Dear Japan...

I miss you!

Stuff The Japanese Like

While on our trip we kept a running list of things we noticed the Japanese liked... Not to be confused with the website Stuff White People Like, especially b/c that website made me a bit annoyed (ie. before we went on our trip I read that apparently white people like Japan and REI, 2 places I was headed... I don't want to be considered stereotypical... grrr.)

So anyways, while this is all just my opinion there were just many things we kept seeing over and over again in the cities and towns we visited. By no means is this meant to be negative, we loved Japan and the Japanese and we loved everything they loved!

Stuff The Japanese Seem to like:
- high heels - most women were wearing cute heels or heeled boots, the shoes I saw were just inspirational!
- thigh highs - lots and lots of thigh high socks/stocking/etc. They were always paired with super short skirts, dresses or shorts.
- knee high socks - not always worn with school uniforms, also paired with short skirts, dresses and shorts.
- stirrup tights - I fell in love with this look and saw it everywhere! Women old and young wore these tights. Stirrups were the most common but to be fair tights were also a hot item.
- tights - see above comments
- English writing on shirts - the best versions of these were the ones that were in English but not English that made sense. However there were many shirts on men dn women where there was large printed words usually about love, peace or some sort of combination of the two. We had fun looking for "Engrish" versions of shirts, I brought home 3 as gifts (see above picture).
- boots - as mentioned before, there were some hot boots and had they actually had my size I may have come home with a suitcase full of them!
- mini socks - not sure this is the correct term for them but here in the States I have seen them called peds but have not seen any as cute as the ones in Japan, I bought 2 pairs and WISH I had bought way more! They basically allow you to wear a sock type of material with your heels or flats. In Japan they had so many variations for straps, thong sandals, etc. They are so smart!!
- beer - beer ads are everywhere and in these ads people (typically men) are actually drinking beer or really enjoying it (as seen here). You can buy beer out of a vending machine, drink it on the train, etc... Beer is popular.
- plastic bags and containers - everything comes in some sort of packaging whether it's a small clear bag or in a box. The Japanese are very clean and seem to be pretty eco friendly but all of these bags and containers create a lot of waste. On the flip side their packaging is always really cute so maybe it will make you want to save it and not waste it.
- trains - their trains are amazing. We bought a rail pass and spent so much time using their trains to travel the country. They are clean, easy to figure out, ALWAYS on time and so much more.
- surgical masks - we saw a lot of people wearing the surgical masks while we were there. I wasn't sure if it was due to them being ill or afraid of getting sick from others. Could be a mixture of both.
- hand wipes - you get one with every meal you eat and it comes in a little plastic package bag, unless of course you go somewhere where they give you a warm wash cloth. They may create waste but they are so nice to have!
- alcohol - not the drinking kind but the sanitization kind. When you enter a store, station, hotel or basically anywhere there is a small table with a container on it so you can squirt the alcohol on your hands to then rub in and kill the germs.
- cell phone charms - EVERYONE has a cell phone charm, some have many... I even saw 80 year old men with cute little bear charms on their phones. They basically tell a little story about you and what you like. I saw one that looked like a curious George monkey, a rice bowl, lots of Hello Kitty, bears, a shoe... I could go on!
- anime - it's everywhere... posters, tv, kids bags, etc... Anime is super popular but you should know that, unless you've been living under a rock.
- anything cute - this was one of my favorite things to look for, cute things. Advertisements used cute little characters to get the point across (ie. a dog scooping it's own poop (see picture), and alligator looking sad b/c some kids music on the subway was to loud, all kinds of animals pimping out drinks, food and snacks...
- cell phones - everyone has a cell phone and they are by far cooler than any cell phone I've seen in the States. People are constantly texting, playing games, checking email, watching TV, etc. on their phones.
- short skirts - mentioned earlier
- shorts with tights - mentioned earlier
- being fashionable - "fashionable" can mean many things in Japan, just depends on the style of the person. That being said I saw some really cool fashion choices and some really different choices, none the less, all cool!
- neon signs
- vending machines - they are everywhere!
- sugary drinks - can be purchased in the above vending machines or basically anywhere. I tasted some of the best drinks ever in Japan!
- green tea
- McDonald's/Starbucks
- bikes/scooters - way more popular than cars and apparently not expensive to have
- small cars
- uniforms
- tennis shoes - saw some really cool tennis shoes and so many different styles.
- snacks
- tissues - they hand out tissues on the streets as promotional items - you will never need to buy kleenex again!
- chimes - every subway station has it's own chime and they even sell little charms that have those chimes on them for souvenirs.
- beauty - everything seems to be maintained, organized, cleaned, and the presentation of pretty much everything is just beautiful.
- gardening
- pickled food - you gets lots of picked side items and every one we had was yummy!
- specialty foods - according to hubby most all of the cities have a food specialty so we tried to make sure to taste those when we visited.
- bathhouses (onsen) - the bathhouse is a wonderful experience and seemed to be loved by everyone we encountered while at them.
- cleanliness
- organization

I don't think the Japanese are stereotypical at all and this post isn't meant to make them look that way, just highlight some of the cool things I observed them enjoying on my trip. Thanks for such an amazing time Japan, we can't wait to come back!

UPDATE: I forgot to add one of the most important things that the Japanese liked; ICHIRO!!! Anytime people found out where we were from they would screach "Seeater Mariners, Ichiro, Japanese Hero, 200!" Ichiro saved our trip and helped us make many friends, Thank you Ichiro Suzuki!

Day 15 Pictures Are Up!

For the rest go here!

Day 14 Pictures Are Up!

For the rest go here!

Day 13 Pictures Are Up!

For the rest go here!

Day 15 - Tokyo/Vancouver/Seattle

Today was our last day in Japan so we decided it was the day we'd get up early and go to the fish market. We tried to go to bed somewhat early the night before but that didn't really happen... oh well. The alarm went off at 6am and we got up, showered and out the door before 7am. We took the subway down to Tsukiji and then found our way to the street. (I should mention it was raining but a very Seattle type rain - drizzle).

I think with it being so early, having not eaten and the rain was kind of wearing on us as we got a bit lost which just put us in a bad mood... After wandering around a bit we finally figured it out and found the place. It's MASSIVE!! We had been told from our friend the night before to not go at 4am like we had planned b/c they don't allow people on the bidding floor anymore and that 7am would be a fine time. Thank god b/c the thought of being there at 4am was not pleasant to me...

I had pictured just one big building where all the fish was ligned up but in reallity it was several buildings with rows and rows of fish vendors. You have to be ultra careful where you walk and pay attention at all times b/c these people are working and there are constantly bikes, scooters, trucks, people all over the place trying to get by. To say it's fast paced doesn't really do it justice. I really felt in the way but we did our best to stay out of everyones way. Noone seemed to mind we were there looking, taking pictures. We even had a few men greet us with "good morning" in English which isn't what we are used to hearing - it took a second to register.

I enjoyed walking around and the strong smell of fish was actually nice - it's fresh fish, fresh delicious fish!! I saw so many fish that I have never seen before. The only thing that made me sad was the poor little turtle I saw trying to get out of a mesh bag. I told Jeff I should buy him and set him free. Poor little guy.

