Snow is Cold

Heading further North the ground was covered in snow. I was thinking that maybe my heavy winter coat had reached the end of its usefulness as the sun was beaming down again in Asahikawa, but perhaps I was wrong. I passed through Nayoro. For some reason the name strikes a chord with me – perhaps it’s deja-vu of sorts. Or maybe it’s just a cute name for a town. A friend had previously mentioned that Nayoro has the *real* best snow in Japan. The mountain looks small, but I felt a pang of disappointment about not being able to see the season out, in Niseko or otherwise.

The train journey was beautifully scenic, passing alongside undeveloped mountainsides and wide alpine rivers. Further along I missed a fantastic photo opportunity as the red sun was poised over the volcano in the sea that is the island of Rishiri. It looked like the fires of mount doom. Afterwards, the train climbed over barren hills covered in what I guessed was bamboo grass. The landscape was like a Japanese equivalent of Bodmin moor. I wonder why they built a town up here, so far away from everything. Predictably the answer was fishing. In this case kelp.

In the evening I followed the old lady of my establishment’s advice and went to a restaurant near to my accommodation. The welcome I received wasn’t the friendliest, I have to say, but the proprietress warmed somewhat when I explained that I’d been given a recommendation to come here from another local. Despite the frosty reception, the saury I ate was the best I’ve ever tasted – so fresh! And the meal set was only 900 yen. So, all in all not too bad. Came home and tried to make a plan for tomorrow. It involves getting up at 6am. Eurgh.

Sleeping/waking up in a tatami room was an unusual but gratifying experience! the futons we laid on the floor were actually surprisingly comfortable and the novely factor of the whole thing was way up there. An efficient space saving technique to boot… Although I’m still far from convinced that I could be bothered to make and unmake a bed every day, hmm..

We went to a nearby market to get food for breakfast, where vendors were selling pickled fish, fresh vegetables, japanese style salads and other such fancy things. I have to admit I was a little dubious about how stewed fish would be for breakfast but it turned out to be amazingly tasty. Yuko even fashioned some home-made nigiri for us to eat later in the day because we couldn’t finish all of it and had some left over rice! Star. Incidentally, the rice tasted sooo good – we suspected it was because of the super-clean and fresh spring water! You might be wondering how rice can taste better than usual, but you’ll have to take my word for it…

I was a little frustrated that our first stop of the day was a seemingly boring and standard handbag shop. Apparently the brand is really famous for its quality and the shop was absolutely rammed. Odd. The girls seemed to be having fun but I couldn’t help but think I had better things to do in my limited time! Refrained from sulking though.

On leaving the handbag shop and its wonderful array of drab, yet durable, merchandise we went to Maruyama-koen – the park in the city centre. Here we checked out Yasaka-jinja and I decided to get a love fortune! It was very funny – saying I was to fall in love with an unobtainable woman and that the love would be one-sided… great huh? To make sure my fortunes turn out better I tied the paper to a particular wall of similarly fastened fortunes. Obviously a lot of other people didn’t think much of their fortunes either :) next to the wall we met an old man who was trying to learn english, but it was a bit of an effort trying to get anything other than very basic words out of him!

After a half-hour or so at Yasaka-jinja we wound our way up zig-zagging narrow streets towards the next temple, passing many interesting stores. Plenty of them were giving away free food samples to entice people in so i got to check out a variety of japanese of japanese snacks – confectionery especially! there were some weird (perhaps I use weird too much when describing Japan..) jelly style “sweets”, but they weren’t particularly sweet, kind of like a powder coated, less sticky, less sweet version of turkish delight. Hmm. Some of the flavours were quite good. Others, well, can’t really see them taking off in England :)

The temple we climbed up to – Kiyumizu-dera – houses a number of shrines within its expansive (if not bordering vast) grounds. Apparently one of the balconies, which reaches out over quite a sizable drop, is one of the most famous suicide spots in Japan! Wonderful. Perfect for re-honouring your dishonoured family. No-one took the plunge whilst I was there anyway. The view was serene and beautiful – mountainous reaches and thick forest, over which you could see a pagoda sprouting from amidst the trees.

