Japanese Onsen

Hakone is a short one and a half hour train ride from the city and is a popular area for Japanese hot springs, or "onsen." The traditional onsen are typically outside, scalding hot, tinted yellow with a hint of sulfur. There is also a strict rule against swimming suits. For all of the above reasons, we chose a western style resort, Yunnessun, which caters to the birthday suit bashful, most commonly the military and foreigners.

With over 25 unique baths, you could spend a full day at Yunnessun. Our favorites were the green tea bath, milk bath (with huge, ceramic cows watching over you),and the giant red wine bath. Yes, people try to drink the wine water, despite all the signs begging you not to. An essential experience at the spa was the Dr. Fish Bath. Teeming with bacteria eating fish, you dip your feet into the warm, soothing water, sit back and squirm as the fish eat the unmentionables off the bottom of your feet. When

I took my legs out of the water, there were still a couple attached between my toes. They must've found something good! Judging from the hairy old men sitting around us, I think the Dr. Fish ate well that night...

After the fish bath, we got well deserved shinto massages in the relaxation lounge overlooking the mountainside. A couple vending machine beers, and some delicious soft cream later, we headed home, a little tired, and a lot more relaxed...

Cool Times at Ice Bar Tokyo

A visit to the Absolut Ice Bar Tokyo can evoke any number of clichés about being cool, but the gimmicky lounge in Roppongi’s Nishi-Azabu District is just that. Kept at a chilly –5° C, reservations can be booked in 45 minute time slots, and when coupled with the steep cover charge of 3,500 Yen, seems like pure piracy. But 30 minutes in the subzero ice box is plenty of time to sip vodka cocktails and chill. The cover charge includes a sci-fi-esque cape and gloves and your choice of cocktail. The exotic menu features green tea liquer, champagne and cassis concoctions, all mixed with vodka of course and served in a frozen tumbler. The bar also features a frozen love seat to lounge around, eskimo looking bartenders, and a "cool crowd." We had to huddle together to stay warm, but beware; if you happen to melt your ice glass you'll be charged another 800 yen to replace it...

No Need for Elastic Pants

The dining scene in Japan can be a gastronomic paradise. An endless menu of cuisine and price ranges, guarantees almost anyone can find something to please their palate. In celebration of my 25th birthday, my better half and I made reservations at the uber hyped theme restaurant, Ninja. Tucked away in the swanky business district of Akasaka, the restaurant is easily lost among neighboring high end eateries with trendy decor and more prominent locations. Dare to venture inside and you're greeted by a maitre d' decked out in, of course, a ninja costume. Two knocks on the wall and a mysterious door opens with a ninja appearing from thin air. Holding only a lantern he leads you through the ninja training compound, complete with a drawbridge and ninja river. We were lead back through the dimly lit restaurant to our table where our waiter produced a thick drink menu of ninja beauty cocktails. Mike and I looked at each other and the menu and verified that yes, the restaurant did accept Visa. We ordered the 8 course dinner which included some interesting dishes. The frothy vegetable shot glass was especially pleasing.

While the ambiance and company were world class, the food lacked in quantity. My suggestion? If you want to put your money where your mouth is, go to Denny's.

Nikko

For those looking to escape the cosmopolitan chaos of Tokyo, Nikko offers a welcome urban retreat, which can be enjoyed in one day, but best for a weekend if you have the time. About two hours from Asakusa Station, the houses begin to grow farther and farther apart and the concrete jungle gives way to sprawling countryside and if you're lucky, a glimpse of Fuji-san. After a winding bus ride up 37 curves, we reached the sleepy resort town of Lake Chuzengi. Popular among politicians and visiting dignitaries, the tranquil lakeside is dotted with shops and restaurants. Large swan boats can be rented for the day and the faint laughter of children as they jumped into the water combined to create a home-town ambience.

Hidden among the trees and windy roads were several waterfalls and hiking trails. We ate lunch at a small soba shop where the boys discovered katsudon curry (fried pork and curry rice) and a new reason to live. I think Mike was just glad to get the taste of the terriyaki grasshoppers out of his mouth.

After lunch and another long bus ride, we arrived at Toshogu Shrine, self proclaimed to be Japan's most beautiful shrine. Unlike typical shrines, Toshogu Shrine is very rich, colorful and almost gaudy, like your grandmother's jewelry box. The famous "hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil" monkies are carved as a monument to the famous Buddhist belief. As you pass under the tall torii gate, the towering 5 tiered pagoda off to your right provides a good photo op. Wear comfortable shoes as there are a lot of steps and you must remove your shoes ever time you enter a temple. It still amazes me how the Japanese women can teeter around in 4 inch stillettos without breaking a sweat. The Shrine is a haven for wild monkies. I was hoping to see someone slip on a banana peel, but no such luck.

