Will have to return

We turned back and returned to the 5th station. Not sure where we made the wrong turn. May try to figure that out after a snack. One positive - we will make the last express bus back to Shinjuku and will be back at our hotel by 6 PM.

Sam was a real trooper. Once we realized that we had made a mistake that would cost us our chance to approach the summit, there were some tears of disappointment. But, then she said "we'll have to come back again so we can climb to the top." That's my girl!

We did find the correct trailhead at the other end of the parking lot. In hindsight, it's obvious. But, at the time, our nicely groomed and marked trail seemed like the main one. We did see about 7 people who made the same mistake as us.

I spoke to some guys who did climb today. They said that the trail was very rough after the 7th station. They stopped after 8. Sam admitted that she'd have to do some training in order to make it as she was pretty tired after only an hour.


In the end, we had a very nice mountain hike, with a picnic all by ourselves. The weather was much warmer and nicer than I expected. And, it looked like rain was coming soon by the time we left. If we had gone the right way as far as the 8th station, we would have probably got stuck in a downpour. So, we ended our day with a mixture of disappointment and happiness.

Mt. Fuji or (is a) BUST!

A beautiful mountain lies in the distance. Snow capped and immersed in clouds, Mt. Fuji lies innocently, creating a picturesque scene to any and all onlookers. Yet this mountain, belonging in a piece of art, shall prove to be evil. Making our start (the beginning of our mistakes) up the side, we thought we were on the right track. But we were conpletely on the wrong one. It's too painful to talk about, so I'll just let Dad fill you in. But I can say this: YOU HAVEN'T HEARD THE LAST OF ME FUJI!!! I'LL BE BACK, AND WHEN I DO, I'LL GET YOU MT. FUJI!!!!!!

Wrong turn - probably giving up

About 90 minutes into our hike, we started to think that we had gone the wrong way. The path, which had been well groomed and dotted with benches and signs (in Japanese) got very rough. And, we haven't seen any other hikers. We went down the rough path for a while, but have now turned back. We're going to explore one more route, but we may just turn and go all the way back as we have now wasted 2 hours on what looks like the wrong trail. With that much time gone, we don't have a chance to restart.

Almost at 5th station

We're almost at the 5th station bus stop. The skies have cleared and the sun is poking through! And, the light rain has stopped, at least for now.

On the way to Fuji

I'll do some mobile microblogging today while we climb Fuji-san.

We're on the express bus from Shinjuku to the Fuji 5th station where the climb will start. We probably won't make it to the top as the trail to the summit is closed due to excessive snow.

Today is the first day of the official climbing season. The bus is only about 20% full, and all but 2 are Westerners. It's ironic in this land of so many trains that the fastest way to the climbing station is by bus. But, this bus is direct - no transfers.

We'll have to return by a less direct route as we will finish after the last direct bus. Most people stay overnight to watch the sunrise, so there are few returners at the end of the day.

Next stop - Fuji!

Edo-Tokyo Museum and Tokyo Tower

Today was our last day in Tokyo for sightseeing. Tomorrow, we climb Mount Fuji (or at least as far as we can -- the summit is currently closed as there is an inordinate amount of snow!).

We visited the Edo-Tokyo Museum first. What an incredible place to learn about Japanese history. It has artifacts that are almost 20,000 years old, but most of the exhibits cover the 1600-1800s, the Edo period.

The most striking part of the museum are the large and very detailed models of the Edo castle and what typical towns were like. The pictures don't do them justice, but here is a small sample.



The museum is a must-see for anyone who visits Tokyo.

In addition to the Edo period, it also covers, in more brief form, the history of Japan through modern times. This includes the 1900s and the firebombing of Tokyo during World War II. Although there is virtually no discussion of the causes of the war, the effects of the civilians of Tokyo were devastating. I actually met a man at the exhibit who lived through the Tokyo bombing when he was four. He said it was terrifying.

It was interesting to see how the early history of Japan has still had an impact on how Japanese society is organized today. I could have spent many more hours there (but Sam had her fill after about 2 1/2 hours).

