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    • Day 3

      Coldplay night 1 Monday

      November 6, 2023 in Japan ⋅ 🌬 72 °F

      I went down to breakfast at my hotel this morning. It was a Japanese breakfast, with fish, veggies, rice, miso soup, and several other things. They have a plate with 9 small little sections. So you can have a little of everything. I didn’t take my camera down this morning , but I will tomorrow. The dining room was very quiet , and it seemed to be mostly Japanese with a few Westerners sprinkled in.
      After breakfast, I went back to my room and went back to sleep. I pulled the blackout shades closed and did not set an alarm. I told myself I could sleep as long as I needed. It was wonderful. I woke up at about 2 pm and felt rested.
      I hung around the room until 5:30 when it was time to go to the Tokyo Dome.
      The train stations can be very confusing. I’m glad I watched a few YouTube videos on it. Google maps really helps, you just have to take your time.
      One YouTube family said”Don’t try and remember the names of the stops. Each stop on each line has a number use the number system.” So the M line that goes north and south has stops 1-25. And the signs in the station that point you in the right direction use that system too. I am finding it’s a much easier way. Also, with pocket WiFi you can use Google maps underground, thank goodness.
      And I am amazed at how clean and safe there subway systems are. I mean clean! And I must have walked for 20 minutes through the underground corridors last night. Not once was I afraid. I reminded myself to not get complacent and stay aware, but never once was I afraid to walk a long stretch of corridor with only a few people.
      I got to the Tokyo Dome easily. I had noticed that I wasn’t really nervous heading to the venue. And normally I am. Maybe it’s because from all the work I’ve done getting these tickets, I had really just allowed myself to enjoy the moment. And after taking the right train the wrong way, I was very keen on checking for the correct platform #.
      I got there 1/2 way through the opening band, a very popular Japanese band called YAOSOBI. I had actually listened to them before I left, so I got to enjoy their last few songs. I had no clue how to read my ticket or where my seat was. But they had so many guides there. It took me about 20 minutes to figure out where I was to be, but it was perfect. I found my seat after YAOSOBI finished. I was sitting between 2 brothers and their Dad, and 2 Korean girls.
      I had never wanted to go to a concert alone until now. I loved the band more than I cared what people may or may not think. And people really aren’t paying attention to me. They are so concerned with themselves. It’s very freeing.
      So Coldplay started and they were fantastic. Chris Martin was very aware that he was speaking English and the crowd may not understand what he was saying. He did speak a little Japanese he said he had been learning and the crowd loved it.
      I got to sing along to all the songs And it was neat being with such a different audience. I did see some Westerners there. There was actually a huge variety of people there. It was really something.
      Getting home wasn’t bad. I followed the crowd to a metro station further away from the venue and took a train or 2 to get back to my neighborhood. All of the Japanese business-people were running to catch the last trains out of Tokyo and there were Coldplay fans (in their tour shirts) everywhere.
      I stopped off at the convenience store I went to last night and got cold noodles for a late supper.
      All in all it was a great night. At one point before the show started; I really soaked in the fact that I was sitting in my seat at the 1st night in Tokyo. I was there. I had done it. And I get to do it all over again tomorrow night.
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    • Day 4

