Talk about a change of scenery: now we are in a super modern new development area in Tokyo Bay at an enormous convention hotel, Grand Nikko Tokyo Daiba. (Yes this is the portion of the trip we did not plan or pay for…). Out our 16th floor room is a sweeping view of high rise towers lining the bay and, oddly, our very own Statue of Liberty.
The bed here is about three times the size of the futon at the Hiirayaga ryokan (traditional inn) we slept on last night. Fortunately, the futon wasn’t too hard and my back held up (so far) but at around 1 am I woke up with what I later self-diagnosed as heartburn or acid re-flux and a vague upset stomach. Too much weird food during our kaiseria dinner at the ryokan last night. We opted to have breakfast not in our room (which was getting a tad confining) but instead in the dining room of the new wing, a gorgeous room with solid glass walls on all four sides that made it feel like we were dining in the lovely garden just beyond those walls. I ate the western breakfast (couldn’t deal with a Japanese breakfast of tofu, miso, pickled stuff but I did eat the good smoked fish). I am glad we stayed at the ryokan, it was truly an adventure, like stepping back in time and the people running the place were lovely. But one night was enough.
TakeBetsywithyou 