We then went to Tokyo Tower, which has great views of the city and includes a bunch of hokey tourist stops. The views from the tower were great, but, unfortunately for us, were obscured by clouds today.


We're going to bed early since we have a long day ahead of us tomorrow. We have an early start for a bus to the climbing station for Mount Fuji. Not sure when we'll post that update, but we'll write it up eventually, even if it is after we get home. We don't have a lot of time free between our return from Fuji and our return flight to the US.

Shinagawa Aquarium, Tokyo Dome City, and Kushiage

I can't top Sam's description of the rides at Tokyo Dome City, so I'll write mostly about the rest of the day yesterday. We started off by traveling to the Shinagawa Aquarium. This attraction is certainly not aimed at Western tourists, mostly because of location. It's off the main train lines, and it required a few train transfers to get to the station. Then, there are vitually no signs from the station to the aquarium. We were able to ask for directions from a police officer who communicated well enough where it was. Luckily, we found it, as it was very nice.

It's a small aquarium by US standards, but had some nice exhibits and was on very nice grounds.

There were two highlights from the visit -- the dolphin show and the underwater tunnel. The dolphin show as packed with school kids on a summer field trip. The dolphins did some tricks, and the kids loved it.



The tunnel under the water was also really nice. There were turtles, rays, and all sorts of fish swimming around you. You could walk through and see the sea life from many different angles.

The aquarium also featured penguins, sea lions, sharks, octopus, and many types of fish. It tooks us about 90 minutes to see it all, which isn't bad since we couldn't understand most of the text on the exhibits.

On the way back to the train station from the aquarium, we stopped for lunch at Yoshinoya. This is a Japanese fast food place that everyone visiting has to try once. It has a very limited menu, good, basic food, and lightning fast service.

We went from there to Tokyo Dome City to ride the rides, as Sam described. As a roller coaster lover, I have to say that Thunder Dolphin was a good ride. Kudos to Sam for overcoming her fear and going for the ride. I think she opened her eyes at least once or twice.

We then met some friends for a wonderful kushiage dinner near Shinjuku station. We had all sorts of fried delights: chicken, shrimp, beef, quail eggs, fish, fish eggs, asparagus, and more. Although all of the dishes are fried, there were very light. Sam tried them all, although she shared later that she hated some of them.

We also stopped by at an amazing store -- Takano Fruit Parlour. The web site doesn't get the message across -- this place sells $50 bunches of grapes and $100 melons. They grow each melon on its own tree (you can also buy one still on the tree). Not sure who buys such things, but there were people there buying things -- not us!

Tokyo Dome City

Today, after going to the aquarium and before meeting with Kiyomi and Ayaka, Dad and I visited an amusement park called Tokyo Dome City. There is a roller coaster, a giant free-fall tower, a inverted ride, and a water flume ride that we rode on. The tower rose extremely high, then dropped down extremely fast. Straight down. Free-falling. Dad said it was a rip-off, because usually those rides bounce up and down a little. But this one just went up, then down. Straight down. Very fast. It was the first one of those rides I'd ever been on, but I guess it could be worse: my friend once went on a ride like that (one that bounced, I'm sure) in a thunder storm. The water ride was really mild; just a small hill up, and then a drop. The inverted ride was like the pirate ship rides, where you swing up to one side, then fall down and go to the other side and do it over agian, except in this one your feet are hanging off down, and you go completely vertical. I screamed the entire way. (Actually, on the tower ride, which was the last ride we went on, I ran out of scream. I screamed at the beginning of falling, then just kind of petered out.) I think I was the only one screaming, too. Now, the roller coaster. See, I really wanted to talk about this because I don't usually go on scary coasters, because I am afraid. But today I went on one, and yes, it was scary, but yes, I did have fun. But one of the best parts was last night (or this morning, I really forget with the time difference) I was talking to my mom, and she said she didn't believe I would go on the roller coaster, because it went straight down. The coaster took a picture while you were on the ride, so we bought that as proof. But, in case that was not enough, I want to say (or type) here and now that I, Sam W-F, went on a Scary Roller Coaster (and lived through it), and had fun on it. SO THERE!!!!!!!!! I have enclosed pictures of:
The roller coaster:








