Feb. 23, Tokyo

Today Anne had to work so I took the express bus into Tokyo alone. As an orientation to the city I took a half-day tour that took me to the top of a moderately high building next to Tokyo Bay, a boat ride on the river, a walk through Asakusa shopping district, a visit to a Buddhist temple, and a visit to the grounds outside the Imperial Palace. The visit to the top of the building was a bit of a bust - visibility was maybe 5 miles - but it did provide a sense of the city's layout. The boatride was a complete bust, since they put us on a closed top boat, and we couldn't see much; however, my seatmate was a very charming young woman from Singapore so at least I enjoyed a nice conversation. The shopping district (Tourist District, Anne says) was interesting: I would have sworn I was walking down Grant Avenue through San Francisco's Chinatown. Same junky merchandise for sale, same greasy junk food (except no steam buns), same teenagers making eyes at each other. The temple was more interesting, although (for good reason) tourists are only allowed into the foyer. The temple was built 1000 years ago by the first emperor, Jimmu, apparently as part of a campaign of introducing Chinese bureaucracy as a way of building and strengthening his empire, and included the first Tokugawa shogun as a patron. The main temple was totally covered by construction tarps, since it is under restoration; I only have pictures of the gates and the pagoda. The Imperial palace is also a bit of a bust - all you can see is the outer wall and guard towers; a picture of one is in the photo album. We were near Tokyo Station so I left the tour there and walked back to the station. With construction all around the station, I had to walk all over the station to get to the bus station. Tokyo station is a multi-story warren - fun if you're not in a hurry, a nightmare if you're in any hurry at all.
Anne took me to a conveyor belt sushi house for dinner; unremarkable sushi but an interesting experience. Two exceptions: One dish was squid on rice over a shiso leaf, with a bit of wasabi under the leave; the shiso and wasabi set of the squid in a great way. And I discovered for myself another combination, fresh pineapple with a thin bit of pickled ginger. After dinner, while we enjoyed our tea and roll cake, Alisa established Piglet in his foster family over in the corner.