I’m off to Taiwan for 10 days…

Merry Christmas.
Happy New Years.

Many people from my building went out to eat Korean food. We went to a really good place in Tokyo’s K-Town.
The food was really delicious:

The place is called ‘Haleluya’

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My friend, like I, loves sweets, so last time we meet she took me to a very famous tart shop in Ometesando. It was a nice day and a nice walk to the tart shop, but once we got there, even though it was a weekday, we put our names on a list to get in. As you can see from the picture, the person at the front writing down the names had a green headband and as I noticed a green watch. When I pointed these things out to her she confessed that she also liked the color green. Anyway, after about 30 more minutes of walking around the area we came back. This tart shop is not only famous but extremely expensive. One small slice of a tart costs more than 600 yen or $6. Tea is also in that same range for a one person pot. I picked out 2 kinds of tarts to eat and my friend picked out 1, we each also got some tea to go with the tarts. Surprisingly, when the tarts arrived there were not 3 but 4… The friend I made who took my name at the front gave us a slice of chocolate tart, which is her favorite. So the tarts we ate were a chocolate tart, persimmon tart, pear-caramel tart, and Japanese pumpkin tart. They were all amazingly delicious, the perfect combination of richness, sweetness, and taste. I will have to go back again.

I went with a friend to the JSDF Center, which is a free museum all about the ‘Japanese Self Defense Force’.

After learning about the history we went into the interactive part where there was lots of stuff to do. There was a helicopter simulator ride, miscellaneous vehicles to get in, lots of gear to try on, a 3D Theater and tank and helicopter simulation games. There was also an outdoor area to view lots of cool tanks and other vehicles that destroy things.

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In November I climbed Mt. Takao twice. Both times were in the morning before I had to go to work. I went to see and take pictures of the fall colors of the mountain. I think my photos are getting better as well so take a look…

Takao 3 and 4 Photo Gallery

November 27th.
Showa Kinen Koen…

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Yet another month - yet another mountain. This month we climbed Mt. Hinode and Mt. Mitake. The weather was not sunny and it was not warm but there were many surprises to be had.

Setting off. The fall colors this year are not quite spectacular.

I spot a snake… and the first thing I do is pick it up. Little did I know that it was a ‘Mamushi’, one of the most poisonous snakes in Japan. Good thing it was already dead.

I then spot a giant tree of mystery, but continue hiking along trying not to upset it.

What’s this? Why do I seem mesmerized?

Click more.
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Electraglide (600K)

I went with my friend, who loves Underworld, to Electraglide. Underworld is quite popular in Japan and the show was completely sold out. I think it’s enough to say that it was an interesting experience.

Way back in the beginning of November I took a trip, once again, to Nikko. Nikko is one of my favorite places because it has beautiful nature and a lot of Japanese history. Yes this time I went it didn’t seem so great.
Probably for many reasons:

1) The bus trip up to where I wanted to go took twice as long as it should because the road was packed going up. Not even the fire truck could get though.

2) Although I went earlier than last year all the fall colors were either gone or brown.

3) The lake was beautiful as always but it was also much colder and windier than I expected it to be, so my time to enjoy it did not last long.

4) Giving in to the cold I went to Kegon falls, another one of my favorite places, but to my surprise it was extremely crowded. I wasn’t sure why since all the fall colors were gone. Maybe everyone had the same idea I had?

5) However, if one searches hard enough there is always something to be found. I made the best of the day, ate good food and relaxed at a nice ‘onsen’.

I have become very lazy with my updates. I have a whole list of things I intend to post, mostly nature and hiking trips, but never seem to get around to it. I should post them soon as I know the longer I wait the less chance they will ever get posted.