Hiroshima and Osaka Day Trip

SMS and I headed out on Saturday morning to Hiroshima.  We took the bus to the Peace Park, which was pretty easy and cheaper than a cab.  I like re-visiting places because I learn better ways to do things.  After wandering the park, we decided to get some lunch before the museum.  We walked to the covered shopping area that's very close to Peace Park.  I wanted to go to the okonomiyaki place that I had been to before.  We found it and it was just as good as ever.  We sat at the bar so we ate our okonomiyaki right off the grill.

Deliciousness in action!

I was also very excited to see that the okomiyaki place was next to Okonomimura, okonomiyaki-town! I don't think it's part of the official "town" since it's not in the building but it is right next to it.  I was so happy that I had inadvertently found Okonomimura since I read about it when I was here with Mom and Dad but didn't realize that I was already there!

Then, we walked back to the Peace Park and walked through the museum.  After the museum, we headed to the train station to catch the Shinkansen to Osaka.

Osaka was an unplanned stop but I'm so glad we went.  The skyline is super-cool and it's a neat mix of futuristic buildings with gardens built in wherever they can fit.  There were ground-level gardens, 7th floor promenades that reminded us of the High Line in New York and the highest garden at 40 stories in the Sky Building.

Sagoy!

The Umeda Sky Building was awesome.  We went up to the Floating Garden on the 39th and 40th floor.  We were outside and it was such a beautiful afternoon with incredible views.  The anti-jumper protection is actually set away from the circular deck so you can look out across the horizon without having glass or wires directly in your way.  I even saw the building with a highway overpass through it so I thought that was super cool!

We also came across a Japanese Oktoberfest with the coolest Japanese yodeler.  She's amazing.  Apparently, she's been on Japanese TV and commercials too- a national treasure!

After that fun, we hopped on the train and headed home.  We got back around 10 and we're definitely ok with not traveling for a little while!  Time to make our apartment feel like home!

Hakata and Iwakuni

Our restaurant in RAMEN STADIUM!

 On Tuesday, we headed out from Sasebo to Iwakuni after a slightly shortened morning clinic.  On the way, we stopped in Hakata so that we could go to RAMEN STADIUM!!!  We wanted to something fun to break up the trip and since it was around lunch time, we decided to try Hakata-style ramen.  SMS's favorite LA ramen shop is called Hakata Ramen Shinsengumi and he was really into the idea of trying real Hakata ramen.  There are 8 shops with three of them featuring Hakata-style.  We went to the most delicious-looking one.  It was pretty tasty.  I was a fan of the burnt crushed garlic oil- it sounds like a bad idea but it was so good!  The noodles were very thin, which isn't my preference but really, it was all very oishii.  We got to Iwakuni that evening and I dispensed some sleep study kits.  We had a light dinner and turned in.

Hakata ramen- yum! (Photo by SMS)

The next morning, SMS, the corpsman and I headed to Iwakuni castle and bridge.  The bridge is amazing with its five wooden arches.  The castle is a reconstruction finished in 1962 and is actually a little forward of the original foundation in order to capitalize on the amazing views.  So, not the most old-timey but the view from the top floor is pretty amazing.

Kintai-kyo

Our asa-gohan of Iwakuni sushi- meh.

Cute painted rock dolls- an Iwakuni souvenir!

After a fun morning, I saw an afternoon clinic.  SMS and I went to Shabu Shabu for dinner and it was delicious.  There were some crazy kids there- the craziest acting I've seen in a restaurant here in Japan.  The meal was great, although I found it hard to eat all of the beef tongue.  It was thinly sliced and very anatomically correct.  Since I don't like naming the muscles as I eat them, I stopped after a few slices.

Yuzu with miso eggplant and whole fish!

Thursday was another busy day in clinic but we had an awesome meal at a cute restaurant named Yuzu.  We had the lightest assorted tempura, great sashimi and a fried whole fish.  My absolute favorite was an incredible miso eggplant dish.  I saw a stack of eggplant and asked the cook (in Nihongo!) how he prepared it.  He asked if miso was ok and we said yes.  I'm so glad we did.  The eggplant was carved from the skin like a grapefruit and then roasted.  It was topped with an amazing savory miso sauce.  I was so happy that we went off the (English) menu.  It was the most amazing meal I've had in awhile and the serendipitous find made it even better!

On Friday, SMS headed out to Miyajima while I finished off the last of the 45 consults.  I went to Sako's for lunch.  It is a small restaurant owned by a husband-wife duo.  The wife has been the OIC's secretary for 30 years so basically, she runs the clinic!  I had an egg BLT (EBLT) and it was delicious. Missie gave me a ride back to the clinic, which was great b/c otherwise I would have been run-walking which may not have felt great after an EBLT.

SMS and I had been invited out to dinner but plans fell through since the entire clinic was going to Sasebo the next day for a Fun Day!  So, we went back to Sako's where I had my second BLT (this time with avocado) of the day.  We watched sumo and the two BLTs seemed apropos.  We were invited to Missie's evening English class as guests.  We were a little hesitant but we went and had the best time!  Everyone was so nice and tried so hard.  They also helped us with our Japanese, which was very kind and helpful.  We were so happy that we went and it was such a cool experience.

