The final day of George’s conference and when meeting for lunch, a final opportunity to revisit our favourite curry house. It hasn’t changed a bit – thank goodness! With at least 1kg spare in my suitcase, I went in search of souvenirs in the local Jimbocho area. The district is famous mainly for its copious bookstores in which I spent an hour or two and made one (light) purchase.
Later, I made my way to Tokyo’s largest train station – Shinjuku. It is said that the equivalent of the population of New Zealand passes through the station everyday which is not difficult to imagine when stood in the middle of it trying to find one platform. It’s the busiest station in the world, and has over 200 exits:so meeting George at just one, with a lack of phone communication, was risky. Thankfully he is easy to spot in the crowds!
Travelling out to a friend’s house on the edge of the city, we boarded not just any train but the Romance-Car. Sailing past local trains crammed with silent commuters we enjoyed a seat and a view out of the driver’s window for a mere supplementary £5. Sharing a special edition Romance-Car beer, we managed to maintain an appetite for the feast that was to come! Fried chicken, Japanese sake, and sushi were just some of the home-made delights we enjoyed around our friends’ low dining table. Coupled with the exchanging of lovely presents, we were reminded of the huge generosity of the Japanese.
We dragged our tired and full bodies back into Tokyo in readiness for our early morning start the next day, waving at our old station as we passed through.
The Geos go back to Tokyo 