Anohito
Apr 17, 2007, 23:22
As before, no marks indicating long vowels and certain names have been changed to protect the innocent and to protect me from the guilty.
1 June 1983 (Wed): I didn’t go out for lunch today because of being busy at work. I did cash my paycheck and buy Yen. Now, I’m on my way to Zushi to try the Cafe de Chaya. Food! I’m glad I went. It was excellent. Not so much emphasis on deli food these days, but they still make a mean corned beef sandwich (even without horseradish). The "sunny green salad" had pieces of nice lean Japanese bacon in it. The clam chowder was tasty. The pot sal [potato salad?] was quite good. The waffle with cream cheese & apricot jam was yummy. Now I have another reason to go to Zushi(1). I overindulged at Cafe de Chaya’s pastry counter, but I had 1000 Yen remaining from the previous paycheck, so it was okay. This time, I remembered to buy milk before returning to the base.
(1) The few worthwhile restaurants I found in Zushi weren’t actually enough to keep me returning to Zushi.
2 June 1983 (Thu): I got out late for lunch. It wasn’t very late, though, and I got a seat at Genroku Sushi, so I was able to get a quick lunch and have plenty of time for shopping. At the sushi-ya, I tried the salmon, which was only fair. I went shopping in Saikaya. A number of things caught my eye, but I only bought a chocolate bar at Mary’s (there was no doubt about that choice), a couple of Japanese "sun queen" oranges, and a bottle of Meidi-ya 100 percent apple juice. Since the price of apples has risen significantly, it seemed to be the time to switch to apple juice. Although the weather is clear, I don’t feel ambitious enough to go out of town for supper. Also, I spent more than usual at lunch time today. There is a justification for staying in town; I’m trying one of the pizza sets at Giraud. That should give me a filling supper and leave me with some money for more shopping. The pizza itself was good, but I wasn’t really in the mood for anchovies. The rest of the meal was quite good, even the potato salad salad (that isn’t a "stutter"). After hard thought, I remembered something for which I had a real need–cutlery. So, to Seiyu. Up on the 5th floor, I found the table cutlery, but saw no kitchen knives. Rather than try to use one knife for all purposes, I wanted two knives to replace the one I lost somewhere. I realized that I didn’t see any pots & pans either. I looked for cookware, but couldn’t find it. Then I remembered seeing that sort of thing in the basement. I went down there and found a table spoon (as opposed to a tablespoon) I liked better than the ones on the 5th floor and also an inexpensive kitchen knife. For the table knife, though, I returned to the 5th floor. Having bought something useful, I thought I should return to the barracks and did so via the office for my clothes (I still wasn’t able to do laundry, though).
3 June 1983 (Fri): While wondering where to go for lunch, Shindo occurred to me, and I went there because I intended to have supper at Kujakuen. While looking at the display case for ideas, I saw the subuta and decided to have that. Subuta wasn’t the sort of thing I originally had in mind, being more Chinese than Japanese, but I’ll have supper at Kujakuen anyway. I was, momentarily tempted by the idea of having supper elsewhere, but I did go to Kujakuen. As sort of (but not quite) a "mother & child reunion," I had "soft skins chicken" and crab meat egg foo yung. They were excellent. I didn’t want to take too much time shopping because I had to get back to base for supernumerary. However, there was enough time as long as I made only the purchase I intended and didn’t dawdle or other things. The first stop was Fujiya for lemon squash and canned coffee. If I had remembered to do so, I might have bought ice cream there, but I didn’t, so I couldn’t. Then to the Daido machine for peach/muscat nectar and guarana soda (okay, but nothing special). The machine which I thought would have the Canada Dry melon soda didn’t. I can’t remember for sure whether or not that is the correct machine. C’est la vie. And so, back to the barracks.
