tokyo.  We played pick and taste daily (some of which was quite good, some of which was surprising, and some of which hit the recycling barrel almost immediately).  Corn soup was a definite surprise.  As was a Gatorade like drink called Pocari Sweat.  The ice cream in a squeeze tube was great fun.  And the myriad coffee drinks both hot and cold had my husband happily caffeinated the whole trip.

The second side note involves the Japanese fascination with the do it all toilet (and more).  The one in our hotel – named Harry the Happy Ultra Toilet—was pretty impressive.  When you open the door to the toilet, he turns on the lights, pops open the lid, and warms the seat.   (He'll do a lot more for you if you're interested.  Including all sorts of washing options, and even creating fake flushing noises— a feature which was most interesting in public restrooms). When you leave, he flushes for you, turns off the lights and lowers the lid.  It's really quite addicting.  Although I had the urge to say hello to him every time I went in.

So all in all—a wonderful trip. The Japanese people we met were so warm and welcoming. And the city is so beautiful and clean.  The trains and buses all run on time—literally.  And I did manage to learn to say "good morning",  "good afternoon",  "thank-you very much" and "yes"—which is "hi" which made it difficult for me since this is my usual form of greeting.  Anyway, I can't wait to go back.  So much more to do and see.  But it's also nice to be home.  And to share the trip with all of you.

Anyone else have favorite spots in Japan you especially enjoyed?  Remember by commenting you're entered to win a Nook.  (I took mine on the trip and one charge lasted the whole fourteen hours).