Stories from a man who fails to meet media expectations of what it means to be gay:
white, frivolous, over sexed yet sexless, shrill, single, stylish, a clown, unimportant, et al.

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Japan, day Two

aka: Chicken?... Seafood?...Ancient Japanese Money?

My intention is to post the assorted vacation entries every other day or so. That may or may not still happen due to an illness in the family. We'll see.

Anyhow, here's some more of the vacation:

Friday 06/29/01

I woke up at four in the morning. I'm assuming this was due to jet lag because I woke up at four in the morning every single day of the trip. Didn't have any problems with falling back asleep for the one time in my life, so yay for vacation. At home waking up that early in the morning would meant lying in bed for an hour or so until I feel asleep around Five thirty or there 'bout only to have the alarm go off at six. ugh.

Anyhow, John and I slept relatively late, getting up in just time to say goodbye to Carlos as he headed out the door for work. Beth introduced us to young Jacob, who didn't really remember us, which was understandable since we had met only once before. Jacob is eighteen months old and took an immediate shine to both John and me. He only had a terrible twos type tantrum a couple of times while we were there, which made me decide that Jacob just wasn't a morning person. Which of course is perfectly understandable. '-)

After a couple of hours of reminiscing and talk, the four of us walked over to Ropungi crossing so Beth could show us were the bank was (got a very good exchange rate from the ol' ATM) and to met Lisa (good friend of Carlos and Beth) for some coffee. Well, the adults walked, Jacob got a cushy ride in his stroller.

It's kind of embarrassing, but the very first place/establishment/restaurant I went to in Japan was a starbucks of all things. Apparently they make convenient meeting places because they are all over Tokyo and unlike smaller independent businesses, they don't have a habit of disappearing overnight. It also seems that they are popular hang outs for expats and foreigners since they are just about the only nonsmoking restaurant in the city. It also doesn't hurt that both the prices and serving sizes are "American," ie: cheap and large. Well, by Tokyo standards anyway.

So we met Lisa and had drinks y snacks. Both She and John are amateur photographer people and they hit it off grandly, becoming instant friends. Lisa was very nice and helpful, giving us some good advice and loaning us guide books for both Tokyo and Kyoto.

Afterwards, Beth went back home so Jacob could have a nap and John and I took the subway to the Tokyo Edo Museum. I'll refrain from mentioning that while I normally have a sense of direction that can only be described as "not good", I got the gist of the subway and how to get around the city really quickly, while John, umm, didn't (He did eventually though~eg~).

The museum has been written up in several architecture books and while it looks impressive and interesting on paper, in real life it looks impressive and kind of ominous as well. I have a book somewhere around here which described the building as resembling a giant mechanical Star Wars beast. Turns out to be a fairly accurate description. It also somehow manages to be both simultaneously tall and squat. Not exactly an easy feat.

To actually get into the museo, you ride up a very long escalator into the belly of the beast. Unfortunately the escalator is covered by a large tube which itself is covered with blood red tiles. An unfortunate color, which lends a very strange organic shape and feel to the building.

The museo itself was interesting and filled with tourists (Both Japanese and non), students and grandmotherly type women, all staring at the assorted displays. There was a poor American woman with a midwestern accent who was there with her two kids (son~15, daughter~12). I say poor because of her kids. Each time time John and I passed them that day, she was desperately trying to get them excited about an artifact or exhibit .

"Look ancient Japanese Money!" she would say excitedly.

The response being a bored nod of their heads

"Look at these woodblock prints. Aren't they beautiful?"

The response to this being a bored yawn.

"Gosh look at this map, we nearly destroyed the entire city when we bombed it in W.W.II."

The response being a blank stare.

I don't think she quit succeeded in getting them into the whole museum experience. They did seem more alive later when we saw them in the gift shop. The girl was checking out scarves or something and the boy talking to some other anglo teen boy. Thinking about it now, the mom was nowhere in the shop. Maybe she dumped them there and left 'cause they were being such snots.

After spending some money in gift shop ourselves, Johnny and I ate a late lunch/early dinner at on one the restaurants in the museum complex. The hostess didn't speak much English and we all ended up in front of the plastic food display in front of the restaurant. John pointed at an omelet dish covered in some kind of meaty sauce and asked the hostess in halting Japanese if he could have that with out meat. She just stared at him. He tried again. Same response. He then showed her the phase "I am a vegetarian, could I have this dish made with out meat" written out in Kanji in his phrase book. She still looked baffled.

After a couple of minutes of this, she finally spoke. It turned out that she understood John the first time, she just didn't believe him. A meal without meat? Bizarre.

We had been warned by several people that it was not going to be easy for John to stay Vegetarian in Japan and this turned into our first game of look, is there ANYTHING meatless here? After indicating to the hostess, that he was serious in wanting the omelet with out meat, she tried making some suggestions to replace the beefy sauce.

"Chicken?" she asked.

"No."

"Seafood?" she asked again looking hopeful.

"No."

"Squid?" she asked looking a little desperate.

"No."

"Ketchup?" she asked now looking anxious.

"Uh, yes."

This satisfied her need for there to be something poured on top of the omelet and we finally got to eat. John HATES ketchup on eggs, but he gave in to keep from hearing whatever would have been next suggestion.

The food was good and John even enjoyed his ketchup covered omelet. Once he scrapped the ketchup off anyway. The thing is, I'm convinced that they added added meat to my meal to make up for John not having any. Why else would my shrimp curry come with an extra helping of chicken on top?

More later

nico

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