Old friends

Day three was such a contrast to the previous days. We arose to blue sky and a calm day without the predicted winds. Still, it was a wee bit chilly so we had jumpers and a scarf, as we walked down to the Kasai Station a couple of hundred metres from the hotel.

We were meeting Machiko and Satoshi and their family and while the rail system seemed easy enough (on paper, at least) we still had to work out getting tickets. We were with our friend Shayne who was going on a little further than us, so our shared ignorance would be an advantage, wouldn’t it? Three heads are better than two. As it turned out, the system was quite intuitive, even for us, and we managed to buy three day passes for 600 yen each. The Tokyo Subway is excellent. Trains are clean and on time. One thing I noticed about the Sydney trains we had to use last week is that every station has a different platform height. Some were at the same level as the train but others were at various heights as a trap for the unwary. Some gaps were wide and some narrow.  My brother Tawney was caught by this inconsistency a couple of years ago when he fell down the gap and was stuck till he could be freed, and not before shedding a lot of blood and flesh.

Our destination was Nihombashi Station from where we would walk up a couple of levels to the Takashimaya Department Store to meet Machiko and Satoshi. With the efficiency of the rail, we were half an hour early. It was truly delightful when Keiko, their daughter who had stayed with us a few years ago, came running up to greet us happily, and take us to where we should have been to meet her parents, husband and two little daughters. The little girls, Emi, 5 and Mari,1 were very pretty and shy but enjoyed the gifts we brought them. With Meiichi, Keiko’s husband, we were a good-sized group, but Satoshi had booked a private dining room for a traditional Sukiyaki lunch. This was quite different to what we have so far experienced of Japanese cuisine, even if some elements such as the raw egg dip were initially challenging. We had a lively conversation. Machiko’s English is excellent, Keiko’s is pretty good and the men struggled a little bit but were able to find ways to have a good conversation. Satoshi presented me with a copy of his book – a history of Japanese construction machinery in which I have a modest contribution. A few years ago, when Satoshi and Machiko were in Australia, Satoshi wanted to visit the Hunter Valley coal mines to get some pictures for his book. I took him and it turned out to be a bit of a challenge as the coal authorities were highly suspicious of visitors who were not in the industry and we had to promise that nothing written would be critical or disparaging. I later sent Satoshi some pictures of machines operating in the Big Pit at Kalgoorlie when we were there a couple of years back.

Satoshi was pretty chuffed that he had recently graduated with a PhD in his field if industrial chemistry. 

We wandered home later in the afternoon, so glad to have seen the family and looking forward to when they can return to Australia. Machiko comes to the occasional school reunion with Jenny.

We had a lateish dinner at a Japanese BBQ restaurant. It was one of those cook-your-own style, and you can buy various cuts of meat. Ours were super thin wagyu beef with a delicious marinade that cooks in a few seconds. We retired early after a long but rewarding day, and slept like proverbial logs. Well, I guess Jenny was more like a twig than a log! 

Today, Thursday, we exited our digs in Tokyo and spent the day largely on the coach. We had a stop at Kamakura, south of Tokyo to visit the Sitting Buddha, 11 metres high, observing the many pilgrims and tourists who come to pay him homage. Again, the setting was simple and serene and it was a nice place to pause in the travels. From there it was to Enoshima, a small touristy spot just south of Kamakura and which also is the place of a Shinto shrine. Un fortunately for Jen it was a 700 step climb to see this. I paid homage to my knees and stayed at sea level.

The banner image above is Mt Fuji which was quite clear for a while as seen from the coach travelling through Yokohoma.

And tonight we are at Yokohama which is back up towards Tokyo. We enjoyed a sumptuous buffet dinner with the most exquisite desserts. Jenny made me go back for seconds.

Well, again, touring is tiring, especially when you have to listen to the sometimes inane chatter from the guide. He seems to think that we enjoy his double entendre jokes, and some of our number seem to guffaw at his attempts. We find it just a bit tiresome. I am fast coming to the conclusion that we would not do any more organised tours! They offer excellent value, but the compromises are many.

Anyway, that is it for now. Sorry that there is not much of interest today.

Mata ne

Bill