SMS arrives, then leaves again…to Tonchinkan Yakitori!

SMS came in on Saturday!  Hooray!  I met him at Narita airport and we were so happy to be together again!  His flight wasn't too bad and we headed back to our apartment.  In the apartment was a sort-of-surprise: I had set up half of the second bedroom as his office with his desk and a new package that recently arrived.  It was his new iMac computer with all the specs he wanted.  I kept it in the box because it's his computer and I thought it would be fun to unwrap.  Apple really does a nice job with its packaging.  I always feel very futuristic when I open a new Apple device!

SMS' Plane

Oh!  I also had a welcome bag for SMS!  Inside, there was a shu creme puff, a French cream puff dessert that the Japanese make really well.  Underneath the pastry was…a new iPhone!  Wooooo!  (I feel like Oprah on one of the "My Favorite Things" episodes!  Look under the pastry box, IT'S A NEW IPHONE!!!!  WOOOOOO!!!!)  I really wanted SMS to have his smart phone right away so he felt at home and connected.  He had also asked that I got it and fortunately, I was able to make it happen despite a pretty busy week at work.

Why was it so busy at work?  The next week, I was scheduled to be TDY.  I know, crazy!  SMS arrives and off we go to travel Japan!  I had told SMS about it and offered to schedule the trip the week before he came, but we decided to go when he arrived so we could tour Japan on the cheap.  My Shinkansen tickets and hotel are funded so we only had to pay for SMS' tickets.  The trade-off is that I had to work for 4.5 days, but we still had a great time.

We left Sunday and headed to Sasebo.  My prior trip, I went to Iwakuni first so I had no idea how long the journey was to Sasebo.  9 long hours- yuck!  We made it through relatively unscathed and checked into the Gateway Inn, which, if you're ever going to Sasebo, I recommend over the Navy Lodge.  The Gateway Inn has larger rooms with a suite set-up and I much preferred it when I stayed in both places my last visit.

I saw 1.5 days of clinic on Monday and Tuesday morning before heading to Iwakuni where I saw 2.5 days of clinic since they had scheduled 46 patients.  46 consults in 3 months…ridiculous!  Of course, I'm happy to help out but that was an impressive level.

Tonchinkan Entrance

On Monday night, we went out with the audiologist and a nurse practitioner to Tonchinkan, which is an amazing yakitori place.  Oh my gosh, it is so good.  It's better than the more famous restaurant SMS and I went to in Tokyo mid-town.  If I lived in Sasebo, I would go at least once a week and probably more!

Yakitori refers to grilled meats and, to a lesser extent, veggies.  It's on small skewers and the meat quality and accompanying marinades and sauces are what determine the taste.  I think Tonchinkan has it completely right with the marinades because, seriously, I can't stop talking about how good it is!  We ordered tofu with the most amazing siracha/honshu/miso? sauce, grilled pork, chicken meatball (SMS' favorite), kobucha (squash), bacon-wrapped asparagus, bacon-wrapped cheese, steak and onion.  While I've been told there's other good restaurants in Sasebo, this is my go-to spot.  I did go to Ra-Ra-Ramen last time, which was delicious but since we were only staying one night, I'll have to save it for another time.

Last Weekend!

The weekend was pretty mellow.  I recovered from traveling, cleaned up the house and made one field trip up to Yokohama.  My friend Adam organized a huge birthday adventure starting with "Oktoberfest" in Yokohama followed by the Robot Restaurant in Tokyo.  I was on call so I met up with everyone in Yokohama to be social.  I loved the Oktoberfest and look forward to the next one.  The German band leading a bunch of (mostly) Japanese was pretty awesome.  Next time, I'll try not to be on call so I can kampai!

I parted ways with the Tokyo-bound crew (too far away from base when on-call) and walked from Red Brick Warehouse to Yokohama Station.  The walk was nice and there were several nice shops along the way.  Humpty Dumpty was like Anthropologie but with a much more unfortunate name.  I also had my first choco cro and as you can imagine from the name, it was delicious.  A chocolate croissant sprinkled with toasted sesame seeds.  Amazing!

I went shopping in Sogo, located within Yokohama station. They have a LOFT on the 7th floor which is filled with awesome stuff.  It's like Target on steroids- none of its needed until I see and have to have it!   

Then I went home and for the rest of the weekend, just hung out and cleaned the apartment to get ready for SMS' arrival.  Sagoy!

Day 8: Sayonara, *sniff!*

Whah!  The vacation was awesome but too short.  I love hanging out with Mom and Dad but now it was time for them to go to DC.  I was very sad to see them go!

They took the Airport Limousine bus to Narita.  Their JR passes had expired and the bus is super convenient since it was waiting outside the hotel and took them straight to the airport.  There were no train transfers to navigate with luggage during Tokyo rush hour.  That is a huge plus!  We had bought the tickets at the New Sanno front desk and I highly recommend that method of travel.  It's also more reliable than the train since bad weather seems to greatly impact the schedule.  Even high winds cause delays.