On the left as one approaches the main prayer hall is a love shrine – literally a shrine dedicated to love. There were some quite scary placards on sale here, not sure if the translation is exactly as they mean it but might be grounds for immediate dismissal if given as present by your beloved (in a non-humourous way)! Within the shrine there is a pair of rocks around 30ft apart which apparently, if you can walk between unaided, will ensure you find true love/have happiness (not sure if they meant for you and your partner or just generally!). I SO VERY NEARLY made it without any direction, but Rena had to correct me around 6″ to the left at the end, which means that she is bound to helping me find my future partner and true love, muha! (lol)
I noticed both girls making wishes/prayers here, at which the cynic in me couldn’t help but smirk inwardly.

I spent a long while leaning over the aforementioned balcony gazing out over the hazy city. It was wonderfully warm and peaceful and I allowed myself to daydream a while, my mind way out over the forest and plains to the shorelines of Osaka beyond.

Dropping down toward the main attraction of the temple (the reason why there’s a mizu – meaning water – in Kiyumizu) we stopped to take lunch at a small place right up against a sheer drop and fairly covered by the forest and a woven canopy. Here I had somen noodles – a delicious summer snack. I was told of somen chutes which use spring water to carry noodles down a hill which you then catch in a bowl at the bottom. Sounds cool! You eat the noodles by dipping them in a sauce made from soy sauce and Japanese vinegar(?) with lots of spring onions, v yummy.

The “holy” water flowing into Kiyumizu comes through a series of pipes into a well/pool type thing a distance beneath the prayer hall balconies. Apparently if you drink the water it does good things for you (rather over-simplified explanation!) but I decided that for 500 yen I’d take my chances!

On the way back down we did a bit more shopping – I bought some monk’s beads which I thought were cool. Not sure how much I’ll use them, but hey. Rena bought some gifts for her family and some truly horrific sleeping shorts for her boyfriend, lol. We passed by loads of beautiful pottery shops too, I’d have loved to buy some crockery to bring home but had no idea how I’d transport something so fragile so had to leave it :(

When we eventually found our way back down to the town, Yuko decided it was time for her to go home so we headed back to the okiya (haha) to get her stuff. Luckily we could keep the accommodation for another night so didn’t have to up sticks and take everything to a different place. Plus, we were given a discounted rate for the extra night, bonus! We walked along the riverfront past all the famous and ridiculously expensive restaurants that only open in summer before leaving Yuko at the subway station and saying our goodbyes. At this point I thought it would probably be a good idea to head to a ‘net café to try and work out the next couple of days’ itinerary, which doubled up as a good excuse to have a rest as was feeling pretty tired by then! We’d decided to go check out another market type place for dinner but foolishly didn’t check the opening times and the place closed really early – not much good for dining out. Rena decided she needed some new bras so she went in search of those while I turned my attention to finding a “Japlish” t-shirt for my sister for her birthday. That actually resulted in quite a funny conversation where the shop girls were asking each other about their bust sizes and I was trying to work out if my sis was bigger or smaller, lol. The fact that they were both very attractive might have added to the enjoyment, of course :)

With our respective tasks accomplished we eventually settled on an Izakaya for dinner (again). This particular one was quite funny because the staff made a point of greeting/sending off everyone who came in or out in unison! Can’t remember what the name of the place was even though they shouted it in our ears quite a few times, haha.

After eating we went to Gion to take in the old part of town (not that the rest of it isn’t old) and were lucky enough to see three geisha within the space of five minutes, which apparently isn’t very common. We were a little aghast at the two Japanese tourists who insisted on chasing the geisha down the street with their cameras considering she clearly wasn’t overly enamoured with the idea of having her picture taken, but what can you do.

