Our flight on ANA Airlines left on time and we had an uneventful flight. They served ice cream for desert!
We had 4 ish hours in Vancouver so we took the metro downtown and walked around a bit. It wasn’t hard to realize we were back when saw homeless people and one guy obviously on meth (sad).
Back at YVR our flight was delayed 40 minutes.
Arrival at YEG was BBRRRRR!! Cold!
Lisa picked us up. Thank you!
We took our time this morning, leaving the hotel just at check out time (11AM).
We left our bags at the hotel and then took the metro to Asakusa station ( which is the same one we went to accidentally the first day). This area of the city was where I first looked for hotels before we changed to the Akasaka area.
The purpose to go there was two fold. First we went to see the oldest temple in Tokyo ( admittedly rebuilt after the Americans destroyed the city in several different raids).
The place was just hopping! There were many young people ( especially girls ) dressed in traditional clothing; there to take photos at the magnificent buildings and grounds.
After that I wanted to walk a couple of blocks to the river and explained to Caro what happened on those bridges during the fire storms of 1945.
There is a large, busy shopping area in the streets surrounding the temple grounds and we walked them all as we had much time to kill.
Caro decided to try a shrimp treat ( the shrimp is flattened out as you wait). It was tasty.
From there we went to a sushi place with a style that Caro had always wanted to try. The place has various sushi’s going around on a moving tray or you can order from the menu. Either way all the various items you want to eat are on different coloured plates so when you are ready to pay, the attendant merely looks at your dirty dishes and determines your cost. Neat! And I actually enjoyed the raw tuna and sticky rice!
We took the metro back to our area and before getting our suitcases we went to the ramen place we went to on day 1. We each picked a plate of food and when finished we “waddled” over to the hotel to get our things.
Back to the metro we went and this time we had to make two metro/train station changes. The first was at Shimbashi station. We needed help several times to find our way to our connection line however we made our way successfully to the monorail that goes directly to Haneda airport.
Check-in had a minor hiccup but ANA Airlines was great getting things straightened out.
We had just enough money left on our Saica metro/train cards to buy a water / fruit pop. The money left on the app was not refundable so it was nice to use it all up.
We purposely chose to come to the airport early as we didn’t want to be hauling suitcases into extremely crowded metro cars. As it was, the cars were very busy but not so crazy that you had to be pushed on by station attendants.
So now we sit with three hours to go at this point before getting on the plane.
After a long FaceTime with Ruben and Tete ( getting ducks in a row for Caro to head down to Cancun) and a couple of shorter ones with Lisa and Vanessa ( to show them the room and the toilet-LOL) we headed out on the metro with the goal of seeing the Imperial Palace and grounds.
“Our”metro line took us right there so “that” was easy.
We inquired about the palace tours and were told to go to a specific spot about 12:10 to ensure we got one of the 300 spots. As we had 30 minutes to spare we walked around the East Garden area but really at this time of the year it is nothing special.
At 12:10 we went to the indicated spot and waited til 12:30 at which point we were given a ticket which guaranteed our partition in the guided tour beginning at 1:30 so we walked around some more!
By 1:30 we were in a hall with everyone and announcements were made in 6 languages indicating there would be 6 different language groups, each with their own specific language guide.
The tour was good but there are only a few remnants of the old buildings due to a massive fire in the 1600’s ( with some buildings not being rebuilt ) and the Americans bombing Tokyo heavily in WW2.
From there it was a two block walk to the Tokyo Station where we again fought the crowds, got lost in the maze of shops and concourses leading to the multitude of train lines, before we relocated the toy store area we were in yesterday. We purchased some souvenirs for the little ones and decided to get something to eat.
Caro had wanted to try some sushi so we found a stand up sushi place and we each sampled a three piece shrimp sushi. No forks were given to us so managed to use the chop sticks provided.
We stepped out into the crowds again, turned right and were immediately in front of a dumpling restaurant ( I think). Anyway we went inside for a sit down snack of crab and shrimp wrapped in some sort of dumpling ( with a Japanese beer shared between us). I found both places had tasty food.
We finally made it back out to street level and worked our way back to the metro station ( which we could have completed underground from the train station but it was too complicated). Four stops later we were at our stop and back in the hotel by about 5 PM
For our last evening in Tokyo ( that is not in an airport) we went to a nearby restaurant and shared a plate of Japanese style spaghetti and a couple of beers. We then walked the small streets of this vibrant area of the city. There are many restaurants, bars and shops. We found a great store to buy the last of our souvenirs. This place had no English translation on its checkout machine so a local helped us ( the people here have been extremely friendly to us whenever we have needed help).
This room is so small.
When we enter the room, on the immediate left is small area to hang a half dozen shirt
Next, on the right is a toilet room with a multitude of choices for your “comfort’. When you step inside the room the toilet lid automatically lifts up, and if you sit down the seat heats up. You don’t need to use toilet paper to clean yourself but it is available. The toilet automatically flushes when you get up and put the lid down.
The bath room really is for baths. If you want a shower you just shower in the middle of the room and the water drains through the drain beside the tub.
The room holds a queen size bed (which is very nice) but is very “economical “ in providing room for anything else. In the photo showing the bed you can see Caro’s elbow as she is sitting on a tiny corner piece couch. The fridge is in the bottom left of the photo and the hand wash basin is located across from the bed to the right of a TV ( which we haven’t turned on yet).