They took the 0730 bus which was the perfect time for them based on their flights.  We said our good-byes.  While it was sad, it was such an amazing vacation that I carried over that residual happiness. My vacation was complete.

Then I headed into work for the afternoon.  Next exciting event on the horizon?  SMS' triumphant return to Japan!!!!

Day 7: Kamakura and Tokyo

The good weather was back!  Not to be too boring in talking about the weather but it is so much nicer to be a tourist on a sunny day!  This was our last full day (v. sad) and we took a day trip to Kamakura.  We were supposed to go the day prior but I thought Kamakura would be way more attractive on a nicer day.

Hachiman-gu

After sleeping in, we headed off to Kamakura via Subway and JR.  We arrived at the main station and walked up my favorite pedestrian shopping street, Komachi-dori.  We had a delicious croquette and soft ice cream on our walk.  Rose joined us for an hour as we looked around the Tsurugaoka Hachiman-gu Shrine.  Then we walked down Wakamiya-oji, the main thoroughfare.  It is pretty but especially gorgeous during the Sakura (cherry blossoms).  I felt that many places show off the sakura in their tourist pictures, which after awhile feels like a taunt, "Too bad you weren't here last month.  It was really beautiful!"

Then it was time for lunch.  We finally went to a sushi-go-round, which was high on Mom's to-do list.  We tried searching for the one she had been to last time but were unsuccessful.  We went to one on Komachi-dori and it was tasty.  It also had cooked shrimp sushi, which Mom really likes so it all worked out.

Two wise men: One reached Enlightenment, one has a Japan Rail Pass

Then we took the Enoshima Electric Railway to see the Kamakura Daibutsu.  It seems like an almost mandatory stop when touring Kamakura.  We were all a little wiped from a long but fun week of travel so we skipped the Hasedera, which is definitely worth seeing but sometimes, enough is enough.  We headed back to Tokyo to prepare for Robot Restaurant!

Words fail.

We went to the 8:20 show and it blew my expectations out of the water.  It was totally kitschy, ridiculous and AWESOME!  Afterwards, we stopped in the Shinjuku Station mall for some food and then headed over to the Mado Lounge for drinks.  This was the one disappointment of the trip because it closed at 10:30 and we got there at 10:50.  Big boo!  I was sad, but I had never expected a bar to be closed that early.  It usually isn't but Golden Week hours had kicked in.  Bad sagoy:(

Anyway, we recovered nicely and went to a wine bar near the hotel.  Hooray for resiliency!  Then it was off to bed.

Oyasuminasai!

Day 6: Tokyo

This was our one day of bad weather.  The day before there was some rain, but the heaviest was while we were on the train.  Not today!  We got soaked but we didn't let it stop us!

Start and end of the Cruise: Hama Rikyu (right) and Asakusa pier (left), with view of SKYTREE and the Asahi building

 After sleeping in, we headed downstairs for an American breakfast at the New Sanno.  It was delicious.  After we (over-)fortified ourselves, we headed out into the elements (so brave, ha ha).  First, we went to  the Hama Rikyu gardens, an old imperial duck hunting grounds now turned city park.  It's very beautiful with lakes, gardens and a tea house.  It's a funny incongruity to see such a beautiful garden flanked by skyscrapers on three sides (the fourth side is the Sumida River).  We were there to catch the Sumida River Boat Cruise.  There were two signs with different times and fortunately I listened to Dad (hi Dad!) and we caught the 10:00 boat up the river towards Asakusa.  The boat first stopped at Hinode Pier, which would be the place to catch it if you didn't want to pay the garden entrance fee (only Y300, as are many historical tourist destinations in Japan).

Then we went up the river for a 40 minute cruise where we saw 13 architecturally different bridges, the sumo stadium (Ryogoku) and finally, Asakusa pier.  It's a really nice, mellow way to see Tokyo from a different vantage point.

Sensoji Temple and Pagoda.  Not many pictures were taken today.

Asakusa was where we got soaked.  We walked up the Nakamise and bought some yummy rice cracker streets.  Then we went into the main building of the Sensoji temple, a famous Buddhist temple.  There's an Old Edo feel to the area and in sunny weather, it's delightful.  We made a dash for the train station in a (futile) effort to stay dry.  We took the train to Ometasando and ate in the cute, French-themed food court.  Then we walked down Ometasando-dori and admired the modern architecture.  We tried to find a wine bar Mom and I had been to last time but time passes and 6 years later, the wine bar was no more.  We strolled along the main Harajuku street which was interesting but a little sad since Mom was unable to find a Hello Kitty iPhone case for her iPhone 4 (single tear).  We tried hard though!

Seen around Tokyo: Mixed message gnomes (smiley face, wait, what are the gesturing?), dog boutique with gross dog and "cute outfit," donuts in bags because that's where they belong and a baseball poster made out of flowers

Then, it was off to the New Sanno to dry off.  That night, we went to Pizzeria Sole y Lune and had some delicious pizza right near the hotel.  Then it was off to bed!

Oyasuminasai!