We bought a few items as souveniers after all of the looking and gawking and then decided to head back to our kneck of the woods as we had packing to do and still needed to eat breakfast. The original plan when we first came to Japan was to have sushi here for breakfast but after two nights of partying I just didn't think raw fish sounded good. Thankfully Jeff agreed. We also agreed that we had some of the best raw tuna the night before which came from here that morning so we didn't feel like we were short changing ourselves from the experience. I will also point out that there were in fact many people waiting in lines to eat fresh sushi at that hour at several little restaurants in the market. Hopefully that won't be a regret of mine after this rip is over but seriously, I couldn't have stomached it...

Once back in Ebisu we headed to get breakfast (iced chocolate milk with a shot of espresso and pastries) and then back to the hotel to nap a bit as nothing was really open yet. We had some yen to spend and decided to try and buy ourselves a few things as it seems we've bought tons of little gifts for folks but nothing really for us. No luck... We couldn't find anything we needed or really wanted. We headed over to the grocery store to get one more last look, and to buy lunch, of all that we would be missing. (The grocery stores here are beyond spectacular, we could spend hours just wandering around!! The presentation alone is worth the visit!)

I had bought a big hot pink hard case suitcase the day before so it was time to repack everything. I love that suitcase, it fit everything we bought and made my backpack lighter. Our shuttle bus came at 2:30 so we checked out and headed out... Goodbye Japan, we are really going to miss you!

Our flight wasn't until 7pm so once at the airport we ended up finding the duty free shops and spending the last bit of yen we had on ourselves. Easy enough!! The flight was only 10 hours and that included the hour layover in Vancouver, BC and then the 30 min flight to Seattle. Not bad at all!!

We really had a great time in Japan. I do think Jeff is way more sad about coming home than I am. I am looking forward to my bad, having mpore than 4 outfits and seeing the dogs. He just keeps thinking about all the things he loved about the Japanese and the country and keeps comparing them to home. I think he would move to Japan, I may need to work on that. ;) Obviously being together for 2 weeks straight has it's annoyances but for the most part we got along fine and really did get to do so many cool things. We met some great people who I hope we stay in touch with, we ate some of the most amazing food ever and we saw so many things in such a short time... We are already planning our return for 2011!

Sayonara Japan... or should I say Ja Ma Tay!!!

Japanese Bath

After arriving in Kyoto last week we decided to visit a Japanese bathhouse. The Hakusan-yu (www.hakusanyu.com) is a bathhouse directly in the middle of downtown. It took some hunting to find since it was down a narrow side street, but it was well worth the time. Now, this is a true public bathhouse so it was not fancy. You remove you shoes and place them in a locker with a wooden peg you remove to "lock" your shoes up. You enter in the small lobby and an old Japanese woman takes your payment (I think it was 300yen) and rents you towel (200yen). Then you enter either the "female" or "male" side. Naturally I head for the male side and upon entering there were old guys smoking and watching sports. I removed my clothes and went into the actual bath area. The area is comprised of about 20 individual sitting areas where you wash-up. Now, this is where I made an ass of myself. At each sitting area was a stool and a hot/cold faucet, a hose and some bottles of generic shampoo/conditioner. There were also some bowls for rinsing at some of the areas and other soap products. I sat down at a stool, found some soap, and began lathering up my washcloth. About 30 seconds in, I had guy approach and inform me that I was sitting at his area and using his soap!!! I was so embarrassed. I apologized profusely and found another area to finish washing up at. He just smiled, collected his stuff, and left. Washing your body in Japan is very ritualistic. You must lather and cleanse as much and has hard as possible - this shows everyone that your body is clean enough to soak in the tubs with them. There was a hot tub with jets, an electric current, a medicinal tub with purple water, a cold water plunge, soaking tubs, and a sauna. I tested them all. I was the only Westerner in the there, but everyone was pretty cool. I'm sure they were all wondering how I found their bathhouse in the middle of Kyoto down a narrow side street with a simple neon sign indicating what the place was. I just thought to myself that a little research, perseverance, and a great deal of walking can get you far in Japan. Now the onzen at Tanzen-no-yu was a much different and unique experience in its own right...but, that's another story!

Day 14 - Tokyo

Today is our last full day in Tokyo so we tried to get in a few items we missed last time. We ended up sleeping in till about 10am due to being out so late last night (and drinking a bit much) - we were even a bit grumpy until we got some food in our bellies. Noodles today and they were great (cold noodles that you drop into the bowl of hot soup)!!

We hopped a train and headed to Ueno to check out this shopping market (Ameyoko Market) where haggling is acceptable and they supposedly have great deals on items - even fake bags and such. I have been looking for a hard case suitcase to take back all the goods we have bought. I see them everywhere and they come in such wonderful colors. They have been running between 125 and up so I was hoping for a bargain. We found a few places and by the 3rd place I found the one I wanted, hot pink hard case and he gave it to us for 9500 yen - score!! I love it!

After the market we headed to Harajuku in hopes of seeing some of the Harajuku kids. They are supposedly all over the place on a Sunday but since we haven't been in Tokyo for a Sunday we thought we'd see what was happening in that area... Sadly, not much. tons of people shopping, a few fashionable questionable and even cool people wandering... Honestly thought I feel like I saw more foreigners there than any of the other areas of town... Especially in the toy shop we stopped in. I'm still glad we went though as it offered some interesting shops which we haven't seen before.

We stocked up on a few Hello Kitty items and then called it good. I hate to admit it but I'm a bit shopped out and I haven't bought any clothing or shoes for myself... which is killing me! The shopping and food here are by far some of the best I have seen. The shoes seem to be a .5 size to big and their largest size is one size to small for me. Boooo! I haven't really looked very hard though so maybe somewhere in Japan they have a store suitable for me. I am going to try and re-create some of the cool fashion ensembles I have seen here!

After our big day out we headed back to the Westin to relax and nap before our dinner date with our new friends. We cleaned up and headed back to Manta where they were waiting for us with 2 saved seats. We had our Orion beers and were given a delicious pork and something appetizer. Then we were given this amazing grade A7 fatty tuna that Gushi Kawa-san had gone to the market to get that morning. It is worth 25,000 yen a kilo and he bought it for us to share. He is such a nice man. We are so glad to have met him. Tamami is the woman we met with him and she speaks English which has helped us so much in this budding friendship with them. She is great!! Gussan is the guy who works at Manta and is also super friendly. He brought us Manta t-shirts which made Jeff so happy. We gave them some Seattle pictures we bought and a Seattle pin. We also gave them our information and said anytime they want to come to Seattle, we have a room for them!

We ordered several items off the menu, with Tamami's help, and shared them all. The food there is typical in Okinawa... actually the whole place is all about Okinawa and we've been invited to Okinawa in 2010. We have to go! To explain the evening would be hard, just like last night... So, yet again, words are failing me and just know that it was a perfect end to this trip. The hospitality we have come across from everyone makes us feel so warm and happy inside. We will be back Japan, we love everything about you! Sayonara for now! (Day 15 will probably not be added until we are back in Seattle).

