Someday Seattle

 So what did I do after flying back from Japan? I drove three hours to Seattle to go to Sakura-con. I did stop to eat. Checked out a Taco Time in Washington. Their veggie burrito was pretty good.

I was really tired but I figured I'd get sleep in my hotel room. There were two I was considering. In hindsight, I should have gotten a room at the other hotel. Because looks are deceiving. I was really wondering why my room was so huge. This is only half of it. Long hall to get in, big bathroom, and a big dressing area.

The reason why it was so large is because one wall was the back of the elevators. Which I heard all day and night. They finally slowed down around 2 am but started running non-stop again at 5 am. Which means I got three hours of sleep each night. Even with ear plugs it was constant noise. Given the hotel was fully booked, I knew I would not be given a different room. I would have left the second day but I really wanted to go to the Moi-même-Moitié tea party. At least it explains why I was so out of it at the party. I did not feel very good.

As to that hotel, after I got home I did put in a complaint. Surprisingly, or maybe not because they know that room is terrible, I was refunded my full amount for the room. So there is that.

As for my stay in Seattle, once again, grey weather. Third time visiting the city, each time it's the same. I know, this is the way it is in Seattle in the winter.

At least I got to enjoy using my Moi-méme-Moitié bat bag.  I wish I had been able to go to an autograph session. It would have been nice to have it signed and to tell Mana that this was one of the samples from his Moitié office. 

I did also get to use the bath salts I bought in Tokyo. 

I also did get out and walked around a little the first evening. I was too tired the second evening to go very far. 

Nice to see sakura blooming in Seattle. 

I walked along the waterfront a little bit. Down to the Ferris wheel and back.  

I was amused to see this advertising for Oregon. Yes the tulip fields are very nice.

 I was hoping for a little clearing of the skies but this was the best that happened that evening.

Yes I walked up these stairs. And then more stairs. 

I wasn't sure where to eat. I was hungry and I did find a place with a view of the water. And a glass of chardonnay. 

The wait staff at this place were really nice. The food was decent but not that inspiring. I wish I had looked into more the places to eat right around the hotel or in this area. This was their seared salmon with cilantro butter. 

And the view from my table. 

Since I already did posts about Sakura-con, I won't write about it here. This is the main post  http://blukats.blogspot.com/2018/04/sakura-con-2018.html. I can't help but think if I had a better hotel room my time at the convention would have been much better and I would have done a few more things. But I can't change what happened so if I ever go back I will definitely make different arrangements. 

I had hoped to go see the sakura trees at the University but the weather was really bad as I was leaving the hotel and downtown area. That snow, ice, rain mix which isn't nice to be out in. So I headed home. The drive back had better weather. 

And I saw a nice sunset.

N'EX Time

Since I stayed in Ikebukuro for the last part of my visit to Tokyo, I decided to take a different train to Narita. The Narita Express. I bought a ticket ahead of time to reserve a seat. Boarding was fairly easy. From Ikebukuro to Tokyo Station it follows the same route as the Yamanote Line. So I was able to get a decent photo of Shinjuku on the way.

And one more of Shinjuku with the Studio Alta building.

I probably didn't need to pay the extra for the reserved seat since the cars were not full. Most of the people in my car were from Taiwan. Not much to see in the train itself but it was very comfortable.

Getting to see sakura along the track made me wish I wasn't leaving. And yes, there is more graffiti every time I visit.

Shibuya looked a little more generic from the train.

More sakura trees. It was full on bloom by this day.

Good old Yamanote Line train.

Sky Tree off in the distance.

This is either the Arakawa or the Naka river.

Baseball fields along the Edogawa River.

Finally at Narita International Airport waiting for my plane. Time for tea.

Along with one of those little blueberry pies from Boulangerie Asanoya.

Long flight back but not as bad as the last long flight back. Flying into Los Angeles International Airport over the Channel Islands off of California. That's San Miguel Island. It's owned by the US Navy but people can visit if they fill out the permits and follow the National Park Service rules.

To the right is a little bit of Santa Rosa Island and left is Santa Cruz Island. Santa Rosa Island is open to visitors but Santa Cruz Island is mostly a nature reserve.

So that was my trip to Tokyo. Although I was not done traveling. After getting a connecting flight back to Portland, Oregon, I rested for a day and then drove up to Seattle, Washington. My next post will have a little bit from that trip.

Beneath the Sakura Trees and the Full Moon

Normally the best time to visit a Japanese garden is during the day. Because at night, it's difficult to see much. However the reason for going to Rikugien at this time of year was because they light up their trees.

Not just any trees. Their sakura trees. Again I apologize if my photos are not the best. It was dark, and there were hundreds of people around the trees. I'm not kidding, the garden paths were packed with people. They were limiting how many could come in by the time I arrived there.

However Rikugien employees are well versed in handling the night time viewing since they do this every year. Paths were well marked and people were expected to go in a clockwise direction.

And if I could mentally block out all the people with all their cell phones under the trees, it was really amazing to see the trees like this.

The strange lights around the base of trees in some of my photos? Cell phones. The good thing about it being so dark is you can't really see all the people.

Near the exit there was one tree that got a lot of attention.

Because they had lit it with lights that changed color. The appearance was magical.