Tokyo Adrift

Hello folks...this is my second blog write up in three years so don't expect much. Below is our 4 day Tokyo trip. We started our trip with Cade meeting us at our hotel, the New Sanno (a military joint service hotel). After showering and getting dressed we walked to Wellingtons, a steak restaurant in our hotel that is small and covered in red velvet and nautical paintings. It sort of reminded us of a cruise ship. Very good food and the beginning of Cade's daily indulgence into chocolate cake and always accompanied by a glass of milk. 

Though it looks like Cade is prepping to drop the kids off at the pool he is actually on his first Tokyo subway train. Headed to the Tokyo tower.

View from the main observation deck in the Tokyo tower. It's taller than the Eiffel tower but doesn't look like it because the buildings surrounding it are 40-50 stories tall. It also serves as a t.v. and radio tower, but because the tall buildings were effecting the satellite signals they had to build another tower, which you can sort of see in the background on the right.

After the tower we went to the Tsukiji fish market. At this market early in the morning is where they hold tuna auctions. A fast pace high dollar operation where only 120 people are allowed to watch. We had a variety of things but mostly tuna sashimi (raw cuts of fish). Not your standard white trout or mullet.

Another delicacy are these fish roe seaweed wraps and rice. Salty and refreshing.

Here is a diamond in the rough or some more weird Japanese crap. Yes you read it right salty watermelon Pepsi. And yes it taste just like the real thing.

Ok, this might have been the greatest moment of the trip. After going see a temple we went to the hotel where Bill Murray stayed in the movie Lost in Translation (Park Hyatt). We are 41 stories up faced toward Mt Fuji. This place is plush and very expensive. Cade got his receipt in a card stock envelope. Anyway, after this gal fixed my martini see pulled out this bottle and gave my drink a spritz. It was a citrus fragrance to enhance my drink. Awesome and Presidential. We all got a hit of fragrance after that.

I'm touching this huge sandal at a temple because the plaque read that if you touch it you will have happy walking and hiking which will be needed for our future climb.

 

I think Cade was most fascinated by this famous intersection by Shibuya train station. Its found in most movies showing Tokyo. This "wheres Waldo" shot was taken from the second story of a Starbucks. Its a six way intersection that in its light rotation all cars stop and people at any part of the street walk whichever way they want. It goes from empty to filled with a herd of 200-300 people.

Here is Cade's first ramen experience. Outside the restaurant is a machine that you put money into a push buttons with pictures of the food you want. Once pushed it shoots out a ticket which you take inside and give to the workers who cook your grub (called ticket restaurants-not too difficult). We had different types of ramen and some gyoza (meat dumplings--my favorite).

Here we go. This is the beginning of our 6 hour climb up and 2 hour down journey of Mt Fuji. This is a brief moment in the first two hours of our climb when it wasn't raining. Good thing that it rained early and cleared up later because it was pretty cold at the top. Still had some patches of snow that didn't melt from the last winter. Cade on the right and our guide Luke on the left (son of missionaries, born in Japan and married to Japanese gal).

First part of the climb went through the forest. Pretty nice and tranquil until it started raining harder than a lizard pissing on a flat rock.

The mountain had stations with where you can stop get some hot soup, coffee, drinks etc... They where spaced out about 45 min apart.

Here we are a little past half way up when it started to clear up. As you can see we are still a little wet and its started to get a little chilly. We were never too cold because as you can imagine you generate some heat climbing. If you stood around and waited too long you started to cool off.

We stopped the longest at the first 8th station (they have 2 six and eight stations--not sure why). We had some beef and pork bowls and coffee that was spot on. Mostly because it was warm and dry.

Getting closer. Most people climb the mountain in two days where they climb 3 quarters in the morning, sleep the afternoon till 0200ish then climb the rest in the dark to see the sunrise at the top. We decided to do it in a day because we were pressed for time and because the weather changes so quickly that most people don't even get to see a sunrise. All they see is gray because they are stuck in the clouds. It was pretty wild how fast the fog and rain rolled in and out. After a couple minutes the photo below would have been just fog.

This is the last gate and the top is just around the corner. We did our best Rocky impression by running the steps to the top. Yeah right, we both were barely making it taking a couple steps and stopping to catch our breath. Altitude sucks. After the summit we viewed the big crater at the top because its a volcano that suppose to erupt every three hundred years. A short stay at the top and then began the decent which was harder than the climb up. It was 2 hours of skipping, hopping, and running down loose gravel and scattered rocks. It was hard because you were trying to stop your momentum with each step. 

All in all we came, we conquered and barely escaped before our legs gave out.

Our next adventure will be...... placing things in boxes to return home.... all are welcome to attend the unpacking.

Colby