Today is 10 days until we fly to Tokyo. BFCS concert tomorrow and then heads down and go for it!!

It is Friday 22nd March and we have now packed our suitcases and hope we will be able to get things laundered as we haven’t got much!!! Unbelievably my case only weighs in at 15kg and this is for nearly four weeks!!!

One day to go!! High on adrenaline!! Wicked this afternoon with Georgie - relax time xx

Wicked was just that - Wicked!!

Made the most of Clubrooms in B’ham airport.

Arrived in Doha and making the most of Al Mourjan lounge too! Airport has a jungle in the middle.

Arrived at Narita airport and met up with Mr. Takano. Got all our travel tickets and all vouchers. On bus to hotel.

After a fairly sleepless night, we met our guide - Jessie - for a tour of Tokyo. Taxi to Meiji shrine and Temple. The gates tell us it is a shrine. Walked through green gardens to the Temple. We had to wash our hands and inside our mouths to purify ourselves before we went in. Stalls selling charms and empty ‘chapels’. No representation of a ‘god’ but they are there - they believe.

Coffee in a sunny roof garden of Starbucks (!) and walk down ‘ Takeshita Street’ full of modern trendy (kinky) clothes and accessories. On to the tube to go to Akakusa. A temple that is filled with crazy stalls and street food. Absolutely packed and lots of youngsters in their kimonos hoping to have their photos taken with you for money. Very pretty kimonos.

Prayed at the temple and left. Disaster struck for Jill!! We were offered Matcha!! We believe it is green tea - but might not be!! Went for iced matcha. It tasted of broccoli with ice - yuck!!! Really upset my stomach and meant I missed out on lunch!!! Which was Tempura - sad.

Trotted around shops selling kitchen equipment and kitchen knives!! Thousands of knives for all sorts of cutting in the kitchen. Some were highly decorated with carving on the blade.

Returned to Shimbasi station on tube. Taxi back to the hotel.

Great intro.to Japan and Tokyo. Feel more confident about getting around. Lots of English spoken in Tokyo but not sure in the other places. Will find out!!

This is actually a record of 28th March: today we planned to go to the fish market near the hotel. Well …. Very little evidence of fish but loads of seafood stalls and street food stalls. It was absolutely heaving with Japanese and tourists. We all moved in convoy! Kobe beef figured too. People eating it on sticks like lollipops. It is very pale and marbled. There is a battle between which is best - Kobe or wagyu. No resolution yet. We then went to Hamarikyu gardens. Shogun’s country retreat and duck hunting ground, using falcons. Obviously very beautiful in the summer. Pretty little vistas.

We found a restaurant for lunch in the local subterranean plaza which was well frequented by NCT groups - loads of babies!

Short nap for the rest of the afternoon due to jet lag. We have never suffered when we arrive before - always a first time.

The hotel is located in the business district and all the restaurants are underground. At 7pm they are full of office workers and the noise is deafening! We returned to the hotel for peace and quiet

We woke up to horizontal rain and a complete hooley!! Everyone was waiting in the hotel for the worst of it to go over - which it did and a beautiful sunny warm afternoon bloomed.

Changed our plans to take advantage of the subway system and went to Ropponghi Hills (lookalike Solihull). There we went to the Mori modern art museum for an exhibition about the planet and man’s (deleterious) interactions with the ecology. Mostly modern installations, photography and films. A good choice.

We have parked the National Museum for when we come back to fly home.

We are becoming proficient with the subway system - just as we are going to move on tomorrow morning to Takayama.