The area was a little surreal and creepy to be honest. There didn’t seem to be a huge amount of life, but then again I suppose the majority of what goes on is behind the closed doors of the ochayas and such like. All the entrances seemed to be designed specifically so that it was impossible to get any kind of glimpse at what might be on the inside. I tried to picture what the area must have been like in times gone by, the streets bustling with geisha and salarymen, a dazzling array of silk and colour. The whole area dedicated entirely to enjoyment and leisure. But of course that’s very hard. Many of the old buildings are preserved, however, so at least some of the character is retained. I often find myself wondering the same thing in England, what it must have been like even 70 years ago… I wonder how dull the world has become since then.

On the hunt for more alcohol we passed through some somewhat seedier streets. Alliteration aside, this, I suppose, is what Gion is more reknowned for nowadays. Very sad, but I suppose inevitable, and a similar concept – just for a different generation of impatience and with nothing left to the imagination.

After another bar we ended up in another izakaya(!) for some more snacks and plum wine. It seemed this place attracted quite a large proportion of the youth crowd and it was interesting to try and observe the social dynamics of a different culture in that setting, though apart from some nuances between the boys and girls I suppose it wasn’t vastly different to back home.

Shortly after, we headed back home. Rena was to leave very early in the morning (as in, before 6 early) and the day’s exploration and drinking had taken its toll!

Arrived in Kyoto around 7am and it was already pretty warm at that time. We put our bags in a locker at the station and, after grabbing a nigiri for breakfast, headed off to the first temple (of many, and I mean many!). I don’t remember the first temples that well because I was so tired! Sadly one was undergoing renovations/restorations too so the main hall wasn’t actually viewable. Shame. On the upside there were hardly any crowds at that time so the temples were largely deserted.

Ended up getting ice cream at around 9am I think then was standing on a bridge for a long while, feeling very detached from reality. It was hard to make it across for fear of what was waiting on the other side. Ok, that sounds overly melodramatic :)

Rena had arranged to meet her friends Yuko and Kaori that morning – two Japanese girls who she had met in Valencia (such is the random life she leads). We moved the bags to another locker in a different station and then headed to a place called Arashiyama. Actually, it took rather longer to get there than anticipated because the girls were too busy talking to realise we’d sailed past our station and ended up on the edge of Osaka, lol. I’m sure everyone can empathise on my behalf for having to spend a day with three girls talking non-stop in a language I hardly understand, especially when everything is “eeeEEEEEEEEEEEE?!”, “suGOI!”, “kawai~iiiii!” or even, “suGOI KAWAIIIIIIIIIIII!!!!!!!!!!”, argh!!!!!! I actually think I lasted pretty well. I didn’t attempt to kill any of them until at least 8 in the evening.

Arashiyama was an amazing place. It’s a good distance out from the city, on the edge of the mountains and surrounded by forest. The walk from the station took us over a fantastic bridge crossing a pretty wide river. There were old style boats a little further up stream on what appeared to be a lake but might have just been a wide, slow-moving part of the water. I lingered a while to take in the panorama, definitely feeling like we were somewhere quite exotic. I guess that kind of scenery is what one might expect of Japan having watched films set there.

On the other side of the river there was a little more life. A row (or three) of shops facing the water and running alongside it. We had lunch in another soba restaurant, this time with tempura, except it was more of a traditional restaurant with low tables and tatami mats, so once again had to take shoes off and sit/kneel by the table. Cool! Even if it was only a novelty for me :p

The temple at Arashiyama was definitely the most impressive I’d seen thus far, especially for the grounds – the gardens were stunning and included a path which went a little way up the hill so you could see over the temple, bamboo forest and back to the town in the distance. I got a lovely picture by climbing onto the fence – Yuko thought I was nuts! She should see me normally..

Sitting on the surround of the temple was very tranquil. A stork was standing in the lake and we dangled our feet off the edge of the step. There were many tatami mats inside the temple (as one would expect!), which felt quite nice underfoot – guess another novelty for me. I rested for a while against the doorframe, taking in the gardens.