We slept sort of OK ( me more so than Caro as she is constantly thinking of getting down to Mexico to get things done).
After our hotel breakfast (which we had pre-paid for and I regret as it is a set menu that does nothing for me) we waited for our guide to show up.
Chiyoko showed up at 10 AM and we were off to tour Tokyo in pouring rain , and cold temperatures Yuck. 11 degrees but felt like 7. As part of the arrangements for this free guide service we paid for Chiyoko’s metro ($11) and later her lunch with us
Rather than buying tickets at the ticket machine at the metro we downloaded the metro/train card app and preloaded yen for our transportation requirements. It made things super easy.
Our first stop was a famous fish market followed by a famous shrine called Tsukiji Hongwanji ( which right beside the market).
We then walked to a very famous theatre where Kabuki is performed ( world famous style of theatre where men perform all roles including those of the women)
A short walk through the non-stop rain and wind ( really not nice at all) we went underground at Tokyo Station. OMG I can’t believe how massive this place is. I thought Shibuya yesterday was amazing but this station is out of this world! There are 9 conventional train company lines,5 bullet train lines at the station, and you walk through underground walkways to access five different metro lines! Of course there are so many stores that we have to go back tomorrow so Caro can find souvenirs.! Truly unbelievable!!
We caught one of the trains (using our just purchased pre-paid Saica cards, which are useable on the trains ,metros and some stores) and a while later we were in another part of the city. As we came out of the train station we were at the famous Shinjuku road crossing. At this place when the traffic lights turn red ( for all roads) the people cross the street in multiple directions. In the summer there are 3,000 people every time. Today in the rain and crappy weather there was probably a couple hundred umbrellas working their way to and fro.
At this point we suggested that the remainder of the day should be out of the rain. We caught the metro over to the Metropolitan Government skyscraper. We went up to the 45th floor to an observation area where we could see all the city. It was still rainy but we could see quite a bit.
Our day concluded with a nice lunch at a typical Japanese restaurant called Royal Host (OK.,not typical. It served all kinds of food although we chose Japanese).
As it was 4 PM by now we said our good bye’s “ and “thank you’s” to Chiyoko and made our way back using the metro. We had to top up our Saica cards (using Apple Pay) as we had spent the original 1000 yen ( about $9.60 cents)getting around today. What a great system they have here for paying for the transportation ( wished I had it yesterday when we first got here).
The evening has been quiet with Caro having a bath and me catching up on YouTube.
We sailed into Yokohama this morning to finish our cruise.
As usual we kept our suitcases with us and therefore could leave when we wanted. We were off ship by about 9 AM and found our way to the train station nearby. I had printed out the travel instructions to our hotel using Tokyo trains and metro.
We hopped on the train near the harbour and quickly realized this particular train was an express train to our connection point with the metro system ( therefore we didn’t have to make a planned changeover at a midpoint).
We got to the MASSIVE interchange station called Shibuya and following my Chat GPT printout we caught the proper metro line for our hotel OMO3 Asakusa. About 30 minutes later I realized something was wrong as Google Maps was showing us to be in another part
When I printed out the Chat GPT information back home I had inadvertently used the incorrect hotel name. We got back on the metro and this time worked our way to the hotel OMO3 Akasaka. Oh well, we had lots of time to kill until our check-in anyway. Still, I felt pretty foolish!
We left our bags at the hotel and wandered around. This area is very modern and really cool!
We stopped at a nearby ramen restaurant and had a spectacular meal ( at very affordable prices). We’ll definitely be back there again.
After check-in we went to our room and crashed for a bit. I had to use Google Translate in order to understand ( and set) the air conditioning. Also the toilet had many options so I used the translate for that.
As evening came we walked outside in the area seeing the neon lights coming on up and down the streets and tiny alleyways. We picked up some wine and a small bottle of Bacardi ( with some coke of course) and enjoyed some more relaxation time. We are still stuffed from our ramen meal so tonight is just snacks.
We cruised into this city and docked at 1 PM
On the way in we got some glimpses of Mt Fuji. Wow this mountain is much bigger than I thought!!
Before that, in the morning we went to a culinary show in the main theatre put on by the chef bosses. It was quite funny as they showed us how to make a couple types of Italian food. They got lots of laughs. We then had a quick visit to one of the kitchens to get an idea of how much work it is to keep us (and crew) in various foods and deserts.
We walked off the ship about 2 PM and spent a few hours walking around the streets finding a couple beautiful temples and shrines.
Once we returned to the ship area we caught the free shuttle up to a mall which was near a fish market. The market was neat because it was so clean it didn’t smell at all. The bus ride back was a cool experience for us. Caro and I were the last on the bus. All the seats had been filled and then, starting at the back, in the aisle area between the seats there were hidden seats that unfolded allowing even more people on!
Caro and I each sat on these seats
Mt Fuji was stunning in the afternoon with no clouds at all. Wow!
We had another hot tub and once again had a great visit with an American couple we have spoken to quite a few times.
In the evening we went to the main theatre for a folkloric traditional Japanese dancing show. Three ladies wearing beautiful kimonos performed dances with recorded music that have been danced for over 400 years. While well done it is definitely not our cup of tea
We had our final supper in the buffet restaurant and then watched us leave port.