Day 13 - Kyoto/Tokyo

Checked out of our hotel and headed North again to see the Kinkakuji (the golden temple) and the zen rock garden. It's out by the onsen we went to so we dropped our bags off in a locker at Kyoto station and headed out that way.

Both were pretty easy to find and we used the bus to help us get around. It was also an overcast day so it rained a bit but nothing more than what we get back home... drizzle.

The zen rock garden was our first stop and I joked that we were paying to stare at rocks... which we were but it was pretty nonetheless. Plus I believe John Mayer was here a few months back (I saw a picture on his website) so there was that. ;) We walked around the grounds snapping photos and finally discovered what that wonderful smell was, it is a flowering bush. Jeff snagged a few of the little flowers as he has been pressing leaves and stuff like that in his book. He seems to like doing that, who knew.

After the garden we hopped a bus and headed to the golden palace. It is beautiful and very gold! We took a ton of pictures which I hope to post soon (facebook has been pooping out on me). We had a little sit down for tea time and they gave us a sweet and green tea. It's so crazy that our trip is almost over!

Kyoto is now officially over so we headed back to the station to catch our 3:30 train to Tokyo - it's a 2 hour trip. We ate our lunch we bought at the kiosk and then I napped most of the ride.

Once in Tokyo we found ourselves following the same path we had at our very first days here. It's much easier now!! We checked into the Westin and then decided we wanted to eat Neapolitan pizza for dinner which we were both excited for! We headed to Partenope, the same place we had gone last time around. It was just that good!! For dinner we had their buffalo mozzarella pizza, a salad and tried a pasts this time as well. OMG it was soooo good!!! We even finished a bottle of prosecco as well. A few of the staff members remembered us from last time and chatted with as much as they could. Jeff took pictures and talked more with the people who work there. He even gave his San Marzano pin to the server we had from last time. I don't think I can even explain how much fun we had, just know it was memorable!

After dinner we walked out of the restaurant and saw a guy at another restaurant across the street just standing there. I waved to him and he waved back. We went over there for a drink - it was an Indian restaurant. We chatted with the guy who worked there, he was from Nepal and has been here 3 years. His English was great. Then after that we decided to go see if that tiny bar we went to last time was open... it was so we went in and sat down. They only have 8 seats and 4 were free. We ended up staying there till about 3am chatting and drinking with the patrons and the guy working the place. One woman there spoke English due to living in NY for a few years so she helped. We took a ton of pictures with them and they asked us to come back tomorrow at 7:30 for sushi as the older guy is a sushi chef. We are totally going!!! Amazing night!!!

Day 12 - Nara/Kyoto

This morning we had breakfast at the Kyoto station - they have all these amazing cafes with bread goods that I have never tasted before. I will miss all these yummy treats when we leave!!! After eating we hoped a train to Nara for a little day trip. The train ride was maybe an hour, not very long. We rented some bikes so we could get around pretty easily and get it all done in a reasonable time.

Riding through the town was fun. I had pictured a small town but it looked just like all the other ones until we ventured into the park, then it looked like what I thought it would. There were deer there too, actually they were everywhere. some would come p and nibble on your shirt or pocket in hopes you'd feed them - crazy!

First on our list was to see some shrines and the giant Buddah all of which were in this giant park... it's a lovely area and really easy to navigate on the bike. The Buddah was my favorite, it is so large and just amazing to see. I think Jeff and I each took 50 or so pictures.

After seeing the shrines and riding through the park we decided to ride through the shopping/food area. We stopped for lunch at a small cafe and had some yummy food as always. Then it was back to the station to retunr the bikes and catch our train at 5:40pm.

Tonight we decided to visit another onsen but a nicer one outside of town a bit. After chilling in the room for a bit we packed up our bath supplies and headed to North Kyoto around 8pm to a small neighborhood. We wandered and wandered trying to find this place... We asked a woman and she said to go straight... so we did... but then Jeff thought that we had either gone to far or were going in the wrong direction. We cut into the neighborhood and wandered... no luck. Jeff asked a girl for help and she told us to hold on by gestering to wait a min and went and got her father (Gaijin! Gaijin!), he came out along with the son and mother in their PJ's to try and help us. They also said to go back to where we were and go straight... Ok, back to where we where. I then told Jeff about how my friend Christine told me that the Japanese will help you no matter what sometimes even if they don't know and it's good to ask 3 times and go with the majority. So I went into a Family Mart and asked the guy and he also said to go straight but added "Supa!" and made a big motion... I said ok and straight we went...

Then low and behold, 4 blocks down by a large supermarket was the onsen! Horray!! This place was amazing. It looks like the Nordstrom on Onsens. It's fancy, clean and very relaxing. Get ready for it... It cost only $10 to get in for the whole day... They are open till 1am! It has a men and womens side and eeach side has 10 or so tubs/pools/relaxation areas. This place was so swanky but filled with families and everyday people. (I will say that people did look at me a bit more here. There was one other foreigner there and said said hi to me... Noone else did.) They just go there to relax. It also has massage chairs all over the place and massage available. Jeff and I signed up for that which was 6350 yen a person, roughly about $65 for an hour. When I was up for my massage the woman showed me a piece of paper she had written down "where is tender place" - I showed her my shoulders and lower back. She worked it out for sure, it was an amazing massage and I was fully clothed on a mat.

We walked out of there after 2 hours having spent maybe $150. You couldn't get out of Nordstrom Spa for that little for 2 people for all that we did. I wish we could have stayed longer but we were worried that we would have no train available back to our hotel.

We headed out of there at about 11ish and thankfully the JR rail was running but the subway wasn't. Once back in Kyoto we had to walk aways back to our hotel but that was ok. It was pretty late when we got back so it was Family Mart for dinner... sandwiches from the cooler. You may laugh but the food that comes out of those places here is just as good as most places. We have had no bad food here yet. :)

Another great day!!

I'm trying to upload pictures so stay tuned!!

Day 11 - Kyoto

This morning we checked out of the Bakpak Hostel and into the Toyoko-Inn. It's cheaper and 100 times nicer!! We took the subway to visit the Kiyomizu-dera temples, it was beautiful and there was this wonderful smell we couldn't find. It smelled liked peaches or something, we searched and searched... The temple and area was really nice and I think we should have good luck for quite sometime as we rubbed rocks, got our fortune, drank holy water, etc...

After leaving the temple we stopped for coffee at some little local coffee shop. The older guy who owns it gave us this amazing coffee... It was infused or something, I'd never seen coffee made the way he did it. Once we finished that we wandered the city, checking out shops and walking quite a bit. I also believe we found a geisha neighborhood. Some boys asked us to take their picture for them and we asked what the place was and Jeff heard "very delicious" and I heard "many geisha". Jeff responded delicious and if they said what I thought they said then Jeff looks like a huge perv!