After that we walked up through some different gardens and out into a bamboo forest. It was pretty surreal and kind of eerie in an awe-inspiring way. In one place the trunks grew together to form a kind of archway. I later discovered this (as well as many other places I saw) in the film “Memoirs of a Geisha” (don’t bother watching it tho – stick to the book!).

I was feeling rather disgusting at this point because I’d been wearing the same clothes for 2 days and obviously it had been extremely hot and humid both days – when we were walking through the bamboo forest my shirt was absolutely soaked through!

When we finally left the temple we passed a shop selling lots of traditional Japanese shoes and things. The girls stopped here for absolutely AGES! I got a little bored and wandered off for a little while. I felt like they didn’t even notice :) I found some simple but beautiful chopsticks in a little shop further down, so bought them as a present for self. Probably for a lot less than I would pay to buy the same thing at home too.. Although during the visit I saw some quite expensive chopsticks depending on what variety of wood was used to craft them from.

Afterwards we went to a place selling shaved ice. Not really sure if there’s any better way of describing it! Basically it’s like slush puppy, except thinner bits, with syrup and condensed milk (if you want it) on top. It was quite nice, although the restaurant was a little sleepy and surreal. The shutters blocked off the top halves of the windows which I thought was a little strange.

After chilling out there for a while it was decided that we’d go to a foot onsen (lol). I thought it would be way too hot given that it was mid-afternoon and the water temperature is 42C, but it was actually surprisingly refreshing and my flip-flop cladden feet welcomed the break. They’re not exactly the most supportive of shoes…

From here we took a toy train. Well, it wasn’t really a toy train but it was just one carriage which ran to a station on the edge of the city! Funny. I very nearly fell asleep in the carriage but just as I was beginning to dream I was awoken as we’d reached our destination.

At this point Kaori went home (insisting that if I wanted to visit Nagoya she’d be happy to guide me around for a day!) and we spent a while trying to work out where exactly in the station we’d left our luggage in the lockers! We decided to take a taxi to the ryokan we were staying at as the bags were heavy and everyone was pretty tired. The house was amazing – down a little alleyway which was a relic of days gone by. Apparently the street, which featured five old-style houses, has been on TV quite a lot and is fairly famous. I must admit I’d had my reservations about staying there rather than in a traditional inn style place, but it was totally worthwhile. They even had a hand-pump for well water! Lots of the doors were paper screens too and, of course, we had to remove shoes before entering the house as the entirety was decked out with tatami mats.

The area was adjacent to Gion – the geisha district – and there were many interesting artefacts inside the house. There were samurai swords mounted in a case on the wall, a bow and arrows, a kimono, gramophone, traditional bathtub… (Some pics also on flickr) We were given bath salts by the very accommodating and friendly landlady but the instructions seemed way too complicated so I couldn’t be arsed!

After a little faffage we headed out to check out a temple which is lit up at night called ???? [have to dig out the name from my numerous admission tickets!!]. Apparently summertime is the time when ghosts come out and there was a rather creepy show going on with clarinet players and projections out over the raked sand of ghosts and ghouls. The night time views over the city were amazing and seeing everything lit up was beautiful.

By this time we were pretty hungry so went off in search of a restaurant. Apparently not just anywhere would do so we must have spent a good hour walking. I was fairly unimpressed by the time Yuko eventually settled for somewhere.. Hehe. To make matters worse I was entirely discluded from the ordering process – I guess she’s one of those ‘strong personality’ girls, lol. Anyways, all good. Food wasn’t that great (although the girls seemed to think it was awesome) but at least they had beer, which I’d been waiting for for a good while :p the view was pretty good too – we were on the second floor right next to the river and facing out over the river. There were even a few fireworks being let off outside.

