25 February 2009

The cinema in Roppongi Hills has a 'Mamas Club' on Thursday afternoons. With very low expectations, I went along with Emily to see 'The Curious Case of Benjamin Button'. The fact that it was a three hour show was a daunting prospect too. However, Emily really surprised me. She was happy walking up and down the rows and climbing up the steps that were picked out with blue lights. They had the lights up more than a regular showing, so I could follow her. There was only about one sixth seats taken, perhaps, which made it easier for her to wander about. There were even a few brave souls without babies. Mind you, even when a baby cried it was not that intrusive. Emily was in very good humour and broke into frequent loud chuckles if I chased her, seemingly always when there was a lull in the soundtrack. Lucky Jo got to sit and watch most of the film as Isy went to sleep. I barely got to sit in my seat once, and was mobile the whole way through, but I did manage to follow most of the film; though not always able to watch I could hear the dialogue and keep with the plot. Towards the end the novelty wore off for Emily, but she hung on without tears to the conclusion. All in all, a satisfying experience, and it is great to go to the cinema again without paying a babysitter.

24 February 2009

Emily is getting quite cheeky, and says 'no' while wagging her finger. She has started saying 'choochoo' sometimes when she plays with or sees a train. One of these days I'll compile a list of words she recognises or says. She's usually on the go, but today she climbed up onto the sofa and lay there watching TV with a breadstick.

Julia and I had planned to go to a park in the afternoon, but as it was dull and damp we had to stay indoors. Charlize was still asleep when I got to their place so we went in, and stayed for an hour or so playing with the many toys she has. I find Julia very easy to get on with and hopefully we'll see them regularly.

Afterwards we walked down to Azabu Juban and she showed me a brand new jidokan. It was a great facility and free to ward residents too. It is only 15 minutes walk from home, so I am sure we will be frequent visitors.

23 February 2009

A quiet day for us, so just an observation to record. Approaching the anniversary of our arrival here, I was considering my attitude to other foreigners. When I was a 'newby', I was always glad to see a western face and would try to make eye contact and smile. Now, although I still notice every gaijin (outsider) I actively avoid catching their gaze. Part of it is because I am a little shy and find it hard to hold eye contact even with friends, and part because in my experience every foreigner I pass looks surly and distant. I expect I do to them as well though. If I am honest, I prefer not to frequent places where there are lots of expats (like Hiroo, where there are more gaijin than Japanese). I suppose I like to feel that I am living an exotic lifestyle in a far-off land, and don't want to admit that there are thousands here doing the same. On the other hand, if there weren't so many of us expats I wouldn't be able to get half the products from home that I do, and there wouldn't be so much English signage, so it does make day to day life easier being part of a large diaspora.

22 February 2009

Tracey and James held a birthday party for Lottie at their place, and as Emily seemed a lot better we decided we could go. She was doing well until Mario walked in; we presumed it was his Fu Manchu style beard she objected to, since she had tolerated several strange men up to that point. Or maybe it was his mass of long thick hair, since she is only used to Nick's more modest covering. Eventually we had to leave when she got repeatedly upset, just when the party was in full swing (although it was past the time we'd said we would leave anyway, and we'd made good inroads into the food on offer).

At our apartment block I passed a delivery man, and on his trolley was a cardboard box marked 'Cafe Colon'. I wonder if he also delivers to the nearby restaurant called 'Bowels'. Japlish strikes again.

21 February 2009

Although Emily seemed to be on the mend, I did not think that she was up to Tim's birthday party as she was still prone to tears and being quite clingy. If she could not enjoy herself I would not be able to relax and have a good time either.

Instead, we walked to Arisugawa Park and strolled around there for half an hour or so. Emily toddled some of the time but Nick had to carry her as she got tired easily. We finished up having coffee, shunning Starbucks in favour of a little upstairs Japanese cafe (the drawback being, as is often the case here, that smoking was allowed and it is a small place so it is hard to avoid breathing it in). I hadn't been to Hiroo for months, and took the opportunity to pop over the road to National Azabu supermarket, dodging through the milling Hummers and Chelsea tractors trying to park in the tiny car park. It was a fruitful visit as I managed to get custard powder, baking powder and 'proper' sausages. I drew the line at Duchy Originals chutney as it was about 1,600 yen. No chutney is worth ten quid. I shall harvest a few such goodies when we go home.

