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Published: December 15th 2008
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Back in June, Todd and I visited Tokyo with the explicit purpose of planning his brother Troy's bachelor party. Todd wanted to throw him a swanky, international bash, so the biggest and most expensive city in the world certainly fit the bill. This was our fourth trip to Japan in a matter of months but neither of us had ever been to Tokyo.
Our arrival was not as smooth as usual, simply because traversing the largest city in the world is neither cheap nor brief. It took us almost two hours to reach our hotel in Akasaka, at which point Todd, who cannot count patience as a virtue, nearly self-destructed. Luckily, our boutique hotel was fabulous and nestled in a trendy area. It was great to be back in the land of motion sensitive escalators, streets devoid of garbage, cutting edge fashion and toilets that light up, air dry and massage! Truly, everything in this country just seems better than everywhere else! We took it easy our first night, having wine near the hotel and slipping back into our love affair with Japan.
Our first full day began with a walk around the Imperial Palace. The interior is closed
to visitors, so we wandered around the grounds and marveled at the ancient history in the midst of such a modern place. Next it was off to Tokyo Tower, which provides fantastic views of the city's myriad neighborhoods. We spent the afternoon in Shinjuku searching for the elusive Golden Gai district, which is deliberately overlooked on tourist maps. This one city block grid of tiny alleyways dotted with drinking dens has a rich history and many protective patrons. The district used to thrive as part of Tokyo's post war sex culture, with cheap rents and relative seclusion. Pimps and prostitutes worked in shanty houses, which were converted to bars at the end of the occupation. Today, each tiny watering hole can accomodate only 6-10 people. As the number one spot on my itinerary, I made sure we pushed through nearly four hours of heat and frustration to find Golden Gai. It was all worth it as we turned the corner at dusk and saw row after row of tiny doors with music pouring out. We decided on a bar called Moe and sat down next to a couple regulars, one of whom spoke English. He welcomed us, though tourists are
usually frowned upon. We met the bartender, which would have been difficult to avoid since the whole place was the size of a bathroom. She was gracious and played the only American music she had. This of course led to a rousing rendition of Hound Dog, with Todd using an umbrella as a microphone. We were having so much fun but decided we had to check out some more places. It was so exciting to wander around and open random doors deciding whether or not to enter. We guessed wrong only once and found ourselves engaged in conversation with an aging, bipolar Japanese transvestite. The whole evening was a most unique style of nightlife!
The next morning while Todd slept in, I had some breakfast, did a little shopping and quite literally stumbled upon Hie Shrine. I was walking along and noticed a tunnel of orange torii, the traditional columned gate. I followed it up a very steep flight of stairs to the shrine, believed to have been built in the 1400s. I took some great photos and then returned to the hotel to meet up with Todd. We headed off to Shibuya to witness the busiest intersection in
the world. Like Japan itself, this crossing somehow achieves a sense of order amidst all the chaos. You would expect to see people slamming into each other, rather than organized efficiency. The respect and consideration for others that oozes out of every pore of Japan is perhaps best epitomized by this intersection.
It was off to glitzy Ginza for a fabulous sushi dinner and another explicit search for an after hours spot suitable for Troy's party. Ginza is one of the most luxurious shopping destinations in the world and the streets really seem to glitter at night. Todd put it best when he said, "This place looks like it was built today!" Ginza is modern and immaculate, where even the taxis are Mercedes Benz. We tried out a place called Penthouse G, hoping it would be upscale and masculine. Right off the bat, we knew it was a perfect place for the bachelor party. The views were stunning, the bar was pristine, cigars were plentiful and the scotch was served over an ice sphere - a classy touch. We chatted with the staff and let them in on the plans for the September arrival of a bunch of white
guys. They were quite excited and very accomodating. They assured us they would roll out the red carpet for Troy. Mission accomplished and we called it a night.
On our last day in Tokyo we had lunch in Akasaka and then made our way to Harajuku, known for its eclectic, youthful fashion. We found the famous Harajuku girls right beside Meiji Shrine, which is dedicated to Emperor Meiji and his wife, Empress Shoken, who died in the early 1900s. This shrine is ensconced in a 175 acre evergreen forest, providing a tranquil respite from bustling Tokyo. We stayed quite a while, realizing how tiring and overwhelming the outer city can be. We lunched and shopped in Shibuya and then returned to our hotel for checkout.
The trip was a great success and gave Todd confidence in his ability to pull off an amazing party for his brother in a foreign city. In fact, the only part of the bachelor party that we didn't get to test run was sumo, since it was the off season. As we said our sayonaras, I knew Troy was in store for the trip of his life. The hardest part was the next
few months of keeping our Tokyo vacation a secret so Troy would never have an inkling what Todd was planning. This is why I'm finally publishing this blog WAY after the fact!
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