Another night at the Virgin Sunset Last night. Fun times and seafood pizza. We have definitely left our mark there. Friends with all the English speaking bartenders and even a few that don't. We make new friends every night. People like to pass out business cards here. It kind of weird but I read somewhere that it is disrespectful if you do anything but put it in a safe place right after receiving.

Before the Sunset we had dinner at a crazy good seakhouse. I'll have to post pictures later tonight, we're about to leave.

Another note. Since getting sick the other night, and trying everything under the sun beforehand, I have had a taste for normal American food. This morning I went to McDonalds for breakfast...... Tuna McMuffin. Was actually pretty good.

Till next time Cheers

Recap

      For now home = Yamato, Japan. Julie, Jimmysan (-san is suffix that indicates respect similar to Mr. and Mrs.), Mother Teresa  and I've become quite settled in the area by now. Julie and I have tried as much of the local food and drink as we've been able to (alot of which I've posted pictures-and will recap shortly), Jimmysan isn't as excited to do that part and Mother Teresa is somewhere in middle. We all have talked to many people in the locals in their language- or atleast tried to, alot of the talking is accompanied with some acting out; have done some shopping; and even made a few friends.

Day 1- Thurs Mar 15          

The first night we spent in a very nice hotel in Yokahama, a 1/2 hours train ride (we were spoiled and didn't know it getting to ride on a reserved train) from the Narita-Tokyo Airport. Yokahama is still a very big city that's in the metropolitan area associated with Tokyo. It is where Jimmysan works and where we ride to from Yamato to link into the bigger train station that has many more lines to choose from. I passed out early and missed Happy Hour at the local Irish Pub.

Day 2-Friday

Checked out of hotel after having a 5 star breakfast (that included both western and eastern food) downstairs where I ate 5 lbs of freshly grilled salmon. Had them hold our bags downstairs while we took our first adventure to the Yokohama Port and saw the pier and park that was along with it. This is the first time I saw the squatting toilet I had read so much about while doing my internet research. The first time we noticed how absolutely clean this place is and how quiet too. We also began to notice how most people get around either on foot or by bikes. They were parked everywhere without being locked to anything. The only antitheft they have is a lock that doesn't allow the rear tire to spin. 

We then went back and relocated to our new place in Yamato and visited a local husband&wife eatery I equate to a waffle house. Good, hot food and fast service for very cheap. Then off to Virgin Sunset for a night cap and off to bed.

Day 3- Saturday AKA 'The COOLEST FREAKIN DAY EVER'

Early Morning run. No one else jogs here, that would be a waste of energy. haha. Ate an all eastern breakfast: always miso soup, rice and I made, to the Japanese peoples' amusement, sausage link sandwich with my usual amount of ketchup. Met up with Ohatasan in Yamato and traveled to Asakusa to see the temples. It was also Ohatasan's first time there. The trip was long and required many different trains. On arrival we met his buddies and went on to see the temples. Very, very cool. Julie and I eating local snacks along the way. After the temples we go into a restaurant, like everything else very small and crowded. We sit on the floor and watch as the owner cooks our food for us at our table. Everyone else is cooking their own. The beer was amazing. After getting too loud and being told to quiet down our friends and the crew went to a new Korean place a short train ride away. This is where the cool rap music would have played if we were in a movie. We ate all kinds of food (which would have been enough for me)in small increments and drank and visited alot. I became good buddies with Yoshi who could speak English pretty good. Through my translation book and his English ability we broke the language barrier and spent most of the time learning about one another. I told him where I'm from the pigeons are not so fat and I used to hunt them as a boy. He doesn't understand and when I get the message across he informs me they are not allowed weapons here... no right to bear arms. Not much crime though either.

Day 4- Sunday

Breakfast in the little square close to hotel... music festival with many food tents- Mexican food is like a shadow.. no matter where you are it's always around. Went shopping in Yokahama. Ventured to the electronic district.  Back to Yamato. Everyone is fatigued. Feeling adventurous we try a new restaurant... no one speaks English. We order fried chicken skins on accident and promptly pay and leave. Back to the familiar Virgin Sunset where we get a couple pizza's (Jimmysan and Mother Teresa get Tomato Basil, Julie and I get Seafood with squid, tuna, shrimp, anchovy.... surprisingly delicious. Back home and to bed

Day 5- Monday

Breakfast at McDonalds. Cleaning, catch up and rest day. Currently finishing up blog and hanging with Julie. May go wash some clothes and grab lunch..... IN JAPAN, no big deal. 