      Coldplay night 2 Tuesday

      November 7, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ⛅ 66 °F

      Breakfast has turned into a lovely Zen moment for the last 2 days. Miso soup, veggies, small bowls of braised pork belly, something they are calling Spinach dip, but it’s amazing dark green with stalks, seaweed, salad, rice with eel and clams (I like eel, clams, not so much). And again , as I was admiring the portioned plate, I realized I had again forgotten my phone to take a picture. Maybe that’s the universe keeping it for just me.
      I have spoken very little on this trip so far. That’s easy when you can’t say more than a few words in the local language. It’s nice, I told my coworkers it was what I was looking forward to on this trip. Not having to talk unless I wanted to. That’s why I love this medium, I get to journal but get to be quiet at the same time.
      I’m going to repack today, as my big bags need to be downstairs by 11 am for Yamato transport to come and pick them up and ship them to my hotel in Osaka. I’ll be leaving tomorrow and taking my 1st Shinkansen (bullet train). You can buy a bento box to take with you and eat on the train. I’m excited about that too. I have to reserve the seat on the train, so I will go to a train station and do that today too.
      So funny story. I brought a couple of T-shirts I purchased on line. One of them said that it says “ColdPlay” in Japanese. I was going to wear it last night , but I wanted to make sure that it REALLY said Coldplay. I’d be horrified if I wore it and it said something in gibberish. So I tried to use google translate by taking a picture of it. And it didn’t compute. So then I looked up what Coldplay translated looked like, and it didn’t exactly match my shirt. So heck no, I’m not wearing it.
      It’s been about 80 degrees here in the day. I’m also checking the weather for Taiwan and it’s hot and humid there. I bought a fan that goes around your neck to wear to the concerts. I have General admission floor tickets for both nights there. So I can move around, go pee, get something to drink. Assigned seats are ok, but last night, I felt that once you are there you don’t go anywhere. And I always seem to get a bit of vertigo in that kind of seating. Once could pitch forward pretty easily it seems.
      Another hurdle for me today. I have to ship my luggage using the Japanese tried and true way instead of lugging it around with me. So I packed both suitcases up and took them down and the hotel staff were very kind and filled it out for me. As I was waiting, I was watching them. Watching them deal with their guests. All different ages, nationalities and levels of neediness. I’ve been watching all of the people I’ve come across who are dealing with the public. It’s been a good introspective excercise.
      When I took down the suitcases, I also took the shirt I had questioned the translation. I asked one woman if she could translate it for me. She said it wasn’t bad, she just didn’t understand it. “What is a Radio Head?” Lol, I had gotten a shirt that said Radiohead (great band btw) in Japanese. Because that’s pretty cool. So I was glad that I worked up the courage to ask.
      I had lunch in a small little restaurant. Once they brought it, I realized it was way too much food, but I was proud for doing it, and doing it scared.
      The trip over to the Tokyo dome was easy and I got looking for my seat way earlier then last night. I had MUCH better seats, certainly not by choice, as I picked one that was a good price and didn’t worry about where they were.
      I got to caught the entire set of the opening act, they were really good, and the crowd loved them.
      This 2nd night of Coldplay was a much better show than last night. I left there last night feeling underwhelmed, and just couldn’t shake the feeling that they seemed off.
      And boy, tonight certainly made up for it. They played a better set list, the crowd seemed more relaxed and responsive, and the people around me stood up the whole time. All in all making it a really good show.
      So tomorrow I take off for Osaka. I have a 1pm train. And I’m really excited.
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    • Day 4

      Day 4

      May 20, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 22 °C

      Today was a bit nicer than yesterday, but still a bit cool. We decided to walk 20 minutes to Hamarikyū-Park, which was super nice. It’s a huge green space surrounded by tall buildings and water. Afterwards, we walked to Hibiya Park, where Ole surprised me with the Tokyo Oktoberfest hahah it was actually full of imported German beers, and Maisel and Friends and BRLO were there…we even paid $11 per Maisel beer haha

      We walked a bit further to the Imperial Palace, ended up seeing the changing of the guards, then headed to the train station to head back to Shinjuku as we didn’t spend much time there on Thursday. We grabbed a quick Okonomiyaki (a Japanese “pancake” with egg and topped with sauce and mayo) before exploring the area. Since it was Saturday, it was absolutely packed. We of course spent time in more of the arcades, and I bought myself a little naked mole rat friend haha We also walked down the Golden Gai alleyway full of tiny restaurants all smelling like charcoal grill. It was super cool to see.

      Ole wanted to go to a Pokémon and Nintendo store, so we headed over to Shibuya to the department store, Parco. The stores were really disappointing and small, and Ole didn’t find anything he liked.

