Got up to an overcast morning this day, and waited
for the call from Miya telling me it was time to go to the office. Well, I gotta do
some work on this trip, after all...
After a good morning's work, we went to an Italian restaurant (of all places) for
lunch. It was Italian with a twist, though: we had some pasta dishes with a
distinctly Japanese flavor. Lots of interesting spices.
We also discussed our plans for later in the week: Miya wanted to take me kayaking!
It sounded like a lot of fun. Miya is an avid kayaker: he has has his stuff
made special in Washington state. He also wanted to try out his kayaks on me, since
he had a client coming later in the year who was also quite large and might not fit in it.
Say, was that an insult? :-)
That evening for dinner, Miya took me and his colleagues Osamu and Fumio to a little sushi bar out near the Shinjuku area of Tokyo.
The bar was very traditional: you sit at the bar and the chef prepares a piece of
sushi for you. As you eat each piece, and other piece comes, and so on until you are
full.
It was a great meal! Best sushi I ever had (which makes sense when you think
about it). It was a lot a fun to watch the chef prepare
the food: I got a few pictures, but my camera kept
acting up (Osamu and Fumio mocked me for my cheap Nikon camera :-)) The chef was pleased to hear about my web site and gave me his card (how's that for a little free advertising :-).
I gave him mine in return (the protocol is that you are supposed to hand over your
business card with both hands and a slight bow, apparently).
Delicious!
Miya had had to leave after he dropped us off, so Osamu and I headed off to the subway:
he said he wanted to take me somewhere flashy and fun. As we walked into
central Shinjuku, we kept getting accosted by people pointing out where the really hot
girls were. I was getting a little worried that he was taking me to a strip club!
(Although I've been to one or two in Vegas, I don't really much care for them because
1) the atmosphere feels a little too "artificial" (if you get my drift),
and 2) most importantly, since I don't drink, I object to paying $10 for orange juice).
What we really ended up doing was exploring the lights
and bustle of Shinjuku itself. Its a busy
district, full of hotels, skyscrapers, shops, and restaurants,
and at night it was spectacular. Despite the late hour, business
was in full swing: we checked out a camera shop (*cough* NikonSucks *cough* seemed to
be the message). There were some amazing toys there, marvels of miniaturization
and technology. Pretty expensive, though!
Somehow, the conversation did turn to strip clubs in the end: Osamu told stories about
other clients (who shall remain safely anonymous in these pages: you know who you are
:-)). One in particular ended up making a new friend of some Russian girl who was in
country and trying to earn enough money to move to the States. Apparently, he helped
her towards her goal. :-)
Deciding not to take the hot, sweltering subway due to the hot, sweltering street, we
took and air-conditioned cab back to my hotel. I gotta rest up: it's going to be an
early morning...
Sushi and Shinjuku
