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"All the above is, of course, a gross simplification. There are deeper reasons to travel - itches and tickles on the underbelly of the unconscious mind. We go where we need to go, and then try to figure out what we're doing there." - Jeff Greenwald "Shopping for Buddhas"
Day 5
Took the train back to Asakusa where I bought a wall picture and lil statue that looks like the big one in Ueno and some Buddhist prayer beads. Then I walked about 15 min to Kappabashi Dori where I looked through several shops before picking up the perfect set of dishes for about 3000 yen. Fully loaded, I decided to call it a day around 1pm, headed back to the Ryokan and chilled for the rest of the day. Read the rest of this entry »
Got up and took a soak in the communal bath, got dressed and had breakfast (toast, eggs, and green tea). Ayako promptly arrived at 10am just as I was closing out an internet session.
We headed to the Edo-Tokyo museum, where I learned all about the Edo period of Tokyo’s history. Tokyo is fast-paced and modern, so it’s possible to miss the traditional side if you don’t look for it. The museum was a glimpse into Tokyo’s past and traditions outside of all that. We had an English-speaking tour guide who was really thorough w/ the info w/ out drowning you in it. Read the rest of this entry »
Monday morning Connie took me to the train for Tokyo. Easier, but I still got a little confused in Shinagawa. This time I asked the conductor and he was like “next train”. Cool. 45 minutes later I arrived at the Ueno station in Tokyo, where I took a cab to the hotel. It was a short jaunt costing about 900 yen ($7/8). I step into my Ryokan (traditional Japanese inn) and the guy at the desk (whom I later realized to be the owner) knew my name. Kinda nice touch. I got there at 10am and check-in wasn’t until 3pm so he let me store my luggage.
A few minutes later I met Mitsuyo, my tour guide for the day. This all came into being when I first decided to go to Tokyo for a week before Singapore. Knowing how expensive the city was heralded to be, I started googling “Tokyo on the cheap” and whatnot. Came across a NY Times article about a guy who went to Tokyo for a week and spent $1000 – including airfare from ATL. He recommended Tokyo Free Guide, a service that provides you with a tour guide and the only cost is you paying for their transportation and meal costs while ya’ll are out. I can do that. So I sent in my request and two guides e-mailed me back. We worked out itineraries for 2 days and exchanged pics. Read the rest of this entry »
A whole week has gone by since I first arrived in Japan in what has been a flurry of a vacation before I hit Singapore for 4 weeks. I didn’t really have any jet lag but I did, for reasons completely unknown to me, I wake up between 4 and 5am almost every morning and hit the sack pretty early in the evening. If you know me, this early morning rising is unheard of outside of necessity. Alas, I’m writing this in the air somewhere between Tokyo and Singapore (closer to Tokyo I believe). Reflections on the past week? Like I said it was a flurry of a vacay but good nonetheless. No energy to blog while I was there so I am gonna catch ya’ll up, but I’ll separate it into 3 or 4 entries so it’s not so much. Here we go:
Day 1/2: YOKUSUKA/YOKOHAMA
I arrived at Narita about 45 min outside of Tokyo Saturday evening. A high school friend of mine is stationed on the naval base in Yokusuka and we had made plans for me to stay out there with her a couple of days before beginning my Tokyo plans. So Ms. Connie e-mailed me directions…2 trains…no problem, right? Ha! I was good on the first train from the airport, through Tokyo, and on to Shinagawa where I was to transfer to another train after calling her from a pay phone. Shinagawa. Oh Shinagawa. Read the rest of this entry »
There is entirely too much stuff in my pack. I know the rules: Pack and then remove half. But I am gonna be gone for 2.5 months! I need to be prepared for everything, right? This is why you pack early. Get it out of your system then whiddle it down to half of whatever the hell you initially thought was so important. But right now it’s hard. I can’t let go.
“He who would travel happily must travel light.” – St. Exupery
ysglenn