Japan (Photos)
Went to Japan for a two-week holiday last month. It has taken me a little while to get my act into gear on posting the photos, but an edited selection is now up on Picasa.
This time I went for a drive (first time I’ve ever driven in a foreign country) from Fujisawa to Shimoda to Gotemba to Kofu.
Japanese driving is very strange when it comes to speed limits. It says 50 (km/h) and everyone’s doing 80. There’s also a lot of 30, which is really frustrating if you obey it, but most people are doing 45 or 50. I found this very pretty and deserted temple near Mishima called Myouhokkeji, which was a highlight:
In Tokyo, I caught up with good friends and spent a lot of time wandering around suburbs like Hiroo, Yanaka, Denenchofu, Higashi, Futakotamagawa, Asagaya, as well as my regular favorites like Daikanyama, Nakameguro, etc. I like the dilapidated architecture of Tokyo’s suburbs and the little shops and cafes in quiet back streets.
Highlights included seeing Strauss’s Opera Die Frau Ohne Schatten at the NNTT, with some fabulous American and European singers, and eating highly rated ramen from the Ramen Database. Another highlight was the Cafe du Violon in Asagaya. It’s a bit like the Lion Music Cafe in Shibuya. You can go there to listen to old classical LPs played on an antique valve-driven stereo machine. Pure Tokyo bliss.