20 February 2009

I had to wake a very groggy Emily at 8.30, to a wet and cold morning. She was quite tearful at times, but after lunch I decided to take her to Shibaura jidokan for a while as I couldn't face staying in all day. As it happened it had cleared up by then, and the sun even came out later, so the wintry weather was very shortlived.

She didn't play with her usual enthusiasm and hardly smiled at all, so we didn't stay long. Back at home, after another poor meal on her part, in the bath I saw that the rash had spread to the rest of her torso and her arms. Later I did some research and think that she may have roseola. It is not severe but causes fever followed by rash, tiredness and irritability, loss of appetite. Fits the symptoms she's had this week. Hopefully it will blow over quickly and I'll get my happy, smiley girl back again, complete with former appetite.

19 February 2009

We met Bettina and Jo at Midtown - second time this week, but just a coincidence. Emily still wasn't her usual self but she liked the slide, unlike me: it was rather steep and super-smooth metal and I hesitated at the top before steeling myself to launch us down the chute. I hope I am not going to be too much of a wimp to do exciting activities with her. For one who has skydived, and abseiled off tall buildings, I seem to have lost my bottle rapidly.

In the bath I noticed that she had a bit of a rash over her back, which gave me a bit of concern, though it didn't seem to bother her.

18 February 2009

Emily still wasn't herself: I had to wake her at 8.30 and she was still quite subdued. After her nap she seemed a little better, and ate a reasonable amount of lunch, so I decided to go ahead with the plan to put her into daycare for the afternoon.

When I got to Pokke they encouraged me to leave quickly, and of course she started crying as I waved goodbye and walked through the door. I steeled myself and headed to the Starbucks close by, where I set up camp in a comfy chair for the duration. I had my Japanese study material with me, and I did manage to keep Emily out of my thoughts most of the time as I looked over it and realised how much I need to learn to keep up with my classmates. It is not enough to put it away on Saturday and only pick it up again the night before the next class. After dragging out two and a half hours over a large coffee and a juice I felt it was time to stretch my legs, so I walked round to the Tamachi Sports Centre on the other side of the station. This is a huge facility and on enquiry it looks as though I should be able to find a daytime fitness class to do while Emily is at Pokke. They also have a pool, but I feel that I don't want to be in the water out of touch for an hour in case they try to call me.

When I returned to pick Emily up she cried a bit when she first saw me. They said she'd cried several times and for quite a long time, but that is probably a combination of being off colour and it being the first time away from me and Nick. She perked upon the way home and seemed her usual self, though she did throw nearly all her tea on the floor - perhaps signalling her displeasure at being left.

17 February 2009

Emily was not well overnight. She had a very high temperature after KSpace and was really subdued. She even fell asleep on my chest when we got home, first time having an afternoon nap for a month or more. During the night she woke several times and we eventually administered some Calpol. Though she woke seeming more or less recovered, lunch with Nick didn't go well. We decided to try Italian as we thought there would be plenty of options for her. Normally she will happily try anything we are eating, but she shook her head at pizza, salmon and pork and pumpkin lasagne. The only thing that passed her lips was bread and orange juice. She was dancing along on my lap to the muzak though.

Afterwards I walked to Midtown and met Julia, with her baby, Charlize. She introduced me to another new park, round the north and west sides of the skyscraper. There was a curving stroll garden, and then a lawned area with slides and swings further down. Emily pootled about on the grass but was whimpering a fair bit, although she seemed to enjoy the baby swing. We adjourned indoors to a nice open plan area with tables and chairs and lots of food and drink outlets nearby, where we indulged in fig and port doughnuts and scrumptious hot ginger lemonade. Another venue to add to the list of weekend destinations close to home. Though I know Julia from a few brief meetings, it was the first time I'd gone out with her, and she was good company.

By the time we'd walked home Emily had relapsed somewhat, and once again dropped off on me when we got indoors, and felt quite hot. Her appetite had not recovered much either. She had another disturbed night (as did we).

15 February 2009

A few degrees cooler than the unseasonably warm day yesterday, but still really pleasant, so we walked over to Shiba Koen park after lunch. Emily spent an hour and a half walking around and climbing up things, so she was whacked by the end. We took it in turns to play with her, so at least got a little relaxation in between.

