{"id":9411,"date":"2019-09-25T06:41:17","date_gmt":"2019-09-25T13:41:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/?p=9411"},"modified":"2022-09-28T13:50:04","modified_gmt":"2022-09-28T20:50:04","slug":"japan-day-22-niigata","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/?p=9411","title":{"rendered":"Japan Day 22: Niigata"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Today I planned to do a whole lot of nothing, and I think I succeeded. There were some really ominous clouds this morning but they burned off and I wandered around town for a bit. But first back to Coffee Club for another morning set.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-9412\" src=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4899-e1569417297499-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"474\" height=\"632\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4899-e1569417297499-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4899-e1569417297499-113x150.jpg 113w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4899-e1569417297499-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>After that it was off to the, well, I can&#8217;t remember what the travel bureau is called but I went to the place to get my next 3-week rail pass. The guy told me he could get me my tickets for the rest of my trip but after he found out what a pain it was to go where I wanted to go he gave up after two stops. Even then it was pretty difficult. He didn&#8217;t have the special Japan Railways computer at the counter so he had to do everything with a schedule book first. It took a while.<\/p>\n<p>After that it was just wandering around town for a while. I went to Loft to buy another set of nail clippers since the ones I packed are kind of ass. They&#8217;re &#8220;travel&#8221; clippers though and are in a case. Anyway, I bought another cheap &#8220;travel&#8221; clipper that worked OK. I saw some Snow Peak tents next to the river so I had to see what\u2019s that\u2019s about. I think it&#8217;s more of an evening thing because there were only about a half-dozen customers for three or four restaurants in trailers, but I had lunch there. Of course it got really windy just when I was having lunch.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-9414\" src=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4901-e1569417710778-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"474\" height=\"356\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4901-e1569417710778-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4901-e1569417710778-150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4901-e1569417710778-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4901-e1569417710778-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-9416\" src=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4903-e1569417732182-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"474\" height=\"356\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4903-e1569417732182-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4903-e1569417732182-150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4903-e1569417732182-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4903-e1569417732182-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I walked around the waterfront for a while and even made it back to the Toki Messe that we tried to go to Monday (there was no parking available that day). It&#8217;s much easier on a weekday and when you&#8217;re walking. There&#8217;s a free observatory on the 31st floor with a great view.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-9428\" src=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4905-1024x417.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"474\" height=\"193\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4905-1024x417.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4905-150x61.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4905-300x122.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4905-768x313.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>There&#8217;s a small restaurant on the 31st floor and I had a soft ice cream cone. Looked a little puny but it was tasty and it was also the only way to get a seat.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-9418\" src=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4906-e1569418517546-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"474\" height=\"632\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4906-e1569418517546-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4906-e1569418517546-113x150.jpg 113w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4906-e1569418517546-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>I went back to the hotel and watched some more Netflix before meeting Dr. Takashi Kawasaki and family for dinner. He took me for steak at the Hotel Okura! Fancy! The first course is a potato soup, by the way.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-9420\" src=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4908-e1569418583910-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"474\" height=\"632\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4908-e1569418583910-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4908-e1569418583910-113x150.jpg 113w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4908-e1569418583910-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-9421\" src=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4909-e1569418603848-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"474\" height=\"632\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4909-e1569418603848-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4909-e1569418603848-113x150.jpg 113w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4909-e1569418603848-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-9422\" src=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4910-e1569418627884-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"474\" height=\"356\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4910-e1569418627884-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4910-e1569418627884-150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4910-e1569418627884-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4910-e1569418627884-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-9423\" src=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4911-e1569418653339-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"474\" height=\"632\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4911-e1569418653339-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4911-e1569418653339-113x150.jpg 113w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4911-e1569418653339-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>First time I enjoyed matsutake! I\u2019m not a huge fan but it was good.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-9424\" src=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4912-e1569418697719-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"474\" height=\"356\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4912-e1569418697719-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4912-e1569418697719-150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4912-e1569418697719-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4912-e1569418697719-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-9425\" src=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4913-e1569418739875-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"474\" height=\"632\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4913-e1569418739875-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4913-e1569418739875-113x150.jpg 113w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4913-e1569418739875-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>This isn&#8217;t all the steak. This is just the filet and we had sirloin as well.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-9426\" src=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4914-e1569418759846-768x1024.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"474\" height=\"632\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4914-e1569418759846-768x1024.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4914-e1569418759846-113x150.jpg 113w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4914-e1569418759846-225x300.jpg 225w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>At this point I think I was too busy eating and talking to take more pictures until dessert.<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-9427\" src=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4915-e1569418821824-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"474\" height=\"356\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4915-e1569418821824-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4915-e1569418821824-150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4915-e1569418821824-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4915-e1569418821824-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/><\/p>\n<p>And that&#8217;s it for my last day in Niigata!<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"aligncenter size-large wp-image-9419\" src=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4907-e1569418851234-1024x768.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"474\" height=\"356\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4907-e1569418851234-1024x768.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4907-e1569418851234-150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4907-e1569418851234-300x225.jpg 300w, https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2019\/09\/IMG_4907-e1569418851234-768x576.jpg 768w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 474px) 100vw, 474px\" \/><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Today I planned to do a whole lot of nothing, and I think I succeeded. There were some really ominous clouds this morning but they burned off and I wandered around town for a bit. But first back to Coffee Club for another morning set. After that it was off to the, well, I can&#8217;t remember what the travel bureau is called but I went to the place to get my next 3-week rail pass. The guy told me he could get me my tickets for the rest of my trip but after he found out what a pain it was to go where I wanted to go he gave &hellip; <a href=\"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/?p=9411\" class=\"more-link\">Continue reading <span class=\"screen-reader-text\">Japan Day 22: Niigata<\/span> <span class=\"meta-nav\">&rarr;<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9411","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-general"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9411","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=9411"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9411\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":10223,"href":"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9411\/revisions\/10223"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=9411"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=9411"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.i8u.org\/blog\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=9411"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}