This leg of our trip starts and ends with a long travel day.

It required 5 trains to get from the Mie Prefecture back to Tokyo and up to the northeastern corner where we checked into a tiny apartment in a residential neighborhood. It definitely felt the most like where ‘normal’ people live - mostly 2 story houses, a couple of shopping/restaurant streets, and a train station. It was next to a lovely river with a running path - we both made good use of that.

Our good friend was in town from San Francisco for work, and since one day of his visit was a local holiday, we got to spend it together. We had a nice lunch, visited an incredible ‘experiential’ digital art museum, looked for cherry blossoms at the National Garden, and hid from the sudden rain/windstorm in the Golden Gai district, famous for its tiny bars with seating for maybe 4-10 patrons.

The art installation was from a collective called, TeamLab and consisted mostly of light projection, and some rooms filled completely with glass balls, lighted crystals, mirrors, fog etc, and many of them were interactive. Even the tea room was an experience for all the senses! Photos won’t do it justice, so I have a couple videos on my Instagram.

On the weekends, we met up with family again for some fun activities. The first looked ridiculous, but was in fact incredibly fun. Go Karts through the real city streets of Tokyo! This used to be ‘MarioKart’ themed, but due a lawsuit, they now distance themselves from the franchise by giving you other costumes. Rescue Rangers and Pokemon for us!

On the recommendation of Nathan’s parents and many others, we knew we had to check out at least one sporting event in Japan. We got opening weekend of the Tokyo Yakult Swallows! 6 hours of baseball, cheerleaders, songs and chants, and branded snacks later, we were rewarded with a 1-1 tie in the 12th. 

We enjoyed many more interesting meals of course, including Japanese curry (not my favorite version of curry as it is a heavier gravy instead of a light sauce), a traditional breakfast of fish and rice with a side of miso, an incredible omakase (chef’s choice) sushi meal, casual conveyer belt sushi, more ramen, and fluffy Japanese pancakes. Feeling fat and happy as we head out to a land of even more seafood, lamb, and British pub food. 

A new city in a new country: Auckland!