We entered one of the smaller shrines, sans shoes of course, where there was a crowd gathering underneath a flaky painting of a dragon. Wasn't too impressed until one of the monks, (I think he was a monk, or else an Asian Hugh Hefner because he was sporting the silk bath robe), was banging some blocks together. If he stood underneath the heart of the dragon, and clapped his blocks, the room would echo like the roar of the dragon. But standing under any other part of the dragon's body, there was no sound. This is what I gathered anyways, he was speaking Japanese, so I was pretty much left to invent my own interpretation for you.

Every year, on the 18th of October, Nikko throws a festival to celebrate Japan's most notorious samurai. Hundreds of samurai parade the area around the shrine in colorful costumes, decked in samurai swords. Sounds like a swashbuckling good time! Hope you can all make it out to see this beautiful part of Japan, and stay away from the grasshoppers. They do taste as bad as they look...

Solved!

I solved one of Japan's biggest mysteries this weekend! I've made almost every dressing room mistake since living in Japan from not taking off my shoes before going into the dressing room to putting my dirty shoes in what I discovered is a "face bag"...I was in the Gap last week with a fellow American, waiting to try on some overpriced clothes when the guy hands her this weird bag and I get nothing. We didn't know what it was so she just left it in the dressing room and when we came out everyone looked at us like I had just picked my boogers and eaten them.

Same story, different store. I'm waiting in line and the guy hands everyone this weird bag except for me. I finally see the box and it says FACE COVERS on it so I put 2 and 2 together and get 5 and realize that you put this weird bag over your face so when you try on clothes you don't get make up or boogers or whatever all over the clothes. Those Japanese...they've thought of everything...

Roppongi Hills

Roppongi Hills is paradise. I know Mike was getting sick of me telling him how badly I wanted to live in one of the million yen condos. The development features shops, restaurants, a rooftop garden, luxury high rise condos and lots of neon lights and plasma TV's. Basically paradise. There was a Starbucks on almost each floor! We walked around all the little shops, had a drink at the Wolfgang Puck Cafe and then ate dinner at Tony Romas. Oddly, the restaurant owner was Mexican, the decor looked Italian, and the music was Caribbean.

Cherry Picking

Mike and I went on a guided tour to go cherry picking in Yamanashi prefecture, which is fondly known as the "belly button" of Japan. After gorging ourselves on cherries, we went to Shosenkyo Gorge where we took a cable car to the top and went hiking. Mike made some new friends (see Hello Kitty picture below) and had a beer. Then we were given a map, which we later discovered was in the back of Mike's jeans, and were given time to explore. We were supposed to meet the tour bus at the end of the first trail. Well we somehow missed the end of the first trail and ended up walking all the way to the end. Actually running by the time we figured out we were lost. The tour bus had to pick us up by the pony corral and when we got on the bus, the whole group clapped and cheered. It was quite the spectacle.

Big Buddha Belly

The Big Buddha is located in Kamakura, about an hour train ride from base. Once you get off the train you walk about 10 minutes down streets lined with street vendors selling everything from Batman halloween costumes, samurai swords to ice cream and raw horse. We walked up the longest set of steps I've ever experienced in my life and I swear it was uphill both ways. On the way back, we saw a group of old Japanese ladies just staring at the steps as if Godzilla were crashing through. There was no way they were going to make it. We also walked along the "beach" which cannot even begin to compare to the tropical paradise of San Diego. The sand is a dingy brown, similar to the color of a used band aid, and about just as appealing. It's no wonder the Japanese are the palest group of people I've ever seen. You can imagine how Mike and I stand out!

We ate lunch at this amazing little restaurant over looking the ocean. Mike and our friends had sashimi and I stuck with the curry rice. It doesn't look very apetizing, but I licked the plate clean! We explored some more around Kamakura and went inside these caves that were formed completely by the erosion from the waves. It smelled like the petting zoo inside, but it was pretty neat. On the train ride back we saw a couple of business guys totally passed out, heads back, mouths wide open. A friend told us that she once saw a row of men sleeping on each other like a line of dominos. Everyone always looks so tired here. Can't wait to show you all Kamakura when you come to visit.