The plum grove was now in full bloom, and they've had to put up barriers to stop all the amateur photographers trampling the undergrowth in order to get close-ups with their huge cameras. As you would expect in a technologically-advanced country like this, every other person has an up-to-the-minute digital SLR that makes our compact 10x zoom look like a toy from a Christmas cracker.

Emily is starting to develop a real sense of rhythm. She has a Japanese song book and she claps and waves her hands in the air to the music; also whenever we put on the stereo. Nick had her 'dancing' to Eminem (hope she wasn't listening to the lyrics).

14 February 2009

With much trepidation I went to my Japanese class, fearing that I would be too far behind after missing it when we were in Oshima last weekend. I had trouble following for a while, but hopefully can do a bit of mugging up and fill in the gaps later.

In Japan, Valentine's Day is observed, but on that day women give men gifts (usually chocolate). A month later, on White Day, men reciprocate. Nick stayed true to UK customs though, and I received a beautiful bouquet of spring flowers.

The wind has shifted round to the south, and it was a really lovely day, with temperatures soaring to above 20C. It was a shame, therefore, that we had a prior engagement that kept us indoors all afternoon, it being Isy's birthday party at their apartment in Shibaura. We did have a nice time though, despite Emily being clingy again. I think it was because there were a few men there, as she would duck her chin down every time one came near. Eventually, just as we were about to leave, she cheered up and regained her usual confidence. She enjoyed the birthday cake and marshmallows rather too much, though redeemed herself by eating all her tea later. Thankfully, it seems the phase of poor eating has passed, at last; perhaps it was due to the vaccinations after all.

Nick and I had enough time to watch a whole film in the evening, and saw 'The Last Emperor'. I have always meant to see it, but I'm glad I have finally watched it now that I am here, and after visiting China, as it had a lot more relevance. It really helped to improve my knowledge of oriental modern history, which I have always found very confusing.

13 February 2009

We went with Jill and Sophia to Bornelund in Yokohama. It is a fantastic facility, though a bit pricey, and good for all ages up to at least 5, though best for 3-4 year olds, I would say. It even has a bouncy castle, which adults are allowed to go on too. It was brilliant jumping up and down in there with Emily and she was smilng from ear to ear. What is nice about Bornelund is that there are no electrical toys: everything is wooden or mechanical. The discovery section had many toys designed to improve motor skills and coordination. There is even a sandpit, with wellies provided, though I didn't let Emily go in there - maybe in a year or so...

We vowed to become regular visitors, as it only takes about an hour door to door, with no train change needed. To save time, I fed her lunch as we travelled there, which worked better than I expected, though she nearly choked on a crab stick at one point, and I spilled half of her tub of black beans on the floor. She is a big fan of dried mango, which kept her quiet for ages, though she ended up with a sticky orange face. I wish we could get it here, as the only mango I've found is adulterated with loads of sickly sugar. All in all, a very successful trip, and Jill is organising a visit there for TMG next month now that it has passed muster.

12 February 2009

Emily and I went to Stephanie's, out in the suburbs west of Shinjuku. It was an hour and a half each way, with several complicated train changes, so we could only stay less than two hours. Shinjuku is the busiest train station in the world, and we had to navigate our way across the whole place to get on the right line. There were several places where I had to carry Emily in the buggy. I was glad I went though, as she always makes the effort to come into town, and also it was the last chance to see Geraldine and Gaby before they leave Japan for Hertfordshire.


Emily kept getting upset and wanting hugs, though I wasn't sure why. When we visit other children's homes she is usually very confident and not at all clingy. She has just perfected the art of clambering up onto our sofa, and spent a lot of the time getting up onto theirs. A good climber needs to be as good at the descent as the climb up, but she hasn't quite mastered that yet, so there were a few bumps.

11 February 2009

Another public holiday - this time Foundation Day. It was rather overcast, but we decided to go to Hamarikyu anyway, and at least it stayed dry, though chilly. The garden was alight with stellar plum blossom (the description that came to my mind due to the five single petals of each flower, with stamens like sparks shooting from the centre - oh how poetic!). It helped to lift the gloom of the day no end, and the scent from them was delicious.

Emily walked a long way, stopping frequently to point up at the many crows and helicopters passing overhead. It seemed very early to see the small field of rape flowers there - I remembered that I was surprised last year to see how the Japanese love what to us is just a crop.