Lunch was at a surf cafe that we found. I had this fantastic tune fish sandwhich and salad and Jeff had some spicy ramen dish that he is still raving about. After tasting my sandwich he said "I like tuna fish now, we're going to have to start making this at home". HAHA! Japan has opened him up to all sorts of foods that he now likes. Sounds like we'll be recreating some of the dishes we've had here at home.

I ended up buying a few more souveniers and then we started making our way back towards our area of town. We stopped at the station and picked up our bags from the lockers we stashed them in and then headed to the hotel. Once settled Jeff and Sean skyped for an hour or so while I got ready and then we heded out for dinner - sushi! Jeff had read of this cheap but good sushi place in the Kyoto station so we went there. It was both cheap and good so good call on that one!

We decided to have some sake after and found a cool place by our hotel where we had this sake sampler. I found a new brand of sake I really like, hope they have it at home!!

Here are pictures from the day!

Day 10... Whoops, forgot something!

I can't believe I left out a huge experience from day 10!! Jeff and I went to our first Onsen. What an onsen is is a bath house. I actually had to walk around naked in front of Japanese women of all ages (mostly older). It was very weird at first but I got over it pretty quickly.

After you undress and put your stuff in your locker you take your wash cloth and head into the area with all the different pools. Most are hot and have either some sort of mineral (one was purple and one looked milky), or electric currents (very freaky, esp if you didn't know it was there), jets, no jets, and a cold dip. This old lady told me what to do in a round about way as I think she could tell I was super confused. There is this area where you are supposed to pull up a little chair, sit down and basically scrub yourself clean. It's a bit weird sitting there showering in front of people but they are doing the same thing. Then once you are clean enough you can partake in the different pools or sauna. I had read some people use modesty towels but I didn't see anyone with one so I left my little towel they gave me in my locker.

The onsen is same sex so you're not walking around with guys. I would not have done that as that would have freaked me out. Jeff will share with you his experience I am sure.

As for the electric current pool, I had no idea it was emitting electrodes so when I got it it scared me to death as it gave me jolts and actuallt felt painful. It was only on one side of the pool so I moved to the other side and just kind of laughed. Later an old lady got in and I put my finger in there and made a funny face at her, she just laughed and goty in it. She was able to just stand there, no problem. Apparently it's top stimulate blood flow and metabolism. Maybe that is the secret to being thin! I found a blog of a woman who lives in Japan about Onsen Etiquette. It's worth reading. She even has pictures. I can honestly say I wasn't about to snap picts in there!!

Day 10 - Miyajima

Today was our day to catch the ferry for Miyajima as a side day trip. We have now officially traveled by air, land (train and bike), sea (ferry) and foot. The train to Miyajima was really quick, just 8 quick stops and then we hopped off and got directly on the ferry. It was free with our JR Pass - man that things has really paid for itself!! As we boarded the ferry we noticed that this was the first time we'd seen so many foreigners such as ourselves. They sounded to be more from Europe and Australia though, didn't notice any other Americans.

The ferry was a 10 minute ride to the island and of course very photogenic. The red archway is one of the top 3 most photographed items in Japan so I'm sure you'll recognize it. We were a bit worried it was going to be a giant tourist trap but we were very wrong, it was beautiful and I would definitely stay there for atleast a night.

One we got of the ferry we rented two bikes (best idea ever!) and headed out. I instantly saw the deer and insisted on petting them. We weren't sure if they would go for that but they sure did. Didn't even bat an eyelash, they were like tame dogs, but smellier. The funniest moment was when we stopped to take our picture with the archway in the background and left our bags along with a paper map in the basket of our bikes. Out of the corner of my eye I saw 2 deer sniffing our stuff quite aqggressively. Then the one grabbed the map and started eating it. Jeff rushed over and tried to save the map and the deer from this not so helthy snack but was unable to do so. The deer was so funny he stood on the rest of it so Jeff couldn't take it from him. We kind of had to shove the deer out of the way to get the rest of the paper back. He didn't want to give it up. I snapped pictures and laughed so loud and so hard while Jeff wrestled with Bambi. It was so funny!!! After that we kept an eye on our stuff for fear they would try and eat my purse just for the hell of it.

After all that excitement we parked the bikes and checked out the local shrine and pagoda. I swear, Japanese buildings are some of the most beautiful I have ever seen. The architectual design is just amazing. I've seen pictures of course but seeing them in person is beyond what I thought they would look like. If I could have a house like that I totally would! Not sure how well it would work in with the neighborhood but who cares. :)

We got to participate in our first shrine hand washing which was cool. Jeff laughed at me b/c the only reason I knew what to do was b/c I saw a video on youtube. It's amazing what kind of info you can find out there! Miyajima was great and after a few hours of just cruising around, shopping and snacking it was time to head back to Hiroshima to catch the train to Kyoto.

Kyoto was just over 2 hours and pretty easy to do - just one train change. Once we arrived we had to figure out how to get from the Kyoto station to the gion neighborhood where our Bakpak hostel was... The hostel was in a great location - right on the river. Once we checked in we wandered the neighborhood and I actually saw a real Geisha with several men walking down the street. The area is a bit seedier than I had thought with strip clubs and girls who are obviously escorts. The Memoris of a Geisha view I had in my mind was somewhat there but this other side of it kind of dampered it a bit. Thankfully we found a more traditional looking area and the Kyoto I imagined came right back. It was dinner time so we ended up in a small place where we had skewers. The guy wasn't real chatty in Japanese or English but the food was good, plus they had Sapporo, which hasn't been easy to find surprisingly!

After dinner we went back to the hostel to sleep on our box spring bed... the very very uncomfortable bed. It was a box spring with a sheet on it. It sucked! In my next post you will hear how we bailed on staying there and went back to our Toyoko-Inn (which is where I am typing this from right now at 5:10pm on Saturday, Day 11.). :)

P.S. I had read that when in Japan most attractions and stations have stamps you can get and to bring a book as it's an easy souveneir of your trip. I had kind of forgotten this until one day I noticed one. Now Jeff and I seem to see them everywhere and have finally started getting stamps wherever we go. It's fun to look for them now. I highly suggest doing that if you ever come over here!!

Japanese Pizza

After leaving the the Peace Park, we headed into dowwntown and began our hunt for Okonomiyaki (aka - Japanese pizza). NOTE: Japanese pizza and neapolitan pizza have very little in common. First of all, it is cooked on griddle, not in an oven. It starts out as a fine layer of dough (paper-thin) and then a multitude of ingredients is added. There is no tomoto sauce in case you are wondering. I believe mine was the "traditional" which included, bean sprouts, cabbage, fish flakes, pork, egg, spices and a sauce somewhat like tonkatsu sauce. Once this is piled high, it is pliiped over and pressed into a pancake. Once it is done, it is cut up into small pieces, and served - you eat it directly off the griddle!!! Of course you have to wash it down with a cold draft beer. Man was this pizza good. Super satisfying and fulfilling...wait, that sounds like I just ate a neapolitan pizza! New menu item at Tutta Bella?!? Oshi!!!