The inverted ride:





The tower:






The water ride:



And the tower with this giant ferris wheel that moved about an inch per hour:




And this kiddy ride that mimmicked the tower:

Old friends in "Little Edo"

We met some old friends in Kawagoe today. It was a pleasant place with some temples and traditional small shops. We also had some wonderful eel for lunch! We bought some sweets and caught up with some old friends. It was a great day, until the rains returned in mid-afternoon. That cut our visit short.


Here's the Bell of Time ringing at 3 PM today (sideways...)

No Joy in Korakuen

We had a great time at the baseball game tonight, but the Giants lost to their crosstown rivals, the Yakult Swallows, 6-1. The pitchers for the Swallows really shut down the Giants, who only got 3 total men on base and scored their only run on a solo home run. But, the fun was taking in the atmosphere.

In Japan, the fans are very organized. You only cheer when it is your team's turn to do so. Each player has their own cheer, mostly playing with their name. So, Masmoto's cheer was (I think) moto-moto-Mas-a-mo. You can hear this type of cheering in the background of this video:


Here's a clearer view of the field from our seat.

And, the food at the ballpark is pretty different. Here's my dinner:


Of course, you can still get a hot dog. And, there's plenty of beer (and whiskey) for sale in the stands. Giants fans very enthusiastic until the end, and most stayed until the last out was made even though they had virtually no chance to come back.

I'm also happy to report that there's plenty of merchandising at these games. There's a wide variety of souvenirs available, and the fans are decked out in jerseys, hats, and various incarnations of the Giant's mascot, Giabbit.

High Above The City

We didn't see a lot today. I spent quite a bit of time doing research for our climb of Mount Fuji on Wednesday. I had to figure out the schedules for the express bus to get there, and I determined that we have to take a series of trains home as we will finish our climb after the last express bus. And, we had to make a reservation for the express bus. We tried to do this in person, but couldn't find the bus office. So, I had to do my best to get it done over the phone. I think I was successful, but we'll find out on Wednesday morning when we try to get on the bus!

We did eventually find the bus stop, and then walked around town. One of our stops today was the Tokyo Metropolitan Government office (TMG). This tall building has an observation deck that gives you a great view of the city. Since today was a relatively clear day, we decided to go for it. You couldn't see too far from the city, but it gave us a nice overview.


Tonight, we're going to the Giants baseball game at the Tokyo Dome!

Day Trippers

Today we took our first day trip from Tokyo. We went south to Kamakura, a small city full of Buddhist temples and shrines. The most famous is Daibutsu, a huge statue of Buddha.

We visited the large Buddha, both outside and inside. We also went to the other two major temples in town, Tsurugaoka Hachimangu and Hase-dera. I think we've had our fill of temples and shrines, but Hase-dera stood out because of the huge number of hydrangeas that were in bloom on the side of the hill

We had a wonderful lunch at a small place that we walked into at random. I love the Japanese experience of ordering your food by pointing at the plastic food on display outside the restaurant. It worked out great today!

We decided to stop in Yokohama on the way back to our hotel. I hadn't been there since 1982, and much of it seemed familiar. Our main destination this time was Sankeien Garden. This is a lovely garden with old buildings from the 1400-1600s that were moved there in the early 1900s. Although we've had our fill of gardens, too, we did enjoy the winding paths and beautiful lake.

After that, we headed home for dinner and some rest!