4 June 1983 (Sat): In the summer, on weekends, it may be advisable to take the JNR from Yokosuka if I’m planning to do any serious walking in Tokyo. The kaiso tokkyu was full on arrival at Chuo Station (0907). And I had foregone a chance to take a tokkyu fourteen minutes earlier, so that I would have a chance of getting a seat on the kaiso tokkyu. It wasn’t particularly important because I’m going to the Kabukiza, but on days when I intend to look at exhibits it might be preferable to take the JNR. Shock! The Kabukiza has been bought out for the day by a company. I bought a ticket for tomorrow’s matinee. That settles what I’ll be doing tomorrow. I figured I might as well go to the Tourist Information Center as long as I wouldn’t be seeing the Kabuki performances today. I got a Tour Companion and learned what is scheduled for the National Theater in July. It’s a "students’ kabuki" with lectures before the performances. Depending on the price, I may take Bob. In Tour Companion I noticed an interesting exhibit being held at Isetan, so I’m now on my way to Shinjuku. Before seeing the exhibit I had lunch. I arrived in Shinjuku in plenty of time to get to Isetan Renown Milano before it got crowded. Once again, I had the nasu (eggplant) gratin, but this time had the "salad a verde". It looked like spinach and was. Not fresh, but not canned. Thawed frozen spinach perhaps. It was served with a mild, tart dressing. After lunch I came to the conclusion that I had room for dessert, and back in the restaurant corridor Isetan Petite Monde had room for a customer, so I had a chocolate frozen yogurt. At first taste, the combination of tastes was a bit odd, since the frozen yogurt was the real (i.e., sweet/tart) thing. "Three Centuries of Czechoslovakian Glass ..." at Isetan was fascinating. A substantial exhibit, as usual for Isetan. While in Isetan, I learned that I will be able to see the Beardsley(1) exhibit there later this month. That means I didn’t have to go to Kita Shinagawa today. After the exhibit, I added my expenses and realized that I had already spent a substantial sum of money. I was wondering what I could do that would cost a minimum amount of money. I had neglected to bring reading material with me, so I couldn’t go to the park and read. Eventually, I thought of Kinokuniya and went there for a look at books. They were featuring books on Japan and there were many books I wanted. Money was a limiting factor, so I only bought one book, a book on kabuki, that probably won’t be obtainable after the special (it’s an import). I did consume a substantial amount of time. The book was marked $19.50, which seemed slightly high considering the book’s slightly worn state. However, it does contain material I want very much, such as a translation of "Terakoya"(2) and a detailed discussion of the "stage business" in it. The clerk looked at the price tag, he didn’t merely glance at it, so I knew he saw the dollar sign. Even so, he charged me 1950 Yen for the book. In the event of a clear-cut error, I would press the issue and pay the higher price, but it is possible that the price tag had the correct figure, but expressed in the incorrect monetary unit. From Kinokuniya, I went looking for Takano to check their fruit juice. I missed the entrance, but re-found it before too long. They didn’t have much in the way of fruit juice, but they do have their own brand of white grape juice. From there, I wandered around a bit more in Shinjuku before heading to Ginza. I had a Wiener coffee in Toa and also read my book. Eventually, it seemed late enough to head for Darie, so I departed Toa. As it happened, I arrived at Darie a little before 1730, so I went over to Yamaha Music to look around. They don’t have a recording of Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto #2 either. Tsk, tsk. Having looked around, I returned to Darie. By mistake I ordered a soup with green beans and a green bean salad. It’s fortunate that I haven’t had green beans frequently lately. They were very good. The musaca was delicious. It seemed to be prepared to order, unlike Vakhos’ moussaka. On the way to Shinbashi Station I saw a few places with appetizing desserts, but I was full and was reluctant to spend the money. Also, I remembered Mr. Donut in Yokosuka where I can get a substantial, relatively inexpensive dessert. At Shinbashi Station I forgot that the Yokosuka Line tracks are now underground, but I found them without any real trouble. I got on the train at the front to be sure I got a seat. When the first four cars were removed at Zushi, I was able to get a seat in a remaining car. I didn’t buy any dessert once I was back in Yokosuka. I looked for the Canada Dry melon cream soda, but didn’t see any. And so, Back to the barracks.
(1) Aubrey Beardsley, 1872-1898, English author and illustrator http://www.giant.net/~amphagorey/beardsley/beardsley.htm (http://www.giant.net/~amphagorey/beardsley/beardsley.htm)
(2) Part of the kabuki play Sugawara Denju Tenarai Kagami http://www.kabuki21.com/terakoya.php (http://www.kabuki21.com/terakoya.php)
5 June 1983 (Sun): I got to the station a little earlier today, so I’ll arrive in Tokyo with a little more time before the performance than I would have yesterday. I managed to get a seat today, but more by being quick and alert than by being early. I looked for a hot snack before the kabuki, but to no avail. There is a small "stamina ... ramen" place on the next block, but it wasn’t open. The coffee shop around the corner, Iris, seems to have only sandwiches, toast, and pizza. [pizza would have been a hot snack–warm, at least!] Bunmeido was open, but has only sandwiches until 1100. I had coffee in Bunmeido. Then, I bought bento at the usual place(1) I had checked tho other place on the block before going into Bunmeido, but their offerings weren’t so interesting. Once in the Kabukiza, I checked the "curry corner", but they only had coffee. The kabuki was again excellent. I bought the bulletin of the International Friends of Kabuki and got more information about the "students’ kabuki" at the National Theater. I also learned that next month’s program, an Ennosuke "special", will quickly sell out. This makes the third time I’ve seen Renjishi(2), but I enjoy it every time. After the kabuki I debated the merits of eating immediately or waiting until I got to Kamakura (for a supper stop). Before long, I concluded that I needed food even though it wasn’t quite 1630. (I was right–I needed food) At Maharajah (it’s a good thing I like their food–it’s one of the few places where you can get a full meal before 1700) I had the roghan josh ala kabab, which was very good. I had enough room for dessert, so I went into Chatelaine. However, rather than wait for a seat, I came right back out. I was able to get a seat at Coffee Shop Towa, which I hadn’t noticed last night, so I came in and ordered an apple waffle, which was very good. While I was there, a waitress asked me if I would change a $20 bill. I declined because I don’t engage in unofficial monetary transactions. Then, to Shinbashi Station. This time, I went underground to buy my ticket and go through the wicket. I noticed that a vending machine on the platform had plum drink, so I bought a couple of cans to take back to Yokosuka and a can of UCC’s The Coffee" to drink there. The train didn’t pull up to the end of the platform, so I had to run back to get on. Since it was a short train, I hoped it wouldn’t stop at Zushi to uncouple cars. Oh well. Between Shin Kanagawa and Yokohama I saw a line I hadn’t seen before. I couldn’t find it nor its destination, Izumoshi, on my maps(3). I’ll find out sooner or later. And so, back to the barracks.
