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Seen in Tokyo: visit Miyagi

Saw this in the Tokyo Tourism office, a flyer admonishing me to discover the wonders of journeying in Miyagi. I am not sure if I want to discover anything in Mr Miyagi's person, no matter how wondrous it is. Haha!

Tokyo Day 9: Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building

The wife and I spent a quiet day at Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, or Tokyo City Hall. The Observatory is famous for the views on a clear day and also for being free. I even overheard an Asian American guy commenting that he read about this building in one of those "Free Things to Do in Tokyo" articles.

The day was a little cloudy so we didn't get to see Mount Fuji from there. We did however find the Tokyo Prefecture tourism office and got ourselves some brochures for things to do here.

Strange, this kind of tourism help would have been useful at the airport instead of at this government building. We found the staff helpful and spoke to us in good English.

We still had presents to buy for the kids so it was off to Akihabara Electric Town. I wanted to show the wife what the place looked like. We mainly checked out the toy and hobby stores, since my missus was not into the gadgets.

I think she was sufficiently impressed. She has never seen so much Japanese pop culture in one place.

I kept her away from the adult section of some of the book stores we went to though. I think she'd be a little taken aback at some of the manga sold there.

Tokyo Day 8: Staying at the b roppongi

We are staying at the b roppongi now, in Tokyo. Roppongi is one of the expat entertainment districts in Japan.

The rooms here are bigger than the other "b" hotels I have been to. The location is quite accessible and less quiet than Akasaka.

Love the view!

Here's a little video of our room:

Tokyo Day 8: DisneySea

At 5800¥ for a full day passport per person at DisneySea, plus the 500¥ per person monorail ride both ways, and the theme park prices for the food, I'd say Disney made the most money out of me this trip so far.

Still, DisneySea was a pleasant way to spend a full day out, even for a jaded theme park vet like me.

I tried most of the major rides. Because the wife is no longer the young fearless adrenaline junkie she used to be, I had to make sure the rides had no major dips that would render her nauseous. Once I verified that the rides were wife-safe, we queued again to ride it together.

Some rides were pretty obvious and safe, like this Sinbad ride which was like It's a Small World but with an Arabian theme.

Others were named to spell the scare factor out for you, like Tower of Terror. I did not find it very scary and wished the free fall lasted longer but it was pretty much the scariest ride in DisneySea. Besides, Disney rides are usually tame anyway but you have to give them credit for the packaging and experience.

DisneySea is lovely to behold by night. The attention to detail for the architecture is a treat too. Even if the rides don't interest you (and it can get annoying when almost everything is narrated in Japanese), it is fun just to admire the beauty of the park.

Tokyo Day 7: Harajuku and Meiji Jingu

We spent the afternoon at Harajuku and thought we could catch the cosplayers there on a Sunday.

Instead, after snacking on some Takoyaki (octopus balls, ok that sounded wrong) we wandered into Meiji Jingu, the Shinto shrine that is dedicated to the deified spirits of Emperor Meiji and his consort, Empress Shōken.

One moment we were in the busy Harajuku shopping area, and the next, we were strolling in a park in the heart of the city. It was a very pleasant find and totally unplanned.

The park around the Meiji Jingu is lovely and some people were taking walks there, while others went to the shrine to seek blessings. There was a fellow posing like he was walking against the wind, and people dropped coins into his hat for his performance.

A couple dropped some money into his hat and joined him for a photo op. They were very funny, posing with a bottle a wine.

Before entering the Meiji Jingu shrine, you perform an act of purification by washing your hands and mouth at the stone basin.

Inside the shrine, people tossed coins into a box, bowed, clapped twice and prayed.

Some were writing wishes and prayers on wooden votive plaques, called Ema, and hanging them on a rack under the wishing tree.

We spotted a mother and her two lovely kids dressed in kimonos and I could not resist taking photos of the littlest one in her red kimono. She seemed very pleased with the attention from so many tourists and posed for our photos.

Someone from Singapore spotted me taking photos of the little girl and tweeted:

"Just saw @mrbrown taking pictures of little girls at meiji shrine. naughty naughty"

How small is the world indeed.

Tokyo Day 7: Staying at the b akasaka

Our next Tokyo hotel is the b akasaka, located in Akasaka. It has a quieter character, being in a business district.

Once again, the room is simple and straightforward. Nearby, there is the TBS Building and it seemed like many people hang out here to see their TV stars.

