New Year in Tokyo
Jan 8, 08:21 PM
Well, I’m back from Tokyo and still recovering from jet lag. While the last trip I made to Japan was a one week whirlwind introduction to the country this trip was more my speed. After a long flight with a stopover in Dallas, a two hour bus ride (complete with traffic jam delays) from the airport, a meet up with Asako in Shinjuku, and a 10 minute taxi ride to Asako’s parent’s house near Shibuya and I was there. Simple as pie.
The next day our first order of business was to pick up a new camera in Akihabara which is well know among American tourists as a technology lover’s paradise. My favorite part of this area is the probably the oldest: buildings full of small booths selling electronics parts and components that put your local Radio Shack to shame. Aisle after aisle of old men, each specializing in a few types of devices… switches, LED’s or perhaps resistors. The new feature is a huge megastore called Yodobashi which looks like 10 floors of Best Buy. This is where we picked up the camera that we took these pictures with.
The other half of Akihabara’s schizophrenic personality is the relatively new influx of Anime magazine and figurine stores, costume shops, and in the past few months maid cafes. These cafes feature simple furnishings and young Japanese girls in French maid costumes greeting you with “Welcome home” when you walk in the door. The vibe at the maid cafes isn’t really my style; it reminds me too much of live action role playing gamers (or LARPers as they’re known) whom have become somewhat of an internet in-joke that I just can’t take seriously. The one we went to check out was smokey and somewhat crowded so we instead headed over to an “open source Linux cafe” instead.
The 
next day we did some shopping in Shinjuku, checked out the Meiji Shrine which while relatively empty now was going through preparations for the upcoming new years celebration when it would be completely packed. We checked out Microsoft’s promotional XBox 360 Cafe which was actually a little more stylish than I thought it might be. Probably because it also featured product designs other than Microsoft’s.
That night we met up with four of Asako’s high school friends for a fugu sashimi dinner. That means raw blowfish. 
Yup… the one with poisonous eyes and organs that if not properly cut can kill you. Actually, the one that can kill 30 of you. It seems to be a popular Japanese joke to count the number of people in your party and say something like, “Don’t worry, only one in six people dies”. I have long held that the Japanese will eat anything they have dragged out of the ocean and this only reinforces those beliefs. I have to say that when a plate of still-twitching, raw, poisonous fish is placed in front of you you expect a lot of it. My verdict: while tasty, probably not worth the risk. I’ll stick with tuna. Later we met with some of Asako’s college friends who live in Tokyo for drinks and retired for the night.
The next day we went to an Onsen or Japanese hot spring bath with Asako’s cousin Motoatsu and his girlfriend Keiko. The one we went to was styled after the Edo period of Japan. We traded in our clothes for light kimonos called yukata. 
The whole thing is quite affordable and there were little shops, plenty of traditional foods to snack on, and games to play. We all got back massages and stuffed ourselves with sweet rice cakes and red bean ice cream. The hot springs themselves included an outdoor hot foot bath, sauna, and indoor and outdoor hot springs. If hanging out in your birthday suit with a bunch of naked Japanese men doesn’t scare you I highly recommend it.
New Years celebration itself is quite different than in America. We watched the clock turn at Asako’s aunt and uncle’s house and then took a walk to the local shrine. By the time we got there there was already huge line of people waiting to step through a big ring on the way up to the steps of the shrine. After that you toss a 5 yen coin in a box, ring a bell attached to a rope, 2 hand claps, 2 bows and move on to the various booths set up selling sweets and food. It was the year of the dog so many people had brought the family pet with them. Workers were giving out little cups of a sake that was hot and thick with rice. I paused and watched a few boy and girl scouts tending small fires for heat standing at attention like they were protecting treasure. Their uniforms were so familiar that it made me wonder what the spatial version of an anachronism is.
It appears the real New Year tradition is the breakfast served the next morning. 
We went over to Asako’s grandmother’s place where I proceeded to stuff myself. The food consisted of mostly salted and pickled fish and vegetables most of which symbolize long life, prosperity and health. There is also a tasty soup filled with sticky rice cakes that is served only for this occasion. That night we met up with her aunt’s family for all you can eat Chinese food at a local hotel where her family has been going for years.
The next day Asako had to take a flight home while I stayed behind since I could not get a ticket for the same day as her. Her cousin Motoshige and I took a day trip out to the old city of Kamakura where we visited an enormous buddhist statue, a temple and a huge Shinto shrine that was packed full of people visiting for the new year. 
It was cold and rainy so we stepped into a nice cosy okonomiyaki house for Japanese style pancakes stuffed with cabbage, shrimp and noodles and cooked on a tabletop griddle. A beer and a half later and I was regretting having to go back out into the dreary street I was watching out the window. On the sleepy train ride home I let the power lines, boxy houses and mountains flip by my brain like a film strip while Motoshige dozed next to me.
I’ve probably left out about half of the things we did over there but you have draw the line somewhere. I am really appreciative of Asako’s family. They are always such gracious hosts and always make me feel welcome and comfortable. Overall, I really enjoyed spending the new year in Tokyo. It’s really not that different than the holidays here: food, friends, and family.
Love, Aunt Mary and Uncle Ray
— Ray & Mary Decker Jan 8, 11:10 PM #
Love, Dad and Mom
— Dad and Mom Jan 9, 12:28 AM #
— MaRie Jan 10, 01:32 AM #
— Amy Jan 12, 09:31 AM #