(1) Probably Hinode, across Harumi Dori from the Kabukiza.
(2) Famous kabuki dance http://www.kabuki21.com/renjishi.php (http://www.kabuki21.com/renjishi.php)
(3) Izumo-shi is way to the west in Shimane Prefecture very near the coast on the San’in Main Line. It seems unlikely that I saw a train going there from Tokyo that late at night, so I must have read the destination incorrectly.
6 June 1983 (Mon): It appears that Shindo is closed on Mondays. Therefore, I had to go elsewhere for lunch. Elsewhere was Ryu-En. I thought I ordeed pork soup noodles, but they brought me pork yakisoba. Oh well, it was very good. After lunch, I made a quick stop at Seiyu for tea bags and then bought a kobanyaki for dessert. Now I’m on the 1704 tokkyu to Yokohama. I was in the mood for cooked food, so I didn’t have sushi. I saw an unagi-ya and had an urge for unagi. The jo unaju was delicious. I had time after supper, and so went into Lumine’s "Delicious Market" for pastry. The rest of the day went as usual for Monday [AA meeting].
7 June 1983 (Tue): Lunch was at Hippo. The chicken rice was interesting and well made, but I didn’t care for it. I didn’t mind the spiciness, but I would have preferred something other than frozen peas & carrots in it. The corn was okay. Perhaps they don’t put cabbage in the rice because they use shredded cabbage in the salads. Carrots do look good with the pinkish (catsup in the cooking water?) Rice, but they could use a little grated fresh carrot. If they don’t have a chicken or meat cream sauce spaghetti, I may have to stick to the spaghetti & meatballs. After lunch, I went grocery shopping at Seiyu (for duty day). They have a special on fish, but it would have given me more fish than I could eat, so I bought some of the more expensive fish that wasn’t on sale. Well, I’m speaking of sashimi, rather than "fish" per se. I also bought a bundle of asparagus. The thin kind didn’t look fresh enough, so I bought the thick kind. It wasn’t really sweet, but it was very good. I also bought milk and yogurt drink for later use. They still didn’t have the Pasco peanut butter, so I didn’t buy any bread and/or jelly. For dessert use, I bought some donuts at Mr. Donut. I tried a couple of different kinds, "old fashioned" and "twist" (tsuisuto!), which were very good.
8 June 1983 (Wed): For lunch today, I had something [gyu-don] I had noticed on the menu at Shindo. It was tolerable. I won’t order it again. It was like a mini-sukiyaki, minus the liquid, over rice. Since I don’t like sukiyaki, I didn’t care much for this. After lunch, I went in to Seiju, found a pair of opera glasses I liked, and bought them. I hope they aren’t too strong. After work, I first stopped at Club Alliance to buy Yen. Then, I bought coffee and a yellow-orange melon I can’t recall having tried before, at Seiyu. The coffee is something of an experiment. I bought a new brand of canned coffee. It is produced by UCC(1). I had originally intended to have supper at Kujakuen, but I was more in the mood for pizza, so I went to Pinocchio for a "sea chicken" [tuna] pizza and a crab salad. Afterward, I was too full for dessert, so I returned to the barracks.
(1) http://www.ucc.co.jp/eng/ (http://www.ucc.co.jp/eng/)
9 June 1983 (Thu): Some days Genroku Sushi is better than on others. Today was one of the better days. They had a wide selection and what I had was fresh and quite good. Afterward I bought coffee sugar in Saikaya. Seiyu is out of the bags of coffee sugar and only has "sticks". Today I did have supper at Kujakuen. Once again I was able to try something new (shredded vegetables with vermicelli–it was heavy on the vegetables, which was okay) and have an excellent supper. The "familiar" dish was chicken with peanuts. After supper, I still had room for dessert, so I went to Fujiya. They have some new desserts and I tried the cassis/yogurt parfait. Yum. Before leaving I bought some ice cream and cheese tarts. I was glad to see more customers in Kujakuen. I do hope they stay in business. It will be quite a disappointment if I lose both the shinten and the honten ["new shop" and "original shop"]. The shinten will eventually be opening a "restaurant theater", but I’m not interested in that sort of thing. Invariably, either the food or the "theater" is second-rate, if not both, and the prices are high. I may be mistaken, but I don’t expect to be going to the Dancing Peacock.