The mall nearest to us, Biz Tower, has a bunch of nice eateries that open till 11pm. We even saw a restaurant called Singapore Hainan Chi-fan, complete with its own Merlion.

Here is a video of our room:

Tokyo Day 6: A day at Nikko

We woke up really early, 5.30am to be exact, to take the subway from Ikekuburo to Asakusa station. From Asakusa, we planned to catch the 7.15am train to Nikko on the Tobu line. It was a two hour ride to Nikko via the Rapid train (two and a half if you took the non-Rapid) and it cost us 1320¥ per person, one way.

There is a special All-Nikko pass you can buy too (4,400¥) but we chose to rent a car with our friends instead. It cost us about 9000¥ to rent the Prius Hybrid for a day, and I heard it only costs 2000¥ to extend it another day.

With more people, a car is more worth it, and you get to see things on your own terms. Nikko has a theme park, temples and shrines, and waterfalls and shrines. We only had one day, ideally you should spend two days here, so we focused on the nature side of Nikko.

We also visited the Kanmangafuchi Abyss, with its fascinating Jizu statues. My friend said if you counted them on the way in, and then counted them again on the way out, it would not be the same number. That creeped me out a little.

The waterfalls and lakes in Nikko are to die for. I am told it is even lovelier here in autumn, when the leaves turn a colourful red, yellow and orange. We didn't pay to cross Shinkyo Bridge but took some photos of it. It is just next to the road so that took away some of the mystique.

We enjoying trekking through the forests and enjoying the cool air. It was a perfect day, sunny but not hot, cool but no cold winds. Lake Chuzenji was gorgeous.

I think it was one of the highlights of our trip to Tokyo so far. It was a lovely change to see this side of Japan, instead of just tall buildings and crowds. I think I like the nature side of Japan more.

Tokyo Day 5: Staying at the b ikebukuro

The wife and I have moved to our hotel at Ikebukuro, called the b ikebukuro, courtesy of Wotif.com. I was told that the b chain of hotels (there are several) were some of the earliest hotels listed under Tokyo hotels on Wotif's site.

It is not the largest room in the world but it is functional. I love the location, being just 3 minutes walk from Ikebukuro station (get out the East exit, turn left, see the BIC Camera store and walk down the street). It is in the heart of a city centre so food and entertainment are all nearby. Ikebukuro station is just a few stops from Shinjuku and Shibuya via the Yamanote line too.

The toilet is a little small but everything is there. The showers are like the bridge of the USS Enterprise: three different shower heads for your showering needs, a little complicated but you'll figure it out.

I also appreciate the laundry room where you can wash your clothes with the coin-operated washing machine and dryer. Pay TV is a 1000¥ a night: you buy a card from the machine in the corridor, stick the card into the TV slot, and voila, pay tv.

Oh yes, and there is free internet in the room. That rocks.

Here is a little video tour of our room at the b ikebukuro:

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Tokyo Day 4: Getting lost in the residential area

So far I am enjoying my time traveling on the extensive subways of Tokyo. People-watching is fun on the trains. People have a quiet sense of purpose as the wait for the ride to their destination. Train staff do their duty with stoic efficiency.

I gave myself a rather difficult task. To find a used camera shop called Kawamasu Camera located in Kotobuki 3-12-6, Taito. There was a typo in the web information I found because the station listed nearest to the shop was "Akasaka" station. When I got to Akasaka, the station staff helped me locate the address in their giant street diretory and it was actually in Asakusa station, further north, quite a ways from where I was. Darn it, back on the train I went.

Finding the shop was not easy even when I got to the Asakusa area. It was not the kind of shop located in the malls but tucked away in a quiet street. To add to the difficulty, the rain was particularly persistent that day. Wet and lost, I wandered the streets of Kotobuki 3 and the rest of the Taito area.

After several tries, I found it, and truly it was filled with old cameras and lenses of all kinds. There was an old man there who looked like the owner. I put my wet umbrella in the umbrella stand, placed my bag and rain jacket down, and just browsed happily.

I found an old lens I liked and asked to see it. When I decided it was in a good condition, I paid the old gentleman. He even found me an old Leica cap that fit my not-Leica lens.

I decided that my final stop would be the Yodobashi Camera main store in Shinjuku. Yodobashi Camera is a huge electronics chain store in Japan and their Shinjuku store has five floors of camera stuff. They even have a floor just for tripods and another floor for Medium format and Large format cameras. The prices are not always cheaper than Singapore's but the variety is incredible.

