Japan

Hello! Hello!

Well finally got a few mins to update you on my travels... Just found out I cant add pictures at present so they be added later.

Touched down in Auckland a couple of days ago and I am sat in a basement Internet Cafe after buying myself some new walking boots at a beastly 130 pounds and a jacket too...

Anyhow...

Oct Friday 31st
After a sleepless 11 hour flight flew into Tokyo Narita airport and got a bus out to Asakusa where our Roken (Trad. Jap hotel) was situated. You get a ciouple of tatami mats to sleep on and free green tea and a kimono. Went to markets and shrines in the area and celebrated our first japanese lench with a tuna sandwich from a little place oposite a Bathhouse. Shrines and Temples are plenty and the Japanese like to go and get their fortunes read by shaking little wooden sticks from a box, matching the symbol on the stick to a draw and then reading a message from the draw that tells them their fortune. They also waft smoke from insence onto themselves to sooth aches & pains and douse themselves in water as part of the Shinto cleansing tradition. Senso-ji is a massive temple and pretty impressive.

Asakusa is pretty quiet for Tokyo, but something that struck me about all of Japan is that everyone is super-clean, quiet and ordered - even in big crowds people are quiet and rarely raise their voices. The Japanese were soo friendly too. As we walked past a little wooden bar a women waved us in and we bought some little kebabs and a beer. Nobody speaks much english at all, so we got by with just a few basic words and lots of pointing.

It was Halloween and we actually managed to find a party going on in a bar. The guy on the door even gave us 2 tokens for free drinks to celebrate. Main shock is Japan is really expensive! Im talking 2 pounds for 2 average bananas here! But they do sell HUGE apples and I mean monsters! Ace!

Oct Nov 1st
Went out to Ginza today on Tokyo Subway. Ginza is shopping central and big high street fashion area. Got breakfast in a Ramen noodle shop which was ace - you pick what you want from the menu (printed on a vending machine) and pay for it then take up you voucher to the chef who cooks it up and hands it to you. The quality of food is really good, in fact the quality of everything is. Went ot Shibuya crossing this afternoon - it the classic crossing with the high rise buildings and videoscreens where people all walk from every angle when the walk sign comes on. Wandered around the Love Hotels where you can buy rooms by the hour and looked in the shops which are all MEGA. Seriously, the stuff they sell in amazing and the shops are rammed with novelty stuff from dried octopus to mexican wrestler masks and cute stuff. Went to Roppongi which was pretty cosmopolitan and had another round of Ramen noodels, finished the day of with sushi from the 7/11!

Oct Nov 2
We wanted to get out to Yoyogi park and Harajuku today to see the crazy street fashion but ended up sleeping right through til 4pm! I wondered why it was getting dark as I was getting up!! Clobbered by Jetlag BIG TIME. Felt really odd for ages and tried to get back in the swing of it, so went to Akihabara where they sell loads of electronic goods and manga and bought an amazing meal in a well posh restaurant of boiled chicken and egg on rice. Food is mostly kinda odd and very intricate, lots is gloopy and soft dough is common. Went to Shinjuku which was big city and bright lights.

Oct Nov 3rd
Today we got out of Tokyo and went off early to Kamakura which is about an hour on the Japan Rail network out west. The place is full of shrines and temples and we managed to go on a wander over some hills where the trees were really gnarley and rooty. Bought some amazing steamed dough buns with stirfried food insode that were yum! After getting back to Tokto we went out to Shimbashi Central Tokyo and had some more noodles!!

Oct Nov 4th
We got up early and went to Tsukiji fish market which we just caught the tail end of as it starts at 3am in the morning! Ate really good sushi in a bar - had conga eel, manta shrimp, seared tuna and some squid etc! Got fuch soup and veg and felt stupid not really knowing how to go about eating it! Was goood though.

Went out to harajuku afterwards and had some seriously good crepes! Went to Yoyogi park! Gotta go my time is up!!!!

Im now in Auckland! Reverse culture shock!!!!! It's very western! and were freaked out by people being able to listen into our conversdations again!!!