Hiroshima Peace Park and surroundings

I remember when I first learned about the A-Bomb in school and ever since then I have had this urge to visit Hiroshima. At 8:15am on August 6th 1945, Hiroshima became the first city on earth to have an atomic dropped on it. It is estimated that more than 140,000 people perished by the end of 1945 as a direct result of this horrible, then new, technology. As of 2009, it is estimated that more than 300,000 people have died as a direct result of the A-Bomb. Now, when I lived in Hawaii, we always saw Japanese visitors at Pearl Harbor and I wondered why there were so many. After visiting Hiroshima, I now know why. To the Japanese, Pearl Harbor was the spark that ended in the fireballs over Hiroshima on August 6th and Nagasaki on August 9th. For many, they feel compelled to pay their respects and to try to better understand the Japanese government policies of WWII. To say that Hiroshima is a moving place is an extreme understatement. While walking through the Peace Park or visiting the National Memorial Hall, you can not help but feel a little choked-up. We took well over 100 photos - mostly without us in them because it is hard to smile for a photo in this amazing place. Hiroshima today is world renowned for it's peace efforts across the globe. In fact, each time a nuclear device is tested in any of the "nuclear-states", the Mayor of Hiroshima sends that country's President an official Letter of Protest. The keep of record of these letters in the Peace Memorial Museum and there are currently well over 300 - it is most sobering and unnerving.

Not all is doom and gloom in Hiroshima. There are vast numbers of school children who take field trips there from all corners of Japan. We actually got to take a photo with a group of children which was absolutely amazing. We then were approached by other small groups of kids who wanted to ask us questions in English. They gave us paper cranes as gifts (this is symbolic of Hiroshima on so many levels) and in return we gave them some Seattle pins we were carrying with us. The kids brightened our day big time! Oh yeah - the Jehovah Witnesses are alive and well in Hiroshima - they are not nearly as pushy as in the states which was nice. As a history buff and former military brat, I had a greater understanding of the events that led up to August 6th and after - I felt like I truly connected with this place and I will never forget my thoughts and emotions. We spent almost 5 hours wandering throughout the park, memorials, museum, and hall. It is a vivid reminder of the destruction that mankind can do unto himself and hopefully the generations to come can learn from this important lesson - I strongly believe that the school children being present was a positive sign.

Day 9 - Hiroshima

Had breakfast at the Toyoko-Inn this morning. Jeff brought his tray up to the room so I decided to go down and get my own. I got my food (rice, sausages, roll, pickled stuff) and headed for the elevator. "Sumimasen!" Oh crap, busted!! She told me I wasn't supposed to do that so I had to sit in the lobby alone and eat my breakfast... I called Jeff and he said "could you bring me some more sausages when you're done" - I smuggled a few up in a cup. He always gets away with that kid of stuff...

We headed out from our hotel to the station and just happened to have perfect timing for the Hiroshima train. Had we missed it we'd have had an hour wait. Didn't plan that, it just worked out!

First stop was the A-Bomb Memorial. We walked around Peace park taking pictures. Had a man come chat with us at the child's memorial. Just asked where we were from, practicing English is what I suspect. Then some school kids showed up and we asked top be in their class picture - they loved that!! Probably not as much as we did though.

The first building of the memorial has all of the names of those who died, including American POW's. We looked through the list of names and came across one guy named John Long. Long is a family name of mine so I have to find out if maybe there was some relation. It was so sad to see all of the names of the people who died. There are stations setup to read actual accounts from people who were there. It makes your heartache.

On the way to the museum we had 2 sets of school kids run up to us and ask if they could ask us a few questions. They wanted to know where we were from, could we speak any Japanese and if yes what could we say. They gave us a little origami crane. We gave them Seattle pins. We then walked quickly to the museum as tons of kids were eyeing us. Jeff had read that the kids come there for school and are told to try and speak to Americans to work on their English. It was cute but could have kept us there for hours. You could hear them b/c they would literally run towards you. :)

The museum is pretty big, much bigger than it looks. It only cost about 50 cents to go through the whole thing. The exhibit explains the war and how it all started. They never blame America for anything in the exhibit. Noone was weird to us or anything. They blame the tragedy on war and they even say they started it. There position now is peace and they even have a flame going that won't go out until every nuclear bomb is gone. The pictures were graphic, which really is necessary b/c you just can't imagine how horrible such a bomb could be. Their skin was burned off and even melting off of some people. I'm not the history buff that Jeff is but this museum was interesting and you really feel so sad after witnessing what these people had to go through. Nuclear war looks like a horrible, horrible thing to put anyone through.

After the museum we headed for lunch as the museum took a few hours and we were hungry. On our way out of the park we wanted to get a picture of the Japanese flag blowing. The wind had died down so we sat down to wait a bit. These 2 women approached us and we just assumed they wanted to practice English... yeah no, they were Jehovah's Witnesses and they wanted to talk to us about peace and God. We indulged them, I even read a Bible verse for her. She wasn't pushy so that was good. We took her pamphlet and then went on our way. It was so weird and unexpected... I had no idea Jehovah's Witnesses were here too.

The shopping arcade is where we ended up finding lunch... and a few souvenirs (toys for Abby!). We had the "Japanese Pizza" which was delicious!! It's a flat pancake with cabbage, spices, meat, sauce, egg and more spices - it was great! We ate it right off the griddle. It was super filling though as we both had one. It also goes perfect with beer!

We started to head back, hopped on the wrong tram, finally got on the correct one and then headed for the train station. A massage and bath are in my near future!!

Pictures have been taking forever to upload but here are the last few days worth. Day 7, Day 8 and Day 9! Captions will have to come when we get back as it's so time consuming right now and this computer takes a bit long at times... Sorry about that. Oh and our picts aren't always in order as we have 2 cameras going at all times and they don't always synch up when I upload the, Yet again, time consuming... When I get back I plan to organize them all.

Also, if you leave comments and don't want to be anonymous you'll have to sign up for an account. Jeff wanted me to make sure to tell you all that. However, being anonymous is ok, just leave your comment and then sign your name. :)

P.S. Mom, there is this drink that I discovered that you would love, it's Royal Milk Tea and it's basically a cold version of our yummy milk tea we love to drink!! I'll have to search for it in Seattle and we'll enjoy it when you come visit next!

Shochu from the Moon Light

One experience I forgot to mention in Sendai was my gift of Shochu from the Moon Light. After the tug-of-war ended, Tarah headed back to our hotel while I wandered around taking in the sights. I found a little bar near the JR station and decided to take a peek. I walked in and found the bar keep and one patron. They were pretty excited to have an "American" in their pub. The bartender's name was Lei'a and the drunk old guy introduced himself as "John." I ordered a Shochu and I was handed my drink along with a beer and a plate of tomatoes/cucumbers/mayonaisse. Within a minute, a microphone was thrust upon me and the karoke machine cranked out "Rocky Mountain High" by Olivia Newton John!?! I had to sing for the two friends I had just met, but I didn't have the heart to tell them that Oliva Newton John did not sing that song. After another round, "John" had a taxi pick him up and I was ready to head back. In typical Japanese form, Lei'a handed me bottle of house Shochu as a gift and wished me well. What a great way to end a visit to Sendai, Kyushu. BTW - that John Denver is full of shit.

