(Day 2) Invisible Fishes Eat Bread

It’s hard not to wake up when you are jetlagged and have your alarm underneath your pillow. But, in general, I should really shoot myself for waking up at 4:45 AM. But there are things to do! People to see! Fish to smell! That’s right kids, we are up at this hour for a purpose – to head over to Tsukiji to watch fish being thrown and sold. Upon peeking out the window, it doesn’t appear to exhibit any signs of sweltering heat…but…this IS Tokyo and they ARE experiencing their hottest summer in 100 years…ech. Let’s find out.

Well, heading outside proved that it was indeed stickly humid and ridiculously hot. We didn’t want to run through the oppressive heat and since the sisters were late and slow getting up this morning, we missed the train we were supposed to catch. I was slightly less than pleased as the next didn’t come along for another 13 minutes. And by then, it was likely too late to catch the dead fishes.


Um…is that guy wearing long sleeves and pants? WTF



We got to Tsukiji and hustled as much as the was sanely possible in these temps. It was now only slightly after six o’clock and I was worried that a) I’d get lost again and nearly driven over again, or b) we’d be too late to actually make it inside for the fish auction. One of these alternatives came true. I really need better luck and/or faster sisters.




The outer market



I was slightly broken-hearted when we arrived at the booth to see a small sign that read admissions were full and closed for the day. WAHHHHHHH. And I’m really sweaty. So let’s head into the nearby shrine to cool off. Again, why do I do this? The air inside the shrine is still outdoor air. Geeze.






The trucks which bring near-death.

We wandered down some of the streets of the outer fish market for a while and then tried to figure what would be a good activity for 6:30 in the morning.







After stopping at Lawson to grab some water, we decided to head over to Ebisu and visit Ebisu Garden Place since B loves MatsuJun. You know, that story. No? Who the hell is MatsuJun? Ehhh, it doesn’t matter. You are just here for the pictures anyway…







Ah yes, here we are – Ebisu Garden Place. It’s kind of a square with an office tower and some shops, but we are here for the statue. I explained why in this post. If you look there, you’ll see MatsuJun. Janelle ran for the statue like me to a Comme des Garçons clearance sale.







Oh yeah! There was totally some drunken bum guy sleeping on the bench next to mine. Like, using a coat as a blanket. Um…did I mention it’s like 45 degrees outside? No? Well, it is.

Janelle kept trying to make friends with pigeons. Apparently she didn’t know they are the dirtiest bird in the history of planet earth.




Meeeeeeeeee!

Janelle loves to be like a model or something. Werk.






Did I mention it was hot outside? Cuz it was. Just be happy there is no sweat dripping off our faces.

Sis doesn’t function well without coffee, so we hit up the Starbucks inside the office tower – twice. I don’t mind though, because I saw Ryo.


It’s a movie about pudding samurais. Like, samurais who make pudding and pastries. No, I’m not even making it up.

We moved our little selves outside into the courtyard to sit some more, because, you know, it’s only like, 7:30 AM and no one and their dog is actually awake yet, opening up stores or anything. But it was a nice courtyard. OH! And hot.







We sat there until around 9:00 and then lazily made our way over to Shinjuku, but not without a stop to start our shopping – I purchased my long-awaited parasol. I’m so fancy.

Over on the Shinjuku side of town, we moseyed up to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Buildings, where they have a free view from their 46th (?) floor. It’s always jam-loaded with Chinese tourists, but whateva.













In case you can’t tell from the above photos, Tokyo’s kind of a big deal. Like, srs bsns. Unfortunately, there was NO MOUNT FUJI to be seen. Worst. That little bugger’s been evading me for years. YEARS. Urgh.

Back on solid ground, we made our way over to a little eating place I love (thanks Djds and Schatz), Baqet. Like…manna from heaven, everyone. I’m sure it tasted sort of like these delicious breads. And I saw one of those LOVE statues…








That’s right – it’s all-you-can-eat! Ladies love bread.

By this time, life had begun to take shape around us and the shops were all open and ready to drain our wallets. I saw my ex-boyfriend had landed the latest ad campaign from Uniqlo.


Maybe now with this new injection of cash he can shed that “homeless man” look he’s been sporting for a few years now. Oh Ryuhei.





We wandered through the streets and landed at the big kahuna in this ‘hood, Isetan. Of course, wandering, gawking and dreaming followed. (Personally, I was dreaming of the $25 strawberries…)



As evening began to descend, we started to make our way to our dinner destination, Tsurutontan, aka the best, most-giant bowl of udon that ever existed.



















Delicious! Goodness gracious we were full. Oh, and because I haven’t said it in a while, yes, it was still deathly hot outside. Like, sweat all day, every minute one is outdoors. Ps – Don’t ever wear Spanx on hot days. Trust me – it’s just not a good idea.









Love Shinjuku. And with that, we’ve taken Tokyo by storm in a day. What? Was it ever in doubt?



We arrived home, once again, a giant pile of sweatiness. Not too shabby! Tomorrow we kick it up a notch because it’s someone very specials’ 30th birthday. Sistres alive!! We’ll make it a birthday to remember Sis, you can count on me!