Today our fearless travellers must sample Natto, make their own Kansai-style Okonomiyaki for lunch, and visit three temples, battling the possibility of rain.  

Kyoto – A temple for every week, and an Izakaya for every day of the year.  It’s the Japanese version of Norwich, or so it feels.

A city of 1.4 million people, it has forests and mountains, and seems to have an interesting inner peace that you just don’t find in Tokyo with the bustling crowds.  Unless, of course, you happen to be at a shrine.

We started the day off with a wonderful breakfast where I finally had the chance to sample Natto.  Seriously people, it’s not that bad, mix it with rice and you’re god to go.  That said, I admit it’s not something I need to have again.  I will say, that I love it when people dismiss trying new things.  For years, people have told me how gross Natto is, and people who don’t even know what it is saying, “Eww that looks nasty”.  *shrugs* I’m quite happy exploring new foods and such.

We then headed out and visited three shrines and a shrine of convenience in the day:

• 7-Eleven – A shrine of convenience where we had to get money from the ATM
• Heian Shrine – A beautiful shrine just around the corner from the hotel where we are staying
• Kiyomizu-Dera Shine – In the mountains and provides some amazing views of Kyoto, better than the Kyoto Tower
• Fushimi Inari Shrine – Which has a two-hour hike to see all the Torii

The first Torii we saw was at the entrance of the Heian – HUGE, you can see that I’m a speck relative to the size of it.

There’s an indescribable sense of peace that you feel when you visit a shrine, and they’re gorgeous.

To get to the Kiyomizu Shrine, you go through a residential area, and then you go through an area of shops selling all things Matcha and Hello Kitty, among other items.  You then see this gorgeous shrine, which you know is going to have an amazing view.

On the way down we stopped for strawberry ice and also Match soft serve ice cream.  All so good!

We headed to Kyoto Station to head over tot he Fushimi Inari Shrine, stopping for lunch at Avanti, for Okonomiyaki.  No we didn’t make it, but we did think it would be a fun for someone during the Amazing Race Canada for the next season to have to serve Okonomiyaki.  *GRIN*

We encountered, what is probably my favourite piece of Jengrish, I had to have a picture taken with it.  You’ll see it below.  There are a few interesting pieces of Jengrish in the picture set below as well.

I’ve mostly picked pictures that Scott took today, as he’s learning to use our Rebel T4i and the various lenses.  He’s done a great job!

I’ve noticed that two of the shrines were actually sponsored by companies.  In one case, FujiFilm, and the other Hitachi.  Also, at the Fushimi Inari Shrine, companies and families will donate a Torii for good luck, etc…  It’s an accepted part of society here.

We ended the day off with an amazing meal at the hotel.  Prior to dinner, we stopped in the lounge for a drink and some cheese. Out of nowhere, the staff brought a small snack of tomato soup, chicken, curry, and shabu shabu. That really impressed us and it was tasty!

Our feet, legs and backs are both hurting.  It’s been worth it, though.

Off to Hiroshima in the morning via Osaka, staying overnight and then back to Tokyo.

Today our fearless travellers must make their way from The Westin Tokyo and get on the 13:03 Hikari 473 Shinkansen for Nagoya with their bags. They are allowed to send two bags ahead to Kyoto, while they sample the sights and sounds of Nagoya overnight. Will the travellers arrive? Will they figure out what Bento to eat on the train? Will the bags arrive in Kyoto? With the guiding powers of Pikachu, we shall see.

Shinkansen translates directly as “New Trunk Line”.  We took the Tokaido Shinkansen from Tokyo Station to Nagoya.  We took the “Hikari” Super Express which is the fastest train you can take on the Japan Rail Pass.  There is one faster, which is the “Nozomi” which only stops at major stations.

I am in awe of the service.  Keep in mind, this is the first time I have ever been on a high speed rail line, not even in Europe.  The trains are so smooth.  There’s something in the acceleration.  When you see a 16- car N700 set pass by you in a matter of seconds, you know you’re going fast.  My iPhone camera could not keep up with the speed of the other train, and often if I had my phone off and went to turn on the video camera, the other train will have passed by already.

Another thing that stands out is the time it takes for the cleaners to clean the train, AND they do a thorough job, unlike the cleaning job airlines do when cleaning a plane.  These people take their jobs seriously and it’s something I appreciate.  “Domo arigato, gozaimasu!”, truly means thank you from me.

It was amazing knowing we were just over 100kms out and it took us 38 minutes to get there.  This is definitely the fastest I have gone on any ground-based transportation method.

