Birthday continued

I spent a large part of the day in Rikugien, my favorite Japanese landscape garden in Tokyo, just walking around, relaxing, taking in the sights and enjoying a relaxing day in the warm November sun.

I know I have posted quite a lot of pictures from this park before, but a couple more can never hurt...

After "picnic in the park" I headed over to my favorite little sushi corner in Harajuku for a late lunch followed by window-shopping and people-spotting in and around Harajuku.

The evening was another kind of luxury. The hotel concierge helped me arrange for a table at Kikunoi. I did not name the restaurant myself, I just said that I wanted to have a Japanese autumn dinner experience and that I was prepared to pay for it to be "top notch". So... The Kikunoi is a two star Guide Michelin restaurant. Oups...
Expensive - yes.
Worth it - oh yes!

This was probably the best dinner, all categories, I've ever had. Not only was it a taste sensation in every bite - it was absolutely stunning to watch as well. Beautiful.

Note to self: I have to visit more high end restaurants before I die...

Finished off the evening with a whiskey in the executive lounge with a friend. A nice end to a (almost?) perfect birthday. What should I do in 2012 to top this?

Tomorrow I head for Kyoto...

Happy birthday

I like Hilton.
I like Hilton Executive floor.
I love Hilton Executive Lounge at the Tokyo Hilton.

Not only a good breakfast and a nice ambiance, but it is the little things such as the flower being put on your table with a soft spoken "Happy birthday, sir!" that really does it.

It is a sunny day outside - it is time to visit one of my favorite parks for a couple of hours contemplation. Always a good start for a birthday.

Tokyo

Arrived in Tokyo after a long and boring flight. No upgrade from SAS this time, but that was compensated when arriving at Hilton - Executive floor. Nice.
Now I've catch up on some sleep and have found a fast food joint to get that growling stomach under control... Japanese fast food is not like western style, at all.
This is a noodle soup of some sort, and due to the language barrirer it took half an hour to actually get onto the table... It doesn't normally take that long, I blame the jetlag and the waitress' complete lack of English skills. But it tastes good and is filling.

So long and thanks for the fish.

Heading home in a couple of hours.
I already want to come back.
*deep sigh*

Ah well. With a little luck and some planning I'll be back in March...
I leave you with this picture, and add that no I did not buy any t-shirts this time.

Sayonara.

Believe it or not...

...but I found another garden I hadn't visited before. The Koishikawa Korakuen.
Perfect start of a Thursday I'd say. Spent some hours walking through winding paths, up and down hills, in and out of "forests" and enjoying the sights. Contemplated by a lake for a while and just soaked up some sun.

I still think it's a bit sad that I have to travel half around the world to find such peace as I find in these gardens...

Walked from the garden to Akiba, some 3km, to switch back into "city-mode". The midday sun was burning hot today. Felt more like 30 than 23. I found a place to eat where they did not have an English menu and the waitress did not know more than "welcome", "sit here" and "yes" in English.
This is what you end up with when you try to decode the pictures in the menu and match towards your memories of similar menu-pictures from other restaurants:

Do not ask me what it was, I do not know. But the noodles hiding under that "something" was uncooked. Yup. Crunchy... That was a new first. Not the best meal I've had, but it did what it was supposed to do - quench the hunger. And for ¥500 (around SEK40) I guess I shouldn't expect more...

Sleepy

I didn't get much sleep last night, or the night before that...
So I think I need some extra hours soon in order to be able to at least take a quick tour the nightlife in Shibuya tonight...

The day has been spend in meditation in yet another garden. This time it was the Hama Rikyu. A big garden, not as compact and crowded with sights as some of the others. Beautiful. Lot's of water in this one. And the view from the tea house was really nice. Some pictures...

Oh. And this garden had a free audio/video tour guide. Using a GPS it cut in to say things about the sights around you. Nice stuff. No. It was not an iPhone/Pod/Pad.

After spending four hours in the park I headed to Roppongi for lunch and a little walk through the more artsy-fartsy parts of the city. Always nice.

Now, like I said, I need to get some shut-eye or my brain will melt...

A late update

Forgot to update yesterday, so I add some notes today.
It's 5:30am and I cannot sleep anyway, so...

Yesterday was a half-day, in the sense that I only had vacation half of the day. The morning was spend with a walk around the old palace grounds and the gardens.
Some photos are in order I guess...

Spent the time after lunch and before work in a cafe reading a book. I think I'm starting to wind down. Too bad I still can't sleep during the night though...