Japan Part 1 — Tokyo

Okay, okay, we apologize. We said we would post a lot more content (a lot more often) but we definitely fell off the wagon. Quite a few people have asked us for updates and we have failed these people for the past month! We have had a hard time keeping things up to date on the blog because there are so many exciting things to do, places to see, foods to eat, and people to meet. That said, our pace is slowing down a bit more and we are going to put more of an effort into updating the blog regularly.

We have been traveling throughout south and central Vietnam for the past two weeks— currently in a beautiful area called Tam Coc and continuing to move up north— but spent two weeks in Japan and fell in love with the country. With 10 days in Tokyo (we extended our stay twice!) and 4 days in Kyoto, we discovered that Japan is an incredibly fascinating and beautiful country and it quickly moved to the top of our list of future travels.

Because we don’t want this post to be overloaded with content, we will split our time in Japan into two posts: one for Tokyo, one for Kyoto. Riley has also been putting together some thoughts on the experience we had at the kabuki performance we attended and I’ll be adding more thoughtful reflections as we go along. For now, enjoy the pictures and videos! Comments and questions are always welcome!

Tuesday January 31

The day was spent traveling to Tokyo, and my, what a travel day it was! We checked out of our AirBnB and grabbed lunch before heading to the airport at 12 PM for our 9 PM flight. You’re probably thinking that’s a bit early, right? Well, we thought we were the smartest people in Taipei.

Our logic behind this decision was that we would get to the airport and take advantage of the swanky airport lounge with comfy seats and free food. We signed up for the Chase Sapphire Reserve credit card before we left because it has great travel perks, one of them being that we now have access to airport lounges. Eight hours to relax in an airport lounge without having to carry our bags everywhere — why wouldn’t we?

Well, that plan went down in flames! First, we determined that the lounge was located behind the security screening. Duh. After wandering around the terminal for fifteen minutes trying to find our carrier’s check-in kiosk, we finally swallowed our pride and asked the nice ladies at the information desk why we couldn’t find our airline. We were pleasantly informed that we would not be able to check in until two hours before our flight. Check-in was in seven hours? This was NOT the answer we were expecting.

Although we felt quite stupid, I believe this was a rite of passage as it was our first major, but harmless, travel mistake. We now know that 1) we should check to see if that swanky lounge with comfy seats and free food is located before or after the security screening and 2) most carriers don’t allow you to check in until 2–3 hours in advance of the scheduled flight time. Now we also know that we are definitely not the smartest people in Taipei.

We can’t complain though. We had a couple more hiccups — I was kicked out of the check-in line for no apparent reason and argued with the security officer while Riley was on a walk and we had to rush to the lounge to scarf down food in the 15 minutes before our plane started boarding— but we made it onto the flight and were off to Tokyo with recently acquired travel knowledge!

Wednesday February 1

We spent our first day in Tokyo meandering through the Chiyoda, Ginza and Shinjuku neighborhoods. We knew we would love Tokyo as soon as we stepped outside our hotel. It is so clean, so orderly, so beautiful, with amazing food to boot!

1. A bit exhausted from our 3 AM bed time after traveling from Taipei to Tokyo, but so excited to explore the city | 2. After wandering around a bit, we found a great ramen place in the basement of an office building. Riley got a double serving of pork and was stuffed afterwards, which is par for the course.

1. The Imperial Palace from afar. We had expected to gain entry, but apparently that is not possible when the Emperor is present. | 2. The closest we could get was a gate, three soldiers, and two barricades away. They really didn’t want us to enter.

1. We wandered away from the Imperial Palace to find the beautiful Yasukuni Shrine, which is dedicated to those killed in war. Although we weren’t allowed to take pictures of the shrine itself, Riley took this fantastic photograph of O-mikuji, which are random fortunes written on strips of paper. Riley is quickly becoming the “Strong-er” photographer — pun absolutely intended.

1 & 2. After that, we walked to the garden behind the shrine. This was our first time seeing a Japanese garden, and although it was a gloomy and cold day, we couldn’t help but sit down for a while and be mesmerized by the peace and tranquility of the landscape.

