After a first attempt at re-packing, Kaoru and I went to breakfast at Excelsior cafe, across the station. We hadn’t been there before, and whilst it was a bit of a walk, it was perfect weather, and good to get some fresh air. The number of people going through the station though! It was about 8.00, so a really busy time.
After breakfast we came back to the hotel, and of course we were going against the flow of people. Luckily at the station they have a section on the sides for people going that way, so it was actually easier for the most part – until we got to the ticket area, where we had to be on the other side of the stream of people. That was quite a challenge, and I was glad we didn’t have to do it with bags.
Back in the room we re-packed and relaxed for a while, before checking out of the hotel. Our first mission for the day was to go back to Don Quijote because Lyn wanted another bobbing head character, and that was the only place she found the one she wanted. So we caught a bus to Roppongi, which was the closest “Donkey” store, and let us tick another area off the list. Even leaving the hotel at 10.30ish, the bus was very late, due to traffic. But eventually we got there and had a browse. Unfortunately they didn’t have the one she wanted. So we made our way to Shinjuku, as that’s where we *know* they have the right one.
Once at Shinjuku we went to a different “Donkey”, which was closer to the station. But again, no luck. So we went down a couple of doors, and had a recharge…
A beer and some lunch hit the spot. Whilst the place was empty, it took a long time to bring food – it was like they were making each order “for the table” with how far apart they were. So we weren’t impressed, although it was nice. And Paul found a beer there which he really liked – his favourite for the trip! A nice hazy.
After lunch we made our way to the store to buy Lyn’s bobbing head. But on the way we passed this shop, which I had to take a photo of. I didn’t know you could still buy film!
I grabbed a bit more food at a convenience store (yakitori) next to the Don Quijote. Lyn bought the last 3 of the “bobbing heads”. When we were there on the weekend there were heaps, so they must be popular. That was our first job ticked off, so it was now time to kill. I wanted to wander down the street a bit, because the start of a TV show Kaoru and I watch – Midnight Diner – shows this street (I know because of the Godzilla). So I took a few photos. We also happened to come across a 7-11, which is (apparently) the only place to buy the beer that Paul enjoyed…but it’s only at some 7-11’s. By coincidence, it was here! So he bought 3, and I bought 2, which was all the stock that they had.
It was still early, but we headed back to Shinagawa, and looked at the pop up shop, as it was different to yesterday. Then we bought our Narita Express tickets for the trip to the airport. Paul and Lyn went back to the hotel to relax, and Kaoru and I went to the Starbucks in the station. I had never noticed it before. Kaoru told me that it was in the Shinkansen section, and as we were walking back from breakfast she pointed it out – we noticed its entrance is from the main part. So I got to have a last iced macha latte. We then went back to the hotel, grabbed out bags from storage, and did some final shuffling of bags / ate some remaining food.
About 3.30 we started the journey to the station. Too hard to get a photo unfortunately. I had my big suitcase (at 30kg) and small suitcase (at about 20kg). Kaoru had her big suitcase (as she was off to Mio’s after seeing us off), and Paul and Lyn each had a suitcase and a duffle bag. We just took it easy as we knew we had plenty of time. Paul grabbed a cold beer for the train journey – I intended to drink my hazy I had bought earlier.
We said goodbye to Kaoru, and caught the Narita Express to the airport. We were way early, but luckily checkin had opened for business class (and I had received my upgrade). I brought Paul and Lyn through with me, so their bags also got priority stickers on them. This will save us time at Melbourne airport (hopefully). I then bought my usual packs of Royce chocolate, and we made our way to the lounge. The lady driving the “courtesy car” asked if we wanted a ride, so we took advantage of that! In reality is was probably slower than walking, but more relaxing.
We got to the Aspire Lounge, which is the Qantas-affiliated one. Unfortunately even though I’m flying business class, I’m not allowed to bring a guest in for free. I was allowed to bring them both in, if they pay, but it was 5,900 yen each (AU$60). So they decided it wasn’t worth it. I went in for some food / beer / sake, and they passed time in the terminal.
I’m going to be very busy when I get home, fixing the problem that came up while I was away. But I’m sure there’s nothing more to write. As always, a fantastic holiday. This was very “car” oriented for Paul, and also craft beer themed (again). Not as much time in Nasu which was sad, and not much family time. Kaoru didn’t get to see friends either. We were hoping to see Mikiko and Yoshi but they were busy on our free nights. And of course Mai was too far away to justify her making the journey to see us. We had Kaoru’s birthday, and of course Paul’s as well. AMAZING weather. There were only a couple of hot days at the start, but the rest were perfect – almost chilly. One night with a little bit of rain – we were expecting a lot more.