In the early morning of Thursday, October 26th, our friend and neighbor Tom, volunteered to pick us up at 4:30am and drive us to Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport. We were starting our journey to Japan.

Our flight was on Hawaiian Airlines with a connection in Honolulu. Due to the long flight time, we opted to step-up to First Class/Business Class for the flights. Our flight wasn’t scheduled to depart until 8:15am, but the airline advised checking in three hours prior to departure for international travel. I don’t know why they advise that, we breezed through check-in and security.

The flight out of Phoenix was on a Boeing 787 Dreamliner. First Class accommodations lived up to that name. We had roomy, comfortable seating areas with privacy and fold flat seating. We were treated to a celebratory cocktail – a Mai Tai – before take-off.

With the time zone change, the six-hour flight had us landing in Honolulu at 11:35am – although it felt later to us. Our departure from Honolulu was scheduled for 12:40pm. This time we flew on an older Airbus 330. It wasn’t as fancy as the 787, but we had ample room and seats that reclined to a flat position if desired.

By the time we reached Japan, we had crossed 16 time zones. After crossing the International Date Line, we arrived at 4pm on Friday, September 27th, Tokyo time. We were tired and in for a culture shock. Narita airport is large, we were directed to the luggage retrieval, then the immigration and customs area and went through the process fairly quickly. They were very efficient. The immigration procedure included an electronic fingerprint and facial recognition screening.

The next order of business was finding the Japan Wireless kiosk. We had pre-arranged pick up of a mobile personal wireless hotspot, which I carried in a small backpack throughout our visit – this allowed our phones to access the Internet. This wasn’t as easy as it sounds. Some of the signs included English verbiage, but not all. When the signs are written with kanji characters, it becomes almost impossible to decipher their meaning. Luckily, there were numerous information desks with English-speaking attendants.

Next, we had to find the correct train station and platform to take us to the Asakusa. District in Tokyo. That’s where we had hotel reservations at the Wing International Hotel. Between the two of us, we figured it out and I quickly learned how to identify which trains were “Local” “Rapid” “Express” or “Limited.” If you make the wrong choice, it might not stop at the station you desire, even though it goes through it. To be safe and make sure we would stop in Asakusa, we boarded a crowded “Local” train. Local trains make every stop on the route and take longer to get to some stations, but I wanted to be sure we would stop where we wanted to get off.

By the time we got off the train at Asakusa Station, we were pretty exhausted and had to drag our luggage through the station. We bought new four-wheeled suitcases for the trip and they were great, except for when we had to climb stairs!

I should try to describe the train stations, Most were underground and some of them were huge. Asakusa station had several exits. Without knowing exactly where the exits were in relation to our hotel, it was just guesswork for us. I couldn’t access Google maps while we were underground. The underground station is covered by several blocks of the city above. We were a couple of floors below the surface and climbed four flights stairs to get out of it. Once we were on the street, I used Google maps to get directions. We chose the wrong exit and had a little hike ahead.

We would quickly become used to walking and consulting Google maps. It was raining lightly and I was soaked by the time we checked in. Our room was on the 8th floor with a view of the Sumida River right behind the hotel.

We could see several bridges, the Asahi Brewing Headquarters across the river (the yellow building that was built to resemble a glass of draft beer!) and the Tokyo Sky Tree Tower. The room itself was small. We set up our stuff as best as we could and were ready to sack out. It was about 8pm.

We were up early the next morning and opted to go for a convenience store breakfast – Donna had read about it and they were supposed to be good. Not much else was open anyway. We found a 7-11 a couple of blocks away from the hotel. 7-11, Family Mart and few other small convenience stores (konbini) were easy to find – they’re everywhere. What we didn’t find is a traditional American breakfast, but what we found was very good. They had freshly made sandwiches with ham and egg salad filling and the crusts cut off. The coffee machines were excellent – you buy the cup at the counter, then go to the machine. After opening the little door on the machine and placing your cup, you make your selection. The machine locks the door, grinds beans, then brews the coffee. After it’s done, it beeps and unlocks the door. Fresh, hot coffee! The machine then locks again and goes through a cleaning cycle to be ready for the next use.

Donna also found cups of frozen fruits or vegetables that were marked “Smoothie.” They had a machine for these as well.

We quickly adapted to this type of breakfast and used convenience stores for 90% of our breakfasts. Donna was embracing the culture and soon started buying onigiri (rice balls) for mid-morning snacks. We became more adventuresome with our breakfast selections over the next couple of weeks.

We took a walk down the River Walk behind our hotel and started to get the lay of the land.

