The Unbearable Lameness of Jetlag

If there is any positive about jetlag, it is that you are able to get up far earlier than you normally would. This is, of course, only advantageous if you have a reason to be up early. Fortunately we do. Marathon training. It gets very hot and humid in Tokyo this time of year, so the earlier we can get our running in, the better. We got ourselves up and out around 4:15, with sunrise coming about 15 minutes later. It was a very hazy, humid morning, but still quite cool without the sun.

Leaving our hotel and heading east towards Sumidagawa (The Sumida river), we got a look at the neighborhood we were in. It is your typical Asakusa neighborhood, with nice, working class homes, restaurants, shops. And love hotels.

A 3 hour "rest" for $35

The Hotel Shirobara....Part 2? Sounds like a horror movie title

There are three love hotels in the same block as our hostel, meaning we are in a very quiet area. No one wants to draw attention to themselves going in and out of one. As we leave the immediate area, we get a great view (when the clouds aren't so heavy) of the new Tokyo Sky Tree.

Nice view just before dawn

In a few blocks, we came upon the always beautiful Sensouji temple. This famous temple is always crawling with tourists. Except before dawn, when it's just us, the police officers in their koban and an occasional senior citizen out for a walk. It was very peaceful and really cool being able to see the temple grounds empty. A nice way to start out run.

After jogging down the Orange Road, a famous shopping/theater district dating back about 100 years, we came to the Sumidagawa. Nearly all major rivers in metro areas in Japan have trails running the length of the rivers, and Sumidagawa is no exception. Paved running and cycling paths mixed with terraced garden walkways run for miles up and down the river. I had 8 miles to do, so I picked a direction (north) and went with it. Watching the sun "rise" (couldn't actually SEE the sun with all the clouds) over the river was quite nice.

So, being up early for a run is great, but finishing said run by 6:00am in Tokyo has its disadvantages. The city doesn't open until 10. When I say the city, I mean nearly all stores, most restaurants, everything. As a result, even taking our time walking to Ueno Station, walking down Kappabashi, the street famous for restaurant supplies, plastic food, and amusing signs

First, who is Dr. Goods? Second, why do they have a sign in front of a storefront, in English, asking someone to clean up after their dog? How many English speaking people own a dog in Tokyo and walk it down Kappabashi and leave the poo there? The number has to be very close to zero.

There was nothing open other than konbinis and the one restaurant that caters to foreigners, The Hard Rock Cafe. Now, the good news is they have decent breakfasts, so we had some good eggs, hashed browns and toast...and still had two hours before things opened up. We strolled down to Akihabara (about 1.5 miles), passing through Ameyo, the "night market" of Ueno 

Also not open until 10

and stopped a little further south to browse a discount supermarket (good prices and good-looking food that we couldn't buy, since we have no kitchen to cook in) and, with still over an hour to go, we stopped in a local bakery chain, Vie de France (that sounds Japanese, right?) and rewarded ourselves for our walking and running

Cinnamon roll and "Angel Puff Apple Cream Roll". Oh yeah.

When shops finally opened up, we did a little shopping and one of our favorite sports in Japan, people watching. There was some sort of event going on at a pachinko parlor

What's the only thing that gets an otaku out of bed early on a Sunday morning? Idol meet-and-greets.

and the Sunday Akiba Flea Market. They used to let people perform in the street, shutting down the main drag on Sundays, but stopped that. Now, there is a flea market that has a variety of stuff, largely anime/game stuff but clothing, housewares and other stuff as well. It's pretty big, too, spanning several blocks.

View from a balcony above of part of the flea market

Only in Japan will you have the same flea market vendor selling cute stuffed pandas and large Godzilla figures...

We also stopped in a couple of used stores, Hobby Off and Book Off looking for cheap collectibles, books and games. I found a vintage Japanese printing of Monopoly from the 1960's, by the look of it. I didn't pick it up (I already HAVE a copy of Monopoly, and we don't have the luggage space for big board games), but took a picture of the unique cover.

Hot dog restaurant near the station. Looks appetizing, right?

After a morning of walking and shopping, we took the train to Meguro for the best Indian food in Japan, Rasoi. I was too jetlagged and tired to take pictures of the food, but I think we have about 100 of them in earlier posts, so I'll spare you this time! Full and tired, we headed back to the hotel....and were both asleep by 5pm! Our goal tomorrow: make it to 6!