Yes it`s true. I have completed my pilgrammage to IKEA. Took the obligitory photos of the signs in Swedish and Japanese and bought myself a lemon squeezer thing - you never know when it`ll come in handy for a whopping 29 yen (about 22p). Also bought a mr whippy style ice cream from a vending machine. I:ll grant you it didn`t actually come out of the machine all whipped, I just got a token which I took to the till and a nice lady then did it in the usual way. I was only slightly disappointed. This brings my total of IKEAs now to 13 in 4 different countries. I fear I have begun something that I didn:t mean to with this. Good job I like meatballs!
I slso went on a little bus around the city of Kobe but I:ve no idea what the commentator said as it was all in Japanese. I did get to see the sites of Kobe - it:s not really a town of sites if I:m honest, but then considering most of it was flattened in an earthquake only about 15 years ago, killing 6000 people, it:s hardly surprising. I did note that in our hotel handbook there:s a section with instructions of what to do should we have another earthquake. Highly reassuring!
I went up to the 21st floor of the hotel last night to look at the views. We:re staying on a man made island so you can see way back to the mainland. It:s very much a working port and industrial city so whilst impressive the view was thankfully saved a bit by the ridge of mountains surrounding the area.
Tonight we have a banquet to go to. Thankfully it:s in the hotel so I don:t need to worry about my swollen ankles and heels in the heat too much.
Tomorrow I will try and tell you about the Japanese toilets as let:s face it they are one of the most famous things about Japanese travel. For now though, Sayonara.
Friday, 9 July 2010
Chicken Terriaki for breakfast
So I`ve been here a couple of days now and I`m even beginning to get my head around the keyboard differences. May I just start by saying how lovely the Japanese seem to be. They really welcome you to their country and are so helpful and courteous. What:s more you don:t even tip them so it`s not like they`re doing it for money! They all make a great effort to speak English to us - although I have now mastered at least 4 words of Japanese (my latest being mizu for water - not to be confused with Miso - a type of soup! thankfully when I tried this in a restaurant they brought us glasses with ice in and not steaming bowls).
I forgot to say on the previous post that the plane we flew here on was one of the brand new superduper Airbus 380 oojamabobs - maiden flight apparently (not necessarily what you want to be on actually!). I suspect plane type fans will be impressed with this news. For the rest of us - it:s a very big plane with an upstairs for the posh people.
So yesterday was our first ful day and we packed it in. We visited a couple of shrines in Kobe as well as the shopping area, had a delightful bright green drink which tasted delish and caught a cable car up a mountain. I feel I have mastered the ticket machines at the stations now and was able to lead our party across the city without ending up headed for Hiroshima or Tokyo. SO successful was I that today I ventured out by myself and tackled the shopping district properly. I was delighted to see that the rumours are true - there really is a 100 yen shop (just like the pound shops back home but about 25p cheaper!)...still didn:t want to buy anything from there though! I also discovered china town which you`ll be pleased to know looks the same the world over.
Food has been excellent so far and we`ve tried all kinds of weird and wonderful things. I had rice porridge for breakfast (which looked and tasted like last nights leftovers of rice) followed by chicken terriaki - yes for breakfast! We have a fab buffet at teh hotel so I:m just trying a little of everything. Well whilst in Rome (or Kobe) and all that.
Weatherwise it:s much as expected, very humid and plenty of rain. The Japanese are prepared for this though as most of their shops seem to be underground or connected by passageways to every other building. For example from this hotel I can reach the conference centre, 3 shopping centres, a museum or two, a cinema and the train station without going outdoors - there:s probably more still but I:m still exploring. Tonight I`m off to eat dinner by myself. Hopefully I won:t give in and go to McDonalds!
Until tomorrow - Sayonara.
I forgot to say on the previous post that the plane we flew here on was one of the brand new superduper Airbus 380 oojamabobs - maiden flight apparently (not necessarily what you want to be on actually!). I suspect plane type fans will be impressed with this news. For the rest of us - it:s a very big plane with an upstairs for the posh people.
So yesterday was our first ful day and we packed it in. We visited a couple of shrines in Kobe as well as the shopping area, had a delightful bright green drink which tasted delish and caught a cable car up a mountain. I feel I have mastered the ticket machines at the stations now and was able to lead our party across the city without ending up headed for Hiroshima or Tokyo. SO successful was I that today I ventured out by myself and tackled the shopping district properly. I was delighted to see that the rumours are true - there really is a 100 yen shop (just like the pound shops back home but about 25p cheaper!)...still didn:t want to buy anything from there though! I also discovered china town which you`ll be pleased to know looks the same the world over.
Food has been excellent so far and we`ve tried all kinds of weird and wonderful things. I had rice porridge for breakfast (which looked and tasted like last nights leftovers of rice) followed by chicken terriaki - yes for breakfast! We have a fab buffet at teh hotel so I:m just trying a little of everything. Well whilst in Rome (or Kobe) and all that.
Weatherwise it:s much as expected, very humid and plenty of rain. The Japanese are prepared for this though as most of their shops seem to be underground or connected by passageways to every other building. For example from this hotel I can reach the conference centre, 3 shopping centres, a museum or two, a cinema and the train station without going outdoors - there:s probably more still but I:m still exploring. Tonight I`m off to eat dinner by myself. Hopefully I won:t give in and go to McDonalds!
Until tomorrow - Sayonara.
Wednesday, 7 July 2010
Sleep deprivation
Hurrah! I:m here! Do excuse the poor punctuation but the keyboard is laid out differently here and I only have 5 mins left on my internet time so no time for correction if I:m to tell you all about my adventures so far.
After a fitful night of not sleeping properly my alarm was un-necessary at 5am as I was wide awake. I was picked up by a man called Wonky and a lady called Jane (who incidentally learnt to dive when she was 72 but that:s another story for another day). We picked up another of my mum:s friends and zoomed off to Birmingham where Wonky dropped us off and promised to collect us in 2 1/2 weeks time.
The flight to Germany was fine - I recommend Luftansa for leg room and food. We transferred at Frankfurt - like you do - and flew on to Tokyo - by this stage the local time was now 7am and in my head I:d been awake for about 28 hours. So we managed to work out our way to get into Tokyo (as the airport is actually 60km away) and then discovered that the cheap train we were hoping to get would actually take us 10 hours. By this point we were exhausted, hot, and feeling altogether a bit weird from the mixture of Japanese and Germany foods on the plane. So we decided to bite the bullet and get the Bullet train. This was an altogether more pleasurable exp@erience - still took 3 hours mind you - who knew it was a long way from one bit of Japan to another - looks fairly small on a map!
The Bullet train was 鉢に巣りん空ら利 - apologies I seem to have pressed the magic Japanese button - worked out how to go back to English now! Where was I...ah yes...The Bullet train was pretty cool - nice toilets (with a button on the wall to make the seat go down - how great is that girls!) a vending machine plus a man selling random food such as green tea ice cream (it was very green).
Finally arrived in Kobe and caught a bus to our hotel. It was now 4.30 in the afternoon - in my head about 36 hours since I last slept (yes I know there:s a nine hour time difference but you try telling my head that). We checked in and all went to sleep for a couple of hours. Just been out to dinner - lovely - ans a walk around the area - more of that tomorrow hopefully but I just thought I:d end by mentioning the sign on the lawn outside the hotel "please keep your dogs and cats off the grass" - good luck with that one - (No mention of goats so my pet nanny goat is fine obviously!).
I:m feeling weirdly sea sick which I:m putting down to lack of sleep and humidity so I shall sign off - hopefully another update tomorrow.
After a fitful night of not sleeping properly my alarm was un-necessary at 5am as I was wide awake. I was picked up by a man called Wonky and a lady called Jane (who incidentally learnt to dive when she was 72 but that:s another story for another day). We picked up another of my mum:s friends and zoomed off to Birmingham where Wonky dropped us off and promised to collect us in 2 1/2 weeks time.
The flight to Germany was fine - I recommend Luftansa for leg room and food. We transferred at Frankfurt - like you do - and flew on to Tokyo - by this stage the local time was now 7am and in my head I:d been awake for about 28 hours. So we managed to work out our way to get into Tokyo (as the airport is actually 60km away) and then discovered that the cheap train we were hoping to get would actually take us 10 hours. By this point we were exhausted, hot, and feeling altogether a bit weird from the mixture of Japanese and Germany foods on the plane. So we decided to bite the bullet and get the Bullet train. This was an altogether more pleasurable exp@erience - still took 3 hours mind you - who knew it was a long way from one bit of Japan to another - looks fairly small on a map!
The Bullet train was 鉢に巣りん空ら利 - apologies I seem to have pressed the magic Japanese button - worked out how to go back to English now! Where was I...ah yes...The Bullet train was pretty cool - nice toilets (with a button on the wall to make the seat go down - how great is that girls!) a vending machine plus a man selling random food such as green tea ice cream (it was very green).
Finally arrived in Kobe and caught a bus to our hotel. It was now 4.30 in the afternoon - in my head about 36 hours since I last slept (yes I know there:s a nine hour time difference but you try telling my head that). We checked in and all went to sleep for a couple of hours. Just been out to dinner - lovely - ans a walk around the area - more of that tomorrow hopefully but I just thought I:d end by mentioning the sign on the lawn outside the hotel "please keep your dogs and cats off the grass" - good luck with that one - (No mention of goats so my pet nanny goat is fine obviously!).
I:m feeling weirdly sea sick which I:m putting down to lack of sleep and humidity so I shall sign off - hopefully another update tomorrow.
Monday, 5 July 2010
Ready, Set, Go!
So the bag's all packed. Obviously there was some last minute unpacking as it was over the weight limit - decided to just put it all in the hand luggage instead! I've already checked that my passport is in my bag a couple of times - how many more times will I check before I leave?
The alarm clock is set for 5am - being picked up by a friend of my mum's at 5.50am so just time for a quick shower and breakfast (if I can face it). I suspect we may have another breakfast when we get to the airport and possibly a third one on the plane.
I may not get a chance to blog tomorrow as I'll spend most of the day on the plane. We fly to Frankfurt initially and change there. I once went to a nightclub at Frankfurt airport but that's a story for another day! Once we get to Tokyo we then have to get a train all the way to Kobe. I've checked the weather forecast again - thunderstorms still everyday, 83% humidity and 81 degree farenheit temperature. Not exactly my ideal but I'm not complaining (yet!).
Well for now Sayonara!
The alarm clock is set for 5am - being picked up by a friend of my mum's at 5.50am so just time for a quick shower and breakfast (if I can face it). I suspect we may have another breakfast when we get to the airport and possibly a third one on the plane.
I may not get a chance to blog tomorrow as I'll spend most of the day on the plane. We fly to Frankfurt initially and change there. I once went to a nightclub at Frankfurt airport but that's a story for another day! Once we get to Tokyo we then have to get a train all the way to Kobe. I've checked the weather forecast again - thunderstorms still everyday, 83% humidity and 81 degree farenheit temperature. Not exactly my ideal but I'm not complaining (yet!).
Well for now Sayonara!
Sunday, 4 July 2010
Shoulder pads ahoy!
Finished off the rest of the packing - well except my wash bag and the clothes still drying on the clothes horse. Took a load of things out but when I did the old climb on the scales holding my suitcase routine it seems it's only just under the limit (and considering I'm likely to bring back more than I take that's not a good thing). Have moved my books to my hand luggage but I suspect I should remove lots more too.
Planned to clean the place today so that I come back to a lovely home rather than trying to work out if I've been burgled or not but got rather distracted watching Dynasty. My friend Vick has lent me the first three series and they're both glorious and shocking in equal measure. In the first series one of the characters takes Steven Carrington to a brothel to "fix him" from his homosexuality. As for the way women are treated and spoken to...well let's just say that I'm glad things have moved on. The fashions are hilarious too. So far no real shoulderpad action instead they all seem to walk round in their negligie and silk dressing gowns. Maybe that's why I always want to wear my jim jams - my own low class ode to the Colby/Carrington dynasty.
Planned to clean the place today so that I come back to a lovely home rather than trying to work out if I've been burgled or not but got rather distracted watching Dynasty. My friend Vick has lent me the first three series and they're both glorious and shocking in equal measure. In the first series one of the characters takes Steven Carrington to a brothel to "fix him" from his homosexuality. As for the way women are treated and spoken to...well let's just say that I'm glad things have moved on. The fashions are hilarious too. So far no real shoulderpad action instead they all seem to walk round in their negligie and silk dressing gowns. Maybe that's why I always want to wear my jim jams - my own low class ode to the Colby/Carrington dynasty.
Saturday, 3 July 2010
Pack up your troubles.
Started packing today, I seem to have filled the case and yet I've not nearly put everything in it. Why do I always do that? The trouble is having been brought up as a good Girl Guide I take the "always be prepared" motto a bit too literally at times and have a tendancy to pack everything except the sky plus box.
I heard someone once say that you should pack everything you need then take half of it out again. Probably not a bad policy...well assuming you take half your skirts and half your tops etc and don't take out all your undies and leave in all your shoes.
I always say that packing and wrapping presents are the two things that take as long as you have to do them. So if you only have 20 mins to do it then you'll do it in that time but if you have three weeks it will take the full 3 weeks. Of course on shows like Neighbours the rules of packing are different again. You must bring your suitcase into the front room and pack several weeks before you leave...unless of course you decide to leave town in which case you'll simply declare you're leaving in an hour and we shall never see you pack at all - in fact you're worldy possessions will almost certainly fit into one backpack. Clearly they were never a Girl Guide!
I heard someone once say that you should pack everything you need then take half of it out again. Probably not a bad policy...well assuming you take half your skirts and half your tops etc and don't take out all your undies and leave in all your shoes.
I always say that packing and wrapping presents are the two things that take as long as you have to do them. So if you only have 20 mins to do it then you'll do it in that time but if you have three weeks it will take the full 3 weeks. Of course on shows like Neighbours the rules of packing are different again. You must bring your suitcase into the front room and pack several weeks before you leave...unless of course you decide to leave town in which case you'll simply declare you're leaving in an hour and we shall never see you pack at all - in fact you're worldy possessions will almost certainly fit into one backpack. Clearly they were never a Girl Guide!
Friday, 2 July 2010
Didn't get a chance to do any holiday prep today as I had a job interview. Only found out about it yesterday afternoon so had a frantic evening preparing and then promptly forget to tell the panel any of the things I'd prepared. Why do I get brain failure in these situations? To make myself feel better (and to break the 3 hour drive home) I stopped at IKEA for meatballs. Ah how I love those meatballs.
I'm not quite sure where my IKEA obsession comes from. Here's a list of all the stores in the UK and whether I've been to them:
Belfast - No
Cardiff - No
Croydon (London) - Yes
Edmonton (London) - Don't think so
Glasgow - No
Leeds - Yes
Milton Keynes (Bletchley) - No
Southampton - Yes
Wednesbury (Birmingham) - Yes
Bristol - Yes
Coventry - Yes
Edinburgh - No
Gateshead (Newcastle)- No
Lakeside (London) - Yes
Manchester (Ashton-Under-Lyne) - No
Nottingham - Yes
Warrington - Yes
Wembley (London) - Yes
So 10 out of 18 - that's quite high isn't it?! I've also been to one in Montpellier in France and in Melbourne! Ooooo I wonder if there's one in Japan! Yes indeed apparently there are 5 of them. I have no idea where they are though but I'm tempted to look it up and try and visit one.
Other people have pilgrammages to Holy places...with me it's the home of the Billy Bookcase.
(Just looked and there's one really near by...I'm so tempted...is that wrong?)
I'm not quite sure where my IKEA obsession comes from. Here's a list of all the stores in the UK and whether I've been to them:
Belfast - No
Cardiff - No
Croydon (London) - Yes
Edmonton (London) - Don't think so
Glasgow - No
Leeds - Yes
Milton Keynes (Bletchley) - No
Southampton - Yes
Wednesbury (Birmingham) - Yes
Bristol - Yes
Coventry - Yes
Edinburgh - No
Gateshead (Newcastle)- No
Lakeside (London) - Yes
Manchester (Ashton-Under-Lyne) - No
Nottingham - Yes
Warrington - Yes
Wembley (London) - Yes
So 10 out of 18 - that's quite high isn't it?! I've also been to one in Montpellier in France and in Melbourne! Ooooo I wonder if there's one in Japan! Yes indeed apparently there are 5 of them. I have no idea where they are though but I'm tempted to look it up and try and visit one.
Other people have pilgrammages to Holy places...with me it's the home of the Billy Bookcase.
(Just looked and there's one really near by...I'm so tempted...is that wrong?)
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