On our way out we passed a performance being held next to the three hundred year old pine tree: there was a man playing the shamizen and another man balancing a teapot with a wooden bar held in his mouth. It was amazing how he controlled it so closely without it falling to the ground.

Walking north we found the shopping district of Ginza heaving. Emily was upset and we tried in vain to find somewhere to stop for coffee and a snack, finally getting a small table in an overcrowded cafe, right beneath a blower pumping out super-heated air. We'd intended to browse a few shops, but didn't feel like joining the crowds getting their dose of retail therapy after all.

10 February 2009

As it was his birthday, I took Emily to have lunch with Nick: lacking originality, we ate at Paul again. Emily polished off salmon quiche, potato wedges and copious amounts of crusty bread. I'd arranged to meet Bettina and Jo in the afternoon, and as it was such a lovely day we convened in Shiba Koen park. Tim immediately demonstrated his newfound walking prowess

He is not yet 11 months, so doing very well. Emily loved the water fountain and kept clambering up onto the stone pedestal, to my horror.

She was a bit tearful at times but a quick ride down the slide on my lap soon dried up the waterworks. On the way out we walked through a grove of pink and white plum blossom, which was exquisite and delicately scented.

Erna came over to babysit in the evening, so Nick and I had dinner at the little Okinawan restaurant a few hundred yards from home that he'd taken Mum to when she was over. We had some warm sake that had strong hints of cypress wood, reminding us of the scent of the wood onsen bath in Asahidake. The food was mostly excellent; I especially enjoyed the extremely spicy green papaya salad - not very Japanese, as they don't tend to use much chili in their cuisine. Mind you, wasabi (green horseradish) packs quite a punch, of a different kind.

8 February 2009

Emily got through the night without waking and we all saw the sun up together from our east-facing bedroom window, a hot orange glow diffusing through the thin cloud layer. Mount Mihara was still quietly steaming away and the local bird population was in good voice. For once I almost didn't mind getting up.


Emily played up at breakfast, so we had to cut it short; however, the grub on offer wasn't all that great so we weren't over-bothered. A group of middle-aged men at the next table were very jolly, and ordering bottles of beer to wash down their morning meal. Who says it is only northern Europeans who have a booze culture?! The onsen bath was closing at 9am, so Nick and I each just managed a quick dip in the outdoor rotemburo. Though the wind had dropped a bit it was still chilly out there, but once submerged it was wonderful to lie there in water that was at a perfect temperature for me and contemplate the volcano and surrounding wilderness.

Following check out we rode the courtesy bus down to the port. There are two main ports on the island, and this time the boats were using Okata. As we descended to sea level we got glimpses of resplendent Mount Fuji, the upper, snow-covered half appearing to hover in thin air directly over the hazy grey-blue sea. The little port was busy with newly-arrived daytrippers, but as Emily had started to nap on my shoulder on the way, we sought out a quiet table in a very dingey little cafe cum giftshop, seemingly the only place to get something to eat and drink. After our breakfast interruptus we were still hungry, so we ordered the owner's special. Nick thought she said fried fish on rice, but it turned out to be thick slivers of raw fish dressed in a spicy soy sauce. I dutifully chewed my way through it as she looked on, but as always I didn't like the texture. She and her daughter were besotted with Emily when she woke up, and the latter happily held Emily while I tucked in.


With their advice, we decided to take another bus, this time to Oshima Park, about 15 mins away. This turned out to be an excellent recommendation.　It sits on the slopes leading down to the sea and comprises a small zoo, a large camellia garden and a recreation area with grassy hillocks and picnic benches. We felt that we ought to amuse Emily first, so we went straight into the zoo. Anyone who knows me will know that I abhor locking animals up in small enclosures, and Japan has an appalling reputation for the state of its zoos. However, this one was actually quite decent. It seemed to be still under construction, which might explain why it was free, but the parts that were open were pleasant and as far as I could tell the animals were content. The main enclosure held both mountain goats and ring-tailed lemurs. It was a mass of boulders and piles of soil, which seemed to suit them well.



There was also a set of cages for domestic animals, and Emily got very excited about the pigs, goats, ducks and guinea pigs. A strange addition was a Lesser Panda: a cute rust-coloured animal with a bushy long tail and lovely face markings. Round the corner was a group of giant tortoises, and at the back an emu, which growled as we approached. Finally we came to some llamas and camels.


