1st Big Snow 2007

Wouldn't you know it? The week I was out of the country Nanaimo received its first major snowfall of the 2007 Christmas season. 26centimeteres fell in about a day and a half. I was quite bummed to hear that I missed it. Oh well, more is on the way so I am told...

Mama & Miki built a miniature snowman, tried to catch snowflakes on their tongues and Miki made her first snow angel.

1st holiday snow

More photos from the first snowfall of the 2007-2008 Christmas season.

Fire Helmet

Miki has a pretty good understanding that her Papa is a fireman with the local volunteer service and like any good "fire daughter", she's got her own helmet.

Mud Puddle

During Papa's absence (I was in Tokyo for a 2-week business trip), the Nanaimo River flooded due to a sudden snowfall earlier that week and then a drastic increase in temperatures followed only days later. Mama & Miki went down one afternoon to have a first-hand look at the rising waters and Miki found a few choice mud puddles to splash around in.

Sub-hydrant?

Walking towards Machida train station one morning I noticed what I at first thought were man-hole covers but then realized that they are too small for anybody to fit into. They have what is obviously a "key" hole along the bottom edge and, since they are adorned with images of fire apparatus (that's "trucks" for all you pedestrians), I've come to believe that they must be covering access to a below-ground water pipe. If so, it's quite clever; easy identification for the firefighting crews and instead of a hydrant sticking up out of the ground where it is exposed to vandalism and/or accidents, the hose-coupling lies flush with the street.

But what the heck do I know? I'm just hazarding a guess.

Chinese food, Japanese style

The last gastro-extravaganza to wrap up my time in Tokyo was spent at a restaurant that served Chinese food with a Japanese touch.

The restaurant was very classy and elegant. As is quite common here, large groups are seated in private rooms. A beautifully embroidered silk wall hanging covered one entire wall and in the middle of our table sat a massive, glass "turntable" where food, tea & condiments are placed so that all guests have easy access.

The food was great and following the meal, as it is my lastnight here, I was obliged to make a small speech. I'd love to describe the food for you, but I'm extremely tired and I've got a suitcase to pack.

Oyasumi nasai...

Still eating...

Tonight is my last night here in Tokyo. It certainly looks like I ate my way thru the city, judging from these last few postings. Well, I'm not done yet.

Lastnight I went to a very hip sake bar ("izakaiya") with 7 of my colleagues from various departments. We had a mid-sized room all to ourselves and a 2-hour "reservation". This means that the meal courses were fixed, the wait staff just kept serving us amazing dishes as fast as we could eat them, and the alcohol flowed all to freely from a set menu. In a nutshell, the Japanese version of a buffet - both food & beverage.

The dishes above (in no particular order): fresh tofu, stone-grilled chicken, sashimii, fried burdock & red snapper, a pork & pumkin stew and a sticky rice dish with Japanese cilantro, oyster meat, shitake mushrooms & ginger.

The sake and beer weren't too bad either...

Food, food, food

It is all about the food and Japanese cuisine stands among the most interesting and unique there is to offer. It is often said that Japanese food is as much intended for the palate as it is a feast for the eyes. Lastnight I was treated to an amazing meal of "sukiyaki" in one of the finest restaurants in Tokyo to offer this dish. Our table was on the top floor of a large department store in the Shinjuku ward and the food, setting and decor were sublime. Many, many thanks to my 3 gracious friends; I shall never forget the many experiences we've had together over the years and especially the ones that have involved sake and amazing Japanese "washoku". Arigatou gozaimashita, kandou chu...

Shinjuku South Terrace

This is the 360 degree view (more or less) once you emerge from the south exit of Shinjuku station, the busiest train station in the world. In any given day more than 2 million people pass thru this station.

Signs of the times

Just thought I'd share with you some of the rather odd store, restaurant and generally quirky sign advertisements I've come across over the last few days.

Random Machida

I just thought I'd include a few photos from the area around my hotel. This city has grown quite a bit since we were living here. The main train line has added 3 new services: a "section express", the "Tama express" and a "rapid express. Needless to say it's now quite confusing; for example, yesterday I met a friend about 8 stops east of here (Ericka, you'll love this) and I mistakenly jumped on the "rapid express" and promptly flew by my intended stop (Noborito) by a full 10 minutes! I had to switch directions, reboard the west-bound train and ride all the way back. So by the time I finally reached Noborito I was a good 20 minutes late. I won't even begin to describe the confusion I faced at the newly reconstructed Noborito station...

The food has been great, included in these photos are a typical "fast food" lunch and a beautiful dinner platter of sashimi.

PUMP II

When we were living here in Tokyo, about 6 years ago now, I belonged to an indoor rock climbing gym called Pump II. The gym was unlike anything I had seen in North America and in an average 7 day stretch I was climbing at least 3 days a week, about 4 hours per visit. Well, about 2 years ago the gym as I knew it closed, packed up and relocated - across the street.

This afternoon I met a good friend at the "new" gym - my first time to see the new site - and it was impressive, to say the least. Clean, well organized and massive. The central/main section rose up 20+ meters and overhung about 5 meters from the base. Thousands of holds dotted the walls, it was quite confusing at first. The 3rd floor housed the bouldering area and the 2nd floor contained a "rest" area, locker rooms and a mini kitchen. A small flat panel tv hung in one corner where climbing videos played the whole day.

Oh how I wish such a place existed in Nanaimo...