Catching Up

Okay, sorry I haven't been really posting anything lately, but you see, I've fallen asleep immediately upon arrival back at the hotel the first few nights, and then I bought a journal, and have been writing down whatever Dad and I did that day (except when I fell asleep, then I did it the next morning). So, I admit I have not been very constant with the blog. Now. About the last couple entries I posted. They say that they were posted by Dad, but they are signed by moi. This is because I wrote them from Dad's mobile phone when we first arrived here in Japan (which is fantastic, by the way). When one (me/Dad) posts from the phone, it say it is posted by Dad. A couple days after settling in, Dad set up this thing on his phone that lets me post something on it and have it say it was posted by me. Of course, now we have access to a computer, until at least we go home, but that is more than a week away (YAY!!!! MORE THAN A WEEK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!) and by then this blog will most likely be terminated because Dad and I will be back in the U.S. =( So what am I worrying about? Nothing. Now, what was I going to talk about... oh yes. The Lucky Cat. Everywhere you go in Japan, there is a cat (either in gold, white, or black) that is highly decorated and is waving its arm to us all. I saw a sign once that said is a Lucky Cat. I enclosed a picture (asked Dad to do it for me) of the cats.

Sorry it is not high quality. They are in a store window. Now, I am going to look up the Lucky Cat and get back to you on what it is...because it is bugging me, seeing it everywhere and not knowing what it means... ok, so "Lucky Cat" is a nickname. The cat's real name is Maneki Neko, which means "beckoning cat" in English. It brings good fortune, happiness, and prosperity. They are placed at the opening of shops and homes. The white cat invites happiness, the golden cat brings riches (apparently there is no black Lucky Cat), the one raising its left paw is inviting customers into businesses, and the one raising its right paw is inviting prosperity. So now I know about the Lucky Cat. Interesting. I doubt I will forget this soon... wait, what am I not forgetting? (Just kidding!)

Garden tour

Today we toured two gardens, Rikugien Garden and the Imperial East Garden. We actually got very tired from the walking. You'd think that after all the walking that we've done that it would be getting easier!

Rikugien Garden is a real find. It's a bit off the beaten track, but was gorgeous.

The garden has a lake in the center, with paths that curve around it. There are nice walks through some woods, up and down hills, and past some old tea houses.

It was very pleasant, and not very crowded at all. After stopping for a lunch at a local, small spot that we wandered into off the street, we went to the Imperial Palace. You generally can't go into the palace, except for a couple of days per year when it is open to the public. So, we took pictures from the outside before going to the East Garden.

The main part of the East Garden was somewhat boring. Nice trees and lawns, but not very interesting. At the end, we found the most beautiful section, and had a lovely walk through it.

We both prefer the gardens that have winding paths through the woods, bridges, waterfalls, and flowers. After enjoying this for a while, we went back to the hotel to rest. We plan to have dinner at a place specializing in okonomiyaki.

Kappabashi-dori

After Asakusa, we stopped by Kappabashi-dori, the kitchen supply street. There was store after store with everything you would need for your kitchen or to set up a restaurant -- plates, chopsticks, decorations, tables, chairs, kitchen equipment, signs, and even plastic food.

Outside of most Japanese restaurants, it is traditional to display plastic representations of the dishes on the menu. They can be very realistic. We went into several of these stores and enjoyed seeing the plastic ice cream, glasses of beer, pizza, steak, noodles, etc. Here's a couple of pictures of this unique Japanese item.

Asakusa

P1000351
Originally uploaded by mike_feinstein

We've been going full speed since we got here. Since we got our best night's sleep last night, we decided to take it easy this morning and just hang out in the hotel.

This afternoon, we went to Asakusa. This part of town is best known for the Senso-ji Buddhist temple. The temple grounds are beautiful, with several buildings, gardens, and a large pagoda. We wandered through the area for a while. It was beautiful and peaceful.


The approach to the temple is full of small shops. We enjoyed the lively atmosphere. The guy below had a machine that automatically baked little cakes and wrapped them in little plastic bags as soon as they were cooked. We bought some for a snack. They were still warm from being baked and were delicious. There were also plenty of people making cakes by hand, cooking all types of food, and selling everything from shoes to souvenirs. Overall, an enjoyable afternoon.