Day 8 - Transition

Today was more of a day of transition and not really much to report. We packed up from Sendai and then hopped the train to Hiroshima. We had to switch in Hakata. It took a little over 2 hours.

Once at the hotel we just relaxed and then went down at 6:30pm for the curry rice the hotel was feeding us for dinner. I have never had a hotel give free breakfast AND dinner. We have stayed in the Toyoko-Inn in a few cities and it's really reasonable and always in great locations. Perfect for backpacking b/c then you don't have to haul your bags very far from the station. They are western style hotels but for the price you can't beat it. We saved over $3000 for the trip and haven't even made it half way through our money yet. Everyone told us how expensive Japan was and it definitely can be but we've managed to do really well on food and the rail pass has paid for itself as that is our only mode of transportation thus far. We haven't used any cabs, which are expensive, and staying close to the station has worked out well. We venture out on buses. trams or the trains to explore the areas we stay in.

Anyway, back to my post... Jeff LOVED the curry rice and has requested we make it at home as he now seems to love curry. He actually ate 2 big bowls of it b/c the kitchen lady made him take another bowl later in the evening. We took a walk to check out the small suburb of Hiroshima we are staying in... Now much here but a Pachinko parlor, which we checked out. When we returned she made him take more rice, which he gladly did of course!! Once in the room we watched a movie (War of the Worlds) and caught up on blogging and downloading pictures.

Toilets!

Don't worry - this post isn't too graphic! Anyway, the toilets here range from a hole in the floor to an automated bum washer. Most of the "western" style toilets are automated. They have such features as a seat warmer, bum washer, spray intensity settings, cold and warm water, air dryer, auto-flush, auto-closing lids, and even privacy sounds (to mask your bodily functions). These bathrooms have also been extremely clean no matter where they are located. In fact, I will say that the bathrooms in Japan are much cleaner than the bathrooms in the states. Everything is setup for 100% sanitation. The hand-washing sinks are usually never touched because everything is automated. For example, at the Tokyo Dome, the hand-washing sink had auto-soap, auto-water, and auto-airdryer all built into one unit! It has been much easier for me to use the toilets than Tarah because sometimes she can only find a squat-toilet (hole in the floor with hand-rails). I told her to think of it like she was camping and going in the great outdoors - that didn't go over well. Now excuse me, I've got to go...

Shinkansen

To say that the Japanese train system is extensive is an understatement. It is a vast network of bullet trains, local trains, trams, monorails, and subways. My favorite is the bullet train or "shinkansen." The efficiency alone of these wonders is incomprehensible. When the train ticket shows a departure of 16:29 (4:29pm), the train leaves the station at the exact stroke of 14:29. Everyone is in line and ready to board with the Conductors assisting people on and off in an orderly fashion. There is a series of chimes and whistles and then the doors shut making an air-tight seal. Only one time has a shinkansen that we were on been late and it was only 2 minutes late at that (it was a relay shinkansen that connects to a major line). Anyway, these trains travel at over 200kmh and the ride is smoother than an airplane. The decor inside is extremely spacious and plush with hostesses selling food and drink. There are smoking cars, western-style toilets, internet connections, play areas for children, etc. We have ridden the shinkansen now about 10 times and will ride it many more times over the next week. So far we have been on the following trains:


Hikari - means "light" - travels at 270kph - 300kph (almost 200 mph)
Kodoma - means "echo" - travels at 285kph (about 175mph)
Tsubame - means "wing" and "swallow" - travels at 240kph (relay train) to 260kph (over 150mph)


The shinkansen is an incredible experience and our JR Rail Pass has been paid for several times over. There is nothing quite like listening to your music, drinking a beer, and eating some Japanese food while sitting in a plush chair made of bamboo wood cruising at almost 200mph as the japanese countryside rushes by. Welcome aboard!

Day 7 - Kugoshima-Chuo

We slept in a bit which was nice and then headed down for our free breakfast at the Toyoko-Inn. There were tons of people down there but we still managed to get miso soup, rice, sausages, pickled green and orange something and a roll. they had some gooey okra stuff but I passed on that. Coffee took a bit but we eventually got some of that too. after eating we headed back to the room so Jeff could post his first blog... which you should have read by now.

We decided today to head to Kugoshima-Chuo. The station here is super nice and brand new and there are barely people there. It was nice not having to be so attentive to where I was walking and who may be behind me had I moved to the right or left slightly. One thing we consistently notice is that trash can are hard to find yet there is no trash on the ground anywhere... The trains are also always on time. The escalators are off until you walk up and then they start to move. There are so many little energy efficient things yet everything comes in it's own packaging and plastic bags for everything. Our room key actually turn on the power in our room, so when we are gone the room is off but when you get back you plug your key in and everything comes to life... It took us a few minutes to figure that out when we first got to the room. We were just flipping switches left and right.

So anyway we hopped on the train and headed out. It was only about a 15 min ride. Jeff wanted to go see the volcano there plus it's called the Naples of the Orient. Oh and it's really hot, I actually got a slight sun burn.

We headed down to the water so we could see the volcano and I was hoping to see the aquarium. It was 1500 yen a person so Jeff pooped that idea, he didn't want to go see it for about $30 for the 2 of us... urghh! After taking pictures and waving to people on boats we headed back to the main area of town where all the shopping is. At about this time I decided that I had to pee really bad. I searched of r a toilet and once inside realized it was a squatter style toilet - HELL NO! I refused to use it. I had the grand idea that the high end shops would have more western style toilets. Wrong! I finally caved and used it but it was miserable, can't say I would recommend that. Not that you need to know this but I wasn't about to do more than pee so my bathroom stop for the day was not yet over... After we finished buying gifts for people we headed out of the shops and found this really pretty temple. We headed inside and I noticed they too had bathrooms. I decided to check and I was so pleased to see a sign that said western style and japanese style. I went into the western style and was a much happier person for the rest of the day! (Jeff was a bit annoyed with me b/c he didn't see the big deal... Oh well I found my toilet and everyone was happy again.)

For lunch we wanted sushi so we found a place and walked in. After sitting down I looked up in the book how to say "an assortment of sashimi". They guy looked really confused so I showed it to him. He said something, we stared with confused looks, he said something else, then we realized he said "Soba". Ohhhh it's a noodle shop, not sushi. A guy sitting there said the sushi place was next door - whoops! We felt so stupid but they were super nice to us. They bowed profusely and he walked us out to show us where it was. We bowed and said "Domo arigato!" Whoops!!! The sushi next door was really good. We ordered a roll and an assortment of nigiri. Delicious! We were still hungry so we ordered another roll and I figured out how to tell the guy that was our last order as he looked like he was waiting to see what else we would want. We said a few things to us and he helped with a few pronunciations. at the end of our meal we had some egg concoction to eat that I have never had. I asked him if it was "masago" he said "Hai, egg" - it was pretty good. Kind of like custard with veggies in it.

After lunch we headed out to the Ferris wheel at the station. It is the best view of the city! We weren't sure how to buy our tickets so we kind of watched people and then did what they did. We think we did it right and noone said we didn't so it was a success. Plus it seems we paid less than what the guide book said. The view was amazing, you could see everything!

