tokyo revisited.

tokyo was a blur.


a fantastic, beautiful blur.


as with any trip overseas, you need more time. there's never enough of it. never enough time to explore. to shop. to eat. to take it all in. but a week isn't bad. it's just enough to make you want to keep coming back for more.

there's too much to write and too many pictures to show. instead of a long post, i'll try to make this as short and sweet as possible -- "try" being the operative word.

here then, are a few mental snapshots (followed by actual snapshots)*

*please click to enlarge.

-walking. shopping. and people watching. it takes up entire days. and it's some of the most fun you'll ever have. finding side streets and alley-ways. discovering shops and cafes. watching people near and far.

star girl.


smile.


it does.


punk.


waiting in harajuku.


all dressed up.


boy wonder.



-randomly stumbled upon "the garden." initially we thought it was a cafe. housed in an amazing glass building, we decided to check it out. a ride in the glass elevator took us up, up and away until we were high above shibuya and harajuku. stepping out of the elevator, we realized that "the garden" wasn't in fact a cafe. rather, it was a decked out hair salon. tokyo's hippest were busy at work, cutting, coloring, washing. it was quite a sight. this chance encounter led to us making appointments for cuts of our own. the mohawk was going to become a reality. and what better place to take the plunge?

the glass building.


waiting.


the salon's dog. i was going for his look.


they literally wash and massage your head for a good 30 minutes.


a little nervous.


uh-oh.


ta-da!


*where are the pictures of margaux's haircut you might be asking...? as she will attest, her cut wasn't nearly as "exciting" as mine. thus, the lack of photos. but i can assure you that her hair looked wonderful (though there were some tense, nervous moments...a non-english speaking hairdresser will do that to you).

-spent a night at the park hyatt. it was our "lost in translation" experience. the park hyatt is widely considered the premier hotel in tokyo. the lobby is on the 41st floor and the panoramic views are incredible. dinner at the new york grill on the 52nd floor was amazing (remember bill murray having drinks at the adjacent bar in the movie...). we splurged on the $200 kobe beef. i can honestly say it was the best piece of meat i've ever had. also got my first ever massage. it was shiatsu. it was a mistake. it hurt so bad i had tears in my eyes. so much for a relaxing massage.

margaux's "lost in translation" moment.


my moment.


the pool overlooks the city.


a zoomed in view.


the kobe beef.


a japanese couple celebrating.


room with a view.



-a few more random pictures.

quick.

weather: sunny and warm.
jet lag: yes.
average time waking up: 5.
average time getting up: 7.
places seen thus far: ogikubo, harajuku, shibuya.
places yet to see: ghibli museum, shinjuku, aoyama, ginza, roppongi.
food: incredible.
transportation: bus, train, taxi, foot.
sore: quite. especially with camera hanging around neck.
shopping: 3 words - a. maze. ing.
thinking about: getting a mohawk.
love: the new uniqlo t-shirt shop where shirts come in cool canisters.
super fantastic: japanese television.
cool: side streets and little pockets where you stumble upon restaurants and shops.
even cooler: still have 4 days left to explore.

good morning.

it's 7am here in japan. which means it's 3pm in los angeles. i've actually been up since 4:30, but i stayed in bed until 6:30, dozing in and out of sleep.

it was a long travel day yesterday. the flight was delayed over an hour. After 11 hours in the air, an hour and a half on the bus and an additional 20 minutes in a taxi, we finally made it home. neil, who was kind enough to take us to the airport, dropped us off at around noon. what's crazy is that we were still in the air when he was probably fast asleep at 2 in the morning. that's a long day. i think by the time we fell asleep last night, it was actually 7am los angeles time. kinda makes you feel like you pulled an all-nighter in vegas.

by the way, just have to add that the international terminal at lax is ghetto. at least the part we were in. it's old, pieces of walls are missing, carpets are gross, cautionary tape is plastered on doorways. i think it's time for a makeover.

so, as i sit here, my mom and margaux are still asleep upstairs. it's so rare when i'm the first one up. it's quiet - kind of strange that my dad and sister aren't here with us.

by the way, on the bus into tokyo last night, i couldn't help but wonder what it all must look/smell/feel like for margaux. this is her first time here and getting into another part of the world at night is difficult because it's so hard to grasp where you are and what you're looking at. plus, i know she was completely exhausted, so i'm sure not a whole lot made sense to her. but, starting today, she'll get her first real look at japan. i know she's excited. so am i.

last thing: i left a message for parker while we were sitting at lax yesterday. aside from saying hi, i told him i was thinking of a number he should shoot in the final round. i told him i was thinking 66. i just checked, and he shot 66. crazy. i'd like to think i had something to do with it. but, i doubt it. way to go, parks.

dog walk.

crazy dog walking game. seriously?

e-cards.

some pretty hilarious e-cards. here.

crazy.

yep, it finally happened. i have my own doll. bobblehead doll that is. imagine my surprise when i got myself as a gift. details, from my favorite t-shirt, to the ring i wear on my right hand, to the bracelets, the watch, the chuck taylor's...crazy. i've always told people that margaux is the best gift giver i've ever met. i think she now deserves a nomination into the hall of fame.

pink bats.

pink bats were used by many players yesterday to help raise awareness for breast cancer. many of the dodger players swung the bats so well that it won't come as a surprise if they continue using them...

ac spray.

"It gets freaking hot in Tokyo during the summer. But there are no excuses to not wearing a suit to work, and that's why thousands upon thousands of businessmen endure the scorching humid heat in their collared long sleeve shirts, suit pants, suit jacket, you know, the whole outfit...

So now we have this portable air conditioning spray, which uses flammable ethanol and other products that will instantly cool down your clothing to feel like they're minus forty degrees celsius. A wonderful invention indeed! If I had a million dollars I'd donate half of it to purchase these spray cans and have them available for free use at subway stations in NYC and Tokyo. Well, maybe not half. Maybe just a thousand bucks, since they're only $5 each."

via tokyomango.

24k gold facial.