When we head up to Kyoto tomorrow, it will be a very quick journey literally.  Get on train, sit, get up and go.

So with that, we arrived in city #2 – Nagoya.

Nagoya is a city with only just over 2 million people – about 10% of the population of Tokyo, and the size of Toronto.  It’s a very nice city from the brief walk-around Scott and I. With our luck, we saw a number of people in colourful uniforms.  Scott asked what it was and it turned out to be the annual Domatsuri summer dance festival!  After seeing a massive group dance in the main high street in Nagoya, we visited the parks on Hisaya Odori where the festival was being held.

We also visited some of the shops on Otsu Dori.  What really strikes me, beyond the Japanese department stores, which are a class unto themselves, quite honestly, most shopping here in Japan consists of exactly the same brands as you would find at home.  I would say that’s one downside to globalization.

Although I commented to someone recently that in the video games market, region locking is stupid, and the game manufacturers need to realize that there is a market for the games that are region locked to specific regions around the world.  That said, it kind of makes some of the games that I picked up, that much more special as I can’t get them at home.

So it’s a double edged sword, as they say.

Getting back to the hotel, Scott had noticed they had an Onsen – A Japanese style bath.  You shower while seated, you then use a hot tub, and then transfer to a cold one, and you can go back and forth.  Not too much like the Finnish.  We felt very refreshed after.

So far we’re batting 1,000 on hotels.  The Westin Tokyo was beautiful in a classic kind of way.  The Hilton Nagoya, is beautiful in a modern kind of way.  The room we have has an ultra modern feel with classic Japanese sensibilities.  It’s small, but well worth the price we’ve paid (we did this on points and cash).

A neat thing we have experienced here in Japan is that, when you’re checking in with Platinum Privileges, or you’ve booked an Executive Room, you go to the lounge to check in.  You don’t check in, in the main lobby.  You get special handling.  It’s a very nice experience.

A few other things I’ve noticed during the trip

• Have a QR code reader handy. They’re used EVERYWHERE here.
• Bread is almost square.  It’s neat to see, and often one piece is more than enough.
• I wonder how much energy the Japanese waste with their heated toilet seats?
• Not only is there a Bible in the room, but there is also a book on the Teachings of Buddha next to it.
• We ended up sending our two big bags on to Kyoto.  This is a service offered in Japan by services like Takyubin (aka “Kuro Neko” with the black cat logo).  The hotel offers the service and it’s cheap and well worth it. Something like CAD$34 to send out bags which would arrive tomorrow morning. Honestly, you don’t want to carry big bags with you, dragging them through Tokyo Station and on Shinkansen.
• Tokyo Bananas – It’s a thing!  In short, think an amazingly tasty Twinkie.  I’ve not had one, but we have a package we’re going to have tomorrow. 🙂
• An iPhone camera can’t keep up with the speed of Shinkansen
• I’m beginning to think that Mt. Fuji really doesn’t exist, given it’s been so foggy and rainy in Japan this week so far. 🙂
• Do have the White Peach ice cream on the Shinkansen.  Best peach ice cream I’ve ever had!
• We walked by a department store that was celebrating it’s 400th anniversary.  Take that HBC!
• We finally saw a Canadian home reference in an ad in one of the Subway stations!  Yes, Japanese have a thing for Canadian-style home renovations.  Maybe Scott and I should become design consultants in Japan!

I’m a day late on my blog from Day 3, and that’s okay.  We had other priorities like packing our bags to send on to Kyoto from Tokyo.

Yesterday was spent hanging around Tokyo Station. The station itself is gorgeous as you can see from the photos below.

Quite an amazing place.  It looks small from the outside, yet when you get deep inside the station, there’s a whole different world, underground, beyond subways, JR lines and Skinkansen.  There are whole streets dedicated to food, dining and shopping!  Most importantly, character shopping and omiyage, both important to Japanese culture – and their exports to the world outside.

You can spend a whole day here especially if you’re into much of the kawaii geerkey of this place.

We also found the Daimaru department store which has an amazing food hall.  Seriously amazing.  The presentation of food is a feast for the eyes and you want to buy and try everything.

We also found a Kit Kat special chocolate bar vendor within Daimru.  Kit Kat is Japan’s number one selling chocolate bar, and the flavours are spectacular.  You must try them if you can.

If you’re a geek like me, and you have a Nintendo 3DS, be sure to carry it around Japan with you, but more importantly, take it to Tokyo Station and other train stations.  You can pick up a lot of streetpasses, especially on Character Street.

