Hi skyhopper. I hear you about the shoes and the feet. I took some foot muscle soak and used it every night.

Sony building is on my list for the next trip. Was it interesting/fun?

Did you see the exhibit w/the scale model of the entire city of Tokyo at Roppongi Hills?

I love the traveling trip report, keep it up! Others are getting ready to go to Tokyo soon and will be enjoying this too.

Whether Sony building is fun is subjective. Majority of the displays can be seen in other stores. If you're a techie that it could be quite cool. Personally I prefer to wander the mazes of Akihabara. Since it's at Ginza crossing if you're already there no harm dropping by. There's a duty free shop on the 5th level where purchases above JPY10,000 are tax free. Remember to bring your passport. They sell overseas models there.

skyhopper, welcome to Tokyo! I hope you have lots of fun here. One of the best things you can do for your tired feet is to get a foot massage. Foot massage places are everywhere and no appointment needed. Very relaxing.

Hello all,

Well last night, I don't know what happened. I thought I will take a nap (it was around 5p) then head out to dinner at 8p. Well I did take a nap at 5p but I didn't wake up until 8 hours later! It's funny b/c I couldn't go to sleep my first night here.

Anyway took Mealea's advice and got a foot massage at midday and my feet feel much better! I also wore some socks today which I think helped too.

The sun rises VERY early here! Hence 'land of the rising sun'. I forgot to close the curtains and woke with a start thinking it was 12 noon but it was more like 5am.

Went to Meiji and Asakusa today. Also strolled thru Harajuku on Takeshita-dori where I felt ancient and Omotesando where I felt poor. I really loved Meiji as it was very peaceful and the irises were starting to bloom. It was a lovely walk. Asakusa was very bright and colorful. There were a lot of tourists in Asakusa. The temple and the shrine in Asakusa was exactly the image I had in my head of what a temple/shrine should look like, but it was definitely a different vibe than Meiji which I felt was a little more serious and definitely quieter. I must confess that I did a cheesy thing and took a rickshaw ride..yes I know it's wrong but it was fun! Up until visiting Asakusa I swear I thought I was the only Western tourist in Japan and this coming from Roppongi where I've decided to base myself this week. I've seen Westerners here but they all seem to live here....I think.

Another thing..the subway is so quiet! I noticed it today..it was still uncrowded but no one really says a word and if they do it's very quiet almost under breath. I had a salary man fall asleep next to me but it was really funny 'cuz he would catch himself before completely landing on my shoulder.

KMLoke and emd..The Sony showroom was interesting. I would agree that I wouldn't classify it as fun..although the Aibo robot dog was very cute. I am a techie so it was interesting to see possibly the smallest laptop I've seen yet. I think if you decide to go to Sony it should be after you've gone elsewhere and you need a little break as they have some sitting areas where you can watch Dvds on their latest flat screens. You can take pictures until you get to the 6th floor which I guess is where their newest televisions and sound systems are. I think the brand it's coming under is called Qualia.

Emd I did see a model city in Roppongi Hills but it wasn't Tokyo, it was NYC..lol. It was amazing.

In more mundane news I went grocery shopping today so if my next bit of narcolepsy hits me I won't wake up hungry. I never thought I would find mayonnaise here but lo and behold!

I will probably hit Akihabara and the Edo Museum tomorrow.
Sorry for the long posts, I have free internet access in my room..can you tell?

Funny about the mayonnaise...I thought the same thing before living here. Then, I discovered that Japan is the land of mayonnaise. Mayonnaise comes in the most unusual places...broiled on top of sea urchin...as a topping on scalloped potatoes...as a pizza topping...as a salad dressing...as a vegetable dressing...baked into various kinds of bread...the list goes on and on!

The all-time weird mayonnaise use...I saw on one of the morning tv shows a special about all the great things you can do with mayonnaise...a mayonnaise margarita! If I remember correctly...this was years ago now...there was mayonnaise mixed into the drink itself and as a decorative "garnish" on the rim of the glass instead of salt.

We felt the same way in Tokyo, like we were the only American tourists. I did see a few European tourists at Senjosi in Akasaka, but that was about it. Did see some American business people at our hotel but I expected more tourists. And yes, the subway is very quiet. I think they are tired from working such long hours. We routinely saw very full trains at 11 p.m. w/people going home from work.