Emily used lots of her pent-up energy walking around the complex, so we were then able to get her to sit on the grass outside and eat some lunch. The biggest drawback there was the lack of food available. For such a popular park, we were amazed that the only option was a bowl of ramen noodles or junk food from the tacky souvenir shop. We had to make do with a packet of Ritz biscuits, some cookies, and a mikan (aka satsuma). It was great to be able to picnic outdoors in February, with a view down to the sea.


Afterwards we took a turn around the camellia gardens. There were hundreds of the small trees, many already flowering. I didn't realise that they came in so many varieties.


Outside the entrance the local people had set up stalls and a small stage for the duration of the two month camellia festival on the island. We timed it just right to watch a performance of the local dances, by ladies dressed in black and white checked gowns or black capes decorated with a picture of an erupting Mount Mihara.

Quite a few looked over 60 and I was amazed at how flexible and energetic they were. Emily stood and clapped along, now and again waving her arms excitedly.


We felt we'd made the most of our day as we got the mid-afternoon bus back to the harbour, all-too-soon to be whisked back to the bright lights and bustle of Tokyo, but with our batteries truly recharged.

7 February 2009

I felt mean waking Emily at 6.15, as she had not been herself the day before (the NHS booklet says that the measles vaccine starts to work after about 10 days and can result in tiredness and loss of appetite). She was fine though, and happy when she realised that Daddy was around. Having done much preparation the night before I wasn't too stressed about packing, though the cab had to wait a few minutes nonetheless. We were soon at Takeshiba boat terminal, and joined the many people checking in. It wasn't long before we were seated aboard an alarmingly bobbing jetfoil and I felt my hurriedly-eaten cereal sloshing around uncomfortably.

The two hour boat ride was great; you get a real sense of speed in one of those things, and we rapidly passed under Rainbow Bridge, past the ranks of idle container cranes and beneath planes taking off and landing at Haneda airport. There was plenty to see most of the time, as we crossed from beyond Yokohama to Tateyama, on the Boso peninsula. Out in the busy shipping lanes we spotted lots of super-cargo boats, and entering Tateyama harbour we passed a few grey naval frigates, one with a chopper parked at the rear.

Approaching our destination, Oshima (meaning 'big island': it's the largest of a group of seven), we saw another jetfoil coming in to intersect our path, and to see it speeding over the waves with a great plume of spray spewing out behind it made it exciting to know we were in a similar craft.

Docking at Motomachi jetty, we found ourselves in the metaphorical shadow of the island's 745m central volcano, Mount Mihara; though in reality it was a bright warm morning. Emily had refused to nap onboard and was a bit tetchy about being confined to the seats (it was much like being on an aircraft as we had to remain buckled up as we 'flew' along at more than 70km/hr), but she revived when we got off and let her walk a bit. Transport on the approx 4x10 mile island is very limited so we opted to wait an hour for the courtesy bus to our hotel. The drive was only 15 minutes, winding gradually up and up closer to the peak, during which time Emily finally dropped off, on my shoulder.

We found Oshima Onsen Hotel to be superbly situated on an outer caldera ridge, with a two mile uninterrupted view across to the mountain, and on the other side sea views - on a clear day the Izu peninsula and Mount Fuji would be visible. We were amazed that it was the only building up there, but even more surprising, given its great location,was its shabbiness: it seemed like a factory unit from the outside, and a Sixties throwback in its internal decor. Nick pointed out that it would be foolish to lavish too much money on something so close to an active volcano, but I'm sure they could do better than that.

We ate a rather mediocre lunch then wasted no time in setting forth for the mountain's summit. It looked so far off that we couldn't believe it was only billed as 65 minutes and 3km, but actually we made it to the crater in 55 minutes. From the hotel we first dropped down through the green vegetation of the ridge, then passed through an area of black sand studded with dry grass clumps. That was followed by a tangled jumble of black, gnarled lava stacks, some looking like animals and one with a strong likeness to a Virgin Mary statue.

After that we began quite a steep climb, made tougher by the path's loose rocks. As we rounded the last corner a cold blast assailed us and had us reaching for hats and gloves. I was glad I'd packed Emily's padded all-in-one.

Attaining the crater's edge we decided that we had plenty of time to make the circuit of the rim before returning, and set off in the lea of the first outcrop, which had all the time been steaming like a newly-deposited pile of dung.

The centre of the crater was very deep and had vertical sides.

