Having "Me" Time

What is a holiday if you don't allow yourself to enjoy a little bit of eating? Japan is heaven for Japanese food lovers like me, so you have to eat and enjoy yourself while you're there.  What I always tell myself is this:  eat whatever you want, beware of portion size, and know the consequences.  As long as you are willing to admit the consequences from too much eating, then go ahead and enjoy yourself.  I did, and one of my favorite finds during this trip was at the Tsukiji Fish Market. As any food lover, I wanted to bare witness to the fish auctions that take place at the biggest wholesale fish and seafood market in the world: Tsukiji Fish Market.  I wanted to see tuna, salmon, sea urchins, eel and all sorts of food being auctioned away, but this time I have to admit I couldn't wake up.  It was too early.  It would require me waking up at around 4am in the morning and getting myself out to the fish market by around 6am to make the f...

After the silent Shinkansen ride where everyone was quiet, and extremely orderly, I arrived in Tokyo.  The capital of Japan, Tokyo was a completely different story from Osaka, Kyoto and Nara.  With a population of 13 million people it was bustling with people.  Everywhere I went, I was surrounded by people. At first glance of the underground map, I thought I was looking at a painting by Jackson Pollock with coloured lines and dots scattered all around the page in seemingly random patterns.  It was a piece of art in itself, but upon close study of it, you realize that there was really quite a lot of sense in all this chaos and a pattern emerged.  This combination of JR trains, Toei Line Trains, or Tokyo Metro Line allowed you to go anywhere you wanted to.  It is no wonder that Japan has one of the most extensive network of surface lines in the world. I stopped at Shinjuku station to see what this shopping area ...