Dinner was a meal of pasta at First Kitchen, a fast food chain that sells burgers, pizza and pasta. It cost about 950¥ for a small bowl of shrimp salad, ice latte, and a plate of bacon pasta.

I returned to my hotel, tired, a little damp, but satisfied with my day.

Tokyo Day 3: People people people

Did I mention the Tokyo is really really full of people?

I went to the Ginza area on this day not because I was looking for some swanky clothes or high end brands but I was still my little camera hunting quest. I was told there was a fairly well-known used camera shop here called Sukiya Camera.

When I found the shop, I spent some time admiring the cameras on display and laughing at the signs that declared "We don't sell new cameras here, don't ask" and "This is not a tourist information center, don't ask". I am paraphrasing but it was obvious the owner gets asked these things a lot.

Also on Ginza is the Apple Store. I used the demo iPads in there to check my emails and tweet. Hey, free internet is hard to come by on the streets of Tokyo, ok? I also added my site to the bookmarks bar on a few iPads there, just for fun.

There were a few more camera shops around the area so I didn't need to wander far to see my stuff. Film cameras are still used in Japan and you can find some really old gear in good condition here. Not all the prices are great but sometimes you get a bargain.

Nightfall and I am in the Shinjuku area. I grabbed a quick bowl of Yoshinoya beef rice for 280¥ and spent the evening browsing the colourful shops there. The Taito Station store was huge and had many arcade machines in there.

I stood with the smokers in the smoking area, mersmerised by the giant Yunika Vision screens on the Yunika building.

As I walked through the rows of dodgy shops peddling DVD screening booths, one shop made me laugh out loud. It was a nurse-themed shop and the dude standing outside giving out flyers wore a doctor's outfit. I guess they'll fix you up good in there.

Tokyo Day 2: Walk walk walk

I spent the day walking a lot, taking the trains, walking again, eating, walk some more. In the course of it all, I enjoyed taking photos of faces and places the most. This lady was at a mall street near Nakano station, ready to push off in her bicycle. So elegant is she.

Cyclists, pedestrians and cars share the road so well in Japan. I was in Nakano looking for the famous Fujiya Camera shop.

Bicycle parking is generous here. I saw a supermarket that had nothing BUT bicycles parked out front.

This is Shinjuku by night. Bustling with people. I was at BIC Camera shop, a kind of Best Denki appliance superstore.

From Nakano and then Shinjuku, I finally reached the Yokohama Bay area in the evening. I love the ferris wheel there. There is even a roller coaster ride that goes around it.

When we finally got back to Shibuya station, our walk took us through a street lined with boxes and rubbish. It was unusual to see rubbish in clean Japan.

The homeless live here. Telltale signs of shoes, clothes and personal belongings were scattered throughout this street.

It was a grim reminder that not everyone has a good life here in metropolitan Japan. I wonder how the homeless cope in the winter. Those cardboard boxes can't be warm enough.

Tokyo Day 1: Raining raining raining

We landed in Tokyo in the wee hours of the morning. The flight on JAL was okay, except for the poor meal (porridge as the main course, no choices). The inflight movie system was fairly well-stocked with movies (though I had already seen most of them).

Because the wife has her work to do, I am on my own for the first few days of this trip so my very first stop after we checked into the hotel? Akihabara, of course.

I took the JR Yamamote line from Shibuya, where we are staying for now, and 30 minutes later, Electric Town!

The only downer is that it is raining a lot. All day I was togged in a Timberland raincoat (I am totally convinced now that it is the best jacket I have ever bought) and carrying a white Dove umbrella (came free when I bought some Dove liquid bath). I felt a little self-conscious carrying my little white feminine umbrella but it was either that or the cameras get wet. Besides, the wife was carrying the SIA umbrella and I'd rather be shot than be seen carrying a sarong-kerbaya-patterned brolly.

The train system here is extensive but I managed to get myself a SUICA (like an ez-link card) and figured it out. Got to check out the places I want to go (the kind that does not interest my wife) before she gets back from work.

I want to find some camera shops and buy film. And maybe a lens or two. Heheh.

In Malacca, don't waste Satay sauce

Ban Lee Siang Satay Celup aka Lok Lok! Don't ask how that satay sauce has been there or how many people have dipped their sticks of stuff into it cos we don't wanna know.

It turned out to be pretty tasty and fun to eat. And not as nasty as it looks.

Malacca night life very happening

This karaoke place in Malacca offer "titbits" and has a "head charge" I am not sure if we should go there.

