Day Two: We awake in Tokyo, sleep in Kyoto (part 1)

We had a very nice breakfast at the Hilton Narita, and I was surprised how refreshed I felt. I was expecting major jet lag, but apparently my nighttime Tylenol timing had been just about perfect. The hotel, being just outside the airport, was probably one of the more tourist-y spots we were in all week, and I had fun watching people. I also have a note that says “Chocolate croissants” so I think they must have been pretty good!

We went outside to catch a shuttle bus back to the airport and it was cold and windy outside. I was actually feeling pretty good about that after a day of hot airplanes and stuffy airports. We got back to the airport and transferred to the main train station so we could catch a bullet train. This was my first real exposure to Japan and I noticed one of my expectations was absolutely true right from the start: there were cute things everywhere. We talked to a ticketing agent who’s station was decorated with little origami versions of Totoro, and there was even a floor sweeping machine playing a cute midi version of Danny boy. 

I was excited to ride the bullet train, and after a few false-starts (waiting in the wrong line to get on the wrong train) we found where we were supposed to be. There was an enormous school group from Australia waiting around us and they were just adorable teenagers. Their teachers were loud pains in the butt, but the kids were polite and nice. 

The sky outside was still enormously overcast, but as we sped along we got to see glimpses of the suburbs. The train didn't feel particularly fast, but if you tried to watch objects that were fairly close to the train you got an idea of just how fast they were fading out of site. 

We pulled into Kyoto at last! 

The main Kyoto station is underneath a very large upscale shopping mall. Malls are a little different in Japan - they're usually pretty fancy, and on the top floor they have a bunch of good restaurants. We headed up that way and found a tonkatsu place.  I ordered pork tonkatsu which was stuffed with cheese. It was sinful. Adam said he'd never seen cheese in tonkatsu before, but honestly I don't know why you'd ever make it any other way. And although I had my trusty (stolen) Korean Air fork on me, I didn't use it. I was brave and used the provided chop sticks. It went pretty well!

The roof of the mall was converted into a park, and we spent a few minutes enjoying the views. 

After a bit, we went down to the ground floor to try to catch a taxi to our hotel. I'd been in Japan less than 24 hours, and I was about to have my first encounter with the truly surreal. Yes, even more surreal than a floor sweeper playing Danny Boy.

I present: random vegetable people!

Nope, I don't know either. But they were very friendly!

I was glad my research on Kyoto had prepared me for how downtown Kyoto is just not a visual spectacle, because it wasn't. 

But as we sped towards our hotel, we started seeing glimpses of the fabled beauty of the city below. More on that in a second. 

Typically we use Hilton points to try to stay for "free" on our travels, but Kyoto was almost fully booked by the time we got around to trying to find somewhere to stay. This was the height of cherry blossom season, and not only does the city see an influx of international travelers, but people from all over Japan come to Kyoto to see the trees bloom as well. We finally found a place boasting "Western Style Rooms" at a reasonable price, so we snagged it, not expecting much. 

The Hotel Tozankaku turned out to be an excellent choice. It was very comfortable, although their "Western Style Rooms" were clearly designed by someone who had once seen a Western hotel room from a distance. Two tiiiiiny little beds and an a retro-fitted Western bathroom. But as I said, very comfortable and the staff were incredible. There was one hallway of Western rooms, the rest of the hotel was a traditional ryokan, or Japanese style inn, where you sleep on tatami mats and have communal bathrooms. 

In Japan, Adam is very tall:

We dropped our things and ventured out into the neighborhood. It was just about swimming in cherry blossoms, and there were temples everywhere.





Rather than stay local, we decided to spend the rest of our day in Inara, home of the famous vermilion torii gates. 

Next up: Part 2 of day one, in which there are many gates, some kimonos, and a cat or two.