We then headed over to Odaiba.  Odaiba is a man-made island and definitely a center of the port industry in Tokyo.  They’re also trying to make it a bit of  destination with shopping (AquaCity), Fuji TV’s HQ (really neat architecture), Japan’s National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation (Miraikan) and the Museum of Maritime Science.  Beyond that Toyota has a really neat technology showroom.  Odaiba is also where some of the venues for the 20/20 Olympics will take place.
Other things to see in Odaiba:

• There is a massive ferris wheel, which, in 1999 was the tallest in the world.
• There is a replica of the Statue of Liberty
• You can get a beautiful view of the Rainbow Bridge, which is lit up at night

To get there you can take the Yurikamome automated guideway transit service.

On our way back to the hotel, we stopped at the Ebisu Mitsukoshi department store, which is akin to a Hudsons Bay in Canada.  I didn’t think they would have a food hall, but we found it.  As always, in the basement. We picked up a HUGE meal of sushi for just over 1700 yen!  So good and tasty!  We also had tea in the lounge of the hotel – a great perk if you have Platinum privileges.

Today our fearless travellers will travel by JR Yamanote and Chuo lines to walk through the Meiji Shrine, where in order to get out, Iain must advance to level 10 in Ingress.  Then they must travel over to Akihabara to get saturated in the sights and sounds of the Electric Town, to find peace and quiet in Kappabashi which is known for it’s Kitchen Town providing balance in an otherwise busy day.

And that we did.  We started the day going to the Meiji Shrine (I spelled it wrong earlier in the day – there is an extra i).  The shrine is gorgeous and such a place of solitude in a very hectic and busy city.  It’s funny hearing the music and sounds of the Yamanote line and Harajuku station as you walk through the park to get to the main shrine area.

Such a different world.

And such a different world was Akihabara when we got there via the Chuo line.  Literally the first thing out of my mouth was, “Holy crap!” looking at the Yodobashi in Akiba.  8 floors of electronics heaven for some.  For the record, OLED TVs are gorgeous.

The one thing I can say is that, we’re both drained from the over stimulation of sights and sounds.  It can be pretty overwhelming when you’re in a store like Yodobashi and they have announcements from within the store, general announcements with music, staff, sounds from TVs, video games and audio equipment blaring all at once.

Imagine being outside and hearing it from several stores, vendors on top of the crowds of people.  It gets to the point where we’re in an elevator and we can take a deep breath and let it out, and we’re thankful for the peace and quite for a few short seconds.

And then there’s the Tokyo Metro, the JR Yamanote and Chuo lines which are all very quite on the trains themselves and everyone is heads down in their phones.

Beyond that

• We have been getting up very early, around 6am to have breakfast at 6:30am and then getting out of the hotel around 7:30am.
• Despite having different colour options here for the PS Vita, stores are often sold out of different colours which include a yellow/green, blue, and pink beyond the standard black.
• As I mentioned yesterday, it looks like there is a deal on until August 31st where not only do you get Tax Free Shopping if you’re a foreigner, but if you pay with Visa, you get an additional 6% off, if you’re from China and have Union Pay, you get an additional 5% off.  It’s worth it if you want to bring electronics home.
• The Maid Cafe, in particular Maiddreamin was an interesting and fun experience for us. Admittedly, expensive, but given the entertainment, it was worth it for the experience.
• Scott picked up a very nice Sushi Knife and had it engaged with “Kuma”
• You would expect that in the land of sushi, Kaitensushi restaurants would be everywhere.  They’re not, in fact Scott and I have found them very difficult to find.  And that’s more than fine as there are many other food experiences to be had in  a city the size of Tokyo.
• We found a Yakitoria that did amazing Chicken Yakotori to help us get us through the Subway ride to dinner at the Yebisu Beer Hall near our hotel.
• Shibuya at night is insane.  I was able to get some video of people crossing this evening.  Just wow.
• I was expecting to see subway attendants ready to push people into the Yamanote line, and while we did see the attendants, there was no pushing.
• We’re using a pocket WiFi hotspot that we rented for the week which is on the ‘au’ network. It’s amazing that the battery on it lasts all day with three devices pinging constantly.
• If you play with a Nintendo 3DS and Streepass, be sure to clear you’re street passes.  I’ve gone through about 30 Streetpasses today.  Fun picking up the various regions in Japan, and pieces to puzzles, etc…
• It has been unseasonably cool and quite grey in Tokyo this trip.  Very pleasant at one level, given it’s usually 10C warmer (well into the 30s and humid versus the 20s we’ve had).
• Surprisingly, I’m not taking as many photos as I normally would on a trip.
• KFC is expensive.  Easily $3 to $4 markup from home. No, we’re not eating there.  The only westernized fast food we’ve had is a McDonald’s deep fried Apple Pie (has to be done) and Starbucks Coffee.
• Scott and I got our ink signatures in Japan.
• Mister Donut exists in Japan!  They’re mostly long gone in Canada!  And no, we did not stop in and have one.