1. I’m blurry in this one because we wanted to take a picture of the adorable little schoolgirls in their uniforms. Japanese children are impeccably dressed. These two look like they came straight out of Ludwig Bemelmans’ Madeline books! | 2. We made our way to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, which has one of the best views of Tokyo — for free! It is hard to describe how expansive Tokyo truly is and the pictures don’t do it justice.

1 & 2. Showing off our Japanese hotel pajamas. While I take a selfie, Riley conducts “business.”

Thursday February 2

We got a later start on this day because we spent the morning working out and getting our Taipei blog post up. When we did get out of the hotel, we continued to wander through the Minato, Tsukiji, Ginza areas. We had dinner in the Naka-Meguro neighborhood at an amazing hole-in-the-wall yakitori restaurant. By the end of day two, we had absolutely confirmed that we loved Tokyo.

1. While walking to the Tsukiji neighborhood, we came upon real life Mario Kart revelers!

1. Riley loved how efficient and ingenious the Japanese could be — case in point, a Japanese parking garage.

1. While Riley appreciated the Japanese parking garages, I appreciated the fact that the Japanese seemed to be as obsessed with bread as I am. “Delicious bread to make life happy making the everyday better.” AMEN! | 2. Riley was getting creative with his snapchats and showcased his artistry by simultaneously exhibiting Tokyo Domino’s unique delivery vehicle AND my strong feelings for their amazing pizza. Expect to see this in SFMOMA within the year.

1. We ate dinner in the Naka-Meguro neighborhood at a small restaurant named Kushiwakamaru. The dining etiquette for yakitori was an experience in and of itself because we didn’t know what to do with each plate we received — we were definitely judged as we ate — but the food was so amazing that we didn’t care at all! Highly recommended if you find yourself in Tokyo.

Friday February 3

This was our busiest day yet! We walked outside of our hotel room and stumbled upon a procession for the Setsubun bean throwing festival, visited Meiji Shrine and the surrounding park, experienced the madness of Shibuya crossing, and met up with some of Riley’s co-workers for a truly incredible Yakiniku (Japanese BBQ) dinner.

1 & 2. Riley and I walked out of our hotel room right into a procession of people chanting and throwing beans at each other. We were bewildered. After getting handing beans and asking what was going on, we were informed that the Setsubun festival was that day. The Setsubun festival marks the arrival of spring in Japan (the day before spring, actually) and people throw beans to cleanse away evil spirits from the year before and to ward off evil spirits for the year to come. We joined in!

1. Yet again, Riley takes a stunning photograph.

1. Watch this video if you want to experience the Setsubun procession through our eyes!

1,2,3. After making our way through the procession, we hopped onto one of the many Tokyo subway/metro lines and made our way to Meiji shrine. The park surrounding the shrine was stunning, and with the light beginning to fade, Riley and I decided to have a bit of a photoshoot :)

1. Although Riley can claim most of the beautiful pictures, I claim this one! We couldn’t get over how tranquil everything was — the architecture and nature blended so seamlessly together. We have already determined that we will borrow a few elements of Japanese architecture for our future home.

1,2,3. The Meiji shrine was stunning although there were quite a few people visiting at the same time. The architecture is amazing!

1. People wrote their prayers on little wooden placards and after the Kannushi (Shinto priests) blessed the prayers, they were placed in front of the shrine. I wrote one down as well! | 2. The sun was setting as we left the shrine.

1. Selfie in front of the gate at the edge of the park. | 2. The equivalent of an ice cream truck to Americans, the Japanese invented an even greater tinkly music-blaring, food-selling automobile — a bakery truck! Riley got a donut and was very pleased.

1. Walking up to the bakery truck to find treats galore! Wahooooo!

1. If anyone is a fan of Its Always Sunny in Philadelphia, they will understand this reference: “Daimon, aaaAAAaaa, fighter of the night man, aaaAAAaaa!” Daimon was a stop on the metro and we couldn’t get the song out of our heads for the entire time we were in Tokyo. | 2 & 3. We walked through the madness of the iconic Shibuya crossing and then decided to escape the herds of people and watch from above at the metro station.