The mrbrown Holiday Giveaway Results!

When I planned this holiday Christmas giveaway with my kind sponsor, Wotif.com, I thought it would be easy to run and fun to do.

I was half right.

It has been tremendous fun doing it. But it was way way hard to judge.

I received more than double the entries compared to the last mrbrown Giveaway, via Twitter, email and even via the Comments section of my blog.

I read every single entry I received. And you guys made me laugh... and sometimes, cry. Your entries were witty, fun and in many cases, personal and touching.

But I only have one prize to give away. I wish I had more.

So the winner of this 3D2N stay at Bintan Lagoon Resort is...Tracy F.

Her entry, via email, reads:

"I want a holiday from mrbrown because I want to celebrate with my hubby for being able to triumph from a sick kidney dialysis patient one year ago to a healthy man who has nursed his kidneys back to health now."

And here is the best part. I don't know if you knew this or not, Tracy, but your husband was also thinking of you when he sent me his entry earlier. Because I received this from him:

"I want a holiday from mrbrown because it's been years since I've gone on a holiday with my wife. It's been a tough year for us as I was fighting off a kidney disease and struggling to get off dialysis, and all I want now is to be able to spend some quiet alone time with my beloved wife."

I was going to give it to him, but then I received your entry, Tracy, and I thought it would create a perfect circle to give it to you instead.

So Tracy and Eric, enjoy your time together and have a blessed Christmas.

Taipei Day 7: Novotel Taipei Taoyuan International Airport hotel

We stayed at the brand new Novotel Taipei near the airport on our trip. It is so new, you can still smell it. Take a little tour of the suite, the pool and the gym with me.

I liked the 24 hour gym and and heated pool a lot. Location was not the bestest but convenient if you want to stay near the airport. It is also handy if you are planning some travel outside of Taipei.

The internet was free too, both LAN and Wifi.

Thanks to sponsor Wotif.com and Novotel Taipei for the stay.

Taipei Day 6: Seen in a 7-Eleven

Why is the brand of this Taiwanese made condom "High Tide Condom"?

Does that mean you can use it for sex when you also have a full bladder? Does it have extra space for you to pee into?

I am intrigued.

Taipei Day 6: On the High Speed Rail to Taichung

We chose to take the Taiwan High Speed Rail to Taichung from our Taoyuan hotel. Just for the experience of traveling in a train that can hit 300kmh. I was most impressed with the comfort and the modernity of the service. It was a little pricey but if you need to get from one end of Taiwan to the other, the THSR can't be beat. My only other gripe was that the HSR stations were located in somewhat out of the way places and a shuttle bus ride (free) was needed.

This is a first time on a HSR for the wife and I.

The seats have lots of legroom!

Ryan really loved the food onboard the train.

Taichung was not as hopping as Taipei but we had a good time at their National Musuem of Science.

We also shopped at their Sogo department store (yes the one that no longer exists in Singapore). Not only was Sogo alive and well in Taichung, the department store was 18 floors of shopping.

EIGHTEEN freakin' floors. I kid you not.

And their lifts were run by polite ad uniform-clad lift pressers. The lady's one job was to press your lift floor for you and at every floor, she would come out and announce to all and sundry that the lift was here and on its way up or down.

Just in case customers cannot read arrows or hear the ding of a lift door opening, I suppose.

Taipei Day 6: 烏魚子

This vagina-looking thing is actually some kind of compressed fish eggs, a Taiwanese delicacy. It's so special that the shop at the airport selling it also sells a red plastic toy version of it.

The mrbrown Holiday Giveaway

I promised another Christmas giveaway and here it is! I am giving away a 3D2N stay at Bintan Lagoon Resort, courtesy of Wotif.com.

You will be staying in a newly renovated Deluxe Room at the Bintan Lagoon Resort, and the prize includes daily buffet breakfast for two persons, welcome drink, two-way land transfer from Bintan Ferry Terminal to Hotel, and one buffet dinner for two persons at Kopi-O Restaurant.

Total value of this prize is $1000, and the prize is usable from January onwards.

Again, I want you to tell me why I should give this holiday to you.

All you have to do is to email (mrbrown [at] mrbrown [dot] com) or tweet @mrbrown, "I want a holiday from mrbrown because..." and then your witty and/or convincing reason.

Keep it short and sharp. I will pick a winner and announce it on Christmas Eve, which is 24th December 2009. You have about two days to enter.

Send me your holiday tweets and emails now!