Ryogoku Sumida

These days have been all about meeting up with old and new friends, enjoying their company, and letting them guide us through this huge metropolis! We've enjoyed seeing all the famous spots that come up when we think of Tokyo, eaten what Sumo wrestlers eat, sang in karaoke like the Japanese do, and generally had a really great time catching up with …

I would consider myself to have a decent collection of lasting and positive memories, however, I have little doubt today will remain up there with the best of them. We excitedly woke up at 7ish, both aware we needed to be out before 7.45. Today we actually had a plan ha. We had tickets to the first day of Tokyo's 15 day sumo wrestling tournament ( …

... this time we were given a tambourine and could only book in for an hour... The next day was our last day in Tokyo, and Japan... :'(  We spent it walking around in a hungover daze in the Akihabara - Electronic City, to check out the electronics a ...

... ). DH loved the concept that we got "burped out " at our stop which just happens to be the busiest train station in Japan, Shinjuku Station, which sees 2 million people each day. I think we're going to need a couple of DH's sumo ...

... with an American lad, and Bungo, a Japanese guy who worked at K's House and who became a good friend by the time I left Japan. It was decided that whoever lost had to drink a disgusting shot of something or other, and poor Bungo was close to being sick ...

... and nothing on, it was fresh awakening to the day.   we headed to the airport and said goodbye to Japan :(  I absolutely loved it.... i was really looking forward to the visit and i was not disappointed, I'm even excited thinking about ...

... highlights of our last days in Tokyo included the beautiful imperial gardens, a shrine (the Yasukuni shrine) that was dangerously supportive of some of the most dubious actions of Japan during World War 2 and (oddly) a rabbit being walked on a leash. ...

It's hard to believe that we only have two more nights here in Japan.  Time has flown by and it seems the crazy megametropolitan pace of Tokyo is only going to make our heads spin faster! To be sure we didn't miss the bullet train this morning, we ...

... read on, think of an adjective to describe Japan. The first one that jumps to mind. Was it "exotic"? ;) Many people think of Japan as exotic, and I suppose it can be. But the thing about travelling is that it lets you know that one person's mysterious ...

... have it just from the name, but it looked delicious in the picture and I was not disappointed.  I finally had a fantastic meal in Japan!  This one was great.  Rich did not enjoy his as much but h, he still liked his ramen in soy ...

... Tokyo has completely drained us! Today, after a bus tour through the heart of the city, we went to the largest shrine in Japan. It is a Jinji shrine, which means that it is used by the Emperor and his family.  We walked to the busiest intersection ...

... see as much as we might have. However, we did manage two activities that were high on our list when we got to Japan: eat in a traditional Japanese restaurant and attend a sumo tournament. Luckily, I have a Japanese friend who is currently on ...