Poor Emily had few chances to walk

as the going was so rough and rocky, so she got quite upset, leading me to feel upset too and somewhat guilty that we were doing the walk to please ourselves without taking her needs into account. We found it getting very cold as the late afternoon sun sank into cloud, and hurried back to the hotel as fast as we could on the treacherous footing, with Emily crying nearly all the way back.

Once checked in and settled into our room she cheered up and was laughing a lot. It was fairly small but fine for three futons, and had a fabulous view from the big window, taking in the whole mountain and foreground. We managed to get her routine finished quickly and had her asleep by 6.20, enabling us to spend plenty of time on dinner (just as well, since we knew that at 8pm we would be persona non-grata in the dining room). After the poor lunch we were pleasantly surprised by the evening meal. We got to cook our own tempura vegetables and fish, with a gas-powered dish of oil on our table to fry the batter-dipped pieces in. We found out afterwards that it was 10% camellia oil, this being a product that the island is famed for. In fact early spring sees the tsubaki matsuri (camellia festival) and there are reputed to be three million (not sure if that is blooms or bushes).

Afterwards we took it in turns to use the natural hot spring bath while the other sat in the lobby listening in to the baby monitor. It was quite spartan in the tiled indoor bath, but I braved the icy wind to step out to the more attractive rotemburo bath. Even though it was dark I could see Mount Mihara by the light of the near-full moon and countless stars. It is quite magical to lie outside in hot water at night and gaze at the heavens, but without someone to share it with it loses something.

5 February 2009

We took the boat over to Odaiba to meet Jo and Bettina. It's such a great trip across the bay that I am always amazed how underused the launch is. There's no way they can be breaking even, so they must be getting subsidised. Oh well, as long as the service doesn't get cut I don't mind having the boat all to myself. Emily got to see lots of seagulls and cormorants so she was happy.

On the way we passed through Tamachi at lunchtime and it was busy with salarymen. There's a strong trend among the younger guys towards brown brogue winklepickers, which clash with their sombre suits. They are often so long that they turn up at the toes like clown shoes. If they catch me looking no doubt they think I am admiring their footwear, when in fact I think they look ridiculous. I even saw a pair of super-elongated fashion trainers once that curled up at the tip. Generally there seems to be a preference for shoes that are too big, among both men and women. Pondering this strange fashion, I could only imagine that it made it easier to slip them on and off when entering and leaving homes and restaurants, where custom requires them to remove outdoor footwear. But I would rather suffer the inconvenience of taking them off than walk in shoes that slip off with every step. There are even some types of shoe that are made especially so that the heel can be trodden down. Why not just make them backless?

1 February 2009

I was amazed on waking to find that I wasn't suffering the hangover from hell; just fuzzy and dry-mouthed really. The drab weather had been replaced by bright sunshine, and Atami looked very attractive under the blue sky. We went down to breakfast in another huge room with a great view out over the jetty and around the bay, loading up on toast, eggs and coffee. Strangely, I didn't fancy tofu and grilled fish!

The clock was ticking, as I had to get the 10.30 bus back to the station, so we took ourselves off to the other onsen bath. This one was also vast, and had glorious views over the bay. I had to get out after only a minute or two as it was too hot for me and I didn't have time to luxuriate anyway. With only seconds to spare I hurriedly said goodbye and rushed to the bus. The shinkansen took only half an hour back to Shinagawa (a third of the time for the local train on the way, but three times more expensive), and by noon I was walking in the door at home.

Emily did seem to have missed me, though she didn't rush straight to me as I'd hoped. Nick had stayed up until 2am watching an Arsenal game so he was as zonked as me. However, it was far too good a day to wallow indoors. We walked up to Tokyo Tower, which was predictably heaving on such a nice Sunday. To avoid the queues for the lift, and get some exercise into the bargain, we decided to go up via the 600 steps to the main observatory platform. It was surprisingly easy, and we let Emily try her hand at a few flights. There was a howling wind which seemed doubly strong on the outdoor staircase, and I swear I could feel the whole structure swaying a little. On the way up there were posters telling you how many calories you'd burned (about 100 in total).

The observatory was indoor, thankfully, and was packed. Emily happily navigated her way through the forest of legs though. We wouldn't have been able to take her in her crawling phase as it would have been too dangerous to put her on the floor and she'd have been thoroughly fed up being carried the whole time. We took in the fantastic views, including snow-capped Fuji and Tokyo Bay with its artificial islands. Nick's office is the green glass one on the right.