      We were hungry and walked forever to try and find a restaurant that had space. We stumbled upon Ottotto Brewery, so we grabbed a beer in hopes of finding a restaurant online. No luck was had, so we just headed back to our hotel area to eat. We luckily found an open table, and had some delicious Yakitori (grilled meat on skewers).

      We got back, Ole tried the public bath (he lasted 5 minutes before he said it was way too hot) and then we went to bed!

      Steps finished with - 30,665
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    • Day 19

      Fuji - nein, Tokio die II.

      August 14, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 31 °C

      Vom Westen der Hauptinsel sollte es heute sehr weit östlich gehen, das Ziel: Fuji. Dort waren zwei Nächte geplant, um den Mt. Fuji aus der Nähe zu bestaunen. Allerdings sind überall an den Bahnhöfen und in den Nachrichten eindringliche Warnungen vor dem eintreffenden Taifun zu lesen, der morgen auf Japan treffen wird. Daher wird die Zugstrecke zwischen Fukuoka und Osaka komplett gesperrt, da in diesem Bereich der Taifun am stärksten wüten wird. Für den Abschnitt Osaka bis Tokio wird der Fahrplan stark eingeschränkt und ein entsprechendes Umplanen der Reise wird Reisenden ans Herz gelegt. Da standen wir also eine Station vor Fuji, wollten gerade zum letzten Mal umsteigen und nur noch 10 Min weiterfahren. Es hat bereits stark geregnet und wir haben uns entschieden statt nach Fuji lieber direkt nach Tokio durchzufahren. Man hätte bei strömendem Dauerregen sowieso keinen schönen Blick auf den Berg erhascht.

      Somit haben wir die Reiseroute zum zweiten Mal angepasst, noch ein Hotel in Tokio für zwei Nächte gebucht und sind ca. neun Stunden nach unserem Check-out in Fukuoka im Hotel in Tokio eingecheckt. Das waren knapp 1.100km, für die man mit dem Auto ca. 13-14 Stunden gebraucht hätte, laut Google Maps. Die reine Fahrtzeit mit Shinkansen betrug gerade einmal 5,5 Stunden. Das ist wirklich das schnellste und angenehmste Reisen in und durch Japan. Für die Zugfahrten haben wir uns mit je einer Bento-Box und einem Reis-Snack eingedeckt, Bücher gelesen, Film oder einfach aus dem Fenster geschaut und die Zeit verging wie im Flug.

      Daher konnten wir abends noch nach Shibuya gehen und unserem liebsten mexikanischen Restaurant, das wir in Australien entdeckten, einen Besuch abstatten: Guzman y Gomez. Natürlich war auch dieses Mal das rege Treiben auf der frequentiertesten Fußgänger-Kreuzung der Welt noch beeindruckend.

      Morgen ist unser letzter voller Tag in Tokio, da wir übermorgen nachmittags bereits zum Flughafen fahren, um dort in der Nähe die letzte Nacht vor dem Abflug am Donnerstagmorgen zu verbringen. Mal sehen, was uns da so einfällt.
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    • Day 190