When we eventually left I decided to navigate us home, figuring that the girls had drunk too much [rightly!]. I was absolutely shattered but nailed the route first time. Must be my native indian tracker blood…

This morning I went to Akihabara, Tokyo’s electronics/gadget central. Not really sure what I was expecting of the place but it was actually pretty boring! Lots of shops but I suppose unless you were looking for something in particular then not the best place to hang out. I was about to leave to go see somewhere else but then stumbled across the biggest shop I’d ever seen – the wonder that is Akihabara’s Yodobashi Camera! This gargantuan store comprises nine floors of electronics, restaurants and… golf. There was even a mini driving range on the roof! By the time I’d explored the place it was already lunchtime – I’d forgotten breakfast anyway so my stomach needed something! I was actually feeling kind of dizzy too – probably day 2 of hangover, doh.

I selected a place that had very appetising pictures of their food outside, thinking that at least in the eventuality I couldn’t read the menu I could at least point out something. Ha. The menu was somewhat different – almost all Chinese characters (kanji) and only 9 pictures of non-descript foods in the whole thing! There was nothing for it but to hazard a guess, and my question of, “yakisoba?” was answered by some page turning and a rundown. All I could really hear was “oyster” being said over and over. Confused, I asked for pork, she said “yes” and that was that, lol. I’m sure spaced out English folk are not their everyday customers.

Later I went over to Asakusa to go see the temple there. There were many people (girls especially) dressed in ‘yukata’ on the way and at the station and I remembered that Rena had told me about a big fireworks display that was taking place that evening, where it is traditional to wear a yukata. I looked out for the posters advertising the fireworks but couldn’t glean much information, so continued on my way. It was around 3pm this point and as I walked along the street and down next to the river there were already a large amount of people who had arrived early for the show plus umpteen people distributing fans with advertising plastered on and many street stalls selling all types of food and drink. Rena had also said that it’s crazy full and some people had gotten crushed to death last year, so I was thinking I might head off somewhere else in the late afternoon before taking the bus to Kyoto that night. I also had to head back to my hotel before going to the station as I’d left my case behind the desk, having checked out that morning.

At the temple there were also many people and food stalls, inclining me to think it might be better to take in future cultural sites on weekdays rather than weekends! There was a long line of people queuing to make donations and pray, so I watched them for a little bit and decided to join in after a while.

Adjacent to the prayer area were some intriguing boxes. I was watching a couple shake a hexagonal cylinder, take a stick, read a number from it then take a piece of paper from the correspondingly numbered drawer. I presumed it was some kind of fortune telling, and this was to be confirmed shortly after when I was approached by a group of three Japanese girls (of varying ages) who wanted to a) help me to understand what was going on and b) practise their English! I was quite astounded that the girl was able to tell I was British from my accent – usually non-native speakers really struggle to match accents with places, and she wasn’t fluent (although, in her credit, was fairly capable). I stood chatting to them for a while, explaining what I was doing in Japan, where I had/was visiting etc., then the girl who had assumed the lead speaking role – Yukie (pronounced you-key-è) – invited me to her friend’s place to watch the fireworks that evening. I pondered it for a minute and, thinking what did I have to lose, said I’d be very happy to come. We walked around a bit more and they explained a couple of the other features to me, for example there’s a burning well in the middle of the grounds, which smoke, when inhaled, is supposed to bring good fortune to your family. Also, they explained about the fox gods and how they are not worshipped in Japan because they require constant worship and are liable to trick you any time if you cease. Interesting.

Yukie (24) and the other two girls, Sayuri (who I’m guessing was around 34) and Aiko (who was 12), had met when they were living in Australia, in Melbourne if memory serves me correctly. It was amazing what a grasp of English Aiko had having only learned it for 2 years in Australia. I’m not sure if she was related to Sayuri – they lived together but since the information wasn’t volunteered I thought it potentially impolite to ask. Aiko definitely looked older than 12 I thought, strange since most Japanese look younger than they actually are to me! Conversely, Yukie guessed my age as 28 :( I guess it works both ways, lol.

