Sunday, October 21, 2007
Sunday, 21 Oct 2007 (Japan time)Well, I made it to Japan. It's kind of surreal, but here I am. I got in last night, which seemed like yesterday morning to me because of the time change. Ginger met me at the airport and helped me navigate the trains into Tokyo and to our hotel. It's good she came because I couldn't fall asleep on the flight and I was running on fumes. I managed to stay up late enough to accompany her to dinner. She scarfed down a rice bowl with beef, plus all the traditional side dishes and miso soup. I settled on a bowl of warm miso soup which was just enough to keep me awake and able to hold a conversation.
We slept in this morning to help me get over my jet lag. By the time we got out of the hotel it was lunch time, so we set out on a quest for food. A short meander through the Shinjuku station landed us in a small restaurant. The sample dishes in the window outside caught Ginger's eye and the decision was made. The menus had no English, but we saw a picture of a dish in the display and pointed it out to the waitress. Soon after we each had trays of delicious food in front of us. I called it sashimi at first, but someone corrected me later on. I don't remember the name. Sorry. Nevertheless, it was delicious.
Satiated by our traditional Japanese cuisine, we set out to explore Shinjuku. We started out in the Shinjuku Central Park, which was adjacent to our hotel. The grounds were very green and very comforting. I was shocked at how nice the weather was for the time of year. Japan's climate is pretty temperate despite how far north it is. We wandered through a swap meet in the park courtyard and perused the goods. There were a lot of American clothes (A&F, AE, GAP, etc.) that people were selling. Ginger was in Otsu and Kyoto the week before and noted that she didn't see any homeless people. I rebuked that theory on my first day as we passed several homeless people with tarp-tents in the park.
After that we set off for the Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden. On the other side of town. I couldn't help but notice how clean the streets are, and the whole city in general. There's also very little traffic. Granted, it was Sunday, but still. In Los Angeles there's traffic every day. They also drive on the opposite side of the road. I guess Americans are just about the only people who drive on the right side of the road. We just have to be different.
We make it to the gardens and they're much bigger than the park. You have to pay to get in, but it's only like 200 yen (less than $2). Being Sunday, all the Tokyo residents are out enjoying the amazing weather. The park is built around a long, slender pond in the middle. around it are open green lawns, and around all that is a forested border. There were many stone lanterns around the park and even a nice patio house. It turns out the house was built for the wedding of one of the Japanese princes.
Our friend Sander took us out to dinner in Ikebukuro for some more traditional Japanese cuisine. At the top of the menu were what I surmise were fried sardines. Not fried fish meat, but fried whole fish. You eat them like french fries. I was a little weirded out, but dove tight and bit the head off one. Scrumptious!
Well, I had to have a swig of water, but I ended up eating about three of them before the night was over. Also on the menu was tempura and kebobs. There was another dish (I can't remember the name) that had beef and vegetables and they cooked it in a bowl right there on the table. Very tasty. We even got some Japanese beer and hot sake to wash it all down with.
Sander took the chance to teach us a few of the Japanese customs. We had noticed how polite everyone in Japan had been, and Sander explained that it was no coincidence. There are many formalities such as when someone hands you something (a receipt, your credit card) with both hands, you accept it with both hands.With our bellies full and bodies warm from the sake, Ginger and I are calling it a day.
Labels: Ginger, Japan, Things I never thought I'd eat
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