snow

We must all be anxious to get home. We are lined up in the hotel lobby at 10:15 AM waiting for our bus to arrive to drive us to the train station, which will take us to the airport. Jason, Kat, and I are early – a new revelation for this tour.

Ruben asks the question: what was your favorite part of this tour? I'm having a hard time narrowing it down to one thing. We have just spent the past two nights in the most gorgeous setting in Japan (Yatsugatake). Our venue had glass windows all the way around the intimate 150-person hall, looking out on Mt. Fuji, surrounded by powder snow. It was idyllic, and when we played “I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas.” I was transported back to my childhood in New York, where snow and snowmen abounded.

Kat and I took a hike yesterday morning with our villa owner's dog Chobi, a Shiba-type dog (related to the Akita). He dragged us along to a trail that went to a very small lake, completely covered in two feet of snow. After attempting to check the ice, Kat and I followed the deer prints on the lake and walked across the lake's frozen cover. That was FUN - and probably stupid for city slickers.

I built a snowman outside the villa, complete with stick arms and pebbles for eyes and the smile. I didn't realize how hard it was to make a large snowball that was actually round. By this morning, his head had fallen off. And then when the sun came out, his midriff slipped off too. Although the snowman will melt away, my memory of Yatsugatake will not.

Crazy Night in Tokyo

I'm blogging my experience to Kaguwa Theatre, because I was the only one crazy enough to go. This show in the Roppongi district was described in a review on the Internet as “totally meaningless” and saying something about ”the hollow schizophrenia of modern Japan.” I knew going into the show that there were twelve actors - 4 men, 2 women and 5 “new halves,” New halves are transexuals, or boys dressed as young women. The dance show ranged from a kimono-wearing short story imitating kabuki, to an S&M piece, to a strip-tease selection (showing new half legs mostly). The redeeming value was the wonderful two-tier bento box dinner placed in a beautifully carved box, with the added bonus of all-you-can-drink beverages.

I was placed at a table (about 25 feet from the stage) with four bottles lined up in a row: green tea shochu, apricot liquor, Suntory whiskey, and a large water. The waiter came by and offered me a pitcher of soda to mix with my drinks, along with a small ice bucket. I was wishing Michele had joined me in this intimate theater of perhaps 100 customers. This evening would have been SO Michele.

The show was only one hour long, but by the end of the evening, everyone was enjoying the decadence as the action flashed by, along with hydraulically raised stage in 24 rectangular sections. There was one other Caucasian present. Reif was visiting from England, in the process of traveling the world in six months, having just finished her PhD in Psychology.

After the show, Reif and I visited the 24-hour Don Quixote store, which sells really “sleazy” cheap junk. You won't believe the logos that are placed on men's underwear and thongs. We laughed our way through the store. Reif needed to leave, but she promised to look me up when she comes to the United States at end of February.

I decided to find the Mori Tower and take the elevator to the 52^nd floor to view Tokyo at night. The windows looking out over the city are probably 25 feet tall all the way around the building. Couples were sitting on the benches lined up at the windows, wistfully gazing into each others eyes and occasionally gazing out the window. It was all so very sweet. As one couple left, another couple would quickly take their place to continue gazing.

Early hours found me staring through the window of a noodle restaurant, watching noodles being made from scratch. The noodle maker was on display, similar to the way a pizza maker in the U.S. might be.c I ended my evening enjoying a cafe latte at Cafe Le Boheme, which was a lively joint open until 5 AM. Tokyo seems to never sleep, and the subways were packed after midnight as though it were the morning rush hour. People rushing to catch the last train.

As I exited the subway for the hotel, I saw the homeless comfortably sleeping under their cardboard covers on the subway stairs. I say comfortably, because the heat from the subway kept them warm. I've been told the homeless are also allowed to use the subway restrooms at night, and they apparently do not abuse this privilege. Japan must hold the prize of the cleanest restrooms in the world.