2020 - it’s the year of the mouse.
New year, new blog posting! Version 2.0, to be exact. I had to scrap the first draft after realising it was an exact copy from previous years. My wife and I recently completed our annual trip to Japan, and I apparently repeat the same things on every visit. This time we had planned our travels around the New Year's festivities. The only difference was that on this occasion Finnair granted us a free upgrade to the business class. Yay, my own flying cocoon with an endless supply of wine! Kyllä kiitos!
Travelling to Japan feels like going back home – it really does. I take tons of photos, browse through the electronics stores of Akihabara, eat katsukarē in Coco-Ichi, replenish my garments at Uniqlo and do a lot of day walks wandering around Tokyo and its surroundings, usually visiting the same favourite locations. It just feels good to be back. The only unwelcome exception to the ordinary was that my regular Indian restaurant in Meguro had closed down. I was shocked and felt a twinge of guilt: their business clearly depended on my continued support. Hot damn.
To spice things up, we flew for a couple of days to Taiwan, also known as Formosa or formally the Republic of China. It was my first visit there, so I didn’t know much about it except for the semiconductor industry. “Beautiful Island” turned out to be quite a fascinating place! The busy streets, vibrant lights and strange odours caused a sensory overload for someone who is used to the dark solitude of the Nordic winter. Taiwan is a mishmash of Chinese culture influenced heavily by Japanese, Korean and global elements. Taipei might look a bit ragged compared to Tokyo, but things work almost in a similar orderly manner as in Japan. Some rules in Taipei were even stricter than those in Tokyo: I took a sip of water in the subway and I was lucky I didn’t get ticketed! If I had a chance, I would definitely like to visit Taiwan again. The temperature was very warm even in the middle of the winter (although my wife complained “you’re the only one here walking around in a t-shirt”) and the food (for those parts that I dared to experiment) was surprisingly tasty.
Anyway, here’s again an overload of travel photos:
We visited a local shrine on new year’s morning.
Retired daruma dolls at Kawagoe Kita-in.
My parents-in-law took us for a morning drive to see swans at river Oppe. Unfortunately my photos were quite lackluster. The obvious reason is that I just don’t have expensive enough lenses.
Some of the birdwatchers along the riverbank had camera gear worth of a reasonable size car. Therefore their photos must be brilliant.I must visit my bank and request a remedy for my photography.
I did a lot of day walks as usual. This is from Shimbashi.
I love Akihabara even though I hate shopping.
Every year on January 2nd the Emperor of Japan gives his New Year’s greetings at his palace. It is a the only time when ordinary riff-raff are allowed on the palace grounds.
Turns out my wife and I were not the only ones who wanted to see the Emperor and the Emperor Emeritus. Who would’ve known?
The moment when the Emperor of Japan smiles and waves at you, and you take a blurry photo. ARGH! This is the difference between being a pro and an amateur. Anyway, I blame the glass and the camera. More expensive gear is absolutely required.
View towards East Garden from the Emperor’s Palace.
While my wife was meeting her friend, I did a day walk along river Yanase in Saitama. It’s a really beautiful place in spring when the cherry trees are blossoming.
Another solo day trip while my wife was busy: Shinrin-kōen.
I’m sure that the Shinrin-kōen park is beautiful when all the flowers are blooming. Since it was the middle of the winter, I had to find something else to shoot.
Yet another day walk: Shinji Pond in Hibiya Kōen.
A kingfisher. I waited, waited and waited to see this little fellow dive. Then my wife sends a text message and I put my camera down just for a second. Splash - he caught a fish.
Taipei, Taiwan
Bye bye Tokyo, hello Taipei, Taiwan!
Shilin Night Market is the largest in Taipei.
We climbed Xiangshan, the Elephant Mountain, to see Taipei skyline.
Then we took the public bus and ventured outside the big city. This is Keelung River at the Ruifang District.
Delivery guys drove a truck through the narrow alleys of Jiufen.
My wife is a bit like a dog: she loves to eat any and all kinds of weird stuff. These are taro balls; allegedly a local specialty.
Jiufen Teahouse. A cup of coffee cost almost as much as in Finland so the prices were outrageous, but the view was worth it.
This huge pile of shaved ice is called baobing - a Chinese dessert. My wife insisted on trying it, even though we managed to finish less than half of it.
Taiwan is a major source of computer components, so visiting Guanghua Digital Plaza was a highlight for a geek like me. There’s tons of stores specialising on everything computer related. I have currently an MSI motherboard, hence the photo.
Another Taiwanese invention, currently also very popular in Japan: bubble tea. The “pearls” in the tea are tapioca balls.
We waited an hour in line to get to eat in Din Tai Fung. This restaurant franchise is doing good job attracting tourists; I’m sure every Japanese and Korean travel guide mentions it. Regardless, Din Tai Fung was my favourite eatery in Taiwan. The dumplings were yummy, noodles were great, and the beer was plentiful.
Since my wife and I are highly cultured, we for once actually decided to visit a museum. This is a genuine Ming vase!
National Palace Museum has a huge collection of historical artifacts.
A main attraction of the museum is this: Jadeite Cabbage. My wife loves Chinese cabbage and I definitely don’t, so I was unable to share her excitement when finally meeting this national treasure.
Memorial Hall of Chiang Kai-shek, the leader of the Republic of China between 1928 and 1975. Under Kai-shek’s rule, Taiwan was a military dictatorship.
It’s interesting why people love to build tyrants these monstrosities. I wonder what kind of mausoleum the Russians will build for Putin? A golden wall (paid by the Dems) could protect the final resting place of El Presidente Trump.
Liberty Square.
We saw the changing of the guard at the mausoleum.
They only pick big boys for this duty. I think all the soldiers were at least 1,8m tall.
The side streets of Taipei are very lively.
Taipei 101.
Tokyo, Japan
Back in Japan! There seems to be a Mario Kart race going on at Shibuya Crossing.
Nintendo recently opened its own brand store in Shibuya.
Hadōken! Like Ryu of Street Fighter fame here is showing, the fan merchandise had very limited selection of sizes. Largest t-shirt size was Japanese L, which would look like a bikini top on me. Bah. Maybe middle-aged albino gorillas with metaborikku shindorōmu are not the target market then.
Odaiba is one of the venues for Tokyo 2020 Olympics.
Rainbow Bridge.
Advertisements for a Star Wars exhibition I saw. Decided go I must.
The showpieces were original costumes and props from the first 6 movies.
All Terrain Armored Transport, or AT-AT, from The Empire Strikes Back.
Boba Fett, my hero! He wore this Mandalorian armour in Return of the Jedi.
I also briefly stopped by on Tatooine.
Kōshū Kaidō seen from Shinjuku station.
The last dinner of the trip was spectacular. Absolutely delicious sukiyaki! The view from the restaurant was stunning as always. Until the next time again!