Thanks for following.  Email if you're curious, have picture requests or whatever. 

Till next time Cheers.

Pictures (1-3) Descriptions

    Picture descriptions starting from the top down (roughly chronological from bottom up):

-(First two) Two temples in Asakusa. 1000 and 400 years old respectively, If my memory serves me correctly

-Jewry and I around the temples wafting incense smoke on our hair.... IDK why it's just what the rest of em were doing. The incense had a swastika on them, I'd also noticed one earlier on an old man's bicycle. I figured that he had just fought in WWII but after asking Yoshi and Ohatasan over some drinks they told me it was a Hinduim Symbol

-Me in the train station on the way to Akiabara, where the electronics district is

-Fried chicken skin that we ordered on accident here in Yamato while trying a new Kamiatori

-A large and small coffee ordered here in town for breakfast: the Large was as big as an American small

-Squid offered at the market in the shopping plaza Sogo, in Yokohama

-Jimmysan and I in our go to watering hole called the Virgin Sunset, a Hawaiian style bar run by a Japanese man that rides a Harley and owns a surfboard shop across the street

-The crew with Jimmysan's friend from work, Ohatasan, at a restaurant we visited in Asakusa after visiting the temples that were 400, 700 and 1000 years old!

-My favorite beer I've ever had, SERIOUSLY at the same restaurant

-Our Japanese buddies Kenny, Ohatasan, Yoshi in the new Korean Venue

          We would eat and drink at both places for an hour or two at each. Ordering several dishes that came out in small portions at a time and everyone shared. So if I ordered everyone's bill went up because it was all split evenly at the end. Interesting

-The container my Sake was served in ( a couple of shots worth, maybe 6 oz) at a high temperature, the warmer it was the smoother it tastes, like water at first

-My darling and I chillaxin'

Pictures 3

Pictures 2

Pictures

Don't have any pictures but they're be plenty to come yet. I must note that I'm up at 6 am Japan time after having slept 12 hours, didn't do much sleeping on the plane, and was just energized by my first encounter with a Bidet! I'm feeling more cultured already. I've only been here a little while and have observed some things that I never have before. I've been to big cities before: New York City, Chicago so I'm not brand new to the big city feel; a few things that have stuck out though have been the fact that 1 out of every five people where a mask around everywhere they go, kinda weird. Another random note is that despite their fast paced society and obvious love for technology it appears that almost everybody air dries their clothes.

The trip over was long but not as bad as I expected. I've had trouble in the past with extreme ear pain only while descending back into higher air pressure but I kept my vitamin C rations high before this trip and hope to stay healthy and not stuffy. Julie, on the other hand, wasn't as lucky.

The first leg was from Cashville to Detroit and was a short one. Our final leg was on one of the double decker planes. It had 4 jet-engines on each wing but I am unsure which kind (747, 767, etc..). I do know on the way back we ride in a 777 which is one of the latest models with TV's in each headrest! The plane was probably only half full and my lady friends gave me window seat. Of course our window seat was right by the wing so I ended up having to break my neck to get a view, but boy was it worth it! The girls slept alot more than I did during our 12 hour journey across 1/2 the globe. I read and broke my neck, read and broke my neck. The most memorable part of it all was our time over Alaska and Russia. A huge expanse of nothing but white. It would be really mountainous, then rolling hills, then valleys, every once in awhile their would be a body of water bright blue against the snow. We hit some turbulence and I kidded with Julie this is how it all started in 'The Grey'. I kinda wished I could just jump out and hike around a few days..... But anyway the food was good on the flight over but thank goodness the girls were being gluten conscious and I got triple the portions on almost everything (Almost forgot to mention the fact that their was free Cervesa on the ride over, I took it upon myself to go ahead and familiarize the taste buds with Japans most popular beer: Anhasi.... one that I'd looked up already on BeerAdvocate.com, it's a rice based brew that tastes just like Coors and all the rest of em). Speaking of food.... I haen't eaten since the last ration on the plane.... Gotta go get cultured and have some Japanese fare. 

LET THE GAMES BEGIN!!!!

Until next time Cheers

JAPAN OR BUST BABYYYYY!!!!!!!!!!!