      Tokio Tag 3

      October 21, 2022 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 22 °C

      Heute wollte ich eigentlich früh aufstehen um den Fischmarkt zu besuchen. Mein bequemes Bett will mich aber nicht vor 10 Uhr gehen lassen. Deshalb ändere ich spontan meinen Tagesplan, es gibt in Tokio noch viel zu entdecken. Mit der Metro fahre ich zu einem der grösseren Parks "Koishikawa Korakuen" und schlendere durch die schönen Kieswege. Im Weiher entdecke ich riesige Karpfen (glaube ich zumindest) und einige Kraniche. Auf einem Schild lese ich, dass der Garten von einem Lord der Tokugawa Familie um 1640 angelegt wurde. Auf einer kleinen Anhöhe finde ich eine Sitzbank mit wunderbarem Ausblick auf diesen Garten. Hier sollen die Lords der Tokugawa insperation für ihre Haiku gefunden haben.
      Weil ich Zeit habe und mir danach ist, versuche ich mich ebenfalls an einem Haiku.
      Es besteht traditionell aus nur drei Zeilen mit einer Wort Beschränkung von 5/7/5.
      Gar keine leichte Aufgabe, aber die Poesie ist stark in mir.
      Ich poste das Ergebnis unter das entsprechende Bild, damit meine Leserschaft auch daran teilhaben kann.
      Direkt neben dem Park befindet sich ein Einkaufszentrum inklusive einem kleinen Vergnügungspark. Da verbringe ich ebenfalls ein wenig Zeit, bevor ich mich auf den Weg zu meinem Treffen mit der Amerikanerin mache, welche ich zuvor in Hanoi kennengelernt habe. Alejandra führt mich in ein authentisches Tokio Ramen Restaurant und hilft mir bei der Bestellung. Das Essen ist super und anschliessend trinken wir verschiedene Sake in einer Sakebar. Ein Glas kostet stolze 1000 Yen, der Sake schmeckt aber ausgezeichnet und brennt nicht im Abgang, obwohl er 50% Alkohol enthält.
      Ein paar Stunden später komme ich erschöpft und angetrunken ins Hostel zurück.
      Morgen geht es nach Hiroshima.
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    • Day 30

      Imperial Castle

      October 28, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 68 °F

      Aside from Senjosi Temple, the only other place we visited today was the grounds of the Imperial Palace.

      We only had a few hours in Tokyo, not nearly enough time to do the city justice! We definitely need to come back and spend a few days here.

      Even so, we enjoyed this brief taste.
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    • Day 4

      New Otani Garden

      March 2 in Japan ⋅ 🌬 7 °C

      Sonne ☀️ über Tokio - das lockt uns zum Frühstück in die 40. Etage unseres Hotels. Neben einem tollen Blick über die nahe und weitere Umgebung lacht uns doch tatsächlich direkt über dem Buffet der Mount Fuji an - alles richtig gemacht 👌👍🏼💪🤣!! Denn wie wir inzwischen gelernt haben, versteckt sich der Fuji, ähnlich wie der Tafelberg, gerne und oft hinter einer Wolkendecke.
      Wir frühstücken gemütlich und schon geht unser Tokio-Abenteuer in die zweite Runde.
      Zuerst besuchen wir den hoteleigenen Japanischen Garten. Bereits in der frühen Edo-Zeit vor mehr als 400 Jahren wurde hier der Grundstein für diesen Garten durch einen Samurai-Lord gelegt. Wechselnde Besitzer haben ihn immer wieder verändert. Der heutige Besitzer, Namensgeber und Hotelerbauer hatte beim Kauf des Grundstückes beschlossen, den Garten zu erhalten und den Hotelgästen und anderen Besuchern zur Erholung zur Verfügung zu stellen. Mit 40.000 m2 Fläche beinhaltet er über 800 Bäume, mehr als 10.000 Pflanzen, Teiche, einen Wasserfall, einen Steingarten und 42 Steinlaternen, die teilweise bis ins 12. Jahrhundert zurückdatiert werden können.
      Obwohl noch keine Blüten zu sehen sind (es ist immer noch zu kalt), gefällt uns der Garten sehr gut und ist eine schöne Abwechslung zur turbulenten Stadt.
      Das wissen auch viele Hochzeitspaare, die hier ihre Fotos machen lassen.
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    • Day 127

