Japan- day 1 - I arrive in Tokyo

As promised yesterday, here is a poorly mapped rendition of where I am travelling these 24 days

And here, again, is the list of places/days

From the itinerary for today: basically - arrive, pick up your WiFi/JR pass/Suica card (more on that later) and get cash. Go the the hotel and relax.

My hotel is Prostyle Ryokan Tokyo Asakusa ****

• 1x Japanese style room with open air bath (with breakfast)

Most of my hotels will be Ryokan. What are they?

A traditional Japanese inn with a tatami floor mat. Typically you'll get traditional Japanese food served and eaten in the Japanese way and you'll sleep on a tatami mat on the floor, not in a western bed. Also, you'll. have access to traditional hot baths. My Prostyle is a bit of a hybrid, as the bed is raised off the floor and has a mattress. It also has a shower and an outdoor hot bath on the balcony. Here are some shots

Back to arriving. Why do airport vehicles look smaller in japan than in rest of world?

Before you come to Japan, you are supposed to register on a website and get a QR code.

I did register, but never seemed to get the QR code, so I had to fill out a passport form and a customs form - not a big deal, but annoying. Anyway, I was amazed at how organized everything was, there were no lines and everyone spoke enough English that there were no issues.

My bag made it without incident or bigger holes:)

Trying to get my portable WiFi was a bit more challenging. I remembered reading I needed the post office which turned out to be in terminal 1. In the meantime I got my JR pass and Suica card in Terminal 3 - where I landed. The Suica card is a rechargeable card you use on buses, metros, and for some purchases, so a useful thing. I also found out there was a more direct route to my hotel, so the JR Pass Office was really helpful. A JR pass is like a EurRail pass, you can ride as often as you want for the price of the pass. I got a first class one which meant I need to reserve seats on all long distance trains. With a regular pass on just scan and go, no reservations needed. that said, at least I know I'll have a seat on the train.

There was a free shuttle bus between terminals, so no problem to hop on over to Terminal 1 five minutes away. I left the terminal building and was sure I was back in Florida - at least 80 degrees and 100% humidity - sweltering. Lucky most buildings in Tokyo are air conditioned.

Found the post office at Terminal 1 that didn't have my WiFi because they pointed out it was at the JAL ABC office in Terminal 3 -seems the photo in my itinerary and the written word didn't match. Off I went back into the humidity and back to 3. Looked at the picture, but there was no office, so I asked. Found the place, but wasn't correct office. It was in arrivals. Now, looking at the picture for a 5th time I saw the word arrivals hall. Was the right place and got the stupid device, which, so far, works like a champ. Am so happy to have it.

Now to learn the trains. Wilted and starting to lose my sense of humor, I found the train. Using google maps and some other stuff I figured out which train to catch and made it out to the area of Asakusa in Tokyo - near the TV tour.

While this train route was more direct, it meant walking about a mile in the heat and couldn't find the

Ryokan Tokyo Asakusa, but went into the building at the spot indicated and could find it because the name of the hotel is actually Prostyle, as stated in the itinerary (after which are the words Ryokan Tokyo Asakusa)...

Checkin time was 3 and the room wasn't ready yet, so had an hour to kill, but at least I could dump my bags and change into sandals from my leather HOT hiking boots. I decided to use the hour to get to the JR Ticketing office and reserve my seats for the rest of my trip. This was a good idea because my trip to Fuji is on a weekend in the busiest time of the year. The train I wanted was already full, but was able to book on the one right before it. Even though the sign said they would only make 2 bookings at a time, this kind lady booked all of my train journeys. One less thing to worry about.

Trying to find the right metro to get to the ticket office was interesting. There weren't really signs for the Ginza Metro line the way I came, so I ended up going downstairs and through a department/grocery store. Lisa, this photo's for you:) - as close as I'll get to a grocery here, probably:

Coming back to the hotel I noticed a building that looked like it should be in Dubai...Chris, look familiar?

I noticed that the hotel also offered sleeping suits, one for boys and one for girls

After a short rest and unpack - I will be here for 4 nights - I needed something to do so I didn't go to sleep at 4pm. I decided to go to Sensoji - a temple a few blocks away - what a find!

Sensoji (浅草寺, Sensōji, also known as Asakusa Kannon Temple) is a Buddhist temple located in Asakusa. It is one of Tokyo's most colorful and popular temples. The legend says that in the year 628, two brothers fished a statue of Kannon, the goddess of mercy, out of the Sumida River, and even though they put the statue back into the river, it always returned to them. Consequently, Sensoji was built nearby for the goddess of Kannon. The temple was completed in 645, making it Tokyo's oldest temple.

I noticed rickshaws near the entry. These poor fellows were running while pulling- must have been shear torture given the temperature

the 15th (today) was a holiday at the end of a holiday week in Japan. Today's holiday is called Banrei Tourou Kuyo'e which is when paper lanterns are displayed at the main temple building and people pray for the souls of the dead. Chris pointed out this is also VJ Day ....

The temple area was very crowded and there were so many people in traditional dress looking wonderfully exotic

Here are some photos of the temple buildings

Then I found the shopping/street food market!

A shopping street of over 200 meters, called Nakamise, leads from the outer gate to the temple's second gate, the Hozomon. Alongside typical Japanese souvenirs such as yukata and folding fans, various traditional local snacks from the Asakusa area are sold along the Nakamise. The shopping street has a history of several centuries.

So, I started "street eating" and finding a place for dinner.

I found a place that makes rice crackers in the "ancient way"

And a type of deep fried matcha with rose paste in the middle

Tomorrow I will definitely return to try some other yummy stuff.

Dinner was in a place that makes hand made udon noodle dishes, which I had with tempura, and it was really yummy!

Then back to the hotel for a hot bath using the provided bath salts - I hope google translate works better moving forward

Here was an interesting water garden as I walked back

A word about Japanese Toilets- there will be a special toilets edition and I am collecting videos each day. For now - here is a video of the one in my room

And it flushes on its own, and it lights up in the dark and it closes by itself. It's generally creepy....

For tomorrow - museums and gardens? And more toilets?