DisneySea

Since the weather was nice yesterday, for a change, we spent the day at DisneySea. This is part of Tokyo Disneyland that has a water theme. My daughter is 13 and a bit too old for the Disney thing. But, we still enjoyed the experience. There are some good rides, including a couple of roller coasters. And, it'a all with the well manicured Disney touch. It was very pleasant and, since it is unique from Disneyland, which is a mini-copy of Disneyland in California.

In the evening, we saw Cirque du Soleil at Tokyo Disneyland. It was incredible. They have a resident company there in a dedicated theater. It was spectacular. If you haven't seen Cirque du Soleil anywhere, you really should. It appeals to all ages and has incredible performers, with wonderful music, laughs, and thrills.

Tsukiji Fish Market

Yesterday (Tuesday) was a big day for us. We had trouble sleeping and were up at 4 AM. Luckily, we had fallen asleep a bit early, so we actually had a decent number of hours of sleep. Since we were up early, I decided to head to the Tsukiji Fish Market. The market is a hotbed of activity in the early morning, with an auction that is available for public viewing from 5:30 AM to 6:15 AM.
It's impossible for photos to capture the scale of this market. It's in a huge building with fish vendors along all sides selling fresh fish of all varieties. I think that it is mostly a wholesale business, with restaurant owners buying fish for today's sushi, etc. The auction was impossible to follow, but the video shows the auctioneer doing his thing.
The area also includes many sushi restaurants where visitors stop for breakfast after wandering through the market. The whole thing was quite a spectacle. I didn't spent a long time there, but it was definitely worth seeing.

And now for something completely different

We spent today shopping. First, in Akihabara, the electronics district. That's where we saw the Humping Dog above. It's actually a USB thumb drive for your computer, with a dog on the top. That's one small example of the range of electronics you can find there, from more components than you'd see at Radio Shack to large screen TVs and computers. Also, cell phones, kitchen appliances, and everthing in between. One store after another, each 7 or 8 floors high. for several city blocks.

Later in the day, we went to Ginza to check out some of the famous Japanese department stores. When it started raining, we headed inside to Joypolis at Tokyo Decks. Joypolis is like an indoor amusement park, with a wide range of virtual reality rides. We had a great time, and came home tired from all the walking.

By the way, if you were wondering how the Humping Dog USB drive got its name, here's a short video explanation of what happens when you plug the Humping Dog into a USB port...

Harajuku in the rain

We spent Sunday at Harajuku. Sunday is definitely the day to visit the area as it was packed with young people. But, it was raining heavily throughout the day, which kept the crowds down and kept people from gathering in large crowds in the park. We did visit the Meiji Shrine and did some shopping. Thanks to my friends who recommended the Tokyu Hands store which was a big hit with Sam. We shopped for a while there and bought some unique souvenirs. By the second half of the day, we were exhausted as we hadn't slept well the night before. We both collapsed after returning home and slept well on Sunday night. Here are some photos from the Meiji Shrine. We didn't take a lot of pictures due to the rains. But, we did see the irises, which are only out in June. It was a huge beautiful iris garden and drew some big crowds.

Japanese Lodging

As you might expect, we had a pretty spotty night’s sleep on our first night. We slept a few hours, but had trouble sleeping through the night. So, we hung out in the hotel room until breakfast time. As is typical with a Japanese hotel, the room is pretty small. Two beds, a small desk/table with one chair, and a small bathroom. No space for storing clothes other than a small closet with room for a few hangers and one shelf. So, we’re living out of our suitcases primarily. And, the room isn’t too good for lengthy lounging. We won’t be spending our days here, but when you can’t sleep from 3 AM onward, you don’t have a lot of options other than hanging around the room. So, we read and watched a movie on my laptop.

One new thing for Sam – a Japanese high-tech toilet. It has a set of controls which heat the seat, deodorize the room, and wash the parts of you that are closest to the seat. See the picture for the controls. Not sure we’ll try it, but it’s quite a curiosity.

The room and the hotel is nice, as was the hotel breakfast. It was a mix of western and Japanese items (rice, rice porridge, fish, vegetables, soup, and salad). Sam ate Western. I had a combination. Now, on to Harajuku for the day!