10 June 1983 (Fri): Today’s lunch was at Chuka Hanten. I would have enjoyed some form of [ton] katsu, but I didn’t think I should test the temporary crown so soon. I went in with the intention of having tenshin don, but saw some lunch specials including "mabodofu (1) rice" and tried that instead. It was very good (and very soft!). Such a convenient power failure! A little after 1530. We closed the office and I’m now on my way to Tokyo Bunka Kaikan to blow the day’s budget on a concert. If I can get a ticket to the Garrick Ohlsson concert, I’ll attend that one. If not, I’ll attend the Fiedel Quartet concert. Surely they won’t both be sold out. One of the reasons that the Fiedel Quartet isn’t first choice is that I’ve already heard the Borodin String Quartet #2 this year. I plan to go direct to the ticket office. I’m not sure I’ll have time to eat supper. When I arrived at TBK, I learned that the ticket office quit selling tickets for the day’s events. Since I had about a half hour, this led me to try the restaurant at the park exit of Ueno Station. I have wondered about it for years. What I ordered was an ebi tama teishoku, sort of an ebi furai on a plate instead of over rice in a bowl (don). I ordered and went to the restroom. When I returned, the waitress had arrived with the meal. Schnell, nicht wahr? On seeing the ebi tama I was disappointed. However, it proved to be more tasty than it looked. The seaweed (?) accompaniment looked like what I used to get at the Pearlridge Daiei(2) with the mizutaki, but this was different and better–quite tasty. All in all, it was a nicely satisfying meal. I suspect the use of a microwave to heat entrees prepared in advance. I didn’t think to order dessert at the restaurant, which proved to be an error. Once back in TBK I went up to the area where the pre-concert ticket office is. Shortly thereafter, a line formed at the entrance. Even though people were paying, I suspected that this was a line for people who had reserved tickets. No one else was queuing at the booth, though, so I got in the line, just in case. My initial suspicions were correct. However, there were at least a couple of Japanese who made the same mistake. The booth opened a few minutes late, but not as late as I had thought (how time crawls when you’re doin’ nothin’). I bought my ticket and went up to the snack shop, only to discover that all the tables were occupied. Since I won’t sit at an occupied table except through the intercession of a waitress/waiter, I went elsewhere. At the coffee shop on !F below the restaurant (station), all the tables were occupied there also. I could see that a storm was approaching, but I was in a stubborn mood and headed for the omiyagi area below the park across from the station main entrance. Actually, if I could have bought something worthwhile to drink from a vending machine or kiosk at the park entrance, I would have settled for a drink and some candy, but all I could buy at the park entrance was Coke/Sprite/etc., in a cup. Sure enough, while I was down looking through the counters, it started to rain. My, did it rain. And not only that, there was hail–in June. I did buy a box of manju/tea cakes. When the rain became less intense I headed back up to the TBK. It was more of a problem than I had anticipated, because of a low place in the path. That put me out of sorts. I didn’t have time to backtrack and go the back way (as it happened, I did, but I might have found water in my path along that way also). With great difficulty, I managed to make my way past using the rail, but I was still fairly wet. The concert was most interesting Ohlsson is a pianist of formidable skill, but I suspect that he has some "original" ideas about tempo and note values. Still, it was a very enjoyable concert and it introduced me to the music of Scriabin, music I will definitely explore further. I made good train connections returning, but the Yokosuka Line train from Tokyo Station was the most crowded I’ve seen one of those trains in years. Still, I got a seat at Totsuka or Higashi Totsuka. And so, with a stop at the office to get my coffee from the refrigerator, back to the barracks.
(1) Mabodofu (aka "country tofu", "grandma’s tofu", and suchlike) is a dish of Chinese (Sichuan) origin that can be found outside of Chinese restaurants in Japan, like gyoza. In addition to the tofu it typically contains ground pork and sometimes some green peas, all in a spicy tomato-y sauce.
(2) A branch of the Japanese Daiei chain in Pearlridge Mall in Pearl City, Oahu, Hawai’i.
