Arrival in Tokyo

Konnichiwa!  

We landed in Tokyo at 3:30pm.  Our flight was uneventful except for the cranky baby.  We got a little sleep but not much and with the 12-hour time change, it feels like 3:30am.  

So, here’s a puzzler:  if we leave Toronto at 3:30pm and we land in Tokyo at 3:30pm, did the plane go anywhere or did it just stay in the air while the earth turned? 

It took a long time to get through Immigration; then we checked our bags at a storage place at the airport and got a cab to the hotel.  They use credit cards here so no fussing with QR codes to pay.  One tip: don’t touch the car doors.  They open  and close on their own.  No English was spoken but it all worked out.

Before our trip, I figured after 12+ hours in the air, we'd be ready for sleep, so I booked us a hotel very close to the Haneda airport: the Kawasaki King Skyfront Tokyu Rei. It’s a delightful hotel and it might be the best one we experience so I’m enjoying it.

We checked in and went to the restaurant on-site.   We had to scan a QR code on the menu there to get a free beer so I made sure that worked.   I asked the waitress about the eel dish and she looked at me with kind of a scared look at her eye so I got a burger instead. Rik was more adventurous and got the fish of the day. We are so tired, I could have been eating Pokémon brains and I wouldn’t have cared. They seat you diagonally.  And each table has a hamper. I wonder what that’s about??

This hotel has public bath areas.  A hot bath after a long day sounded good.  "Mixed bathing" is prohibited (men + women in the same water is not cool, I guess).  In fact, women get their own key card.  Also, I'm happy to say they refuse entry to anyone wearing diapers. Or tattoos!

I was a little worried about the naked part because I didn’t want to burn anyone’s retina but I needn’t have been. The hardest part was getting to the baths without losing my slippers.  Now I know why the ladies in Shogun shuffle around with tiny steps - they are trying not to lose their shoes!

I was glad to have watched the foreign film called “Perfect days” so I had a lay of the land.

The vending machines have cool treats and there is every amenity imaginable.  Including toilets with heated seats and built-in bidets.  Such a civilized place!

Finally!  Time for bed.

Zzzzz