Snoopy dressed up as a pink rabbit

After 3 shots at this at Joypolis, almost getting it but not quite - and being quite despondent as a result - Jason found two wee coins in his back pocket he didn't know he had, positioned the claw and won this for me - hooray!

I now have to carry him around for 3 weeks.

I just love him. Quite why Snoopy is dressed as a pink rabbit is something I don't know, but every time I look at him, it makes me smile.

Sayonara for now
JandNx

The Science Museum, lasered erasers and barcodes

So the Imperial Palace was closed but the Science Museum next door was open.

We wandered around the mostly Japanese exhibits, trying to guess what they may be about. Mostly, they were anybody`s guess but there were a few highlights. Robots of the future being one. These guys were "workerbots".

This wee guy serves no other purpose but to look cute and oddly real.

There was a pretty cool section where you could get your name burned into a rubber for 50 yen. About 40p. This of course was a must have for me.

As was this.

Yes, that`s me as a barcode.

How this all relates to science is a bit tenuous but we had fun anyway.

Sayonara for now.

NandJx

Mitsui Garden Hotel, Ginza, Tokyo

It deserves a special mention. I knew it was going to be nice, but I wasn`t prepared for how nice! Neither was Jason. The lobby was on the 16th floor of a tall skyrise and was all glass. As far round as you could see was glass. It was quite spectacular.

Our room on the 17th floor had this view

There was an internal wet room with a frosted glass window into the bedroom. Seemed a bit pointless until you seen the switch that reads "Press me to see the view". The smoked glass disappears and you can see the neon lights of Tokyo from your shower! Very stylish. Very classy. Very us. Lol. Will be sorry to leave it behind.

Sayonara for now

NandJx

Day One, morning, Monday 6th April - Kitanomaru-koen

Konichiwa!



Have eventually found an internet cafe that uploads photographs, hooray! On Monday (our first day) we woke up in magical Tokyo and decided to visit the Imperial Palace and the associated gardens. Took a trip to a famous bakery for a breakfast pastry (yum) and wandered up through Ginza travelling west to the Palace. In what is becoming a regular thing with me, I wrote a haiku about it.

Warm day, warm people,
The Imperial Palace
Is closed on Mondays



Yip, closed. However, all is not lost. We crossed over the road to the gardens there called Kitanomaru-koen and enjoyed the wonderful cherry blossoms in the park. This park also hosts the Budokan (a venue that rock bands would play in) and the Science Museum. More on that later.






Sayonara for now
NandJx

Japanese Toilets - the truth about electric seatwarmers

Yes, it is true, Japanese toilets are fairly high tec. Some of them have gadgets protruding from the sides of them. I`ve even come across a couple that make a fake flushing sound so that you can disguise the noise of your peeing. It`s true. There are various types though. They range from this

to this

Most are bog standard though.... (sorry)

Sayonara for now

NandJx

Travelling for 24 hours and counting

Konichiwa!

Okay, so we made it. It took various methods of travel but we finally arrived at our lovely Mitsui Garden Hotel in the heart of Ginza. The travelling was rough but not too bad as it was fairly broken up.

I wrote a Haiku about it.

Taxi, bus, train, plane
Modes of transport carry us
To Japanese fun

Sayonara for now.
NandJx

PS Photos to follow

A practice shot at photo downloading

Konichiwa peeps!

I'm doing a quick practice at downloading photos from my new digital camera to my blog. I normally leave this kind of stuff for Jason to do, but I want to be able to do this myself. I am not the most proficient at this kind of thing so a practice shot before Japan is definitely needed. If this doesn't work, I'll have to ask J to help. I'd rather not. It should be fairly simple. Right?

I just can't believe that it's only 3 more sleeps - woohoo. I still have two dresses to finish and two dresses to hem before I can start packing, yikes.

Never mind, it'll all happen, it has to!

Sayonara for now.
Nx

PS I hope this uploading-photo-thing works...