1. A time lapse of Shibuya Crossing

1. We then made our way to the Aoyama neighborhood to visit the Square office in Tokyo. We were meeting two of Riley’s former Square co-workers for dinner. While waiting for them to finish up work before the weekend, Riley and I hung out in the office. Of course, we figured out a way to have fun while bored :)

1. Riley and me with Hiro and Reimon, our generous and gracious hosts. Our 11 course Yakiniku dinner at the Innocent Carvery was absolutely incredible — one of the best meals we have ever eaten. We had great discussions, laughs, food, and most importantly, great company. | 2. Riley and I were in a food coma after the meal — so much tasty food and such an incredible experience!

Saturday February 4

We felt a bit guilty after eating so much food the night before (we were still full after waking up!) and needed to train for the Everest trek, so we decided to head an hour west of Tokyo to Mt. Takao for a long hike. We were so happy to get outside of the bustling city and breath in the fresh air of Mt. Takao.

1. Riley at the top of one of the other peaks near Mt. Takao. Many of the peaks had small picnic areas with refreshments and snacks for sale. It made a steep climb to the top worth it! | 2. We saw some of the cutest little kids on the hike! This one was a bit shy and asked his dad about us but wouldn’t come up to say hello. Riley and I are pretty frightening :)

1. Mt. Fuji could be seen from the distance.

1. We decided to stop to warm up with a cup of coffee and a snack as it was quite cold and we felt we had earned it after an hour and a half of walking uphill. While we were catching our breath, we looked over and found what had to be a 70 year old man lugging a huge block of wood with his shoulders as the sole support of the weight. Riley and I looked at each other and felt like complete amateurs! | 2. A view of the make-shift kitchen that sold a variety of refreshments and food. | 3. With Mt. Fuji in the distance while sipping a cup of coffee, this view was hard to beat.

1. Riley provides a sense of place, while I provide a sense of relief.

1. Riley taking a picture of the newly budding plum blossoms | 2. Said picture of newly budding plum blossoms.

1 & 2. Selfie time! We actually asked a group of Japanese hikers to take a picture of us but they didn’t speak english. After a few confusing hand gestures were made, they figured out what we were asking and took a picture of us. We then gestured that we would take a picture of their group if they wanted. Instead, they grabbed me and took a picture of me with their group. As a result, they have a picture of a random American woman laughing in their group photo. Some things are just lost in translation!

1. Riley forging ahead through the stream!

1. Riley smiles | 2. Riley pouts | 3. Riley rawrs

1. After seeing signs for a waterfall, we were expecting a bit more than what we got.

1. The “trail” that led us down to the bottom of Mt. Takao. We loved it! | 2. We came across funny little statues with red knitted hats and bibs on the trail down from the mountain and had no clue what they were! When taking a picture, a man stopped and bowed in front of them. We soon learned that they are called Ojizosama statues and are one of the most popular Japanese deities that are said to protect children and travelers. People put the hats and the bibs on them to protect them from cold weather — the Japanese believe that all living and non-living things have a soul.

Sunday February 5

After a 5 hour hike, we felt that we deserved some rest and relaxation. My sister (shout out to you, Kat! We love you so much!) was incredibly generous and gave us a spa day in Tokyo for our Christmas gift this year. We decided to take full advantage of it! And my, did we do exactly that. We spent 6 hours at the spa— relaxing with tea and the newspaper, getting an hour long massage, soaking in an onsen (Japanese mineral bath), and working out in the nice gym. This was one of our most relaxing days yet, and definitely a top contender for best Christmas gift ever!

1. We were running late to the spa and had heard that convenience store food in Japan was just as good as restaurant food in America, so we decided to give it a try. I had some pasta and cheese and salami. Riley had tonkatsu and rice. The verdict: the food was better than what you would find in a convenience store in the US, but it wasn’t THAT good. | 2 & 3. Riley and I are VERY relaxed. Based on my face, I was so relaxed that I don’t think there were any lights on at home, if you know what I mean. Haha! The spa was separated by gender with a connecting gym, so Riley and I would send phone and text updates to each other and meet in the gym. It is crazy to think that it was the longest time we had spent away from each other since beginning our travels!

