Tokyo

Last Friday my immersion program in Kanazawa ended, so I came to Tokyo for some sight-seeing.

First of all, getting to Tokyo itself was interesting - I actually hitchhiked from Kanazawa! It was actually my first time hitchhiking, so I went with a friend I met through the immersion program. All told, we took about seven different cars, traveling from rest area to rest area towards Tokyo. It was a fun way to meet people and practice Japanese - definitely a more interesting experience than just taking the train. People were very kind, and many drivers even gave us cold drinks. The most interesting ride was a van full of young people heading towards a music festival - they even gave us some food!

On Sunday, I finally met my conversation partner of over a year in person. For the past year, we've been regularly Skyping - half an hour in English, half an hour in Japanese - but we had never actually met in person. (I actually have two such partners, and met the other one in Kobe a few weeks ago.) We went to Akihabara - the unofficial capital of Japanese comics, anime, and video games. I bought a Mario RPG game thinking it would be a fun way to practice reading Japanese. We also went to a bar, and I tried some Japanese sake for the first time - it's very refreshing, and neither too strong nor too weak.

We also went to the Sky Tree, the world's second-tallest tower

On Monday and Tuesday, I went with my hitchhiking friend to nearby Mt. Fuji. Although it is the tallest mountain in Japan, it is actually a fairly easy mountain to climb. Virtually no climbing experience is necessary, nor special mountaineering equipment. It's also easily accessible by public transportation. Add in its world-wide fame, and the result is that tons of tourists come to climb the mountain. Near the summit, people literally line up in a queue! Even so, it was a rewarding experience. We actually stayed overnight at a mountain hut so we could summit early in the morning to watch the sunrise, a beloved Fuji tradition. Best of all, it didn't rain the entire hike except the last ten minutes or so.

Words of wisdom at the mountain hut

Mt. Fuji's famous sunrise

Another reason climbing Mt. Fuji is easy is that you can buy food and refreshments along your way to the top. These vending machines are actually at the summit!

An active volcano, Mt. Fuji last erupted about three centuries ago. I really enjoyed the volcanic rocks.

The summit at last! We spent about seven hours ascending, but we actually took a rather leisurely pace. 

On Wednesday, I met one of my friends who lives in Tokyo. I met her at the weekly Japanese tables hosted by our university last year. We did some sightseeing together with her twin sister. Although they are both at near-native level in English, they kindly spoke Japanese with me the whole day. We toured some Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines, shopped at the Tokyo Tower, visited a cat cafe, and went to a traditional Japanese pub (izakaya, 居酒屋)

Statue of the Buddha 

The cat cafe, if you hadn't already guessed

The cats were not as impressed as we were.

Izakaya