Back at the bottom we bypassed the waxworks and myriad gift shops and went to a second-rate cafe, where we ate more calories than we'd used, then headed for home via a small park.

31 January 2009

Finally, the long-awaited girls' night away to Atami. First I had to go to my Japanese class; as always I felt out of my depth and it did seem that the others had mastered the imperative 'te' verb forms much better than me. I am dreading missing class next week and falling behind.


I excused myself before the end and hurried off to Shinagawa, where I was meeting Jill, Geraldine and Cindy. By coincidence, I realised that none of us had our baby in Japan and wondered if that might partly explain why we get along so well. Though I'm sure they don't mean to, those who went through childbirth here sometimes seem to feel a certain sense of superiority as a result, and indeed, I take my hat off to them. As I waited for them to arrive I felt a bit queasy about leaving Emily, which is quite understandable despite my need for some relaxation.

We caught a local train to Atami, which gave us enough time to eat a snack lunch (and in one case, naming no names, a can of beer) and have a good natter. Cindy and I were seated together, with the other two in a separate pair of seats. Their conversation was obviously a lot more saucy, judging by the jollity and flushed faces! It was a rather grey day, but as we neared our destination we could look out to sea and Oshima island was lurking there in low cloud.


A courtesy bus whisked us down from the station perched above the town, to Korakuen Hotel, which is next to the sea at the far right side of the bay. The town is hemmed in by hills, and spreads right up them like an uglier version of Nice (I am always surprised by the proliferation of concrete monstrosities in Japanese resorts - as I've mentioned before, for a people who love nature and beauty their architecture is far from aesthetically pleasing). The hotel was large and bland, but fairly swanky inside, with vast expanses of cherry blossom print carpet. The poor attendant who escorted us to our room was bombarded with questions in poor Japanese liberally interspersed with English, but we managed to ascertain where and when we could bathe in the communal onsens. Our room was only 8 tatami mats in size (that being the standard used for measuring room sizes here), but that was enough for four futons. It had a good view round the bay and of the town sprawling up the slopes. Above, we could see lots of the black kites that are ubiquitous in coastal areas circling menacingly.


As it was a wet and dull day, we entertained ourselves with a visit to the Adult Museum, conveniently situated on the clifftop above our hotel. We rode a quaint old cable car up there and were soon at the front desk of the attraction, where we were greeted with the sight of a model turtle with, shall we say, a rather unusual head. Inside we found it to be a bit lewd but mainly quite tame; with the exception of some old drawings it was more suggestive than explicit. The artists and model makers were obviously employing a lot of wishful thinking where the appendages were concerned!

Back at the hotel we opted to try out the bath without further ado, so we donned our pink yukata robes and headed straight there.

This was an initiation in communal bathing for one or two of the others, and when we entered the changing room full of naked women there was some hesitancy. I well remember how daunted I was the first time I went in one, but it helps if you are with someone who knows the ropes. We stripped off and scurried through to the steamy bath room. It was the biggest one I've been to, with one curved stone wall lined with wash stations. There was a small jacuzzi bath, a larger bath, and a wooden one that was outside. We tried them all; the water was good and hot, but not so much that I had to limit my time in there. We managed to sit around and chat without being embarrassed, and it was good to at last share an onsen experience with someone else, as I always get bored quickly when I go in on my own.

In our room, we cracked open one of the many bottles of wine we'd brought, and tucked into pre-dinner snacks. We had chosen to take the second sitting for our evening meal, and found it to be in a cavernous dome of a hall which must be used for events as it had a stage and a gallery above. There was plenty of food on offer at the buffet, but I confess my main focus was on the dessert table. I didn't think the food was of very high quality, but then I usually feel that a kaiseki ryori (high cuisine) meal is wasted on me because I don't really like half of it.

We carried on the festivities back in our room, downing a fair amount of wine and scoffing snacks and chocolate well into the night. I had been really looking forward to playing games, and we did spend about two hours playing 'Who Am I?', which was hilarious. We also exchanged an awful lot of personal stuff: I think those three know more about me than anyone except Nick. Around twelve we got down onto our futons, but Cindy and I couldn't sleep and kept nattering (and keeping the other two awake) until at least one.