After the ride we headed to a cafe to fill out our postcards. One thing that has worked here is just pointing and gesturing, it works every time. I ordered a slice of strawberry pie and 2 coffees. There was a tiny bit of confusion about the 2nd coffee b/c I pointed to the door where Jeff was supposed to be standing but he was gone so I think she thought I wanted to take the cup outside or something. I said "for my husband" and she seemed to understand and shook her head yes... but then again maybe she was just saying yes to say yes. :) The pie was so good, I was sad to have to actually share it with Jeff. HAHA!

After that we just headed back to Sendai by train and that is when we stumbled upon the tug of war event (read Jeff's post on that). Another great day!!

Videos from the Trip

I've been uploading them here. They aren't great as they are from our digital camera... Enjoy!

Sendai Oh-Tsunahiki (Great Tug-of-War)

Luck would have it that we are in Sendai for their annual "Great Tug-of-War." This happens every year on September 22nd in this small city of approximately 100,000 residents. We think the entire city turned out in the downtown streets to witness, cheer, and even participate in this grand ritual. The street vendors were everywhere selling everything. We saw chicken, pork, fish, octopus, squid, sake, beer, shochu, candy, veggies, hot dogs, glow sticks, glow-in-the-dark swords, anime masks, and on and on and on. At one point we were almost crushed by the guys pulling the massive rope (about 24+ inches in diameter). Needless to say, the medical crews and cleaning crews were out in full force. After it was all over I was able to get a strand of the actual rope - apparently if you hang it on the front door of your house it will bring you good luck. Bonzai!

Here is a video we took:

Day 6 - Sendai

We checked out of our hotel at 10am (the standard time around here) and headed to Seattle's Best coffee to grab a drink and use their free wifi. We walked around the downtown area of Fukuoka (Tenjin) for awhile before we had to catch our train to Sendai at 2:30pm.

Jeff really wanted ramen for lunch but we couldn't find any to save our life... if there was one it was closed. We settled for just a standard place where we had rice, chicken, miso and some picked items. I put this black sesame/salt stuff on my rice and OMG it's my new favorite thing to eat!! Will have to try and find some to take home.


Once on the train we had a few hours to nap a bit and then we had to switch trains in Shin-Yatsushio. Our tickets were given to us in Japanese, which was a first, so we had to look up the symbols to figure out where to switch.

Sendai is a smaller, quieter town. It is more of what I pictured Japan to look like. We checked into our hotel, did some laundry (clothes are starting to smell!) and just chilled for a bit.

Around dinner time we ventured out into town and just tried to see what was available... and open. We wandered into a place that smelled good and had quite a few people in it. They spoke no english and had no menu with pictures... So when they sat us in a tatami room with 3 other girls I just looked at what they had, looked up the word same and motioned to our server we just wanted what they were having. It worked out pretty well. Oh and we ordered ni Berru (2 beers), we've got that one down! So, what arrived at our table was: some sort of mac salad appetiazer that everyone gets, friend chicken with tater tots and cabbage salad (including ketchup and mayo), tuna salad with cucumbers and tomatoes, mixed selection of skewers (spicy chicken, pork belly, liver, peppers, quail egg and bacon, pork skin and grilled chicken). Random yes, but also tasty. The tater tot dish was funny... What we didn't get was edemame and beef skewers that they also had but that is ok b/c we were full. The whole meal came to about 4010 yen. Since we were so full it was the long way back to the hotel to walk some of it off.

Pictures (not in order).

Day 5 - Okayama/Fukuoka

Packed up our stuff to head to Fukuoka today but stashed them in a locker so we didn't have to haul them around. Decided to head to the Okayama Castle and Gardens before we headed out. It is such a beautiful place and super warm today!! We couldn't stay long as our train left at 1:14pm and those things are on time!

Once back at the station we grabbed our bags and a snack at the kiosk as it's much cheaper than buying snacks on the train. They have these cool bento style boxes with an assortment of snacks... some recognizable and some we had no clue what it was but ate it anyways... No complaints from us, they were good!

Once on the train I pulled out the laptop to type up my day 4 blog all the while this little old lady watched me. Jeff and I busted out our snacks and ate them, the little old lady next to me smiled and said something to me which I took to be how impressed she was with my chopsticks skills. Jeff and I would eat one box and then switch... He hogged mine a bit and the lady laughed, she was cute! She seemed to enjoy watching us.

When we arrived in Fukuoka we stashed our bags in another locker and went on a hotel search. We ended up finding a Comfort Inn for pretty cheap (7900 yen) so we just grabbed it. This not having a place to stay when we go to a city has been grating on the nerves a bit... I should have just planned it out but oh well. Our room was super small but it worked for a place to sleeep.

We hopped a subway train and headed to the center of town to check out the local scene. As we walked around we heard loud music and yelling so we followed it. To our delight we came upon the Fukuoki Asia Dance Carnival - it was pretty cool to watch! Then we went to this building called IMS which is really a 14 floor mall. On the 14th floor we signed up for foot massages. We had about 1.5 hours to kill so we wandered and bought a few small items.

The foot massages were great, I only wish it had been a full body massage as my back has been hurting lately. We haven't seen many tourists so it's been interesting getting around and figuring things out. The massage place wasn't to hard as they had the word foot in english and the times so we just pointed. Our feet smelled from all the walking but thankfully they washed them in a soaker tub. It was so relaxing! The women were super nice to us.

After our 30 min relaxation time it was time to hunt for dinner. We haven't had sushi yet so that was the plan... Sadly it wasn't as easy as we had thought. We walked around forever until we finally saw a sign for sushi on the 8th floor of some building. We made our way through the electronics store and then an arcade to come up something so crazy... Genki sushi, the SAME place we got to in Seattle. We laughed when we realized it but no way were we backing down after all that hunting. It was much different than the one in Seattle as it had computer screens to order and the sushi was much smaller than at home. Seattle wins this round!

After dinner it was time to head back, pick up our bags and crash... and that we did.

Here are the photos!

First week impressions of Japan

OK - I needed one full week to post my first blog. First and foremost, Japan is SUPER BIG AWESOME! We have had nothing short of a great time everywhere we have been. Currently we are in Sendai which is in southern Kyushu. The climate here is sub-tropical, so as you can imagine it is hot and muggy - feels great! Here are some short notes about our first 6 days...

Day 1 - Tokyo: arrived mid afternoon, took a train to downtown, sunset was at 17:30, got a little confused trying to find the Westin. Found the Westin, had dinner and stayed up as late as possible to adjust to Japan timezone (we were up for about 24hrs from the time we left Seattle).

Tokyo is insanely huge and crowded. Everyone is very orderly and polite, so even though you are surrounded by 30+ million people, it does not feel like it. Japanese beer is pretty good. All the girls are very fashionable - skirts, knee-highs, accessories, etc. Men are all in suits and look ready to get crazy on the weekend.