Monday February 6

As our travel pendulum continued to swing, we followed the relaxing spa day with a very, very busy day. Riley and I had already extended our stay in our hotel once before (did I mention we loved Tokyo?) and decided to save a bit of money by extending our stay in Tokyo a second time, but in an AirBnB in a new and more traditional neighborhood. Because we had to check out at 10 AM and we couldn’t check into our AirBnB until 3, we had a lot of time to kill. We decided to head to a temple, visit some gardens, and then make our way to the apartment in the Asakusa neighborhood. After checking in and getting settled, we grabbed dinner at a sumo wrestler restaurant, made our way to the Akihabara district (the gaming center of Tokyo) and rocked the night away playing arcade games.

1. I’m going to start another blog titled “Riley taking photographs of small things.” | 2. Riley’s photograph of a small thing.

1 & 2. The photographer in action!

1. We couldn’t quite figure out the weather in Tokyo. In this video, you’ll see it raining while sunny. Oh, and also, CUTE KIDS!!!!

1. In front of Zojoji Temple. Fun fact: Ulysses S. Grant planted a cedar tree in front of the temple in 1879. | 2. The interior of the temple. This picture doesn’t do it justice! The gold was absolutely stunning.

1 & 2. More Ojizosama at the temple. This time they have pinwheels! | 3. The tiniest truck ever!

1. We made our way to Hamarikyu Gardens. Although not everything was in bloom (it was winter, after all) they were still beautiful! | 2. If you look closely at the man to my left in the previous picture, you can see that he appears to be next to a tiny human. Upon further investigation, we saw that he was taking photos of a doll that he seemed to care deeply about. Riley and I were sufficiently freaked out but couldn’t stop watching as he turned the doll’s head ever so slightly in order to photograph the perfect angle. Riley claimed that he was a professional doll photographer for a doll magazine. I was highly skeptical. WEIRD.

1,2,3,4. Field of yellow flowers photo shoot! No dolls were included.

1. Such incredible colors on a cold winter day

1. Although Riley is the pro photographer, I dabble a bit in photography as well. Riley took this action shot! | 2. Riley and I in the sumo wrestling ring at Kappo Yoshiba, a restaurant that specializes in traditional sumo culture. We heard a live performance of sumo jinku, which are songs performed during sumo matches. Absolutely nothing was in english and the place was packed with Japanese salary men in suits. I was one of two women there! It was such a fun experience and I would highly recommend it for anyone who visits Tokyo.

1. Listening to the jinku at the restaurant

1. After an amazing and entertaining dinner, we made our way to the Akihabara neighborhood, which is known for its many electronics shops and arcades. We walked into one of the arcades and immediately felt sensory overload — the lights, the arcade noises, the five floors of video game after video game crammed next to each other — it was quite an experience! This guy was a piano gaming pro.

1 & 2. Riley and I in front of our respective video games. As you’ll see in the videos below, we absolutely dominated.

1. I felt a lot more coordinated before watching this video.

1. Riley’s face is priceless as he tries to fight off the Empire.

1. Just one of the many walls of lights that line the streets of the Akihabara district. | 2. I found another Domino’s delivery truck! I didn’t get any, though :( | 3. Riley was both fascinated by and terrified of the hi-tech toilets. They even had seat warmers!

1. Riley and I decided to make a night of it and grabbed some wine for the road. We were excited to try the 7–11 wine — if they say the convenience store food is high quality, the wine must be as well, right? Although entirely legal, I was embarrassed to be drinking wine in the street so I asked Riley if we could move to an alley. I then came up with the brilliant (at the time) idea to provide a wine review but was a bit distracted by the fact that the alley wasn’t as deserted as I thought it would be. It is painful to admit, but I have since determined that a future career as a sommelier is not in the cards.

Tuesday February 7

The day was spent exploring our new neighborhood, the Asakusa district. The Asakusa district is known as a more traditional area and was once the playground of gangsters, geisha, and bohemians.

1. Pedi cabs are a popular form of transportation in this area (mainly for tourists) | 2. We visited the Sensoji Temple, which is a Buddhist temple that was built in the 7th century. As such, it is one of the most popular temples in Tokyo and was incredibly crowded.

1. We saw a lot of women dressed in traditional kimonos and couldn’t help thinking how cold they must have been! We were freezing!