We saw many others walking or jogging down the path which goes for miles on both sides of the river.

One of the things I wanted to do while we were in Tokyo was to visit Teruyasu Fujiwara’s knife shop. TF, as he is known is a famous sword and kitchen knife maker. I have six of his kitchen knives. His shop is located in the Meguro neighborhood, southwest of our location on the other side of the city center. Some map study and train routes were committed to memory and we set off.

The first thing we found was an elevator into the Asakusa Station a few doors down from our hotel! I should mention something else we got at the airport – a Suica card. Actually two of them. They are a type of prepaid credit card that can be used to board trains and some buses. I put 5,000 yen (about $35) on each card so we could enter the train platforms independently of each other. You tap the card reader when you enter, then tap it again when you exit at your destination. The fare is calculated for the length of travel and deducted from the Suica card balance. Pretty convenient.

We took a train to Meguro and once again followed the Google map to TF’s shop. It was a bit of a walk, but that’s just how it is in Japan. Public transportation and walking are the norm. Along the way we traversed a few neighborhoods and got a good sense of how people live here.

We found the shop and I browsed a bit and had a pleasant conversation with the guy there. I’m sorry I didn’t catch his name. He was TF’s knife sharpener. I saw his Japanese natural whetstones and asked if they had any for sale. He told me he gets his stones from Morihei. Before I tell the next part, I have to explain this. As native English speaking Americans, we tend to sound out Japanese words and names phonetically. So, Asakusa becomes Ah-sah-koo-sah. This is not how a Japanese speaker would pronounce it. They tend to slur multi-syllable words and kind of squish the second or third syllable. So, Asakusa becomes Ah-sock-sah.

Back to the TF story. He told me about Morihei, then looked at us and said slowly “do you know where Ah-sah-koo-sah is?” Donna replied, “Yes! Our hotel is in Ah-sock-sah.” I was proud of her for using the correct pronounciation. He then said we were very close to Morihei, their shop is in Asakusabashi – two train stops from our hotel – he didn’t speak slowly or use American pronounciation this time.

Before we left, he gifted us with two Japanese head scarves and told me he was TF’s son!

Finding Morihei’s shop was next on my agenda. We walked back to Meguro Station and retraced our route back to the hotel. My feet were swelling and hurting by this point – we had 10,000 steps before lunch time. I mapped out the route to Morihei, but they were closed on the weekend.

So we mapped out a route to Tsujiki Market. This is a large, mostly open air seafood market near the mouth of the Sumida River. It covered several blocks and was very crowded. We walked the market, taking in the sights. Donna had to snap a shot at one of the stalls selling crabs – it showed the crab brains were sold out. Who knew crab brains were a popular item?

We had a wonderful lunch of sushi at a restaurant and later bought a couple of Asahi beers for $3 each. We just missed seeing a demo of a guy butchering a large tuna. Donna snapped a photo of the results of his work. Not much is wasted.

After we returned from Tsujiki we went back to the shopping/dining area of Asakusa.

We stopped for dinner at a small ramen place – it seated about 12 people at the counter. A woman sitting next to me helped me out with ordering. The food was delicious. We noticed two things there – Japanese men can practically inhale noodles. In the time we took to eat our meals, the seat next to Donna had two different men come in, sit there and finish their meal before we were ready to go! By the way, slurping your noodles is perfectly acceptable in Japan. It’s not bad manners, it tells the cook you enjoy the noodles.

The other thing was those guys got up a left quickly and didn’t seem to pay. I wondered if they had a tab or something. Then we found out what the deal was. There’s a machine at the doorway. You make selections off the menu at the machine like it was a jukebox. You put money in the machine to pay and take your seat. The order is transmitted to the kitchen, you get your food and you leave. By the way, there’s no tipping in Japan. You pay the listed price and that’s it. It’s considered rude and insulting to leave a tip.

The next morning we did some touristy things. First we walked to the Senso-Ji Torii Gate and then on to the Buddist Temple. The grounds and the woodwork were amazing.

From the temple we set out to walk to Kappabashi. This is a section of Asakusa that has several stores with kitchen supplies. On the way out of the temple grounds, Donna found an interesting drink. Vending machines are ubiquitous in Japanse cities. They usually have bottled water, fruit drinks, cold coffee drinks and whatnot. This one had someting called Tomanade. It was a blend of tomato juice and lemonade. Drinks cost less than a dollar at most vending machines – 120 to 150 yen.

Donna had to try it and it was good!

It was Sunday so some of the markets in Kappabashi were closed and others opened at 10 or 11am. We were a little early so we stopped and sat on a bench outside of a kitchen knife shop. The sharpeners were hard at work inside although the shop was closed.

