Relaxed morning then to Tokyo station for the Narita Express. We had allowed plenty of time. Turns out at check in you have to obtain an esta visa to enter the USA. There follows frantic registration at internet cafe where it says the application result will come back in 24 hours! Certainly took my mind off flying! Thankfully it all went through and we are now off to board at 5.10 pm on Wednesday 20 May.

Today we visited Western Tokyo and first stop was the sword museum. We learnt how Japanese swords are made and saw some beautiful swords made by master craftsmen. We then wandered the business area of West Shinjuku and saw the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Offices, we also got the elevator 45 floors up to the observatory. We then went to Yoyogi Park to eat our lunch before visiting the Meiji Shrine, the park was a wonderful peaceful quiet area. Then on to Harajuk...

Today was Sumo day. We went to the Ryogoku Stadium for day nine of the current tournament. We have learnt a lot about the sport and enjoyed watching all the traditions associated with it such as throwing salt before a round. We also learnt there are 52 stables in Japan where Sumo wrestlers train. The most junior trainees are unpaid, not allowed to marry and have to look after the other ranked wrestlers. As they improve and progress they earn these privileges, so ...

After 44 days we have joined a tour and sat back on a bus and relaxed. First stop was one of the five lakes around mount fuji, lake kawaguchi, where we rode another cable car (funny I hate cable cars as they terrify me). It was worth it as the view of mount fuji was fantastic and we felt very fortunate, apparently it is only visible on average 2 days a week! We enjoyed a lovely Japanese lunch with some actually tasty local wine, would have been really nice if it ...

Another great day in Tokyo. We used the subway to travel to northern Tokyo and Ueno Park. We saw the tombstones dedicated to the samurai who died in the battle of Ueno in 1868 as well as the Gojo Shrine and Kiyomizu Hall. The park was lovely and we came across some amazing entertainers. We then visited the zoo as it has real pandas and polar bears! We then made our way to Sensoji Temple, the most sacred temple in Tokyo aware that this weekend was Sanja Matsuri, a...