I landed at Narita airport around 7.30am, after a light breakfast, and some very interrupted sleep along the way.  Immigration wasn’t any hassle, and once through, saw my suitcase in the “Priority Baggage” area.  So no waiting at the carrousel for my bag!  Yep, this is travelling!  Once through the doors, I saw Kaoru waiting for me.

We got a bus ticket to Kasai (where we would be staying), and boarded after about 15 minutes, so it was well timed.  The trip was about an hour.  We were at the hotel around 9.30, so way too early to check in, so I left my bag at the hotel and we went to get some food, and killed some time walking around.  This included a trip to the council offices to get Kaoru’s birth certificate (for any visa’s she will need in Australia), and also a trip to the Tokyo Sky Tree.  We didn’t go up it, but it was nice to see.

We got back to the hotel and checked in.  But first had to go to the supermarket next door, to buy a bottle of Wild Turkey to keep me going :).  This was a discount liquor shop, so I needed to see *just* how discounted it was.  OK, it was good.  How good?  How about $10 for a 700ml bottle of Jim Beam, *with* a bonus tumbler glass?  Or how about Wild Turkey Rare Breed for $35?  It wasn’t an easy decision!  But finally settled on a bottle of normal Wild Turkey, some Dry Ginger Ale, and some Cola.

Once in the room I was able to catch up on work stuff from the day.  A few things had happened, so I sent off a number of emails.  Then Kaoru and I went out to dinner with her parents, and her fathers sisters, whom I hadn’t met yet.  We went to an “up market Sushi Train”.  Oh god, how I missed proper sushi!  It all just melted in my mouth!  Then the waiter came to the table with a large bag full of water and a squid (still alive).  How could I say no?  So they cut its head off, sliced it up, and put it on my plate, still moving slightly!  Delicious!  I could never get sick of this place.

Kaoru’s father dropped us off back near the hotel and I was ready for bed – it had been a long couple of days with very little sleep.  But just to really make me feel welcome, a 15-20 second tremor hit, which had the hotel shaking for a bit.  Sometimes it feels like I never left!