We made it to Tokyo! A day late and a thirteen hour flight later....we arrived and managed to navigate the train system as well as find our Ryokan (traditional Japanese Inn...although ours is much like a small hotel).
Our room- with tatami mats and a futon to sleep on. The futon and surprisingly firm pillows are actually quite comfortable...might be somewhat related to the eight hour time difference causing extreme jet lag..;)
The street outside our Ryokan...quite empty at 6am. We are in a great neighborhood, only a few train stops from downtown...but away from the hustle and bustle. The tiny streets are full of small restaurants, bars and shops. Our first night we found a small tempura restaurant. The owner/chef came out to try his English on us. Most Japanese do not speak English, and even if they can, they are often too shy to try it. We ended up running into the chef at the Fish Market the next morning. Small world in big Tokyo!
The Tsukiji Fish Market. The big draw is the tuna auction, but it was closed due to "inappropriate behavior by visitors". (ie tourists getting in the way). Trust me, there was no way to NOT get in the way. The Fish Market was the craziest place I've ever been. I felt like a huge bumbling "American tourist"....everywhere I turned I was in the wrong place. You had to avoid workers, bikes, trucks, splattering fish blood, motorised carts. The place was amazing..but I wanted out.
A chunk of tuna in a glass display case worth hundreds of dollars. Dean and Bill caught at least 24 of these same size chunks (6 huge tuna) in the Cook Islands.
A breakfast of FRESH sushi at the outside market. Tried fish that I've never had before. Yum.
After breakfast we joined the Tokyo Great Cycling Tour. We did the "Sumo tour", which meant we saw sumo wrestlers as well as the rest of Tokyo on a bike. Above I am in front of a sumo "stable"- this is where the wrestlers live/eat/practice.
Two of the wrestlers with our bike tour friends from New York. Igor, on the far right, had no hesitation in calling out "hey friends, can I get a picture?" to the huge, humorlous wrestlers. Yikes.
Me cuddling with a sumo wrestler wood block painting in front of the Sumo Museum.
Senso-ji...one of the many temples we will see on this trip. Had to put it on the blog, as it is very Japanese and quite beautiful.
Riding through the gates of the Imperial Palace. The Emperor and royal family live deep inside the forest...surrounded by a moat and protected by guards.
The moat and part of the Palace. Our bike tour lasted about eight hours. It was incredible how much we were able to see. I expected Tokyo to be a crazy place to ride a bike...but it was actually quite pleasant. We were pretty pooped after our ride...headed home for a nap and a late night snack at a bar before calling it a night!
Our room- with tatami mats and a futon to sleep on. The futon and surprisingly firm pillows are actually quite comfortable...might be somewhat related to the eight hour time difference causing extreme jet lag..;)
The street outside our Ryokan...quite empty at 6am. We are in a great neighborhood, only a few train stops from downtown...but away from the hustle and bustle. The tiny streets are full of small restaurants, bars and shops. Our first night we found a small tempura restaurant. The owner/chef came out to try his English on us. Most Japanese do not speak English, and even if they can, they are often too shy to try it. We ended up running into the chef at the Fish Market the next morning. Small world in big Tokyo!
The Tsukiji Fish Market. The big draw is the tuna auction, but it was closed due to "inappropriate behavior by visitors". (ie tourists getting in the way). Trust me, there was no way to NOT get in the way. The Fish Market was the craziest place I've ever been. I felt like a huge bumbling "American tourist"....everywhere I turned I was in the wrong place. You had to avoid workers, bikes, trucks, splattering fish blood, motorised carts. The place was amazing..but I wanted out.
A chunk of tuna in a glass display case worth hundreds of dollars. Dean and Bill caught at least 24 of these same size chunks (6 huge tuna) in the Cook Islands.
A breakfast of FRESH sushi at the outside market. Tried fish that I've never had before. Yum.
After breakfast we joined the Tokyo Great Cycling Tour. We did the "Sumo tour", which meant we saw sumo wrestlers as well as the rest of Tokyo on a bike. Above I am in front of a sumo "stable"- this is where the wrestlers live/eat/practice.
Two of the wrestlers with our bike tour friends from New York. Igor, on the far right, had no hesitation in calling out "hey friends, can I get a picture?" to the huge, humorlous wrestlers. Yikes.
Me cuddling with a sumo wrestler wood block painting in front of the Sumo Museum.
Senso-ji...one of the many temples we will see on this trip. Had to put it on the blog, as it is very Japanese and quite beautiful.
Riding through the gates of the Imperial Palace. The Emperor and royal family live deep inside the forest...surrounded by a moat and protected by guards.
The moat and part of the Palace. Our bike tour lasted about eight hours. It was incredible how much we were able to see. I expected Tokyo to be a crazy place to ride a bike...but it was actually quite pleasant. We were pretty pooped after our ride...headed home for a nap and a late night snack at a bar before calling it a night!
great pics and descriptions! we are happy to see you guys back in the saddle again, soak it in and have a blast!
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