more and more

I am still sometimes feeling amazed with the fact that we are in Tokyo. In Japan, in Tokyo. It is such an amazing place - so different than anything we've experienced, and I'm talking in terms of everything - culture, food, language, tradition, holidays, public transportation, metropolis... and on and on the list goes. We had a bit of a break from the city this weekend - up to Nagano Prefecture we went, where we stayed in Suwa, but watched games in Ina (Saturday) and Okaya (Sunday). Suwa was beautiful - the city (/town?) lays low in a valley, next to a lake and shadowed by half-snowy hills and rocky medium-mountains behind. The town may be known for its thermal waters; the hotel we stayed at had an onsen with piping hot water, and there was a public foot bath along with a smoky, sulfuric, bubbly water hole alongside the lake. It was a bit chilly, and on Sunday I just missed some morning flurries as I returned from a scenic run along the lakeside path. It was nice to see space, and trees, and mountains. The volleyball (which was, after all, the purpose of our trip) was another tough go. They played the last placed team in the league on Saturday, and lost - in four sets. I'll just be honest - it was ugly. The team is good (Steve's team), but they struggle to play well; the team is inconsistent, and, in my opinion, lacks a bit of leadership. It's often tough to play a weaker, no-good team, because playing down to their level is always a bit of a danger, and unfortunately, that's what happened. In the end, the other team won only because they made fewer errors. Eek. It was disappointing for all. However, Sunday was better - they still lost, but the team played waaaaaay better, and showed some aggression, power and fight. Still, a loss is a loss, but I'm thinking that they're on their way up. They must be.

We've been busy busy with sightseeing and filling our days with photo-worthy events. We had a dessert feast chez nous a few days ago (or last week?) - everyone picked up/out a few treats from food heaven (Tokyu Food Show), and after some intense anticipation, we attacked. There were three loaded plates and six sets of goggly dessert eyes, and then it was almost all gone. The winner was the black forest cake, and the loser was the bean paste filled, fish-shaped Japanese pancake. (I bought it hot - maybe it would have been better eaten fresh? Not knowing.) We had an amazing day at a popular onsen in Odaiba - Oedo Onsen Monogatori - where the whole lot of us sported cotton Yukatas and dipped ourselves into traditional Japanese baths. There was an outdoor foot bath where all six of us meandered before heading to the segregated baths and hot pools. There were a few outdoor baths (including a quartet of wooden barrel tubs), and several indoor baths, most of which were hot hot hot. Marg, Barb and I stayed away from the sauna, steam room and cold bath, and soaked up the heat and hot water inside. The onsen is also a so-called theme park, because the common areas (which include restaurants, shops and cafes) are styled in the decor of traditional Edo times. We had lunch and ice cream and wandered and relaxed, and after a solid afternoon, left refreshed, relaxed and very, very clean. Odaiba is home to many a thing to see, and so we decided to stop at Venus Fort and Mega Web to check out some shops and showrooms. The Mega Web is basically a showcase of Toyota's array of vehicles - mostly new, futuristic and eco-friendly. It was pretty impressive - you could ride in a self-driving car, and everyone is free to sit in and check out most, but not all, of the vehicles. The Toyota Pod, for example, was on display, but in a no-go zone; the same goes for the i-unit, which communicates with other i-units, and changes shape and colour as it does so (and as the speed changes). Crazy, and amazing - this article at Gizmag explains the capabilities of the Personal Mobility Concept in the form of a very smart scooter-car-vehicle-thing.

Venus Fort, a "shopping paradise", is designed to resemble (at least in some parts) a European street, complete with fountains and columns and classic architecture. A highlight for us was visiting not one but TWO pet shops full of stuff for dogs - this includes clothing, hats, changing tables, mirrors, bakeries (doggy birthday cakes), photo studios (dogs want portraits too), jewelry, accessories, strollers (/pet carriers? not sure what these are called), and mucho mas. It was almost too much to believe.

The Fab Four also went up to Nikko (on Thursday), and visited the Tsukiji fish market (Wednesday) before the lot of us made for Suwa on Saturday morning. Steve and I finally made it out for sushi at a great little place in Shibuya (the name of which I do not know), and I subbed at a few classes for a government English program in the middle of the city. Plans - highlights! - for this week include celebrating a certain someone's birthday (tomorrow), an Ikebana (flower arrangement) class for the ladies (also tomorrow), a Fab Four Fuji tour on Wednesday, a day at the sumo tournament on Thursday, and then on Friday I'll be left all alone in Tokyo, as Steve heads south for another weekend of games, and our visitors make for Kyoto and Hiroshima. There is much in store for us all in this big and amazing place...