Six Gaijin

Chris: More pictures - from Tsukiji Fish Market

Here are some of my shots from this morning at the fish market.

Sunday: Harajuku, Shibuya, and the Roppongi Death March

If you're a fan of Japanese youth fashion, then I don't need to tell you that Sunday in the Harajuku district is the place to see and bee seen.  Kate and Sandra have been planning for the better part of a year on the what, where and hows of this day.  They decided to dress in Sweet Lolita style, and they were an absolute hit.  Many many people stopped and asked to have their picture taken with them.  It was quite a scene, and Kate and Sandra were delighted. 

Kate, Sandra, and Teresa headed off for a day of shopping.  Chris, Zach and I decided that a day of women's fashion and maddening crowds was not for us, so we left for the Shibuya district.  We visited the Mandarake Manga/Anime store, which was very big and thorough, but since the kids have mostly given up on Anime and Manga, and the materials were all written in Japanese (they read the English translations) our time there was short.  But, fortuitously, in the same building was a really cool guitar/music store that Chris and Zach had a lot of fun playing in.  We got a picture of Zach next to one of Stevie Ray Vaughan's old guitars.  Then it was off to lunch.  We popped into a noodle shop where NO English was spoken or written.  With the help of a friendly table-neighbor, we pointed at the pictures and got some very good food.  My noodle dish had a dark, strange broth that was pretty funky tasting...but I liked it!  Not at all sure what the herb/flavoring was that made the broth so dark.  If anyone reading this recognizes the dish, let me know!  The closest I could guess was that it was filé powder.  Am I right?

The guys and I headed back to the hotel early, rested, and waited for the girls to return.  Shortly after they did, we headed out (feet aching and now it was dark and raining) to Roppongi to go to Gonpachi. Chris' post explains what happened.  We got lost!  We walked and walked and walked on very sore and tired feet.  It was The Roppongi Death March!  Eventually we got there and the folks at the restaurant were nice enough to still honor our reservation.  The yakitori was excellent.  Gonpachi was the inspiration for the restaurant set in Quentin Tarantino's Kill Bill.  It's really a unique looking place!  Chris got some good pics with his iPhone camera.  We'll try to get them posted later.   

Chris: Some photos from day one

Some of my pictures from the first day are posted at SmugMug.

More to come of the adventures at Harajuku soon!

We're going to Japan!

In four days, The Evans Family and (half of) The Spitzer Family are going to Japan!  5 days in Tokyo and 2 days in Nagano.  We plan to see rock concerts, go shopping, eat lots of good food, and just check out the scene. 

We plan to provide regular updates on this blog, so be sure to bookmark it and check in daily.  Kampai!