      Tokyo

      June 7, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ☀️ 25 °C

      🇨🇭: de ganz Tag voll dure Plant hahaha mir hend hüt so viel gseh🤯
      Zerst mol zum Kaiserpalast (wo mir leider ned würkli was gseh hend) und denn simmer zu nehm Shrine, sehr schön gsi. Per Zuefall au eh Zeremonie chöne mit ahluege. Nochdem simmer nach Shibuya. Mega cooli Stadt! Isch au die mit gfühlt de grösst und völlst krüüzig. Megaa geil gsi sind denn au chli ge umeschländere und ih Läde inne. Sind in nem Pokemon Center gsi, was btw echt geil gsi isch 😂 oder im Nintendo Store. Nochdem mir denn au det usgibig zmittag gesse hend simmer ih eh Arcade inne. Det hemmer die coolst Mario Kart rundi i üsem Lebe gspielt hahaha so würkli mit Gadpedal und Bremse hahaha🍌
      Bi dem Video ein Versurch spöter han i denn würkli die Figur gha hahaha mega stolz gsi😁
      Mitem Taxi sind mir denn witter zum Tokyo Tower. Sehr geili Ussicht vo det obe, ganz ussicht über Tokyo. Kurzi Zit det verbracht und denn zu üsem lieblings Punkt uf üsere Tagesliste Akihabara oder Akiba. Die Stadt
      für Anime Merchandise hahah anderst cool gsi. Hend de restlich Tag denn det verbrocht hend viel Läde ahglueget. Am schluss sogar no in nes Maidcafe zum znacht esse. Lustigi Erfahrig gsi aber insgesammt chli zu tüür…
      Ufem heiweg sind mir denn no vo ner Japanische Familie adoptiert worde wo üs mit gnoh het ih nes Restaurant (Muetter het no Geburi gha) hend denn mit ihni was trunke und sache chöne probiere. Echt lustig gsi, defür chli spöter zrugg is Hotel cho🫢
      Morn gohts denn zum Checkout und mitem Zug i die nögst Stadt.

      🇺🇸: the whole day was really full with stuff we want to do. Start with the kaisers palace, it was nice but we couldn‘t see so much we acutally wanted. So we went to a shrine in the near. It was really beautiful, and randomly we could see a special tradtional ceremony. After this we went with the Taxi to Shibuya. Very nice city with one of the largest and hurriest crossings in Japan. Was super interesting. We spend sometime there and visit diffrent stores. Like the Pokemon Center was amazing or the Nintendo store. We also eat dinner there and going back. On thw way we a arcade and we decide to play some games there. Its funny after the video a try later i win the figur hahaha😂 and i also play the funniest mario cart in my life. It was so good with a real accelerator and a real brake. With the next taxi we drove to the Tokyo Tower. Amazing view! You can see the whole city, was so nice. Our last stop bring us to our favorite place on the list. It calls Akihabara or Akiba. I love it. There are streets full with anime merchandise and a lot of maids. We also went for dinner in a maid cafe. Was really funny bit litte bit expensive… but was anice experince. On the way back home we get adopted by a japanese famil. Was so cute, the invite us in a restaurant and the funny thing was the mother had birthday. It was so funny and we can try some japanes things. We are really enjoy it and had a great day here in tokyo
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    • Day 25

      Japanorama

      October 10, 2023 in Japan ⋅ ☁️ 72 °F

      The weather cleared today and we had our first proper tour of Tokyo. A quick bus ride downtown took us by the Parliament Building, and then we exited the bus at the park surrounding the Imperial Palace. Our guide, Yuki, was fantastic. Her English was impeccable and her commentary was superb. I had wondered whether we should have endeavored to visit downtown Tokyo yesterday on the train, but a couple of passengers on our bus today revealed that though they had come into town on their own, they had no idea where they were or what their locations meant. We were wise to wait.

      Today I asked Yuki about the location of the ancient fishing village of Edo. She told me that at that moment we were in the bounds of ancient Edo. I would never have known it from all of the beautiful modern skyscrapers around us. I also asked her about the Japanese name for Tokyo. The two Chinese characters signifying “eastern capital” are also the Japanese kanji characters for Tokyo. I asked her if the two identical Japanese characters had the same meaning. She said they did, though the Japanese pronunciation is different from Chinese. We toured the exquisite park around the Imperial Palace, and I fell in love with their black pine trees. They are similar to our pine trees, but noticeably distinctive and absolutely beautiful. The general population gets to go beyond these gates twice each year, once on January 2 to wish the Emperor a happy new year and again on February 23 for his official birthday.