After a while, and after buying some delicious okonomiyaki (and copious amounts of water – it was baking hot) from a stall, we met their friend. An older guy whose name I couldn’t quite grasp and gave up on after a while. He led us to his place, where everyone was spectating from the roof of the apartment building. I feel I seriously lucked out here, as where we were was absolutely prime – about 30m away from the fireworks – and considering the crowds and how early the rest of the people arrive before the show is due to start to get a good spot! Awesome. I also got fed and given beer (though still didn’t particularly feel like drinking from 2 nights previously!), result.

The firework display itself was ok, not quite up to Vancouver’s festival of light, but interesting nonetheless. I think I perhaps found it more interesting observing the other spectators. They probably thought it most strange that there was a ‘gaijin’ (foreigner) in their midst on top of this apartment building in downtown Asakusa! Everyone was very polite though. In general I can’t fault the Japanese people, I thought that perhaps they’d be a bit more xenophobic.

As time drew on I became a little concerned about the amount of time it was going to take me to get home, and the girls had many concerned-sounding conversations! Turns out they were especially worried because I’d said I had to get my bus at 10.30, when in fact I meant I should arrive at the station for 10.30 to catch the bus at 11.15 (or 11.10, as it turned out)! I assured them that all would be fine, although I did sweat a little bit when we descended at the end of the show into the largest mob of people you’ve ever seen! There were police everywhere directing the flow of people – we had to duck under their barricades at least twice to ensure direct passage to the station, and even then the nearest two stations were closed off due to volume of people. It turned out to be fine in the end, although I accidentally let slip an expletive in front of Aiko-chan, who found it hilariously funny. Oops :) I said my goodbyes and thanked them as best I could at a station which name I can’t remember – collecting email addresses on the way. Yukie I thought was acting a little strangely toward me, mentioning something about speaking of feelings, but luckily she stopped short what she was saying. Run away! :p seriously though it was really nice of them to take me along like that, and even better to offer me their food and drink. Thanks guys!

Made it to the station on time and was disgusted to learn that I couldn’t use my JR pass for the JR bus because it was a discounted service. Errrr, come again? I can only get the more expensive ticket for free? What? Doesn’t make sense to me but what can you do 30 minutes before departure. In fact I made it to the station before Rena did, and she arrived running before running off again shortly after arrival. Crazy girl :) I think I managed to sleep 30 minutes in total on the bus, and started very early the next day on the beginning of the Kyoto temple trail…

Today I spent nearly all day in bed – a primary motivation for avoiding going out drinking on this trip!! Well, I guess moderation would be ok, but last night went way, way beyond that… By the time I made it out properly (having made a brief trip out around lunchtime for basic sustenance) it was 7pm!! Dinner in a nearby Wendy’s was a very slow affair too, I felt like it could have gone either way, lol. Still, after some head holding I headed over towards Harajuku for at least a little sightseeing/making something of my day. I really enjoyed this area too, although I feel I got a somewhat incomplete picture of it being as it was Friday evening – I believe that on the weekends the streets are teeming with the fashion inspired youth, although the stores seemed rather more chic and/or trendy than nearby Shibuya. It was a veritable maze of streets and boutiques and I felt that, with my head being as out of it as it was, that there was a high potential for getting lost :D however my navigation skills didn’t fail me and I succeeded in making a succession of large circuits, taking in quite a few of the main streets. I really liked the exotic feel, trendy, hip vibe around the place and was quite sorry not to have visited at a more prime time. Damn you again, alcohol (or, devil ether, as Rich previously coined).

