So Erin and I spent ringing in our New Year out East in and near Tokyo. We had such a great time spent with my cousin Corrie, her husband Rich, and there kids James, Luke, and Katrina.
I haven't seen them in over 10 years, as Corrie pointed out, and it was the first time for Erin. But, we fell right into place, as kin do, and they welcomed us with amazing generousity, love, and by the time we left after a few days, I felt as though we've known each other much longer. They also introduced us to a host of their friends, with whom we celebrated the New Year, played card games, laughed, and ate some great food(as usual, you know I'm all about the food).
We also visited a shrine with the family in Narita on the 2nd before we left for Tokyo, and got a taste of the New Year Japanese style, crowds and all. It was very cool, but I'm not a big fan of
crowds, so I took a bunch of pics and kept on the move; so I could enjoy the experience from the comfort of my laptop screen. Perhaps if it were just Erin and me, I would've been a bit more adventureous, but I was more worried about getting lost in the crowd, or one of the kids getting lost. None-the-less, it was a great experience to see and be in the Japanese New Year celebration. There was all this bustle going on in the street shops on the way to the shrine, selling foods like unagi(grilled eel), roasting chestnuts, selling New Year's decors and tokens of good fortune(like the first pic), and just people everywhere.
I can only imagine what it must have been like actually on New Year's Eve and Day, a mad house I'm sure. We walked through the streets and the current of bodies and eventually made it to the shrine, which was pretty 
expansive. There was a pagoda at the entrance that was dispensing incense which I think you use to clease yourself before entering the shrine, and Erin went to just just that, but was pushed and shoved around... they were ruthless, like a Christmas shopper in the last hours of Christmas Eve, vying for that thing their kid wants every year. Thank god I don't work retail anymore. Anyways, it was a mad house. We walked around the shrine grounds, and I'd like to research the history of this particular shrine, because it was quite spread out with some very old looking buildings. There was this great alcove area that was all trees
and bushes, and many small statues peppered about the rock face. It was so very Japanese, and
very cool. Please check out my link to Snapfish for the album of much more pics.
After we said our good-byes to the family, Erin and I hopped on the train and headed back to Tokyo, where our night bus had dropped us off at a few days prior to our stay in Chiba. We had booked a hotel in Tokyo for two nights(which we had a little trouble finding, but a very helpful man walked us around and even called the hotel for directions) It was a nice hotel, and room small as usual in Japanese style, but we put on our yukattas(light Japanese robes, different
from the much heavier kimonos most
people think of) and relaxed into our new surroundings. Erin and a big day of shopping planned, so we got a late dinner at a diner-style joint around the corner and rested up for our exploration of Tokyo. Here's Erin meal, we ended up eating there the next night too, since we got in late after visiting Ikebukuro, Ueno, and Harajuku for Erin's Tokyo shopping excursions. 
In Ueno, we found a Salvador Dali exhibit that was going on(which Erin intitially knew about after spying a poster on the train for the exhibit), but the line was intensely long, so we decided to buy our tickets for the exhibit and check it out the next morning on our way out of Tokyo back home to Nara. We headed to Harajuku, the fashion district shopping area, even Gwen Stefani sang about the fashion here, but I hate to deflate the hype, but it wasn't very special in my opinion. Now, here's where I'll give my commentary on my observations of Tokyo. Movies and music and media sensationalize Tokyo, creating this metropolis of freaks and business men, maid bars and capsule hotels, and such; but my impression of Tokyo reminded me of any other big city. I have one word to describe Tokyo, unimpressive. Now, I'm sure I may be biased, but where we live, the Kansai Area, and Osaka in particular, has way more color, livelyness, and uniqueness than anything I observed in our stay in the city of Tokyo. The people in Osaka are more down to earth, which a typical Japanese person may find a bit informal, but as an American from the city of Big Shoulders, I'm right at home. And, Osakans are way more fashionably daring than what I saw in Harajuku. It said that people in Osaka know how to work hard and play hard, which is Chicago all over. There is a rivalary between the cities/regions of Tokyo and Osaka, and I knew this before going to Tokyo. I have learned that I am definitely Kansai all the way. Though, our stay was short, so I'd still like to see more of Tokyo.
But, in Harajuku, Erin didn't fail to add to her wardrobe, and there were some interesting sights. I found that many of the people we interacted with, sales clerks and such, where not friendly as the workers in Kansai. At first, here in Osaka and Nara, you wonder why everyone has the knee jerk reaction of vocalizing a "sumimasen" for just about any human interaction. It basically means excuse me, or can also mean thank you. You'll hear "sumimasen" everywhere, everyday. But, in Tokyo, I didn't hear it nearly as much. And here in Kasai, when it's said, it's almost sung with a rising intonation, where as in Tokyo, it was flat sounding, when it was offered. I didn't really get excited about any of the food, or lack there of, in Tokyo as well. Osaka is serious about their food, and enjoying the experience of eating; yet, suprisingly enough, not an overweight person in sight. Did I mention that really like Osaka? 
So, the next day, we got up fairly earlier to enjoy the Dali exhibit, which was ending that day. We were so lucky to get there early, because we bypassed the crowd that arrived an hour and a half later. It was great to see this exhibit, and inspiring to view these great works. Though, I suggest, if you have the opportunity sometime, to visit the Salvador Dali museum in Clearwater Florida, because it houses several of his masterworks, which are just awe-inspiring in detail, content, and scale. What a mind this man had, not only in his freedom of imagination, but his patience to detail to skillfully create his thoughts and emotions. It was so great to experience this great art.
Here's what the line looked like when we left the exhibit, which you can't see, but it stretches around to the right and curves more... early bird gets the worm.So, we got back to the the station and I experienced for the first time the Japanese bullet train, shinkansen, for our return home. We took a night bus to Tokyo, but decided to take the train back, and it was fast and smooth. Cost more, but worth the price for speed and comfort.
All in all, it was a great trip and a great way to spend our first New Year here in Japan. It was so great to spend some family time, especially around the holidays, and it was interesting to finally see Tokyo and measure the differences and similarities to my other Japanese experiences. Erin and I want to explore as many areas and people of Japan while we live here, and share these experiences with all. There are more pics in the Snapfish account to enjoy, so check that out as well. I plan to put up some of the movies, either on YouTube, Myspace, or Google Video as well. Plus, I have more to blog about. When we got back home, the next day I took an adventure with our friend Kati and finally climbed the mountain that look at everyday from our back window. It was awesome! So, stay tuned for that update.
