This was a fairly unremarkable space running along the bay, but nonetheless a pleasant enough spot to while away a sunny day, and it is very popular at weekends. We didn't tarry long, as we wanted to go up the nearby Marine Tower before lunch. This rose about 100m above the park, and provided a great 360 panorama over Yokohama and beyond, though the mountains were not quite visible due to haze.
Though very sunny, it was a blustery day and we could feel the tower shifting a little, which made me feel rather queasy, so I was happy enough to go down after 20 minutes.
Chinatown was heaving, with many tour groups (seemingly comprising mainly of pensioners). We tried to find a restaurant recommended as being kid friendly by a guide book, but it turned out to have closed, so we took our chances with another decent-looking eatery nearby. We ate very well there, and Nick managed to amuse Emily into eating several large prawns and some crab legs.
We just had an hour left before our planned return time, so we looked around a retired cruise liner anchored permanently next to the pier, the Hikawa Maru, which was in service from the late 20s to 1960.
It was very interesting to see inside the first class cabins, which were opulent, and the third class berths, where eight bunks were squeezed into one small room and the occupants would have whiled away a trans-Pacific journey to Seattle - they could only walk on one of the decks if they applied for permission. The luxurious rooms above were done out in an Art Deco style and there was a smoking room for the men and a drawing room for the ladies. Emily wasn't much interested and just wanted to get out onto the deck and run along it, though she did quite like the engine house and took the wheel briefly.
We returned home the same way, via the sea bus to Yokohama, and vowed to go again soon and explore an extensive park we could see from the tower.
Later, I did a 1 hour 25 minute run. The Tokyo Marathon had been held earlier in the day (Jo's husband Oli took part and finished in 3h 58m in his first attempt at one) and I was inspired, but feel it is a tall order for me to run that much twice more over. I did get a reading of 63.1kg for my trouble though. That's more like it, though I fear I still haven't really got a hold of my portion control, and now I often eat dinner early with Emily I find myself snacking later in the evening, since I am up so late with Nick.
No comments:
Post a Comment