11 June 1983 (Sat): The weather can’t make up its mind today. When I awoke, it looked like it would rain. When I left, it looked like it would clear. On the train there was a rain squall, followed by mixed rain & clouds. At the moment (leaving Shinagawa) more rain seems likely. Getting up at 0800 is early enough to get me to Tokyo before the Tourist Information Center closes, and thus in time for lunch, as long as I don’t dawdle. I made a trip to the laundry, but that doesn’t take long if it isn’t crowded. I’ve been lucky enough to get seats all the way (change at Shinagawa Station to the Yamanote Line), so I’m primed for an afternoon on my feet prior to this evening’s kabuki performance (providing I can get a ticket to said performance). After getting a Tour Companion at the TIC, lunch was the next item on the agenda. It occurred to me that Indonesia Raya was around a couple of corners. That sort of food sounded good, so I went there and had the Bali rice set. I originally had my eyes on the chicken with coconut sauce, but rather than order a la carte, I had the set, which gave me a substantial meal for less than 2000 Yen. Last night’s concert still being on my mind, I went to Yamano Music to check recordings of Scriabin’s piano music. The most interesting items were two records of sonatas played by Ashkenazy and individual records of the complete piano music played by Ponti. Then to Matsuya Ginza. In the small Art Salon there was some attractive glass work, boxes, and objets, by a group. In one large room, there was a mixed exhibit whose significance escapes me. However, there was a fine samisen from 1770, examples of Japanese samisen notation, and a gorgeous Noh costume. In the other large room, there was an exhibit consisting of waterfront scenes and flowers. I much preferred the flowers. To me, waterfront/harbor scenes almost always look like the sort of thing you see in hotel/motel rooms. It occurred to me that I was thirsty, so I went up to Restaurant City. I noticed that there was an ikebana exhibit also on 8F and from what I could see, it was promising. However, I still wanted something to drink. Everyplace in Restaurant City was crowded, with the exception of the expensive Shiseido Parlour. I took the elevator down to B1 and escalator to B2 and had an iced Wiener coffee at the Capital coffee shop. Excellent. Then, I went back up to the ikebana exhibit. As is the case with any large exhibit, some items weren’t worth seeing. However, there were many items which were quite beautiful and/or ingenious. Even the "medium" items frequently contained unusual and/or attractive types of flowers. It was an exhibit well worth seeing. After that, it was time to mosey on down to the Kabukiza. I bought a ticket and was given a discount even without a passport. It occurs to me that the sales lady indicated that it was in the rear of the second floor. I hope it’s a better seat than I could have had on the third floor. After considering the matter, I decided not to get something to eat before the performance. I simply wasn’t (and still am not) hungry. I was thirsty though, so I bought a can of Canada Dry 100 percent orange juice. It "hit the spot." I didn’t bring the program with me, so I bought another one. I can send it to Mother. The kabuki was great! I liked it much better than the newspaper reviewer did. I didn’t eat anything meal-like, so I’m committed to having supper afterward. The reviewer complained that the spooky and/or grotesque stage business was cut or underplayed, but I thought the play was done quite well enough(1). For instance, the scene where Oiwa combs her hair is very effective as played. Oiwa’s lack of reaction is a good counterpoint to the grotesque sight of her hair coming out in chunks. Also, the sight of Oiwa’s ghost floating out of a lantern and through walls in the last act should be spooky enough for anyone. I liked the play. I didn’t consider it advisable to eat in Tokyo before returning to Yokosuka (I never do after the kabuki), so that means supper will most likely be Korean food. At about 2240, Hatsuten was still open and had several customers. However, Korean food sounded good, so I went to the old Korean barbeque restaurant and had kalbi, bibinba, & kimchi. Excellent. By carefully looking at the menu, I could see that they have a wider variety of items for barbequeing than I had realized. I must investigate the possibility of ordering pork or chicken. And so, back to the barracks.
(1) The play was Tokaido Yotsuya Kaidan or simply Yotsuya Kaidan http://www.kabuki21.com/yotsuya_kaidan.php (http://www.kabuki21.com/yotsuya_kaidan.php), which is usually presented in an abridged form. Oiwa was played by Bando Tamasaburo http://www.kabuki21.com/tamasaburo5.php
12 June 1983 (Sun): Supernumerary today(1). Therefore, I’ll only be venturing out for meals and quick shopping. I was in the mood for fillet katsu today and decided to try it at Shindo rather than the new katsuya. It was delicious! I suppose that’s where I’ll go for fillet katsu. Afterward, I went to Seiyu, but only bought milk. I had remembered while eating that I needed milk. For supper, I considered the Bistrot de Jeunesse, but decided that I would rather have sushi and so finally went to try the 50 Yen place. I was disconcerted because they don’t have a sushi bar. Unlike every other sushi-ya I’ve seen (excepting conveyor belt shops), you order the sushi all at one time rather than one order at a time(2). It came out okay, and I got everything I wanted. I was surprised at how cheap it was–only 720 Yen. For dessert I went to Fujiya and had another one of the new items, Bavarois aux fromage. Delicious! If they had had any savarin(3), I might have bought some goodies, but they didn’t, so I didn’t. Because of the rain, I splurged and took a taxi from the Main Gate.
(1) That means I was supposed to be available in case the person who actually had watch suffered some sort of calamity (or went "over the hill") and was unable to stand the watch or finish it.
(2) Well, of course you can order all at once at a regular sushi shop if you sit at a table, but this restaurant did not have the option of a sushi bar, which was unusual in my experience (except as noted). My term for the restaurant was derived from something on the window–I couldn’t figure out the actual name.
(3) Cakes soaked in syrup.
13 June 1983 (Mon): The people next door(1) did their best to interfere with my lunch. It’s a good thing I like sushi. In the interest of eating without waiting for the food, I ate at Genroku Sushi. It’s fortunate that they weren’t full. As it was the last time I ate there, the sushi was quite good. The time before that, the sushi was mediocre and the selection was limited. Since my supply of juice at work was running low, I went to Saikaya and bought a bottle of grape juice. I tried a new brand, Sun Ray. It hadn’t started raining by the time I left work, so I felt committed to going to Yokohama. I just missed the 1657 kaiso tokkyu. In actuality, I could have caught it had I run pell-mell up the stairs, but I’m not inclined to do that sort of thing. The 1704 tokkyu will get me there quickly enough. Once in Yokohama, I considered tenpura (there is a Hageten in Porta), but chose the Porta Chinese restaurant. For some reason, the waiter had trouble understanding that I wanted rice. Nobody else has that problem.(2) Anyway, the squid dish was excellent. Since there was enough time, I looked in Lumine Delicious Market for some goodies and found a section selling Chinese foods. I bought some pastries that aren’t as good as Kaseiro’s, but that are nonetheless tasty. On the way back, someone else living in Yokohama offered to give the Yokosuka people a ride to a train station. And so, back to the barracks.
