Hotel New Otani Makuhari Chiba

... get the general idea.) <br><br>The main entrance to the park (here called &#8220;World Bizarre&#8221;) had a giant bamboo tree right in the center for the occasion, so Elizabeth and I took the opportunity to write our own wishes and hang them with the others. (When in Rome...) Later in the day, Mickey and the gang held a special Tanabata parade through the park wearing their kimonos. Pretty cool.<br><br>Several attractions were open early for resort ...

... fruit and rice, with beautiful red lacquered bowls with creatures painted on the side. I didn't want to see to the total tourist, so I resisted taking photos. Kaoru later told me that a local restaurant does take-out this way, you just return the dishes when you're done. MAN, I wish we had take out that good. They chatted along, with Obaasan engaging me from time to time with various questions. Kaoru's uncle brought out the latest ...

My most sincere apologies for not updating my blog for the past couple days! I have been a little busy. I know you are all riveted to hear what has been going on, so I will fill you in. The day after I went to the Kitty store, I received an Email from GABA (a company I had applied for earlier) it was a follow up on my resume, and they wanted to schedule an interview! yay! BUT there was a catch, before I could go in for my interview ...

... token American, all staying in the hostel. After a quick bit of dinner in a local eaterie, and a few drinks in the hostel (they do Smirnoff Ice in Seven/Eleven at a quid a pop! Happy days), went into Rappongi, the epicenter of Tokyo nightlife, bright lights, sleaze and western bars, restaurants etc. However, only 3 of us managed to make it out to a club called yellow, world famous apparently and my god, what a night! Amazing house tunes, good drinks and quality ...

... no longer be optional. By mid-December, some trees still hadn't shed their leaves, and there were still plenty of persimmons hanging from bare branches. The temperature hovered around 10 degrees most days, dipping only slightly at night. January saw a cold snap, if you can call it that, during which it snowed twice: once for all of two hours, and once for even less ...

... incence smell that pervades the streets near temples. Even in little alleys and shops, people burn incence. It makes walking around so much more enjoyable. Hideoko and her friend Subacko took us to a little restaurant with a sunken hotplate featured in the centre of every table. We were going to eat okonomiyake, which roughly translates into, cook anything you like. Also, monjayaki, which is the name of the main ingredient, a sort of rice ...

... is like an exact replica of the Shops at Caesar's Palace, right down to a mega-casino attached to the mall. Walked through the other side to Palette Town a huge entertainment / shopping facility. Toyota Mega Web was attached to the building One of the best features of the facility though, in my opinion, was the opportunity to test drive ANY Toyota or Lexus vehicle on an indoor/outdoor test track for free, as many times as you want ...

... Shinjuku to do some more shopping. Mel and tried some freshly mixed icecream at the Ikekekuro train station. They mix the ingredients on a marble plate and serve it in a waffle cone. Delicious. You could spend the entire day inside the train station. Mel and I went to Akihabura (about a 30 minute train ride). This is the electronics suburb. It is ...

... will have their entire menu on display (in plastic) just outside the main door. Personally, I think this is a GREAT system. You can see what you are getting, you know how big the portion is and it's really easy to point and nod at when ordering! LOL!!! Vending machines: anything you could have ever imagined wanting is available in a vending machine in Japan. Mostly they sell teas, juices and cold ...

... two young kids so it was fun to spend the evening at his house. The food was abundant and delicious as we actually had some sukiyaki again, but also were able to sample homemade sushi, tempura, spring rolls, and other small appetizers. Tomorrow, we are meeting up with Emi and Hissa again to explore Harajuku (yet another trendy area of the city) and to go to the sumo tournament. We should be able to post again soon as we have free internet access in our hotel.