Sorry this is so belated...

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Hey everyone!

I'm so sorry that I've just got round to updating my blog! You all probably know I've been back a couple of weeks but I had a lot to sort out and I've started back at work....not valid excuses I know!

Anyway, I spent my last few days in Japan in Tokyo. As much as I wanted to climb Mount Fuji, everything was going against me doing it (lack of money, time, it was raining constantly, I coudn't even get a japanese girl to find out how to get there, the huts were closed and I only met one guy who would do it with me and our dates didn't match up) so I had to let the idea go....but my brother is coming to Japan for a year so who knows, I might be able to climb it with him!
Instead of Mt Fuji I visited a couple of places around Tokyo (saw even more shrines!) and then really explored the city itself including Ueno, Harajuku, Shinjuku, Aksakusa and central Tokyo.

I loved Japan, it's a really crazy place and I think the people surprised me the most; they can be quite outgoing! japan has a real 'work hard - play hard' ethos to it!

Anyway, here is my list of things I loved about Japan:

-Sleeping on the trains and metro: and I don't just mean that it's accpetable to fall asleep, I mean that everyone comes and closes their eyes straight away! Very often I found myself to be the only one in the carriage who hadn't got their eyes closed!
-The stuff they hang off their mobile phones: EVERYONE has at least one useless bit of tack hanging off their phone, business men and grandma's alike! It ranges from toys bigger then the actual phone to enough sparkling things to fill a jewelry store!!
-Women and their shoes: boy! do the girls in Japan love their high heels! And nothing will stop them wearing them; not even if the shoe doesn't fit, if it's too high to walk in, if you're doing a long distance walk or even visiting a sacred temple! They are a must have!
-Crazy hair styles and male escorts: The bigger the better it seems at the moment, and a lot of the young men have very effeminate hairstyles, especially the male escorts. I saw a lot of these escorts in Kyoto as I went out at night more there, but I did spot a couple in Tokyo. Their hair is very particular, as is the way they dress (a suit, but maybe with a t-shirt instead of a shirt and funky shoes). And these escorts are actually for women, you can hire them just to talk to you in a bar!
-The sausage dog- this pooch is so hot right now! Forget those ratty dogs the hollywood celebs carry, the sausage dog is what in want in Japan!
-Store clerks really shout at you when you enter the shop, i have no idea what they say but they really elongate the words e.g. sanngossaaaaaaaaay!
-The train service is unbelievably good, right down to the second and their's so much room in the bullet trains!

I'm sure there was some other stuff as well, but I think I could probably go on for ever!

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Photos

Ueno
A street near the market

Some harajuku girls!
These were some of the only ones willing to pose for photos! Think the rain was keeping people away!

Narita
This was my view from my hotel near the airport on my last night. I thought it looked very crouching tiger...!

Super toilets!
This toilet was in my hostel! Seat warming comes as a standard, even in a lot of public bathrooms. But you also get some sort of female urinal - basically a urinal inserted into the ground, i don't think i ever quite used it right!