The mayonnaise thing is surprising and wierd. I thought mayonnaise on french fries was unusual in Belgium, but mayonnaise margaritas?

If you went grocery shopping, are you staying at Mansions at Roppongi? I know they have kitchenettes.

Keep up the reports if you can, enjoying it very much here. Glad you got some sleep, hopefully you'll be adjusted now.

You can see something more from NYC at Odaiba. It's the statue of liberty. Can you spot where it is?

skyhopper in Tokyo, have you seen Taito Ryokan in Asakusa? Wondered if it is OK, price is very cheep but main draw is non-smoking and close to train-subway etc. Any sugestions on smoke free places to stay would be most appreciated. Be in Tokyo with 15y/o granddaughter and 13y/o grandson end of June. Your "long posts" are very incouraging and informative. Sounds like a fun trip. Hope this reaches yhou before you are gone. Thanks

grango, that is tres cool that you are taking your teen grandkids to Japan! My teen kids think it is cool that I take them, but it is ultracool for a grandparent to take the grandkids.

The kids surprise me with the things that they are interested in that I had wanted to see but thought they wouldn't, like the sword museum. My granddaughter, looking at the info on accomidations came up with "its ok not to have a private bath if we can stay in a really traditional Japanese building". That is why I am wondering about the experience at Taito Ryokan. Sence we are headed to Okinawa for a month after Tokyo, packing really light is not an option, so I am a bit concerned about transportation from Narita and to Haneda. Read that "JUST SHY OF PANICKED!" But having read the posts here, I think the place for help is now found!

grango, I didn't stop at Asakusa again today but will do tomorrow and see if I can find Taito. I think I may have seen it already during the rickshaw ride but I will dbl check when I go back tomorrow.
KimJapan, about the mayonnaise thing I believe it. I took a wild guess that what I got was mayo when I saw a picture on the container of lettuce being dipped in something white and creamy. I was praying that it wasn't cream cheese or some sort of margarine. I also got what I thought were grapes but it was some crazy grape/muscadine hybrid it's yummy and reminds me of home.
Yep I am at the Mansions and it's fab..my own little one bdrm palace. I'm really going to hate leaving the place. By the way for you folks thinking of staying here the cab ride from the ANA is about 650Y. It's pretty much a straight shot up the street and takes less than 5 minutes by cab. I would almost recommend walking it but if you have luggage you have to walk up some stairs to get across an intersection.
Not much to report today other than it was HOT!!! I went to the Edo Museum and it was great. I really loved all the small scale models (complete with detailed figurines to make up the population). Also the live scale of homes from back then were very cool. There were lots of school children but not so many that you would be overwhelmed.

They have free volunteer guides but I think they must rotate languages because next to the volunteer guide desk it said something to the effect of 'Languages offered today' which was English and Spanish. I would recommend the guide because some of the displays have speaking/action parts to them. Also the some of the placards are written in the Japanese only but you get the general gist without reading them.

Today's theme was if I can't find it in 15 minutes forget it.

After I left the Edo Museum, I thought I would go see the Sumo Museum since easily enough they are right next to each other. There was a security guard right next to the entrance to the museum so I asked him where the Sumo museum was and he said 'Massugu'. So I walked straight up the walkway past the Edo Museum and I saw what I thought was probably the stadium but I didn't find anything pointing to the museum. There is an area map outside the Ryogoku station showing where the museum is but no other signs or area maps pointing you to the right direction. I was sweating buckets and gave up for some subway a/c.

So then I decided to go to Ahkihabara. I walk out the train station and my little guidebook says that I should see the area map outside the station giving you directions to 'ElectricTown'. I saw the map but no Electric Town on it. Tons of people were walking out of the station but no one was going in a set direction. I walked up the street a few blocks, but couldn't find the building that's supposed to house all this stuff. Again it was hot and by this time I was annoyed with myself that I'm such a bad navigator and came home. I will try it again tomorrow.

Tips for getting lost and found Japan.
1. Get a guidebook that will tell you the correct exit to take out of the train station for the site you want to see..it will save you a lot of time.
2. Find a map with landmarks on it (like stores, restaurants etc)so you will know where you're going. The one I got for Ginza at the info booth was excellent cuz it had not only the street name but some of the stores on the streets so when I passed by I knew exactly where I was. The Mansions also supplied me with one of Roppongi and it's excellent also.
3. If you run out of money on your Passnet card, don't get another card with a picture just like the one you had before. I made that mistake and then couldn't figure out which one I just paid for. After getting slapped down at the gate the nice man at the ticket counter flipped the card over and showed me all the writing on the back showed it was at '0'.