(1) This is a reference to the assistant department head and the Chief Petty Officer who worked with him in the non-administrative part of the department office. I worked in the "Admin" part of the department office. They brought "do right away" work over just before lunch so often, it was obvious that they were doing it deliberately.
(2) I was asked whether I wanted bread or rice probably more often than a Japanese person would have been, but I hardly ever encountered resistance when I ordered rice.
14 June 1983 (Tue): Finally, I ate at the old sushi-ya [still can’t remember what or where this was]. However, I didn’t have sushi. I ordered jo tendon. I’m certain I said it clearly enough. However, the person who took my order must have forgotten exactly what I ordered, because a few minutes afterward he started asking me something. It took me a bit to comprehend that he was trying to ascertain which dish I wanted by asking about prices. He mentioned 1000 Yen, which is the price of the ebi ju don, and to avoid further confusion, I agreed with that. It was only 100 Yen more than the jo tendon. I didn’t get away from work until about 1700 because of an artificial crisis next door. Because the weather was so fine, I felt obliged to go somewhere. I chose Kanagawa Hakkei, which I’ve been considering for a while. There is a large bakery, Aoki, near the station. I kept it in mind for my return. There isn’t much in the way of restaurants in the vicinity of the station. There is a do-it-yourself okonomi yaki restaurant, but I’m not familiar with the process, so I don’t do-it-myself. There is a French-style restaurant, named Renga Goya, which has small servings and high prices. Next to it is a place specializing in kamameshi, but that isn’t my favorite dish. I set off down the road and reached the Sunny Mart, which may be the largest shopping center this side of Yokohama. However, it has a paucity of serious restaurants. Plenty of snack shops, but no serious restaurants that I saw. There was a snack shop named Kilimanjaro that looked like I might get a full meal there, so I tried it. Salad wasn’t on the menu, but they do have it. The salad went with the mix pizza coffee set and strawberry yogurt. It all made a very good meal. As luck would have it, in a corner of the center that I had overlooked, there is a restaurant. Oh well, I can’t complain about the meal I had. On the way back to the station I bought pastry at Aoki. The stock had been reduced substantially just in the time I had been gone. After I returned to the barracks, I had half of what I had bought. It isn’t quite as good ad Don Q or Belle’s pastry, but it’s tasty and they have a bigger selection than I can get from Pompadour at Saikaya (Yokosuka).
15 June 1983 (Wed): The last time I was at Shindo, it occurred to me that I could make a substantial meal of oyakodon and shumai for less that 1000 Yen. That’s what I did today. A substantial meal is indeed what it makes. In the interest of getting back to work on time, I didn’t eat the last few mouthfuls of rice. It does indeed look like there will be rain tomorrow (if not tonight). During the rainy season especially, it behooves me to take advantages, afforded by the weather, of going out of town for supper. Tonight I’ll go to Kamakura. The last time I was there, I didn’t look at the area around the station. That’s what I’ll do this time. By "area around the station," I include the narrow shopping street (Komachi Dori) that leads toward the Hachimanguu (shrine). The hydrangea are blooming. This weekend, perhaps I should go to that temple that is noted for its hydrangea. Speaking of hydrangea, I wonder where I can get an evening English-language paper this side of Yokohama. While looking in back of the station, I saw a store named Kinokuniya about a block away. I could see that it was closed, but I wanted to see if it’s a branch of the book store. It’s a supermarket. While looking around the station here & there, I didn’t see a whole lot (I missed one area), so I went to Komachi Dori. There were restaurants in fair number, not all of them what would interest me. A couple of the interesting ones were places where I couldn’t order by myself. I seriously considered a tiny Japanese restaurant, but I needed a restroom and wasn’t sure it would have one. I took a closer look at the menu of a place I had noticed the first time I passed it. It looked interesting, but I had more-or-less intended to eat at a new-looking Chinese restaurant I had seen. I had only gone a short way when I reconsidered. The restaurant, Saint Tropez(1), had three full meals for less than 2000 Yen each. That sort of bargain in western food is not exactly common in Yokosuka. So, Saint Tropez it was. It was an excellent choice, because the meal was delicious. I’ll definitely be returning there. None of the courses was very large, but there were many courses. On the way back to the station, I looked around some more and found many restaurants on side streets perpendicular to Komachi Dori. I should go to Kamakura more often. If I could have found or thought of a place to buy fruit juice for work, I probably would have, but I didn’t, so I didn’t (in actuality, there is the store in the Honcho, but their/its prices are too high). In front of the Club Alliance there were four drunks [American, obviously military], one passed out and another getting violent. The violent one was pushed into the bushes. Fun & games. And so, back to the barracks.
