Well I'm not making it to the fish market since it is 9AM. Those new meds seem to help me sleep better, but I still have such a ways to go to shake this damn thing. I use the morning to separate my trash because it is trash day. Yep, that is what they do here by separating out glass, hard plastic, non-burnables (batteries, umbrellas, aluminum foil, etc) and everything else comes under burnable. I have no problem in doing this especially when you can get fined by not properly identifying your trash.
I also take a walk through the Chiyoda Park, which has a beautiful collection of Japanese Gardens and sculptures. But, I think my brain is going soft because I forget to bring the camera and my cell, for which I could have taken pictures. I guess this will just have to be my little memory. The grounds are like four different peninsulas gathered by small walkways between them. One area is the Japanese National Museum of Art, which I spent over two hours going through. When you are use to looking at the "traditional" European based art, it takes a while to appreciate the design, color and the mentality of the Japanese artist.
Another area is the Imperial Palace and Gardens, where the Japanese Emperor resides. You can not enter the grounds, only the outside wall perimeters. The gardens are free to visit and while beautiful this time of year, I would think with the flowers and cherry trees bloomed in the spring this place would look entirely different. Another part of the park is basically for walking, picnicking and using the waterways for canoes and other various non motorized boats.
After I finish my 3 hour visit to the park, I'm back to the apartment to get ready to meet an old friend from Kaplan, Janice Block, who just arrived yesterday with her husband Ron from China. Ron plays ice hockey on a club team in Chicago and they are here visiting and playing with other club teams from around this part of the world.
We meet at Cafe DuBois near the Ginza Metro Station and walk over to a store that I had heard that is a must visit. Matsuya Ginza is like no other department store I have ever seen. It is like a Nordstrom's on steroids. There were 7 floors with each floor representing a special collection. We visited the 6th floor which had traditional Japanese products on display and for sale. There were: craftsman making brooms one straw at a time, cobblers making traditional Geisha sandals, painters decorating plates with Japanese scenery, etc. The floor also specialized in original kimonos, geisha dress and silk half and whole gowns. I'm not a chick, but this stuff looked pretty good. Even my friend Janice was overwhelmed with the beauty and the craftsmanship of the products. We both ended up buying a few things. Sorry no give aways.
We finish our shopping and go to dinner a well known shabu-shabu Japanese restaurant called Ginza Rangetsu. We were escorted to a 6th floor level where we were taken to a private room. We ordered a bottle of their better sake which both Janice and I put away pretty well. Ron ordered a beer...dude is a hockey player! We have shabu-shabu which is basically sukiyaki that you make yourself. The meat and vegetables are all brought out to you on a platter. In the middle of the table is a hot plate with a large pan of boiling water. You basically put your veggies in at your leisure and the thinly sliced beef is dipped into the boiling water for just a few seconds. We had a lot of fun eating and talking about old days at Kaplan. I have to say I miss working with a lot of these people, even the ones that are no longer there. We finish our meals and are handed hot towels to refresh ourselves. Lastly we are given dessert since this was a set menu. I had coffee pudding with cream and I believe Janice had yogurt with raspberry jelly. We finish our meal and walk down the stairwell and for some reason we end up at the back of the restaurant in the alleyway. Maybe too much sake. We says our goodbyes and I walk the mile back to my apartment, where I need to finish packing for leaving tomorrow. It will be a little tricky since I have to catch a taxi to get to the Tokyo Train Station in order to catch the Narita Airport Shuttle Bus. This whole process should take 2 hours, so of course I'm leaving the apartment 4 hours before my flight leaves just because that's who I am. A good day, even my meds are working, but I know I missed a lot of other things that I wanted to do and see here in Tokyo, but I have a feeling I will be back here some day.
Sayonara, Japan.
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