I am really enjoying it here.  It’s such a neat place.

In Japan, you have to look up.  If not you miss things.

Case in point is the picture to the left.  You have several floors of restaurants to choose from.  In North America and much of the Western world, most shopping on a high street is on the ground level, maybe the second level.

Japan is built tall.  I have been constantly been looking up to see, what am I missing?  Especially today in Akihabara which is the being “Electric Town” where you can find anything electronic, and I mean anything.

The Yodobashi has something like 7 floors of everything a consumer would want.  We ducked down an alleyway in Electric Town and found vacuum tubes.  Looking up was a geeky Maid Cafe where we had lunch.

You definitely have to be looking around when you’re here, in Tokyo.  If not, you might miss something you’ve been looking for.

On this leg of the journey, our contestants must 
– open onigiri, a snack of rice with something in the middle and do it properly without food falling apart
– Use a Passmo card
– Exchange their Japan Rail pass so they can fly around Japan
– Cross at Shibuya without dying!
– Get lost in Shinjuku!
– Find rare Japanese-only Pet Shop Boys albums!
– Try and find video game items for friends who have made requests
– Enjoy traveling on the Yamanote line in rush hour

I have to admit, we did the Onigiri bit yesterday.  I can follow directions, Scott had some difficulty despite being able to read the language. HEHEH.

We spent the day in Shibuya and Shinjuku getting up at about 6:30am – You heard that right.  I had actually never been more than happy to get up for breakfast and take our time getting going.

Shibuya is famous for it’s crossing and Hachiko.  Story goes that when his master passed away, he would wait outside Shibuya station for his owner to return. A sad story and a fitting memorial at the station.

Shibuya’s crossing is interesting.  When we got there about 8am, I wondered what all the fuss was about.  We stopped in at the Starbucks at the crossing and watched for a bit of time.  I will say, it is amazing the number of people that walk through that place as the day goes on.  Stopping for lunch at the Tokyu Hands Foodhall, I can attest that Shinjuku is a very busy place.

While in Shibuya we stopped at Tower Records.  This place is heaven on Earth, and reminds me of the HMV at 333 Yonge St in Toronto in the 90s. CDs are still big here in Japan, and Japan is apparently a country full of audiophiles.  I will explain later.  I still believe in the CD as being a high quality source for sound versus M4As and MP3s.  Being a music producer myself, it’s undeniable the quality you get from a CD.  So I was very much in my happy spot, picking up some Towa Tei, Kylie, Pet Shop Boys, LFO and 808 State CDs that are Japanese-only special editions.

We headed over to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government building where there is an observation deck, where we could see Tokyo as it sprawls out, with an explanation of different places we could see from a guide.

It’s amazing the balances between loud and busy, and then quiet and busy.  Walking near the Tokyo Metropolitan Government offices, it was quiet other than the cicadas buzzing.  The metro trains, quiet. Shibuya – loud. LOL

We made our way over to Shinjuku which is the busiest transit hub in the world.  You can see that very clearly, and it’s currently undergoing renovations too, to make it even more efficient.

When you’re in Japan, you’ll notice there is an order to things when people are in lines, making their way to wherever they are going.

• Walk forward on the left, oncoming right
• Stand on a moving walk way on the left, walk on the right
• Stand on the left of an escalator, walk on the right

It makes sense and I like it.

We picked up our JR passes which start tomorrow, which means we are completely covered on the Yamanote line, all Shinkansen and JR-run local lines.  Such a great deal.

We stopped at the Tonkatsu Wako in Mylord which is a big department store at Shinjuku.  Three full floors of restaurants which are all tied to the department store.  The Pork Tonkatsu was amazing.  The panko crust to die for.

And then there was the dessert craziness we saw on 7F.  I didn’t have any but I put on 10lbs just looking at it!

We made our way to Bicqlo (combined Bic Camera and Uniqlo store) and the Yodobashi superstore.

