Plan for today included waking up at a crazy time in order to go see Tsukiji Fish market where daily auctions for tuna begin at 5:30 am. This proved not only a challenge to wake up for some, but also a logistical challenge to get to the other side of Tokyo at 4 am in the morning. Night taxi for a hundred bucks was not an option: it sounds a bit ridiculous. So after a walk in the rain to the Shinujku JR station we grabbed the first Yamantote line train to Shimbashi. Amazing time though. The station was filled with homeless Japanese which are such a different sight from bums in the US or Poland. In general mostly well dressed and not too dingy, sleeping on cardboard boxes with their shoes taken off and placed to the side. It really looks like the economy's been tough on them.
Tsukiji turned out to be a wasted effort. All the tickets (there are only 120 entries per day, 60 per tranche) were gone by 4:20 today. Considering that the concierge suggested a taxi at 4:30, we would've been pretty pissed off if we had gone that route. Being up so early meant paying the piper though and back in the hostel I (because apparently my mistake) inadvertently suggested that since it was still so early, Kris could catch an hour of shuteye. Well... we all know how that story goes and before we knew it, it was the afternoon.
A quick visit to the Shinjuku Gyoen park which was supposed to be relaxing, turned out to be rushed as we needed to be back by 2 pm in order to check out. A short ride on the Shuo line to the Tokyo JR station and we were in a search of lunch. Word of advice, explore outwards from the station. Not wanting to walk around too much we settled for Italian (overpriced, underflavored and quite small), while just a flight of stairs away in a building next door there was an amazing food court. Bleh...
Krysia's first ride on the Hikari shinkansen took us to Nagoya to visit my friend and for a surprise event tomorrow. Two hours on a train to traverse 222 miles on one of the slower bullet trains (it stops at 7 stations as opposed to the 4 stops by the fastest Nozomi).
Going down from 5* to a 4* hotel wasn't bad for the wifey, but a real Japanese dinner including fried shrimp heads, seaweed flan and all kinds of raw things was an adventure she won't soon forget. So it's off to explore Nagoya and some major fun tomorrow.
Tsukiji turned out to be a wasted effort. All the tickets (there are only 120 entries per day, 60 per tranche) were gone by 4:20 today. Considering that the concierge suggested a taxi at 4:30, we would've been pretty pissed off if we had gone that route. Being up so early meant paying the piper though and back in the hostel I (because apparently my mistake) inadvertently suggested that since it was still so early, Kris could catch an hour of shuteye. Well... we all know how that story goes and before we knew it, it was the afternoon.
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| Nagoya here we come. |
Krysia's first ride on the Hikari shinkansen took us to Nagoya to visit my friend and for a surprise event tomorrow. Two hours on a train to traverse 222 miles on one of the slower bullet trains (it stops at 7 stations as opposed to the 4 stops by the fastest Nozomi).
Going down from 5* to a 4* hotel wasn't bad for the wifey, but a real Japanese dinner including fried shrimp heads, seaweed flan and all kinds of raw things was an adventure she won't soon forget. So it's off to explore Nagoya and some major fun tomorrow.
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