A few days in Tokyo after Vicky gets back from London gives us the chance to try some delicious food (when I am not working) and also do a bit more exploring around Tokyo. I am here for a couple of days catching up with our Japanese businesses and Vicky comes too for a bit of shopping. It is the end of the rainy season and things are getting hot again - 33C at least when the sun comes out.
Delicious starter in Nobu Tokyo
On Thursday evening we are looking for somewhere good to eat and my CFO suggests Nobu Tokyo - just behind our hotel. Nobu Matsuhisa has a number of fabulous restaurants around the world and we have been to his restaurant in Park Lane, London a few times, including a very memorable birthday party. We opt for the middle of the three tasting menus washed down with some fine Californian wine (his first restaurant was in Beverly Hills). Seven courses later we wander very happily back to our hotel.
On Saturday we decide to go on an expedition and head for the temples and open spaces around Kamakura - a seaside resort about an hour on the train from Tokyo. Armed with instructions from the hotel concierge we negotiate the Tokyo subway and complicated ticket machines to get ourselves onto a commuter train heading out of the city. It is built up all the way to Yokohama but as we approach Kamakura we see patches of green and when we get off at Kitakamakura Station we find ourselves out in the leafy suburbs.
After walking along a road next to the railway line for a few hundred meters we branch off to the Jochiji Temple. There are a number of these temples in the woods with shrines, statues and graveyards. Dating between the 11th and 14th Centuries CE they reflect the time when this area was an important capital of central Japan. Beyond the temple we follow a footpath through the woods and along ridges. Unlike Chinese 'trails' this is a proper hike and we find ourselves climbing muddy banks and weaving through tree roots. Vicky does brilliantly with her bad leg and hip.
We pass more temples, including one where it is lucky to wash your money in a cave (!), before staggering down a tidy suburban street to reach the Kotokuin Temple, site of the Great Buddha. This is a bit of a disappointment after the walk but it is fun to see all the mostly Japanese tourists taking selfies. After a not entirely uneventful trip back (see Vicky's blog about getting lost) we end the day with a fine meal in an Izakaya bar eating tofu, kebabs and other Japanese specials and washed down with beer and sake.
See the slideshow below for more ...