After arriving at Narita airport we hopped onto one of the very efficient trains into central Tokyo and arrived at one of the most confusing and incomprehensible train stations we've ever been too! It was very busy! Apparently 3 million people pass through here every day and it has about the same amount of exits and metro lines passing through it! After several wrong turns and a few pointers from some rather lovely Japanese people when we looked too helpless we hopped onto the metro and arrived in Nishi-Shinjuku.

Our hotel room is rather 'compact' but, joy of joys, has a bath! Admittedly a short, Japanese-sized bath, but it's about 4 foot deep which makes up for it! And the toilets . . . wow! Interesting to say the least! Much hilarity when we first discovered them! Gemma's favourites are the ones with heated seats and a recorded flushing sound to drown out any noises that might emanate from the cubicle! (Tip for those who've not been to Japan - don't think you can test what all the buttons do when you've not sitting on it . . . you get a bit wet!)

We absolutely love Tokyo! It's completely bizarre and over the top, which just goes to add to the fascination. We've really noticed how friendly and polite everyone is (a bit of stereotyping here!) . . . look a bit helpless, some stops to ask if they can help . . . waiting to cross the road and cars stop to let you across, rather than trying to run you over like they do in China! We thought we were imagining things when we were walking back our first night and came across groups of kids gathered outside the office blocks looking at their reflections . . . and practising their dance moves! If that was Milton Keynes they would have been smoking and drinking and the police would definitely have been involved at some point during the course of the evening!

We've walked for miles and miles and miles here. Dozed in Japanese gardens and eaten loads of amazing food - tempura, shabu shabu and sushi. We even managed to heave ourselves out of bed at 5.30am to go to the rather chaotic fish market. It's hard to comprehend that anywhere can consume such a quantity of fish to warrant a market of this size every day! It was mad! Enormous tuna,%u3000octopus, shellfish, live fish, dead fish(!), the poisonous puffer fish . . . fascinating. And all the while trying to keep out of the way of the people who weren't there just to stare and the whizzy fast little carts that are zooming around all over the place! We couldn't quite stomach sushi for breakfast!

And last night we met Lianne and Katharine and went to a ninja restaurant! It was cool! We met the ninja master . . . he had ninja hands! We karaoke'd and drank (rather a lot) and it was quite a late (or early?!) one . . . though rather pleased to report that the after effects are not as severe as last weekend!

We move on tomorrow to Kawaguchi-ko and are staying by a lake at the foot of Mount Fuji. We looking forward to getting out into the countryside after cityhopping our way across China . . . and then we're on a mission to get to Fukuoka where we've heard rumour there's a big sumo tournament happening . . . ninja's and sumo - Japan is cool!