Day 2 - Tokyo: went to the Ginza district of Tokyo. Had an incredible lunch at a small restaurant. By the way, there are just as many small restaurants as there are residents in Tokyo...well, at least it feels that way. Met up with Ken Morinaka and went to a Tokyo Giants baseball game. On the way in they handed us plastic cups for our beers!!! Sorry Mariner fans, this game was much more fun. Chants, flags, banners, music, horns, drinking, eating, and the list can go on and on and on. The fans were super nice to us and loved to talk about Ichiro. Tarah even got some gifts from an older guy who was obviously hooped up on too much sake. Went to an Irish pub afterwards (Warrior Celt) that sat maybe a dozen people.

Day 3 - Tokyo: slept in for awhile (see above note about the Warrior Celt) and then went to the Grand Sumo Tournament 2009. Again, we hung out with Ken who is such a great guy and very knowledgeable about all things Japanese (at least more than us!). OK - the sumo match was one of the coolest sporting events I have ever been to. Fat, almost naked men trying to slap and push their opponent out of the ring (or on to the floor) is true entertainment. I could go on and on about this, but I digress (FYI - I took over 100 pictures, so obviously it sucked). We then met up with Maki and had a great dinner. We started off at the Manta (a little Okinawan restaurant that sat maybe 8) and had an appetizer and stiff drinks. We then went to a V.P.N. certified pizzeria (those of you that know me can appreciate this) that blew my mind. At one point we were speaking Japanese - Italian - English all at the same time. This pizzeria really impressed me. It remined me of Tutta Bella Columbia City in many ways. The food was excellent, the staff was friendly, and the atmosphere was incredible.

Day 4 - Okoyama: overnight stay after riding the bullet train (Shinkansen) for 4+ hours. Again, I can go on and on about the shinkansen (plush, fast, smooth, beers and smokes, etc.), but I digress. We stayed in a Ryokan and ate in downtown restaurant that specialized in yakitori. We decided to check out a little pub near our ryokan because they had the most unique "rainier beer" sign on the door that I had ever seen - of course, they had no idea what "rainier beer" was!!! Anyway, the bar had 3 tables and a little kitchen. We met 4 guys who live in Okayama and proceeded to hang out with them the rest of the evening. The really enjoyed speaking english and having us hang out in their local pub and vice versa.

Day 5 - Fukuoka/Hakata: this city was pretty damn cool. Live music and dance, tons of shopping, and very trendy. We decided to get a foot massage on the 14th floor of this very fashionable mall (yes it had 14 floors of shopping, including a toyota and nissan showroom that were on the 8th floor). The place had a rooftop deck that was very zen like and you felt like you were a million miles away from the city of 1+ million below). Ended the night at Genki sushi (apparently these all all over Japan - we have just 1 in Seattle). Slept at the Comfort Inn - same family as Best Western - I'm a little embarrassed because I have wanted to avoid all things western, but we Japan is currently celebrating a 5-day national holiday so rooms are pretty scarce. Hung out the next day wandering the Tinjin area (downtown Fukuoka), before getting back on the shinkansen.

Day 6 - Sendai: the train sped through vast agricultural areas as we headed deeper south in Kyushu. We decided to come this far south because it is so quiet and peaceful and we wanted a little rest point before heading back north (the population of Sendai is just over 100,000, so it is a little different than Tokyo - HA!). The shinkansen station is brand new and so is the hotel we are in (which had a trouser press, HD Flat screen, free internet, etc.). Apparently, this city is gearing up for a population explosion since a new train line is set to be completed in 2011. We ate at a local restaurant last evening and no one spoke any english - it was awesome. The local drink in these here parts is Shochu (made from grain/potato). Oh yeah, this city also has a large nuclear power plant. I guess this is the backwoods of Japan - if there is such a thing.

Until we meet again - "Daburu de kudasai!"

PS - this is my first blog post ever on any site - can you believe it?!?

Day 4 - Okayama

We started out the day at a cafe we found the other day and liked. Then we hit up the Tourist Info center to get info on Fukuoka as that was our destination plan. We reserved our seats on the train and then realized we wouldn't get in until 10pm... With not hotel we weren't sure about that. We grabbed some ramen at a little local place and wandered around a bit. We even saw an old guy with a grey ferrett wearing a pink hello kitty outfit, hat and all.

Had ramen at Ramen Santouka across from the Tokyo station. Jeff likes to find places down random alley ways and sofar our luck has been really good as the food was delicious!

We got on the train and headed South on the shinkensen. It was about 4.5 hours before we decided "let's get off at Okayama and find a room there", so we did. The train ride was nice and super fast. We took a ton of pictures of the little towns we saw.

Once in Okayama we went to a few places and finally by the 3rd one we found a place to stay, a Ryokan. The woman spoke no english but after a few minutes and help from my japanese language book we got a double room. The room wasn't bad at all, different from the Westin of course but nice. It actually had a toilet and bath along with shampoo, towels, razors, etc... We got situated and then went out to find some dinner.

As we walked around we noticed we were the only foreiners and there were alot of young folks hanging out in groups. Even a few street performers which we haven't seen yet... I don't mean homeless performers just kids tryiong to get their music heard is what it seemed.

We ended up picking a place that had skewers. The guy outside actually spoke english and so we decided to go in and give it a try. Noone else did though so he had to come up and take our order. We had to order off the pictures on the menu so I have a feeling they probably had alot more than what we saw... We ordered a chicken teriyaki skewer, a ham and asparagus skewer, salt and pepper beef on shoots and onions and then a ham and grated yam with cheese on top. i have to say it made me gag... the grated yam just is such a weird texture for me... Jeff had a whole bowl of it in Ginza but man, it makes me think of eating snot... I just can't handle it. He was thrilled there was something he liked and could eat that I couldn't.

After dinner we headed for this bar we had seen earlier that had a Seattle Rainier Beer sign. It was a tiny place with 2 workers and 4 customers. We sat down and ordered a beer. The 4 gys there asked us where we were from in broken english and once more Ichiro saved us. As soon as we say his name they all go "OHHHH the mighty Ichiro, Seatter Mariners". We ended up talking to them till closing time. They had limited english and I left my book in the room so we had a fun time figuring out what we were all saying. They thanked us profusely for talking with them and one guy kept saying "I want to know you" to us. He was a bit drunk but so friendly and smiley and seemed to love trying to speak english. This place doesn't seem to have alot of english speaking people come through as most folks didn't speak much at all. The owner of the place kept trying to get us to roder food and was so excited to have us try it. somehow we think we agreed to trying tofu with ginger... honestly I know we told him no we had just eaten but that got lost in translation... Jeff was so not hungry at all but i told him to eat it anyways, the guy was so thrilled and watched us eat. I said "Oishii" and they all squeeled with delight. They loved when we would say something in japanese, it would end in applause and loud laughter. It was by far one of my favorite moments as I have been hoping to meet some people and just sit and chat with them... or try to that is. :) We had a picture taken with them and then we exchaged info - I promised to send them the picture. It was awesome!!

At midnight we heaqded back to the ryokan to get our futons ready and relax. We fell asleep to japanese TV. It turned out to be a great side trip!

Check out the pictures!