(1) As I recall, it was "Saint Tropez" and not "San Tropez".
1 June 1983 (Wed): I didn’t go out for lunch today because of being busy at work. I did cash my paycheck and buy Yen. Now, I’m on my way to Zushi to try the Cafe de Chaya. Food! I’m glad I went. It was excellent. Not so much emphasis on deli food these days, but they still make a mean corned beef sandwich (even without horseradish). The "sunny green salad" had pieces of nice lean Japanese bacon in it. The clam chowder was tasty. The pot sal [potato salad?] was quite good. The waffle with cream cheese & apricot jam was yummy. Now I have another reason to go to Zushi(1). I overindulged at Cafe de Chaya’s pastry counter, but I had 1000 Yen remaining from the previous paycheck, so it was okay. This time, I remembered to buy milk before returning to the base.
(1) The few worthwhile restaurants I found in Zushi weren’t actually enough to keep me returning to Zushi.
2 June 1983 (Thu): I got out late for lunch. It wasn’t very late, though, and I got a seat at Genroku Sushi, so I was able to get a quick lunch and have plenty of time for shopping. At the sushi-ya, I tried the salmon, which was only fair. I went shopping in Saikaya. A number of things caught my eye, but I only bought a chocolate bar at Mary’s (there was no doubt about that choice), a couple of Japanese "sun queen" oranges, and a bottle of Meidi-ya 100 percent apple juice. Since the price of apples has risen significantly, it seemed to be the time to switch to apple juice. Although the weather is clear, I don’t feel ambitious enough to go out of town for supper. Also, I spent more than usual at lunch time today. There is a justification for staying in town; I’m trying one of the pizza sets at Giraud. That should give me a filling supper and leave me with some money for more shopping. The pizza itself was good, but I wasn’t really in the mood for anchovies. The rest of the meal was quite good, even the potato salad salad (that isn’t a "stutter"). After hard thought, I remembered something for which I had a real need–cutlery. So, to Seiyu. Up on the 5th floor, I found the table cutlery, but saw no kitchen knives. Rather than try to use one knife for all purposes, I wanted two knives to replace the one I lost somewhere. I realized that I didn’t see any pots & pans either. I looked for cookware, but couldn’t find it. Then I remembered seeing that sort of thing in the basement. I went down there and found a table spoon (as opposed to a tablespoon) I liked better than the ones on the 5th floor and also an inexpensive kitchen knife. For the table knife, though, I returned to the 5th floor. Having bought something useful, I thought I should return to the barracks and did so via the office for my clothes (I still wasn’t able to do laundry, though).
3 June 1983 (Fri): While wondering where to go for lunch, Shindo occurred to me, and I went there because I intended to have supper at Kujakuen. While looking at the display case for ideas, I saw the subuta and decided to have that. Subuta wasn’t the sort of thing I originally had in mind, being more Chinese than Japanese, but I’ll have supper at Kujakuen anyway. I was, momentarily tempted by the idea of having supper elsewhere, but I did go to Kujakuen. As sort of (but not quite) a "mother & child reunion," I had "soft skins chicken" and crab meat egg foo yung. They were excellent. I didn’t want to take too much time shopping because I had to get back to base for supernumerary. However, there was enough time as long as I made only the purchase I intended and didn’t dawdle or other things. The first stop was Fujiya for lemon squash and canned coffee. If I had remembered to do so, I might have bought ice cream there, but I didn’t, so I couldn’t. Then to the Daido machine for peach/muscat nectar and guarana soda (okay, but nothing special). The machine which I thought would have the Canada Dry melon soda didn’t. I can’t remember for sure whether or not that is the correct machine. C’est la vie. And so, back to the barracks.
