I slept a little better but towards the end I felt like I was just lying there awake. I think I got up at 4:30AM? Then I spent wasted a bunch of time screwing around on my computer, which is also what I’m doing right now. I started out by paying bills which happens twice a month on paydays. And I made it down to breakfast when the restaurant opened, at 6:30am. Unlike the restaurant in Tokyo, people were there early. I’m guessing it’s partially a country thing, and its partially because there were older people (older than me!), and mostly because there were lots of people on business trips. … Continue reading Japan 2022 Day 3 →

Today did not start out that well for me. I slept OK but I woke up several times with cramps and each time they got worse. Twice in one foot and once in the other plus both thighs. Each was a separate incident and each woke me up. The thigh cramps were the worst. I still felt OK when I got up. Breakfast wasn’t so bad. It was at the coffee shop downstairs and we got to pick one of the morning sets. I got there before they opened and waited. I think one of the people was fairly new. I got the scrambled eggs and it came with salad, … Continue reading Japan 2022 Day 2 →

Man, Tokyo is way too crowded for me. When I thought it was as crowded as it was going to get, I had to ride a train where we stuffed ourselves into the car. After watching three trains go by, you get to the front of the line and you push yourself in. It’s a mess. But back to Hoshino coffee and the crabby girl. I didn’t know what I was going to do today so I ran some errands first. I had to figure out how to get both me and my sister to Toyama from Narita airport tomorrow. First we have to get from Narita airport into town, … Continue reading Japan Day 58: Tokyo →

Well, I should probably plan some of this stuff better. I even tried really hard to sabotage my trip. I did start out OK with another breakfast at the Comfort Hotel. But jeez was the computer network bad there. I got to the station in plenty of time to catch my first train. Somehow, though, it was late to the transfer point. The next train was there but I misread the ticket and thought it left an hour later, not a minute later, and I missed it. I was stuck in a podunk little town that had nothing really going on. I did find the one museum in town that … Continue reading Japan Day 43: Tokushima →

I am tired. It was a lot further to the westernmost point of Japan than I thought, and I got back at 6pm. Imagine driving in Japanese rush-hour traffic with pedestrians going everywhere. And imagine that the GPS in your rental car is old and a little faulty. The day started off easy. The breakfast downstairs changes a bit from day-to-day and Route Inn, while expensive, does a good job. And then it was on to the Shinkansen for a whole half-hour trip to Hakata. I had no idea how big Fukuoka was. Turns out it’s the fifth largest city in Japan, population-wise. I got to the hotel and left … Continue reading Japan Day 37: Kouzakihana →

Fukuchiyama was a weird idea for me. I didn’t want to go to Kinosaki Onsen on a Saturday night, figuring I could find a room easier on a Sunday so I made an extra stop in Fukuchiyama. The Fukuchiyama Line is the train that took me from Osaka Station to Itami-city where I used to live so I figured there must be SOMETHING in Fukuchiyama. I started out the day walking to yet another different train station in Sabae. I thought it was closer and would be more fun. I’m an idiot. It was more fun, but it’s kind of raining and that just means it’s humid as f*ck. I … Continue reading Japan Day 25: Fukuchiyama →

Today was a travel day and really it’s just as well. I haven’t been feeling 100% and sitting on my ass all morning was pretty much what I needed. It would’ve been better if the chair on the Super Hokuto train was as nice as the chair on the Shinkansen, but whatever. I was asleep part of the time and I felt fine. It takes a while to pack up my stuff so I didn’t rush and took a taxi to Sapporo station. I found breakfast at the very same place I had breakfast on Monday on the way to the airport. I don’t have to show you the buzzer … Continue reading Japan Day 16: Aomori →

I made several poor decisions today. First, I thought I should leave the onsen early because WHAT THE HELL WAS I THINKING? I missed the mochi-making at 9AM because I had to get in a taxi at 8AM to catch my train. That means I had to get up at 6AM, start packing (the electronics take some time to pack), take another onsen bath, eat breakfast, and andiamo. Breakfast wasn’t inconsequential and I was a few minute late for the taxi. The driver was kinda surly so screw that guy. I slept most of the way on the train because I was tired. I got to Sapporo with not much … Continue reading Japan Day 10: Sapporo →

It was time to pack my bags in Hakodate and take the train to my first onsen of the trip in Noboribetsu. But first it was breakfast in the hotel. Yesterday I had the ramen. Today I went to the omelet bar. The trains in Hokkaido aren’t electric trains. They’re diesel. OK, technically they’re probably diesel-electric. In any case it does make it feel like we’re in the middle of nowhere. The train from Hakodate to Noboribetsu only took a couple of hours so I arrived around noon. I had to take a bus from the train station up into the mountains to get to the onsen. I think Google … Continue reading Japan Day 9: Noboribetsu →

I did my laundry yesterday, so I had had a free day in front of me. It was also going to be hot as hell so I didn’t want to do too much. Nevertheless, I knew I had to get out and about at least while the room was being cleaned. I had the exact same breakfast as yesterday but I figure I might even get it a third time since I don’t know when I’m making it back to Sendai to eat at this place again. Weirder things have happened. I went to the train ticket counter (a very tiny train ticket counter with only two windows) and got … Continue reading Japan Day 5: Sendai →

Well, I sure didn’t sleep well last night. It must be travel jitters or something. I had all sorts of weird dreams and I swear there was some reason I was supposed to sync up two of my programs or something. Yeesh. Well, I still got up at the same time and went to Hoshino Coffee again. I think the strong coffee is too strong sometimes! Maybe I’m just a wimp. After saying goodbye to the big celebrity at the hotel, it was time to pack everything into one bag since I mailed most of the gifts that were filling up my suitcase. If I buy any more crap I’ll … Continue reading Japan 2017 Day 4 →

Last time I went to my MIT class reunion was my first time back to a class reunion. It took me 25 years to get over the fact that they let me into MIT. I had an awful time as an undergrad but a fellow alumnus pointed out that as a high school graduate I wouldn’t’ve made any other choice. My first reunion was the first big one, the 25th. I had such a good time that I decided to go to all reunions I could make it to. I did miss getting a lobster roll last time so this time I got TWO of them. I also lucked into … Continue reading I did NOT have a lobster roll. →