tokyo, take 1

We saw this as we were walking through the subway today. And we open here in Tokyo on Wednesday. Um, I should really go over my lines.

People are so kind here, so dignified. Honor is a huge part of their culture, which I respect so much. Today, we were leaving a restaurant and the waiter chased down my friend Ian, telling him that we had left 60 cents over our bill, and had we miscounted? shouldn't we take it back?

See, tips are not appreciated here. The waitstaff simply do their job and don't expect monetary thanks from those they are serving. And no, I don't think that 60 cents is anything near a good tip. We actually already already knew that tips were not standard when we paid the bill, but Ian didn't feel like counting out exact change and thought that it wouldn't be a big deal to simply leave a little bit over.

He was wrong.

He took the change graciously and we were on our way.

And here is me and Brandon, in a section of the city that I would totally tell you if I remembered the name.

Trust me, it definitely sounds just like a Japanese word.

Probably because it is one.

Another thing I love about Tokyo is the contour of the cityscape.
The buildings are all different in shapes and sizes, some square some rounded, and it makes keeping your eyes wide open that much more interesting.

We went grocery shopping today, and aside from losing Brandon for a good 20 minutes (which we all felt very badly about, I can assure you!), I bought a banana, among other things.
Apparently, a delicious banana.

Huh.

We'll see.

I also tried out the bidet here in the hotel bathroom, and without going into detail, I will simply say that it does the job.