Getting There

July found me on a train crossing the Willamette River.  

To that place that locals love to take photos of the carpet. Portland International Airport. So of course, I did that. 

Knowing that it would be some time before I would get a meal, I searched for something to eat.  Portland Bowl at Tamale Boy. It's great how flexible they are with their dishes. This is black beans, rice, mixed greens, tomato salsa, eggs, Monterey Jack cheese and guacamole sauce. Next time I will skip the eggs. Other than that, it was like a nice salad. And not expensive.

The plane to Canada was late. It's a Bombardier Q400. It is interesting to fly in a plane this size. A little noisy too.  

But the views are very scenic when the clouds clear. Mount Rainier with a couple lakes in Washington.

It's not easy getting photos through plane windows. So I'm always happy when my zoom picks up an image like this. Snowy Mount Rainier, even in summer.

And Vancouver International Airport. Time for another carpet photo. 

Finally boarded my plane and starting to roll out. 

Several hours later I make it through Narita International Airport's Immigration and Customs. Deep inside the train station there was a bamboo tree with tanzaku wishes for Tanabata. 

Once again waiting for my N'EX train. I didn't think to get a photo of Narita Airport's carpet. Maybe next time?

I found Bourbon Choco Anpan cookies while waiting. These are the same thing that was given away as prizes at the Moi dix Mois ~La Kitchen Knife Aristocracy~ shows. So I had to try them. Compared to the other Bourbon cookies, these ones were a bit dry. I prefer the Kikori no Kirikabu, Tree Stumps to these. But they are much harder to find.

So I was off on my journey back to Tokyo. Compared to March, the fields around Narita were green.

Oh Canada

I decided to try Air Canada again as a way to get to Japan. So near the end of May I found myself back in Vancouver International Airport. I almost didn't make it, since my alarm did not go off that morning. I had to skip taking the train and instead drove very fast to Portland International Airport. I would have preferred not to pay the parking fees, but the alternative would have been much more expensive. Thankfully it was Memorial Day, a US holiday, so traffic was light and I made it to the airport in about 20 minutes.

Since it was cloudy out, there wasn't much to see on the flight into Canada. However at the airport there were these outfits. Unfortunately I did not see any information as to why these vintage styled outfits were made. They definitely did dress up the area. 

 The view was a little better heading out of Canada. Sadly it's not easy to get decent photos on commercial planes but trust me, the mountains and rivers below were gorgeous.

The meals at the back of the plane are often not the greatest. However this Caesar Chicken with vegetables was pretty good. I also had a really nice seatmate for this flight. Older man who was born in Japan but lived most of his life in America, served in the military and all. Interesting conversations with him helped make the trip feel a little shorter. 

Finally into Narita International Airport, through immigration and all and down to wait for the NEX train to Ikebukuro. The price has gone up for their tickets, but after that long flight, I really don't want to have to think too much, figuring out what stations to transfer at and dealing with luggage. So NEX it was and everything went smoothly and walking out of Ikebukuro Station I felt like I was back home.

Portland to Vancouver to Narita

 

I have to say the best part of this was the flight from Portland International Airport to Vancouver International Airport. Because the weather was good the views were amazing! If I ever have to go to Vancouver again I would consider flying Air Canada if the weather is decent. From Mount Hood to Mount St Helens and Mount Adams up to Mount Rainer and beyond, it's worth it. Seeing Mount St Helens from the air was one of those moments that was above my expectations.

Because the flight was late there was no time to check out Vancouver's airport. First we had to walk a long way to Customs where we had to turn in a customs form along with answer questions. This was repeated at Narita Airport in Japan. Then it was another long walk back to the gates where we disembarked. Very tiring but not a long wait to get on the plane for Japan.

The plane was not bad and service was good. Although the food was mediocre. I remembered to pack a few granola bars which saved me. I did watch "The Martian" finally. Not bad but so obvious when they had a body double for Matt Damon. I probably got an hour of sleep since I did not bring a neck pillow and the two guys next to me were rather talkative with each other. Including singing Disney songs.

Into Narita with another customs card and a long very hot wait to get through it. I did have an interesting conversation with a Canadian woman so that helped since I felt a little dizzy in the heat. Finally done with customs and off to exchange money. Narita was packed with people, serious zoo with everyone going in every direction. I had trouble finding the line for money exchange because people were just standing everywhere blocking everything. All I could think is "Tokyo you are so not ready for the Olympics". Got my money, had a slightly futile exchange with woman at Keisei Railway desk. Her English was great, she just didn't want to be that helpful. Down to train station and so many people getting tickets at machines I passed on getting a commuter card. Transfer at Aoto (thanks to the helpful station masters for pointing out the right train). Finally arriving at Ningyocho Station. Found the elevator right away and out the right exit and walked several blocks in the stifling heat to the hotel.

So glad I found it without getting lost since this was my first time in Ningyocho and the area it was in was mostly concrete apartment buildings and offices. Checked in, found my room, then out to a konbini which was only a block away. Food and a two liter bottle of water. Bought a lot of those during my stay since most of the time the temperatures hit 35°c and 70% humidity. August in Japan. Ready to sleep I found out the bed was harder than sleeping on a tatami mat. Sleep was not going to be something I would get a lot of during my trip.

So while the views at the start of the trip were extraordinary, it was a very difficult start to returning to Tokyo. Not as drastic as the last time but off to a difficult start. If you are wondering what happened the last time, the posts are here for my experiences during the Great Tohoku Disaster in 2011. I am glad this time I did get to see these amazing views like this one of Mount Rainer.

It Was a Good Day for Flying

I haven't been sure how to start writing about this recent trip I took. To go on about how much effort I put in, saving money and selling a few things? About arranging it months in advance not knowing if something would blow up like the last time I went to Japan? How I didn't know if I could handle it physically, especially since it would be in August.

I finally decided to go back to Japan, even if it was for a short visit. Over five years since I was there, experiencing first hand the effects of the Great Tohoku Disaster on Tokyo. Like my trying to write this blog, I guess I was stuck. Other things were keeping me from traveling. But then thanks to a friend I had a chance to go to a concert featuring the reuniting of musicians of a group I've long wished I had seen when they were together. That gave me motivation to do something. So the day came for me to depart. Off I went to Portland International Airport.

That place with the famous carpet. Which was replaced with this carpet. But everyone still takes carpet photos. Here's my feet waiting for the Air Canada plane to take me to Vancouver, Canada. Turned out not to be the best way to go but it was about $500 cheaper. Plus I could finally say I've been to Canada.

One of the interesting things about it is Air Canada's gate was off of the main international wing of the airport. Where there is a display most people don't see. Where Portlandia's mayor Kyle MacLachlan is there to give you a send off for your trip.

Along with costumes and props from The Librarians.

Portlandia's Toni and Candice. 

Props from Goonies and One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. I was a little surprised there wasn't anything from the tv show Grimm.

Finally the delayed plane arrived and it was time to take off.

As for me, I was very tired. I had spent a lot of time getting things ready for the trip, getting the cats to a boarding home, and so much more. I had hoped to rest up before but ended up not getting everything done that I had wanted to. But it was time to go.