Ssglevin's blog

Tokyo

Last weekend, we went to Tokyo.  I had heard that other people who loved Japan didn’t really like Tokyo.  My impression was the same.  It rained all weekend, and I suppose that was a factor, but I love Osaka, and Kyoto and Nara, and so many other cities.  I am glad that I visited Tokyo, so I could judge for myself.

This statue is called Hachiko. The legend is that Hachiko was a stray dog, adopted by a college professor, who took the train to work every day. And every day at the same time, Hachiko would come to the train station to meet his master’s train. One day, the professor had a stroke on the way home from work, and died, never making it to the train station. Hachiko continued to come to that train station every day, for nine years, to meet his friend’s train. The statue is at the Shabuya station in Tokyo

This is Harry Winston, on the Ginza.

This is from the grounds of the Imperial Palace, where the Emperor and the Empress live.

Here is Tokyo at night.

We were able to see Mount Fuji from our train. This was a real treat, because Fuji-san is usually in the clouds.

Welcome to my world

Many of you have asked me what I do to keep busy during the day (because you know I like to keep busy). So, I decided to record my day. When we wake up, I usually check e-mail, because it is then about 4 pm in Chicago. I workout at home every day for about 45 minutes, then shower, and by then, answer e-mail. Today, we had a very nice day – partly cloudy, but about 55-58 degrees. So, it was a great day for a walk. I walked down my favorite street here, called Mido-suji. It is a wide street, sometimes called “the Champs-Elysee of Osaka”. I had an errand – had to pick up something I had special ordered at Tokyo Hands, a great store. The walk was about 1 hour there and another hour home, perhaps a 4 mile walk (remember, I don’t have a car here). I recorded my day with photos, and have posted them here. This evening, I took the train over to where Stu works for a party with his work colleagues, which is also included in these pictures.

The dumbbells that I bought when we moved here. They are made of plastic, and they are filled with water. They weigh about 7.5 pounds each.

I think these vending machines are amazing. They sell both hot and cold beverages in cans. The ones with the blue above the price are cold and the ones with the red above the price are hot. Also, notice that they sell a beverage called Pocari Sweat. It is supposed to be like Gatorade, but I wouldn’t know because I just CAN’T drink anything called “sweat”

The first river, Dojimagawa, looking toward the west. “Gawa” means river. Osaka is called the Venice of Japan, because of the rivers running through the city (although there are not nearly as many as Venice. But, then, Osaka isn’t sinking). As I walk South on Mido-suji, I cross three rivers.