Returning from Trip Number Ten

So time for that last blog post, of traveling from Japan to the US. Starting with Ikebukuro Station. 

I took the N'EX train again and they gave me the same seat that I had when I came to Tokyo. Interesting coincidence. 

Obligatory Sky Tree photo. 

Extra nice Sky Tree photo. 

I think this was the Arakawa River. I keep trying to get a photo of it, and finally one that isn't blurry. 

An amazing thing happened as we were rolling towards Narita Airport. 

The sky began to clear a bit. 

And became beautiful with white fluffy clouds and sun. 

Since I wanted to show what it's like on the way to Narita, I took a number of photos of the farms along the way. 

There is also a bit of woods and grassy areas. 

Out at Narita waiting for the plane on the left and feeling envious that I couldn't stay and enjoy the better weather. 

One bonus was being able to see below as we took off. Something I had not seen before as we left the gate was the ground crew waving and then bowing to us as we moved to the runway. 

And goodbye Japan. I hope I will be seeing you again soon. 

The eletronic window shades in the plane gave me a chance to take a few above the cloud photos with less glare. A bit of shine from the sun on the ocean below.

And just before descending through the clouds to land in Canada. 

Checking out a display of a spirit mask at Vancouver International Airport. 

It is a transformation mask by Kwakwaa'wakw artist Stan Wamiss, of the trickster hero Raven when the beak is closed and of Bakwas, a wild man of the forest, when the beak is open. These are spirits of the Pacific Northwest tribes.

 Not a lot of choices for food in the US part of the terminal. After having a long delay due to some odd new baggage screening process by US Customs, which was poorly handled, I finally was able to get something to eat. So it was back to Canucks and a Canadian brewed lager.

I chose fish tacos but forgot to ask if they used corn tortillas. I'm not terribly picky about my food but flour tortillas do not cut it with fish tacos. They fall apart and do not have that nice flavor that compliments the fish, crema, salsa and cabbage. I also prefer non-breaded fish but at this point, I was not going to complain. They were good, just miss having tortillas that don't fall apart from the moisture. I need to plan better if I fly through Vancouver again.

Finally back to Portland, Oregon. I'm sad I didn't get a better photo of the Lego Multnomah Falls. I was told it is going to be removed for a large statue of Sasquatch. It would be nice if they could find a good place for the Falls, it's a favorite of a lot of people who travel through the airport.

And over the Steel Bridge across the Willamette River. That's the Fremont Bridge in the distance. On the right is the TEMCO grain elevator and terminal. It was built in 1960 and still handles tons of grain, like corn, wheat and soybeans. 

And that is the end of my tenth trip to Japan.

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.