1. We seemed to attract students who were tasked with talking to english speakers as an assignment for school, as this was not the first time it happened! This group stopped us and asked us to fill out a questionnaire and take a picture with them. As a thank you, they gave us a tiny origami crane. You can barely see it, but I am holding it in my hand!

Wednesday February 8

As our time in Tokyo was nearing an end, we wanted to make sure we didn’t miss out on any other activities. That meant 1) visit a museum, 2) drink and dine at an izakaya and 3) sing our hearts out at karaoke. I’m proud to say that we accomplished all three!

1. We visited the Tokyo National Museum, which was built in 1872 and is the oldest and largest museum in Japan. This was one of my favorite pieces!

1 & 2. I have become even more obsessed with Japanese design and architecture. The craftsmanship and beauty of these treasures amazed me.

1 & 2. Riley and I taking a break from the museum and enjoying the museum’s garden.

1. A beautiful kimono — my favorite of at least 40!

1. Riley mean mugging with the samurai armor. He could have intimidated them, no problem! | 2. Another piece of samurai armor.

1 & 2. Samurai helmets. I would have been TERRIFIED if I had someone coming at me with these things on!

1. OH HAI RILAYYYYY | 2. A beautifully designed building next to the museum. Another piece of Japanese architecture that I loved? Noooo way.

1. The Asakusa area was much quieter at night — this is a view of the Sensoji temple that we had visited the previous day. During the day, the shopping arcade is open and the street is completely full of people.

1 & 2. Riley and I drinking big beers and eating greasy izakaya food. An izakaya is a japanese gastropub that people go to after work. I have to admit that I was a little intimidated by izakayas before I went to one, as I had read that they aren’t always as welcoming to foreigners. Luckily, we found one that was totally fine even though no english was spoken. It was definitely a no frills dining experience!

1 & 2. Riley jauntily posing in front of the izakaya and a selfie! | 3. We of course had to get ready for our authentic Japanese karaoke experience, so we got a bottle of wine, some beers, and played gin rummy (thanks for the game rec, mom and dad!) on our teeny tiny table.

1. Obligatory Africa by Toto karaoke. Lead vocals: Me. Backup vocals: Riley Strong. To make sure the experience was as authentic as possible, I took advantage of the costume bin that was included in our karaoke package and donned Minnie Mouse ears, nerdy glasses, and a tartan skirt. Not a good look. And not a good singing voice.

1. Riley kicking it up a notch with a rousing rendition of Neil Diamond’s Sweet Caroline! Lead vocals: Riley Strong. Backup vocals: me. Riley was smarter and didn’t don a costume.

Thursday February 9

This was our last day in Tokyo before we continued on to Kyoto. We had stumbled upon the Kabuki-za earlier in the week, which is the principal theater in Tokyo for Kabuki performances. We decided that an afternoon show and dinner with Andrew, our friend from studying abroad in London, would be the perfect way to end our time in Tokyo.

1. Riley and I were eagerly awaiting the show! We opted out of the english guides and translators, as we had already read a summary of the hour-long show and thought we could get by. Well, hubris got the best of us. Watch the two videos below to get a sense of why we became so utterly confused. I’m still not sure we know what we watched.

1. The sounds of the Kabuki. WHAT?! (we weren’t allowed to take any photos or video, so Riley snuck these in!)

1. The sights of the Kabuki. WHAT?!

1. Riley and I with Andrew, our friend from studying abroad in London! It’s hard to believe, but we hadn’t seen Andrew in seven years. He brought us to an amazing restaurant called East Blue where we dined on all sorts of incredible seafood. You know when, in the middle of a conversation with someone, you look at them and you think, “wow, s/he is so much more interesting than me?” Well, I deeefinitely had that moment when chatting with Andrew. To mention a few things, he has spent time traveling throughout the Amazon and Cuba, studied at Queen Mary and then Cambridge, moved to Tokyo, and is now helping orphans and refugees relocate to Japan. Can it get any cooler than that? We were so happy to have met up with him and catch up. We hope to do it again before seven years pass by! | 2. The food was beautifully prepared and we left stuffed and very happy to have seen an old friend! Next stop, Kyoto!

Japan Part Two — Kyoto

Stay tuned for pictures, videos, and impressions from Kyoto. We promise it won’t take another month this time!