November 17 - 20, 2008

Last Day of Work: This proved to be a day of mixed emotions--it was terribly difficult to say goodbye to my co-workers, I will miss many of them. It also felt like a fantastic release--and a sense that choosing to walk away from chaos can lead to a deep level of peace/freedom....even if that meant walking away from some really positive experiences.

I was finished several hours before Ker was, so I met up with him and some of his co-workers at the end of their day to go for drinks.....at the Rose & Crown (is there a Rose & Crown everywhere?). We enjoyed very cheap finger foods and it was super nice to meet some of the people whom Kerwood had been telling me about for the past two months. A very nice bunch (2 from England, 2 from the States, and one from Belgium) with a great sense of humour! It was a nice way to mark the end our working days in Tokyo.....

Jiyugaoka & Denenchofu: The next day, we were off to explore a new neighbourhood of Tokyo. We started off in Jiyugaoka, an area with high-end boutiques and a cute shopping street that is closed off to cars. It's different from places like Ginza or Shinjuku, however, because the buildings are only 3 to 4 stories high and it feels more residential (kind of like Kensington in Calgary or Whyte Ave. in Edmonton)....In essence, very comfortable. Most of us needed a caffeine boost, so we stopped at a VW bus that had been retrofitted to be able to serve the best coffee we've had here....It was splendid! From here, we wandered through an underpass that had a huge mural of tree/earth women who had big hair and looked like they were ready to disco. There were also wonderful historical photos to see what the district was like in the early part of the 20th century.

After this, we came upon a bike storage unit like you have never seen before!













Yes, you are seeing this correctly. It is all underground and completely automated. We hung around long enough (unintentionally, of course) to witness someone actually retrieving their bike--it was incredibly fast! You simply swipe a card, wait 2, maybe 3 seconds, and voila! Your bike is rolling out backwards from the magic door. We need some of these in Canada :)

After this, we went to Denenchofu, where our friends live. Wow, it's stunning there. Super quiet and many magazine-worthy homes in this neighbourhood. It is also home to a Sanrio store that is in a building shaped like a strawberry.....For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Hello Kitty franchise (I was until I arrived here, that's for sure), Sanrio is the company that sells Hello Kitty products.....and there are a lot of 'em! They did have an interesting item--coffee/end tables in the shape of Hello Kitty's head--can't say I've ever seen that before.....

Improv Night: We were starting to have withdrawal symptoms from the Pink Cow, so we went to eat dinner from their menu (Ker had a veggie burger, I had a mushroom stroganoff--very good) and then enjoy their free improv night. It was definitely entertaining and some strange coincidences occurred. We arrived fairly early, and sat down next to a woman who was knitting/crocheting a hat for a friend. We got to chatting.....lo and behold, she is a psychologist (in my mind, I'm like, "Whoa....what are the odds of that happening?" -- e.g., running into another psychologist here). Then, I discover that she is from Canada, and not just any part of Canada, but BC....As we talk some more, she relates that her friend was in Tokyo that week visiting from BC.....from Vernon, where we are planning to move when we get back to Canada (and where my dad grew up)!?! A few moments later, her friend walks in and we talk about our shared familiar place of Vernon.....One of those bizarre, yet welcome, small world moments.

Takao:


Mt. Takao is a highly popular destination because it is one of the sacred mountains in Japan....and it is very close to Tokyo. As you can see in the photo above, we were able to go at the perfect time. The colours were nothing less than stunning....and there's something about Japanese maples, the leaves are so dainty that they create a light veil of colour around you. And, in just the right light, they positively glow amber and red.

At about the halfway point, we came upon a monkey park, and couldn't resist entering. I, in my impulsive manner, misread the ticket machine and ordered two children's tickets.....much to Ker's mild irritation (and rightly so, I need to take a step back in those moments;). It was easily remedied and the woman who took our tickets was very good humoured about it all....

We were absolutely enraptured by these little guys. There were many baby monkeys and we arrived just in time for their feeding. At one point, one of the large monkeys jumped on the keeper's back and took a ride for a little bit! It was hilarious. We also witnessed a baby get freaked out as he was trying to climb a sizable rock on his own--he froze--and then mom came to the rescue, hooked him under her belly, and took him to safety. There was also the tense moment of watching while a big male monkey chased an adolescent one all over the enclosure--if the adolescent was caught, it was not going to be pretty! Since we were only part-way up the mountain, we pulled ourselves away to keep moving.

When we reached the top, we were treated to a fantastic panoramic view of the mountain range, including Fuji-san. In the picture to the right, Mt. Fuji is on the left side, a bit muted by the haze....Although it was a bright, sunny day, it was quite chilly out, especially when you weren't moving. We loved being out of the city for the day and breathing in fresh air! Our spirits definitely appreciated the peacefulness of our walk down the mountain. We were able to get onto a 'rugged' path on the way down, and for most of it, we were the only people on it.....a rarity here, for sure!