Happy Birthday To Me
June 14, 2006 Japan 3 CommentsWe celebrated my birthday on the 11th this year. Nicole and I took a bus to Tokyo first thing in the morning and found ourselves thrust into the pile of humanity that is Shinjuku Station at 9:30 am on a Sunday morning. Shinjuku is the busiest train station in the world, having more people pass through it every day that any other station on Earth. During rush hour they have people called “pushers” whose job it is to get a running start and cram the passengers into the subway cars so the doors can close. I avoid the Tokyo metro at rush hour.
We met up with an old Japanese friend named Yumiko whom I met while at Sonoma State. I was first introduced to her by Jim McElroy, my 4th and 5th grade teacher. Yumiko is now teaching English at a university in Tokyo and she brough one of her students, Taichi, along to show us around (and to practice his English. We were lucky in that Yumiko’s students were all very skilled in English).
So the four of us got on a train to a place called Kamakura, about 1 hour south of Tokyo, where we were to meet up with two more of Yumiko’s students, Takashi and Manami. Once we arrived and met up with everyone, the tour began. Manami was quite a tour guide and had a wonderful day planned out for us. It was a little rainy, but I think that was a good thing, because as it was the crowds were large and the weather hot.
We visited several old temples and shrines, including a temple called Hydrangia Temple, where there was a large golden Buddha and a beautifuly landscaped grounds, filled with pristine ponds and blooming flowers.
All this temple viewing can work up an appetite, so we found a restaurant that served okanomiyaki (a kind of “empty the fridge out” pancake that is quite tasty) and Manja (a kind of “empty the fridge out” gooey paste that is also “oishi” yummy). We had to cook our own food, which was an experience that is actually rather common at restaurants in Japan. Generally, either you eat it raw or you have to cook it yourself.
We then moved on to the famous giant bronze statue of Buddha, where we actually got to go inside and pat his belly for good luck.
After that we piled back onto the tiny train that takes us through downtown Kamakura and back to the main staition. We returned to Tokyo and met up with Jim (aka Mr. Mac) and went to an Izekaya for snacks and beer. There is something internally satisfying about sharing a drink with your former 4th grade teacher, like a kind of right of passage.
After all of this it was getting late so Nicole and I had to go catch the bus home. Next weekend we are going to finish off the b-day celebrations with a good dose of bungee jumping.
From left: Nicole, Me, Manami, Taishi, Takashi
Nicole, Jim, and Yumiko at the izekaya in Shinjuku.