Donna had loaded Google translate app on her phone. I had a different translate app. The Google app worked better than mine, so I ended up installing the Google app. With it you can use your smartphone camera to look at kanji and translate it to English. Very convenient. Also, Donna used it speak English words into her phone and it would display the appropriate kanji symbols. She used this in stores to ask clerks questions. Without these aids, it would’ve been much more difficult to communicate.

When I came to Japan as a kid, we didn’t have these technologies. It wasn’t a problem for us because my mom was born and raised in Japan. As a Japanese native she could translate for us and of course speak her native language and read everything.

We shopped in several Kappabashi stores. Donna wanted to find Japanese cocktail napkins to use as gifts for friends when we returned. We soon learned that paper napkins really aren’t a thing in Japan. In fact, most restaurants have tissue paper for napkins unless it’s a higher end place with cloth napkins.

Also, in Japan it really isn’t acceptable to walk down the street or sidewalk while eating or drinking. That’s probably one of the reasons the streets are so clean. Everything in Japan seems to be exceptionally clean.

She gave up on the cocktail napkins but eventually found a soap dish she wanted for our new bathroom sink. I checked a few of the knife stores for stones, but struck out.

I should probably mention the Japanese bathroom facilities. The toilet in our hotel had electronic controls. I didn’t pay much attention at first. I noticed a retractable wand inside the bowl and assumed it was a bidet for women. It also had a heated seat. When I finally checked out the control panel I saw it had English words in small print under the kanji and line drawings. One said “Front” and another said “Back”. Hmm. I gave the back button a try. I heard the wand extend then woosh – it started shooting a perfectly placed stream of water on my butt crack. No mess, no wet butt cheeks, perfect aim. I could hardly believe it.

When we were out we found these toilets everywhere – in restaurant restrooms, in public parks, in the train stations and so on. All of the restroom facilities were very clean, even in public parks.

We started a routine of going out for breakfast early in the morning, then sightseeing or shopping. After lunch we would come back to the room and rest for a bit, then head out again. Our smart phones recorded our daily steps and we usually found between 14,000 and 16,000 steps even on days that we took trains! A 10,000-step day felt like we were slacking.

Later Sunday afternoon we took a river boat tour on the Sumida river from a dock near our hotel down to Odaiba Beach in the Tokyo Bay. I had mapped out a return route on the train, but we were a bit too tired to walk to the train station. We found a return boat that would take us back near the dock we left from and bought tickets – it was the last departure of the day.

After we returned, we walked to the Asakusa shopping district to find dinner.

We found a katsu restaurant and had a great meal. Most of our meals were very inexpensive. Breakfast for two with two cups of coffee each was under $15. Lunch for two usually ran from $20 to $30 including a beer for each of us. Most dinners were in the $25 to $40 range for two, including drinks. The katsu was very good – I had the traditional Tonkatsu which is fried pork. Donna tried a variation of it that also included large green onions.

Rice and finely shredded cabbage are a staple that’s included with most meals.

I wanted an after dinner drink. Up to this point, the only bar we found was in the Banrai hotel and I didn’t want to go there. We wandered around until Donna said, “I think we should look down this alley.”

Halfway down the alley we found a bar called “Not Suspicious.” We found out it’s a foreigner friendly place and has a lot of social media attention – lots of people seek it out. We went in and I sampled a few different Japanese whiskys. I found that I really like Japanese Whisky (like Scotch, Japan doesn’t have an “E” in whisky).

Donna taught the bartender how to make a Holland Razor – one of her favorite cocktails.

All of the notes left taped above the bar are from foreign visitors.

I had created an account online with Japan Rail and I purchased Shinkansen (bullet train) tickets to get us to Kyoto. We were set to leave around 11:30am Monday. First, I had to make a trip to Asakusabashi to see Morihei’s shop. We took a train and arrived right as they opened at 9am. Luckily an English speaker worked there. I ended up buying two Japanese natural whetstones from the Oozuku mine. The price was hard for me to believe – it was about a quarter of what they go for in the rest of the world.

We chose to walk back to the hotel. We were already packed and planned to check out right before 11am and head to Asakusa Station. We took an Express train to Tokyo Station, which is huge. We had to find our way to the correct Shinkansen line to get us to Kyoto. We figured it out and boarded our reserved seats in the green car. The green car is sort of a first-class car on the train with roomy seating and food and drink available. We had Bento box lunches we bought at Tokyo Station. It doesn’t cost much more for the green car than standard coach reserved seats, so why not? I’ll stop this now and resume the story about Kyoto later.