4. Don't even think about going down a street that you believe may be a shortcut..it ain't so.

Finally going to sample some nightlife tonight as my sleep sched. has returned to normal.

skyhopper,

to get to Electric Town either take the JR to the Akihabara station. It will take you to the heart of it. If taking the Metro get out the exit which goes to the JR station. Once there you would be able to gather your bearings.

skyhopper, my husband and I are joining you here in Tokyo. We're staying at the Hilton in Shinjuku and just arrived after a couple days at the Expo near Nagoya. Didn't do too much today - just the free observation deck at the TMG building near the hotel and walked around Kabuki-cho near Shinjuku station. We'll be visiting Asakusa tomorrow - too bad it will be raining.

Sheryl, I am planning to stay at the same Hilton Hotel by the end of August, first time in Tokyo for three nights, it will be great to read about your experience there.

Hi Grango,
We're preceeding you to Japan by a few days. We will be staying at the Taito Ryokan on the 15, 16 and 17. We then head out towards Kyoto and plan to return to Tokyo on the 28th. If Taito is nice we will stay there on the 28th. Maybe we will overlap. This is our first trip to Japan and we are both nervous and excited. Looking forward to the adventure.

Hello again,

grango, I tried to find Taito ryokan but couldn't locate as I forgot to bring the address with me. I did remember that it was across the street from Vodafone and I also saw the small koban on the corner.

It's going to be a good 10 minute walk to get to Asakusa station. I didn't see the Tawaramachi station tho, but judging by the map on their site that station is closest to the ryokan.

Have been spending the last couple of days wandering around. Went Ebisu stopped by What the Dickens. Had a live blues band that was pretty good. It wasn't crowded when I got there and then all of a sudden at around 10p it was packed.

Ebisu has a lot of small restaurants with very well dressed people eating in them..I was bumming it in t-shirts and jeans so didn't go into any.

So I came back to Roppongi and ate at this little izakaya next to the Mansions. I had sashimi (which i tried for the first time--oishii desu!), chicken liver, and some sort of wild japanese plant dish.

Then went to a place called Soul Sonic Boogie. They play 70's/80s r&b and disco tunes. It's so funny that they can't speak english well but know all the words to Celebrate by Kool and the Gang. I met so many people there! They were shy at first but after a drink or 2 watch out!

Went to Tokyo station today to get my JR pass and reserve a seat for the train to Kyoto. That place is huge! Today is some sort of holiday..the guy at the izakaya told me last night. I wish I'd known earlier this week cuz now I only have 2000 or 3000 yen to my name and of course the post office is closed.

Looking forward to Kyoto tomorrow and my stay at Hiiragiya. Ready for a slight change of scenery.

Great report and update, skyhopper.

What a change you are in for as soon as you set foot in Hiiragiya. The whipped green tea and "cake" will let you know that you have walked into a different world, one of calm and relaxation. Looking forward to your next installment!

What wonderful reports; I am looking forward to the next one!

Aah,
Back to the land of Fodor's. Well here I am in Shibuya and what a mind blow that was when I got out of the train station. Staying at the Cerulean Tower Hotel and it is pretty nice. I have a fantastic view of what's going on below. It is 5p here and the neon is starting to give a little twinkle.

I decided not to send my luggage thru takkyubin (luggage delivery) because well I'm a master procrastinator. But I figured..hey I haven't had a really crowded train since I got here so my luggage shouldn't be an issue. HOWEVER...I forgot that I had been taking the train around 10am. I left the Mansions at 8am. It was good going at first..escalators were going down so except for the entrance I didn't have to lug my stuff for long.I thought this is going to be a breeze! NOT! I sat for an hour in Roppongi station waiting for a train where people's faces weren't smashed up against the glass. At 9am it miraculously let up at least enough to fit me and my luggage.

When I needed to transfer to Marounochi there was an elevator so no need for lugging luggage there either.
I think it became a prob when I got to Kyoto because I had no idea where I was or where to go. Long story short use the delivery service..your life will be much easier.

I had more leg room than I thought I would on the train. I was almost cursing the fact I hadn't brought my bigger suitcase. The overhead bins are just enough for a stuffed backpack or a very small suitcase. The suitcase I have is about 15 in wide and 22 length and I still had legroom despite the person in front was leaned back in their seat.