      Not since we arrived in Tokyo have we seen a scrap of litter nor a letter of graffiti. One absence I found shocking. Downtown, in one of the largest cities in the world, I did not hear a siren. Not one. For four days. This omission strikes one as impossible in a city this size. I did not see a homeless person. We did not hear an automobile horn honk. When asked about this quietness in a bustling downtown metropolis, Yuki said, “We Japanese are quiet. We do not like to disturb our neighbors.” She told us that from the first grade, pupils spend 20 minutes after lunch cleaning up from their meal, sweeping the floor of their classroom, polishing the windows and cleaning the chalkboard. There is virtually no crime here. If you leave your wallet on the seat of your unlocked car, it will remain there. If you accidentally leave your cell phone on a park bench, you can go back five hours later, and it will still be where you left it.

      The Japanese people are astounding.
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    • Day 316

      Tokio

      June 2, 2023 in Japan ⋅ 🌧 23 °C

      Dejar Bali para aterrizar en la ciudad más poblada del mundo parecía un shock premeditado, pero wow, se trata de Tokio. La mayor parte del tiempo que estuvimos allí ni me creía que fuese verdad, y si alguien puede crear una ciudad de 37 millones de habitantes y hacerla maravillosamente acogedora, esos son los japoneses.

      Nuestro primer día en Tokio estuvo marcado por el cansancio de haber tenido que dormir en el aeropuerto y no haber podido pasar por el hotel más que para dejar las mochilas, pero era sábado y cuando llegó la noche decidimos no pensarlo mucho y salir a conocer el ambiente nocturno tokiota. A las 5 de la mañana (no sé ni cómo seguía en pie) vimos amanecer sobre el cruce de Shibuya, famoso por ser el cruce más transitado del mundo. Cuando vi las fotos no me creía el aspecto tan fresco que tenía, supongo que era el efecto que tenía sobre mí una cultura tan ansiada y tan impenetrable desde Europa, todo era nuevo por descubrir.
      Pasear por Tokio era un sueño, las calles están tan absolutamente limpias (y eso que no hay basuras, la gente solo tira los residuos en sus casas) y son tan cuquis que casi parece una ciudad de juguete. Había barrios en los que no se veía ni personas, la ciudad más poblada del mundo era la ciudad más calmada de las que hemos estado en Asia.
      En un momento dado fuimos a un templo en el que había palitos y cajitas y papeles para sacar tu fortuna, a mi me salió fatal y me quedé muy triste. Al día siguiente lo volví a intentar y me salió igual (obvio, no se puede engañar al destino), pero vi que había unas barras para atar la mala fortuna y entendí que es para plantarle cara, no aceptarla y actuar en consecuencia para cambiarla conscientemente.

      Planificamos nuestra ida al monte Fuji la noche anterior, muy tarde y muy cansados, y Gui verbalizó lo que ambos estábamos pensando: la gente planifica esto con semanas de antelación, tal vez deberíamos no ir y evitar que salga un desastre. Aun así, como no nos guiamos por la ortodoxia viajera, obviamente nos fuimos. El día salió del revés y todo nos indicaba a gritos que nos deberíamos haber quedado en Tokio, pero nada más bajar de la estación y ver el volcán, todo había valido ya la pena. El monte Fuji es elegante y magnetizante como poco.

      El tiempo en Tokio pareció irreal, casi como si hubiese sido grabada por Gaspar Noé y hubiese recorrido la ciudad levitando a varios metros desde el suelo, colándome en espacios y queriéndome quedar a vivir en cada baño público de la ciudad, solo que en vez de borrosas, veía las luces de neón con total claridad, y el sake se sentía muy real en la garganta.
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    You might also know this place by the following names:

    Chiyoda-ku, Chiyoda, 千代田区, CAU

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