It about 12:30pm on Saturday 8/16 and I am long over due in getting these blogs updated. We have had a busy last couple of days and then when we are home we seem to be getting pulled in by some of the Olympics events. We of course are seeing lots of Judo matches and have enjoyed the fast past game of badmiton. Who would have thought that? I can't believe what quick reactions those girls have. Ladies steeplechase was a new one for me as well as women's wrestling. Finally got to see Michael Phelps race and win in the butterfly and then receive his gold. Yea!
So now,let me see where did I leave off last...
On Thursday morning we hung around the house, did some book work and had fun chatting with Kalen on the phone. After lunch we headed for the Roppongi area of Tokyo. This is where all the Embassies are and we needed to go to the Chinese one to get Visa's for CJ's upcoming work trip and my week of roaming the streets of Shangai Sept 3-10. When we got there we found it was not open 2-6pm like we were told,but 9-12am, so we will have to come back tomorrow. Darn!
So we decided while we were here in a new area, we may as well look around. Roppongi is known as the music and club center of Tokyo. They say you can find just about any kind of music here. Also the place of big name restaurant chains like the Hard Rock Cafe, Tony Roma's, Spago's...of which we saw none. I don't need to see that kind of stuff when I am here,I want the sights with some local flavor, so we popped into the Chinese 8 Cafe right across the street from the Grand Hyatt Hotel for an early dinner. We ordered some spicy pork and green bean noodle dish and some chicken fried rice which came to us with our own little propane burner to keep it hot. It looked like ALOT of food when it arrived, but CJ and I must have been really hungry cause we were licking the bottom of the pan looking for more. It to our surprise was a "T and A" type place and had a very interesting LARGE LONG lamp hanging over the center table as well as some clay "T and A molded figures" on the walls and ceiling beams. It wasn't in "that kind of neighborhood", so we thought it rather funny and of course had to get a few photos to document it all. haha
When we were done eating, we figured 4pm was probably too early for any of the music to be starting as well, so we decided to walk through the Aoyama Cemetary. After all, that is what this whole week of Obon Aug 13-16th is about and I thought perhaps we might see many people there working on cleaning up the graves of their deceased loved ones? Boy was I surprised, as there was not a soul in there (no pun intended) but CJ and I. It was a very messy and overgrown cemetary as well. Sad :-( I actually think I got a rash when walking in the long grass between grave stones. My calves and thighs broke out in a bright red rash when I got home that night. I felt itchy when I was in there and got a couple of bug bites on my wrists, but luckily the leg rash only looked bad-no itching.
Thought of Grandpa Harley and other firends and family we have lost over the years while in there and couldn't believe it was just a few short weeks ago he was laid to rest. We have done so much it seems like a couple months have flown by already. There were some cool stone pagodas and many graves had the wood slats with kangi characters on them stacked in the holder behind the gravestone. At dinner the other night when I was asking my 1001 ???????? Tad told me that the Japanese go the graves 3 times a year and these wood slats are preordered ahead of time with messages on them to their loved ones.
After we walked through the cemetary we made our way past a couple different sports stadiums. On some steps at Yotsuya Stadium where the Swallows baseball team plays some homeless man had made himself a house of umbrellas and he was in it having his afternoon siesta. Another one, was a soccer and/or rugby stadium I think and then a 3tiered driving range that was full of many golfers doing their "Happy Gilmore" impersonations. We continued going along and enjoyed the shade of the many tree lined streets and park areas as we zig-zagged our way up to Shinjuku area. Also learned by the banner hanging on the stadium fence, that Tokyo is a possible candidate for the 2016 Olympic Games?
West Shinjuku is where lots of Tokyo skyscrapers are located and alot of the most expensive land in the city. They call it the secondary heart of the city as well and it has a massive 48 story Metro Gov't Office too. The area we went in was near Shinjuku Station. This RR/subway station has over 2 million people pass through it each day, making it the busiest train station in the world. During rush hour they have men they call "pushers" actually pushing the last people into the train so not to have a body part smashed in the closing doors. We did not see this today, but CJ has witnessed it on his way to and from work.
It was night fall when we got there and so the skies were filled with every neon color of the rainbow. We just walked up and down the shopping streets looking at he lights, people, shop windows....It was a buzz with activity and very colorful,that's for sure. They say it is the town that never sleeps. After making our way around the circle of color CJ quickly peeked in the Yotobashi Electronic store to see if they had a cable he needed, but the store was much smaller and had less variety then Yokohama Stations so he will go back there another day. Our feet were tired and we were hot and sweaty so we decided to call it a night and head home. I told CJ I feel like one of Pavlov's dogs after walking all day and making my way through the city maze and then feel like I deserve a reward at the end, and so we stopped to get our much need Jumbo-shu treat and then happily made our way home. What could be better than to have the Cozy Corner shop with our Special $1.05 pastry right on the way home. YES !
Once back home, we were so darn hot we made up some crushed ice topped with mandarin oranges like we had at the baseball game a few weeks ago to go with the Jumbo-shu. We savored them both, while watching some more Olympics coverage. A much needed shower to wash off what ever made my legs break out and then a pillow to rest our weary heads,tired legs and feet
Sayonara
Karla and CJ
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment