Japan... A Near Perfect Ending

You would love Japan.

The other day I looked at Jen and said, "Can you believe we started in the Philippines and ended in Japan? Good choice on our part!" Each trip was a little better than the previous one, but that's an understatement when talking about Japan.

We adjusted our travel schedule by cutting out two side-trips to Hakone (outside Tokyo) and Nara (outside Kyoto). Both would have been good trips, but we simply didn't feel like we had seen everything we wanted to see in the big cities. This was probably because we had the absolute best timing! We didn't get there in time to see the cherry blossoms in April, but we caught just about everything else.

In Tokyo, it was sumo season! There are only three big tournaments per year and we got to see one of them. It was also the weekend of the Sanja Matsuri festival in Asakusa, a once-a-year event always held on the third weekend in May. On top of that, we happened to stumble upon a giant parade/gathering/dance party in the streets of Shibuya... and I don't imagine that happens every weekend.

In Kyoto, most of the geisha performances are in April. However, we discovered there was one final series of performances that ran May 1-24. If you look at the calendar, you'll notice that we left Japan on the 23rd. Yeah, I know... lucky.

Between Daniel, Jen and myself, we took about 1,000 pictures. I'll have to find the best ones and post them on this blog. I also think I figured out how to post my albums from Facebook (which you can access even if you're not a member).

A few highlights
TOKYO
1. Arriving in the middle of Shibuya crossing, the biggest and busiest pedestrian intersection in the world. I was so overwhelmed exiting the subway that I just pressed myself against the wall and started laughing.
2. English. Trying to find restaurants with Ego (English) menus. How ironic is it that ego is the Japanese translation for English? Jen was attached to the phrase book, so she was a big help. Oh! And one night we went to a dungeon-themed restaurant complete with hand cuffs, cells and scary dungeon entertainers. They didn't have an English menu, but they had pictures. So we ordered their specialty cocktails (without knowing what was in them) and a small dinner. Daniel ordered what he thought was lasagna. Turns out it was a plate of potatoes... the size of a creme brulee ramekin. Sad, but very very funny.
3. The 6 am fish market. I have a video; it was insane. Tuna fish the size of my old Barbie car and some of the hardest/fastest working fishmongers I've ever seen. I think we nearly died 10 times in pedestrian-cart collisions.
4. The sumo tournament. The men were large and the fans were loyal. The most loyal ones have "ringside" seats and often get crushed when the losing player gets pushed off the mat. No thank you.
5. Shopping. Tokyo is silly and the fashions are exaggerated. Harijuku was great for people-watching, and the department store, Tokyo Hands, was the best for souvenir shopping and photo ops.

KYOTO
1. Our "hostels." We stayed in some of the most unique places all over the city. In Tokyo we spent three nights in bunk-bed style cubby holes with curtains. In Kyoto we upgraded to huge Japanese style ryokans and 200-year-old temples. They're best described in pictures, so I'll be sure to post some.
2. Geishas. We spotted them in Ponto-cho and Gion and did our best to take discreet pictures (sometimes). Geisha paparazzi was the theme for Kyoto. And of course, I mentioned the geisha dances earlier. Daniel was lucky enough to snap some pictures without being caught by the watchful ushers.
3. Temples and shrines. We saw too many to remember. Thankfully we have pictures to remind ourselves how beautiful these places were. Aunt Brenda, you would have loved the gardens and trees.
4. The weather. It sounds cheesy, but we had the absolute best weather all week long. It was mid- to upper-70s during the day and cool at night. Kyoto would be a terrible city to tour in the rain because everything worth doing is outside.
5. First public bath. Since we didn't have time to experience a real onsen (or Japanese hot springs bath), we decided to try out a public bath near our hotel. When I say public bath, you probably envision zen-like spas with mood lighting and herbal aromas. Not here. This was the Japanese version of the brightly lit health club locker room (mirrors included). Needless to say, Jen and I stripped down to nothing with a bunch of locals-- quite a bonding experience. We pretended to know what to do, but the locals picked up on our lack of bath skills and helped along the way. I can't even begin to describe what it felt like to sit nakedly among Japanese women scrubbing their bodies into a lather sitting on plastic stools made for 4-year-olds with brightly colored rinse buckets. It's important to note that you have to be completely clean before getting into a public bath. Hence, all the suds and washing. Better yet, Jen and I walked back to our hostel with our hair in towels and our PJs on.

I can't believe I only have a week left... but then again I can. I've had the opportunity to see so many amazing things and meet some really great people along the way. I think the best part is the near-fearlessness that comes with being able to travel in places I never expected to see. Of course, there are always slip-ups and challenges (walking the wrong direction, catching the wrong train, wanting to throw your guidebook in a puddle, etc), but I've learned not to fight it. Jen taught me the importance of embracing the phrase book (always good to know: Hello/Good Morning. Thank you. Where's the bathroom? Beer, please. May I have the check?).

Looking back, the Japanese people as a whole were incredibly happy and helpful, which made our experience that much more enjoyable. Now it's time to enjoy the last seven days!