Tokyo

Fuji-san from the train

Kabuki Dancer

Mei, Natsumi and B; Mei, Win and Natsumi

B and Junko

Looking down from the tower

Tsukiji

28 November 2011


      Being in Japan and not seeing Tokyo would be like being in the US and not visiting NYC.  So off we streaked on the gleaming white Shinkansen to Tokyo last Friday.  Being a clear day, we had excellent views of Mt. Fuji (climbable only in the summer).  From Tokyo Station we made our way to Ryokan Sawanoya in the Ueno Park district, a small Ryokan friendly to foreigners.  We went right back to Ginza to walk around a little and then meet our old friend Junko at the Shinbashi Enbujo Kabuki Theatre for a performance.  She had bought wonderful seats in a box.  Kabuki is an energetic, lively, stylized, imaginative form of traditional theatre done with fabulous costumes, wonderful dance, musicians and singers on stage, male actors playing all female roles (onnegata), and superb acting.  We saw three plays, the performance lasting for about 5hrs.  But everyone brings a box dinner to their seats during the intermissions.  It all went by much too fast.

     Saturday we met the two students we had hosted last year at Showa, Mei and Natsumi.  We went to the colorful neighborhood of Asakusa, famous for the old shopping streets crammed with people.  We stopped for snacks and lunch of Okonomiyaki (batter pancakes with veggies, shrimp and whatever cooked at the table and shared).  Then on to the huge Senso-ji Temple, said to have been first built in 628.  Later we met Junko again and went to the National Museum to see the Highlights of Japanese Art - a small but exquisite selection of Japanese arts starting with paleolithic finds.  Later we had a wonderful dinner at a restaurant for which I have only a card in kanji, but where we had our own room facing a small garden and could leisurely enjoy the best sukiyaki we had ever tasted.  After the delicious meat and vegetables are cooked in the broth, you dip pieces in raw egg just before eating, which tasted fabulous to my surprise.


     Sunday unfortunately Win was feeling pretty terrible, so Junko and I had to leave him behind at Sawanoya  for our whirlwind Tokyo tour which included the Imperial Palace Park, a quick trip up the Tokyo Tower (say tawah) which looks like a red Eiffel Tower and I think is taller, and a boat ride up the Sumidagawa River.  Later she and I had a nice dinner at restaurant serving various breaded veggies, meat and fish on skewers.  We enjoyed chatting and catching up the last 20yrs or so.

      Today I went on my own after breakfast to the Tsujiki fish market, which is acres upon acres of wholesale fish markets, selling just about anything that lives or swims in fresh or salt water.  Perhaps it is best known for the tuna auctions every morning at 5am, but I missed that.  Nonetheless it was an incredible scene, and I was mildly surprised by the number of creatures for sale that were unfamiliar to me!  When I got back to Sawanoya, Win was a bit better and we walked over to the neighboring shrine, Nezu, which was quiet and peaceful, the red buildings very much complimenting the fall foliage.  Then off to the station and back to Kyoto.

   Posts will be infrequent in December, as I will be returning to Boston the day after tomorrow!


Love and see you soon!