When we first arrived at Kyoto station, I was thinking..am I at the wrong stop? Very industrialized.

Kyoto was really nice. It was a nice break away. Hiiragiya was lovely especially the cedar tub which was so aromatic I just wanted to sit in there forever. I opted for dinner only and am I glad I did..I don't think I've had that much food ever. Shabu-shabu was my final meal there and I am not by any means skilled with the chopsticks. Needless to say I felt like the room and myself needed plastic coating for that meal. My housekeeper had a great sense of humor thank Buddha. The service was great and if I return I will definitely stay there again.

Went to Arashiyama (?) and went to the bamboo forest which was beautiful and thankfully cool for a very hot day.
Walked around a bit and found another temple called Suzumidera(?). It was a lovely walk up the steps(curses!) to get to the ticket gate but alas Nihongo only. The bamboo forest was really the only thing I went to Arashiyama for so I caught the number 73 back to Kyoto station.

Went to Chion-in shrine in Kyoto where I sat seiza for around 30 minutes while the monks chanted. It was very soothing...until the clanging of bells started at which time I promptly got up and left. The garden was okay but be forewarned that there are some arrows that lead u nowhere. Also if you have bad/weak legs/knees don't even think about going there. The steps leading up to the entrance is a killer. I better have some nice calf muscles when I get home!

Now for my favorite place which was Heian. Probably the best garden I took a spin through. I needed sunglasses for the white sand. Also there were 2 geisha or at least a pretend ones at the entrance..all the tourists..me included descended on them like locusts with our cameras out. I'm sure they were thinking, 'Man, we just wanted to try it out for a day!'

Walked thru the narrow alley of Pontochoburi which still, I think has a feeling of old Japan and then walked thru Shirakawa-minami dori which is a very lovely little street.

Sent my luggage via takkyubin to Cerulean from Hiiragiya with no problems.

It's raining today and very cool so I think I'm just going to hang in the hotel tonight. My shoes aren't gripping the pavement so I was slipping some when I walked around. There's a jazz bar and some nice restaurants to choose from so..ja mata everyone.

I have stayed at Taito Ryokan. It is about a 7-8 minute walk to Tawaramachi Subway station and a good place to stay if you are going to the airport early in the morning. It is very basic, shared bathroom and common room. I had a six legged creature visit me in the night, but it scuttled away when I turned on the light!!

Very cheap (by Tokyo standards) and very cheerful. Great guy who runs it and seemed to have a nice crowd hanging around in the common room.

Hi Folks,
Well the time is near and all the information is great. Skyhopper, you have convenced me to use the baggage transfer service. Could you give us some details please like where do we find the service? Is it in Narita airport? Can we have bags transfered to Haneda for a flight a few days in the future, etc? From what you and others have said it seems reasonable to pack a small carry bag for our short stay in Tokyo and transfer our big bags to the Haneda airport so we don't have to mess with them at all in Tokyo. Any one have words of wisdom and procedure on the subject?
Notzathros, how was the stay in Taito Ryokan? I was reading the web site again and noticed the words "traditional" bathrooms. Thought that may mean trench rather than toilet so made reservations else where. Really disapointed but thought I better be safe on that issue. Hope you liked it enough to return. Yes, we will be in Tokyo the 28th. Just day from now! In a town of how many million we may just bump into each other. If ya'll see an American, wave. I'll be waving back!

You have a good plan Grango. Yes the baggage service is available at Narita: when you come into the arrival area turn left and you will see the baggage services. Sending it to Haneda is a good idea. Where are you flying to from Haneda? Why not just send your bags to your lodging (or airport) at that destination?

mrwunrfl,
Thanks for the details on baggage transfer. Did not think to transfer the bags to our destination because did not know we could! All the way to Okinawa? Any idea of the cost of this wonderful service? And I assune that as all other services in Japan it is very reliable? Wow, this will really take a load off me, all punns intended. Thanks again to all!

Sorry I've been m.i.a. Have been getting acclimated to working and time difference tiredness.
Anyway, I looked at my bill from Hiiragiya to find out the cost for the luggage delivery (from kyoto to tokyo). It says 'Carriage' which I assume is luggage deliv. and it was 1620Y.