Bicqlo has a crazy sale on where, not only do you get duty free shopping as a foreigner, saving the 8% consumption tax, but if you pay with a Visa card, you get 6% off on top of that.  So, say a PS Vita which runs $200 in Canada, can be had for about $175.  And you have your choice in colours here.  Crazy!

But even crazier is the Yodobashi superstore.  Three locations all in a short walk from each other.  One with nine stories of mobile phones, another with four stories of iPhone accessories, games, and Gauchupon.  Another which is full of cameras and electronics of about seven floors.

I think the one thing that stood out for me, was that at Yodobashi and Bic (we visited a location in Shibuya beyond the Bicqlo) both had a floor almost fully dedicated to headphones.  Also the high-end audiophile equipment in these stores was nothing short of amazing.

The Japanese do like their electronics.  It’s almost too overwhelming, especially if you want to find something to take back home.

I ended up picking up a few games for friends and myself, and an Amibo.  I’m not really collecting them, but for few that I do like, I am.

After finishing at Yodobashi, we headed back to the hotel where Scott crashed on the bed for a nap while I went up to the lounge for a snack.

Time to head to bed shortly.

It’s now 2am and Scott and I are awake after only getting  6 hours of sleep.  Gotta wake up and have Onigiri which we picked up at a Lawson at Narita airport.

Combini, or Convenience Stores have all kinds of services.  You can learn about them in this episode of Being Japanology.  The snacks they have are just awesome, and yes they’re going to totally derail me from my diet.

A few things stand out from the rush of getting from Narita to Ebisu, for me.

• The work uniform!  Everyone is almost wearing the same thing.  A white button down shirt, dark trousers – typically black.  I knew to expect this, but still, seeing it in person is another thing.
• The crowds going through Tokyo Station is ordered chaos.  It’s quite neat to see how it all works.  And if you mess up, no one gives you attitude, or at least I didn’t notice it.
• Lining up to go up an escalator and standing/walking on the appropriate side just seems to work beautifully here.  I can only describe it as a very zen experience.  You wait your turn and chill out.  There’s no rush, everyone is going in the same direction, etc…  I like it!
• Every station stop on the Yamanote line plays a different tune when you arrive.  It’s awesome.
• Despite being in the country 3 hours, travelling on two modes of transit (N’EX and Yamanote – essentially airport express train and subway), I only picked up one StressPass on my Nintendo 3DS!  I’ll check Near on my PS Vita shortly.
• Onigiri is not that difficult to open, if you understand the instructions. *GRIN*  For the record, I did it correctly and it was tasty!
• Yes I am a foot taller than everyone on the Yamanote line that I saw, but it didn’t phase me as much as some people thought it would.  Maybe later today when we hit Akiba, Shinjuku or Shibuya it will.  *shrugs*

“It’s the Amazing Race Iain and Scott style! Our contestants must check in and fly to Narita on Air Canada’s 787-8, where they will be wined and dined to their hearts content. Finally they must make their way through Tokyo and check in to their hotel to get their next clue.”

18 years after starting to talk about it, we’re finally here!  Scott’s first time in 20+ years back in Japan!

Firstly, what a fantastic flight!  AC1 YYZ direct to NRT on a 787!  The engines are quiet, the service was amazing in Business Class.  What more could we have asked for?  A painless 13 hour flight, for sure!

Both Scott and I opted for the Japanese meal for both dinner and breakfast (noodles), and Dim Sum mid-flight.  Yes!  Several achievements were unlocked

• Octopus on board – Yes, I had octopus in my dinner
• Keiseki on a plane – The presentation, for airline food, was gorgeous
• Dim sum on a plane – Tasty!
• Slippers on a plan – Nice touch!

Once we arrived, we stopped briefly to pick up our wifi hot spot and we were soon on our way to Ebisu (aka Yebisu) via… N’Ex to Tokyo Station.

Rather than going to Shibuya, Scott decided to book us to Tokyo station, and then take the Yamanote line to Ebisu… In rush hour traffic.  Okay, we count that as an achievement.

• Taking Yamanote Line with baggage at rush hour

We won’t be doing that again!

Our first hotel is The Westin Tokyo, which we had changed from the Sheraton Miyako.

At this hotel, when you’re SPG Platinum, you don’t check in on the main lobby.  Oh no, you check in on the 17th floor at the club lounge.

All I can say is, wow.  The room is gorgeous.  We’re in a great area of Tokyo with a view of Tokyo Tower.

What’s up for the next leg of the race?  Stay tuned and you’ll see.  For now, here are some pictures: