Hello There! It's 8:53 AM JST, 53°, sunny
I am current on the Shinkanshen, the Japanese bullet train, heading for Kyoto. These last two days have been a whirlwind, and it's hard to express precisely how great, yet exhausting, the trip has been so far.
Yesterday we went to the Imperial Palace and toured with Hiro and Masa (who is a huge Yankee fan). It's a very fascinating place, especially the gardens. The wind and rain, however, have taken a toll on the cherry blossoms, and many of them in the Imperial Palace gardens were blown away. There is one original site remaining, as well as I believe one wall, but a good part of it is really reconstruction.
We had sushi for lunch at one of the local chain stores. Good, but not a real great experience. The salmon eggs were the best.
After that I left the group to go shopping at Don Quiote, a major discount store full of everything you'd like. I bought a replacement set of earphones, as I lost one of a pair on the subway. I also stocked up on KitKats. My intention from there was to go to Meiji Shrine and Yoyogi Park, but I lost a lot of time in the crowded store, and so decided to go straight to the baseball game.
Meiji Jingu Stadium is 100 years old, and it feels it. A bit younger than Fenway Park. But what an experience. The fan base is solid, and their cheering sections are rabid. I've never seen this kind of coordinated fan experience before. Perhaps at another time I may delve into the experience a little bit more, but for now let me say there is nothing like it in the US. A quick example - the 7th inning stretch consists of the visiting team singing their team song before the top of the inning, and the home team singing their team song before the bottom of the inning. And everyone participated. (Edited Addendum: The Swallows won the game 2-1 in what must have been an exciting walk-off in the ninth inning. When I left the score was 0-1 in favor of the Carp. While I regret not seeing the end of an exciting game, I am still thrilled to have been able to see the game. But necessity forced me to leave and pack and be ready to get on a very early train the next day, as noted below)
I got back to the accommodations around 8:30, and immediately had to pack for today's journey. I left at 5:30 AM to give myself enough time to buy the ticket and get lost (not necessarily in that order). But I made it, and was rewarded this morning with a wonderful view of Mt. Fuji. I will leave it there for now, as I need to be prepared to get off the train soon.
'Til We Meet Again!