As we were riding the JR express from Nireta to Tokyo Station I begain to get an idea of how impossable it would be to see any significant portion of this town in 2 days of sight seeing. We arrived at Tokyo Station at evening high rush trafic and got our first tast of extream Japanese hospitality. When we asked a young lady who had a pushcart selling drinks and snacks which way we should go to get to the exit we needed, she left her cart in the care of a co-worker and took us through the maze of escalators and twists and turns up to the exit! We were very thankful and greatly impressed as it was atleast a 5 min. walk back for her and would have taken us much longer had we been left on our own. And along the way another passer-by stopped to help me lift my bags up a short flight of stairs. The grand children were greatly impressed, as I was.

We used the baggage transfer service with the sign of a mama cat carring a kitten. Have no idea of the name as it was not in English. They were the only folks who seemed able to keep the bags at Haneda and not deliver them to a house. The charge was near 7500 yen and well worth it to me sence our heavest bag was 65lbs. and not something I could handle. The mass trasportation system of Tokyo is great for someone who is blind but if you have any mobility impairment you are going to have difficulty. Some of the major stations have nothing but stairs, no elevators or esculators. But we found that by following the big bumpy brail lines in the floor we could find the exits quickly.

We enjoyed the 2 days we were in Tokyo but were not able to see even a tenth of the things we had listed to see even though they were in only two areas. The Joyapolus had moved, we messed around shopping and missed going to the top of the municipal building because of closing (the mist was too thick to see the top in the morining and raining the night before) Did not see any of the gardens except the ones at the palace, only saw two of the temples on our list. But on the did-do list: had a great stay in Hotel Yaesu Ryumeikan. The delight of my grand daughter when she opened the door to the room made all the preperation worth while. I found the futons much more comfortable than hotel beds. The room was better than the pictures! Tea set and hot water, selection of teas and sweet treats awaited us on a beautiful traditional table with floor cushons and arm rests. A small frige stocked with an honor bar and extra space shaired an alcove with legged chairs and table. Private small Japinese style tile tub with soaping area. A traditional "family bath" with wooden tub was down the hall. We had no disapointments here except that we did not eat the Japanes breakfast they offer the first day but only the second day. It was very good and a fun adventure in eating. We would have done better eating there the morning we went to the Palace grounds tour (You have to make reservations on line in advance for the tour) rather than trying to get to the fish market for breakfast and back in time for the tour. The distance was much farther than we expected. We took a cab (750 yen) from a couple of blocks from the fish market to the Palace tour gate. The cabbie made sure we were in the exact place where we needed to be and as close as possable. Service! The tour was interesting and worth the time it took. There were only a few other non Japanese in the tour. I found the extream orderlyness, strict rows of four people each in groups of 24, and total silence except for an "oohh" or "ah" softly in unison at the proper time, to be as interesting as the tour. Sorry, but these Americans stuck out, could not keep up with the proper row or even group 1/2 the time. But the Japanese were very tolerant and just smiled. On the way to Tokyo my grand daughter had said that America has no culture, we're just a big conglomerant. After the experience at the Palace, I think I know what our culture is and its name is Freedom! Not only political freedom but freedom from regenmentation. I can't picture close to 200 Americans lining up in the first place, much less maintaining the order for over an hour. We went to the National Museum of Art afterwards as it was a block from the rear gate of the East Gardens. Galery was ok, food expencive (300 yen for 4 oz of strawberries and ice with a Tb. of icecream on top, 300 yen for 6 oz. of lemon aid,800 yen for a small sandwitch)and not an event. Grand son decucted that the reason we saw few over weight people was food is too expencive to eat much. That started us on an "I spy" of Japanese people "over weight". Took us the balance of that day, next day and ride to Hanada the 3rd AM to find a dozen with 25 to 30 extra lbs.! I wonder what the thoughts of the native population is when they see a group of Americans get off a tour bus and the average person is carring 50 to 75 excess lbs. My thought is they would not make the trip across town on the subway and train with all those stairs up and down and runing to catch the train before it leaves.

hay, what happened to the rest of the post?

Hi grango, good to hear you had such a good time. I was interested to hear that Joypolis has moved.... do you know where it is now? Has anything replaced it in Odaiba? Thanks

grango: I almost missed your posting here, glad I checked this thread. I am trying to recall where you all were heading after Tokyo. Hope we get another installment on your report. Your grandkids must be having the time of their lives keeping up w/you!