Japan Trip, July 2012

A visit to Tokyo in July is not recommended unless you are looking for a wet drenching experience. Not only was the temperature in the high 80’s, the humidity was horrendous; my shirt would get soaked by just standing around. I was staying at Tokyo Hilton in the Shinjuku neighborhood which is part of Tokyo. Shinjuko is one of the 23 city wards of Tokyo, but the name commonly refers to just the large entertainment, business and shopping area around Shinjuku Train Station; it’s the world’s busiest railway station, handling more than two million passengers every day.

The next day I went to Sagamihara for a meeting and later I met up with Norikazu Toyama, Yasuyuki Fukuhara, Chiho Ishine and my good friend Ryo Saito for dinner. We had great food, “few” drinks and a bunch of laughs. We all made a pack to climb Mt. Fuji next year; we will see if it really happens. By the time I got on the train at 11:00 p.m. I was spent; it was a combination of jet-lag, staying out to late the night before and the extreme heat. I was snoozing on the train ride back, napping on the train is typical and I was fitting right in!

My last full day I was off to Nagano by express train for another meeting. I have never been so far northwest of Tokyo before. The landscape was beautiful with numerous mountains and thick forestation.

Japan Trip, June 2011

I usually make a trip to Japan once a year and the last time I was there was January, 2010 with my wife Linna….so I was overdue. You never know when you are missed until you see your buddies again. It was great to see old acquaintances and meet new ones. This was a short trip, but….still fun as always.

There wasn’t much site seeing on this trip, but dinner out with good friends. The last three or so trips I have been staying at the Hilton in the Shinjuku area, it’s a perfect spot to be; close to Tokyo, shopping and nightlife. The mid-seventies weather was perfect for me; could have been less clouds and more sun though. I am planning to come back in the fall to do some hiking with a few friends.