Day Three

Yesterday was so much fun I ended up crashing into bed around 10pm, right after dinner at my new favorite ramen house. I woke up this morning a little before seven and got to getting ready. Once again, I did the AM/PM breakfast and jumped on the train to start my last full day of adventuring throughout Tokyo.

First stop was Hama Rikyu Gardens which are situated right on the bay of Tokyo. The gardens used to serve as a hunting ground to Japanese shoguns. All in all, there wasn't a whole lot to see.

So after a quick tour I ran next door to the famous Tsukiji Fish Market. The Tsukiji Fish Market is known for its chaotic cargo, vehicle, and people traffic. It was suggested to me that I try the sushi. Despite the hour, 10am, I couldn't pass the opportunity. I ended up shelling out 20 clams, or 2,000 yen, for a preordained sushi meal. The waitress didn't give me any chopsticks so I used a toothpick to stab at my raw fish...unsuccessful. She then demonstrated that I needed to use my fingers...great. The first piece I ate was squid, the same kind and texture as the squid I'd used as bate the last time I went to go deep sea fishing. Needless to say the experience was an "experience." Toward the end of my meal I met a Japanese woman who had family in Tucson (for my reference).

After my sushi breakfast, I walked around the port districts, specifically the Ginza District. The Ginza district is home to a plethora of upscale restaurants, stores, and clubs. It's supposedly the equivalent to New York's Fifth Avenue. On my way out of the district I browsed at the newest Sony technology at the Sony Building.

Next stop was Ueno. I knew there wasn't much in Ueno except for it's Ameyoko market, filled with small markets and endless amounts of worthless poo, but I wanted to buy some souvenirs for the family (skip this section if you don't care about what I bought). I bought brando and me ties with matching handerchiefs (pimp white with cool shadow designs on them). I also bought Evie a stylish Hello Kittie shirt. I walked around another 15-20 minutes and stopped off at the Hard Rock Cafe Ueno before I left.

My next and last visit of the day was to the Asakusa Kannon Temple. The temple was built in the early 7th century and has been brought down by a multitude of earthquakes, bombs, and fires. Now restored, it consists of the temple, its imaculate entry gate, and an endless row of small shops called Nakamise-Dori. I finished off my souvenir shopping here (again skip next section).

Evie this applies to you cause the package I sent has a shitload of gifts in it. Here's the list of gifts and who gets what.

Mom- Book bag and yellow glasses case
Dad- Sandals (cause I'm sure he didn't want anything,and they're cool there are two pairs one for brandon or me and one for dad)
Brandon- One of the pimp ties (whichever one he wants)
You- The hello kittie shirt and that's it (hello kittie shit is expensive here)
Me- Whatever's left (make sure you find the braclet, it has a small pinhole on the large bead, put it up to light and you'll see a small image through it).

After my field day of gift buying I mailed out everything so I don't have to drag it around for the next two months. I was completely exhausted by the end of the day...again, and took the trains back to my hotel at Chidoricho. It's raining like nobody's business and I've never felt so close to lightning. I swear I saw a little japanese man get zapped down the street...(just kidding). Love you guys, tomorrow I leave for Beijing, I'm meeting up with my friend Luting Lei and she's going to be my tourguide until the rest of USC arrive.