Hotel Rose Garden Shinjuku

... drinks. My new friends had just come from Russia so of course I smuggled in their bottle of vodka. We didn't plan to, but ended up staying the whole time...so yeah we sang until 5am. We had a grand old time singing everything from the B52s to heavy metal to 80s. And what song doesn't sound great with tambourine?? Definitely one of my most memorable nights, I hadn't laughed that hard in ages! Tokyo, I love you. <br><br>Sumo tonight? <br>Michelle<br> <br> <br>

... to take a bus and meet my sister in a certain station (the name of which escapes me now). The bus had its own toilet and there were only a few people with us that time. I vividly remember how cold it was as we stepped out of the airport and how everywhere I look, the signs, texts, and labels I see were in Japanese. I guess I could count the times I saw English words ...

... Line. The song? Gospel classic "Amazing Grace." It's piped through the speakers of a CD hawker who has a huge assortment of instrumentals, jazz, and other foreign tunes. I have visited this station 4 or 5 times, at different times of day in recent weeks, and this song is always on. Amazing. *** There's an awkward three-week break between games right for the bj-league, Japan's pro basketball circuit. So I've had time to plan ...

... districts, including the famous Shinjuku and Shibuya, with their huge neon signs and bustling masses of people. Both are particularly well-known for their many huge (and I mean huge) electronics stores. I eventually (on my last night in Japan) made it to Shinjuku (partly because that was one place where my Lonely Planet guidebook said foreign ATMs could be found) and this was the classic, bustling, neon-lighted Tokyo that one sees in "Lost in Translation". I had finally found the "real" Tokyo!

... hoe veel het er echt zijn. Het ziet echt zwart van de mensen. Dat alle Japaners zwarte haren hebben en naar werk allemaal liefst zwarte (mantel)pakken dragen helpt daarbij wel. Top ontmoetingsplek is Hachiko-exit op Shibuya station. Hachiko was een hondje dat heel trouw altijd zijn baas van het station kwam ophalen na werk. Nadat de baas dood was is Hachiko nog 11 jaar lang dag in dag ...

... water area! The cool modern facilities and shopping areas are all free to enter, but one must pay to use the leisure facilities. To this end, Charles and I purchased our not bad value all day armbands and headed for some fun. In no particular order, we rode the Wonder Drop (water boat ride with 13m drop), the Tower Hacker (freefall tower), Thunder Dolphine (1100m, 130km/h giga coaster), Big O (world`s first center-less ferris wheel, which the Thunder Dolphin goes through), as well ...