When I exited from the rabbit warren back to the main street (or at least one of them), I spotted a couple of dodgy looking Americans around 35 or so trying to chat up a pair of teens, but didn’t linger too long as this kind of behaviour is seemingly to be expected! Adjacent to this was an intriguing structure which I felt compelled to explore. It turned out to be one of the most amazing shopping malls I’ve ever seen, although I suppose one would be forgiven for thinking it might be a cryogenic facility on first glance due to the manner and detail of the entrances and information desks, lol. The interior architecture was fantastic and I ignored the ‘please do not take pictures from here’ signs to get some shots. All the floors were sloped and a staircase only accessible from every other floor cut through the interior facing a faux-waterfall, plus there were images of water ripples projected around the ceiling and sounds of a rainforest on repeat over an internal speaker system. It was very blue and calming. An oasis from the world outside. It was called Omotesando Hills if you want to check out their website.

Incidentally, even the toilets in Japan are high-tech. There is a control panel thing to one side of the seat with a number of different buttons (and pictures) on. I was rather surprised when I first decided to test out one of the buttons, although I guess I should have known what to expect from the picture!

After a bit more walking round like a headless chicken it was almost time to go meet Akemi again so that she could introduce me to her boyfriend, Matthieu. I thought that some of the buildings around the place looked familiar so having tried to decipher a local streetmap I thought I might have a go at walking to Shibuya rather than taking the train. I spotted Tower Records’ billboard from a mile off so using that as I guide I managed to locate the Parco mall with no trouble! Excellent. A couple of phonecalls later and me & Akemi were off to Roppongi in a taxi, having stopped briefly to check out the ‘ganguro’ girls – ridiculous bright clothes with excessively blonde hair, fake (or real) tan and panda-esque makeup. Bizarre, but had to be seen. I wasn’t bothered enough to take a photo though, I’d seen them before on the ‘net and thought that would condone their behaviour to them anyway.

In Roppongi (fortunately much less troublesome to my mind than before, although I recognised lots of the clubs from previously) we met a rugby-team full of drunken French guys, with the odd Japanese and international thrown in for good measure. To be fair they were all absolutely wasted by the time we got there, but in their credit kept my glass full of beer and my bowl full of sukiyaki.

Afterwards we went to a nearby izakaya to drop in on one of Akemi’s friends and chat some more. It was a very cosy, friendly place that had a really cool vibe about it. Somewhere I never would have found otherwise, being as it is that every bar/restaurant is pretty much hidden away in the upper floors of an inconspicuous looking tower block. This is something that’s markedly different about Japan – back home we’re used to judging bars by looking through the window at how busy the place is, what kind of people are inside etc, but due to the lack of space everything has stacked up vertically, so in any given 8 storey building there might be a few restaurants, a couple bars, a karaoke lounge and an office, for example. This makes a lot of the places somewhat less airy than in England and also means that you have to actually go inside the place before you have any idea what it’s going to be like! Anyway, the izakaya was a matted affair where you have to remove your shoes at the door. Kinda cool to feel like you’re slobbing about inside a bar, although I’m sure that’s not their motivation ;) Matthieu wanted to get something I hadn’t tried before so we ended up drinking prune wine, which was lovely! Tasted just like vodka apple, except without the vodka (or apple).

Headed back home not too late on the deepest subway line ever (and also witnessed a drunk businessman get the escalator exit entirely wrong and bundle in front of a million people, whereafter he just sat crosslegged looking back up at the contraption that had foiled him, lol) and on the way from Shinjuku station saw a guy in a suit seemingly having a bust up with a girl. I would have thought it might be his girlfriend, but the fact he was in a suit, she looked kinda young and that we were in Japan opens different possibilities. Anyway, they were having a fight about something and she was seemingly having none of it, except every time she tried to walk away the guy blocked her path. This went on for a few minutes (with me watching from a nearby street corner) and ended with the guy physically dragging the girl off wherever he wanted to go. She was quite obviously pulling back, but once again no-one batted an eyelid so, feeling somewhat perplexed, I continued on my way.

Back at the hotel decided to check out Japanese TV and, aside from the fact that they have the most bizarre gameshows ever and that the commercials are hilarious, they were showing porn on regular TV. Haha.