4 June 1983 (Sat): In the summer, on weekends, it may be advisable to take the JNR from Yokosuka if I’m planning to do any serious walking in Tokyo. The kaiso tokkyu was full on arrival at Chuo Station (0907). And I had foregone a chance to take a tokkyu fourteen minutes earlier, so that I would have a chance of getting a seat on the kaiso tokkyu. It wasn’t particularly important because I’m going to the Kabukiza, but on days when I intend to look at exhibits it might be preferable to take the JNR. Shock! The Kabukiza has been bought out for the day by a company. I bought a ticket for tomorrow’s matinee. That settles what I’ll be doing tomorrow. I figured I might as well go to the Tourist Information Center as long as I wouldn’t be seeing the Kabuki performances today. I got a Tour Companion and learned what is scheduled for the National Theater in July. It’s a "students’ kabuki" with lectures before the performances. Depending on the price, I may take Bob. In Tour Companion I noticed an interesting exhibit being held at Isetan, so I’m now on my way to Shinjuku. Before seeing the exhibit I had lunch. I arrived in Shinjuku in plenty of time to get to Isetan Renown Milano before it got crowded. Once again, I had the nasu (eggplant) gratin, but this time had the "salad a verde". It looked like spinach and was. Not fresh, but not canned. Thawed frozen spinach perhaps. It was served with a mild, tart dressing. After lunch I came to the conclusion that I had room for dessert, and back in the restaurant corridor Isetan Petite Monde had room for a customer, so I had a chocolate frozen yogurt. At first taste, the combination of tastes was a bit odd, since the frozen yogurt was the real (i.e., sweet/tart) thing. "Three Centuries of Czechoslovakian Glass ..." at Isetan was fascinating. A substantial exhibit, as usual for Isetan. While in Isetan, I learned that I will be able to see the Beardsley(1) exhibit there later this month. That means I didn’t have to go to Kita Shinagawa today. After the exhibit, I added my expenses and realized that I had already spent a substantial sum of money. I was wondering what I could do that would cost a minimum amount of money. I had neglected to bring reading material with me, so I couldn’t go to the park and read. Eventually, I thought of Kinokuniya and went there for a look at books. They were featuring books on Japan and there were many books I wanted. Money was a limiting factor, so I only bought one book, a book on kabuki, that probably won’t be obtainable after the special (it’s an import). I did consume a substantial amount of time. The book was marked $19.50, which seemed slightly high considering the book’s slightly worn state. However, it does contain material I want very much, such as a translation of "Terakoya"(2) and a detailed discussion of the "stage business" in it. The clerk looked at the price tag, he didn’t merely glance at it, so I knew he saw the dollar sign. Even so, he charged me 1950 Yen for the book. In the event of a clear-cut error, I would press the issue and pay the higher price, but it is possible that the price tag had the correct figure, but expressed in the incorrect monetary unit. From Kinokuniya, I went looking for Takano to check their fruit juice. I missed the entrance, but re-found it before too long. They didn’t have much in the way of fruit juice, but they do have their own brand of white grape juice. From there, I wandered around a bit more in Shinjuku before heading to Ginza. I had a Wiener coffee in Toa and also read my book. Eventually, it seemed late enough to head for Darie, so I departed Toa. As it happened, I arrived at Darie a little before 1730, so I went over to Yamaha Music to look around. They don’t have a recording of Tchaikovsky’s Piano Concerto #2 either. Tsk, tsk. Having looked around, I returned to Darie. By mistake I ordered a soup with green beans and a green bean salad. It’s fortunate that I haven’t had green beans frequently lately. They were very good. The musaca was delicious. It seemed to be prepared to order, unlike Vakhos’ moussaka. On the way to Shinbashi Station I saw a few places with appetizing desserts, but I was full and was reluctant to spend the money. Also, I remembered Mr. Donut in Yokosuka where I can get a substantial, relatively inexpensive dessert. At Shinbashi Station I forgot that the Yokosuka Line tracks are now underground, but I found them without any real trouble. I got on the train at the front to be sure I got a seat. When the first four cars were removed at Zushi, I was able to get a seat in a remaining car. I didn’t buy any dessert once I was back in Yokosuka. I looked for the Canada Dry melon cream soda, but didn’t see any. And so, Back to the barracks.
(1) Aubrey Beardsley, 1872-1898, English author and illustrator http://www.giant.net/~amphagorey/beardsley/beardsley.htm (http://www.giant.net/~amphagorey/beardsley/beardsley.htm)
(2) Part of the kabuki play Sugawara Denju Tenarai Kagami http://www.kabuki21.com/terakoya.php (http://www.kabuki21.com/terakoya.php)
5 June 1983 (Sun): I got to the station a little earlier today, so I’ll arrive in Tokyo with a little more time before the performance than I would have yesterday. I managed to get a seat today, but more by being quick and alert than by being early. I looked for a hot snack before the kabuki, but to no avail. There is a small "stamina ... ramen" place on the next block, but it wasn’t open. The coffee shop around the corner, Iris, seems to have only sandwiches, toast, and pizza. [pizza would have been a hot snack–warm, at least!] Bunmeido was open, but has only sandwiches until 1100. I had coffee in Bunmeido. Then, I bought bento at the usual place(1) I had checked tho other place on the block before going into Bunmeido, but their offerings weren’t so interesting. Once in the Kabukiza, I checked the "curry corner", but they only had coffee. The kabuki was again excellent. I bought the bulletin of the International Friends of Kabuki and got more information about the "students’ kabuki" at the National Theater. I also learned that next month’s program, an Ennosuke "special", will quickly sell out. This makes the third time I’ve seen Renjishi(2), but I enjoy it every time. After the kabuki I debated the merits of eating immediately or waiting until I got to Kamakura (for a supper stop). Before long, I concluded that I needed food even though it wasn’t quite 1630. (I was right–I needed food) At Maharajah (it’s a good thing I like their food–it’s one of the few places where you can get a full meal before 1700) I had the roghan josh ala kabab, which was very good. I had enough room for dessert, so I went into Chatelaine. However, rather than wait for a seat, I came right back out. I was able to get a seat at Coffee Shop Towa, which I hadn’t noticed last night, so I came in and ordered an apple waffle, which was very good. While I was there, a waitress asked me if I would change a $20 bill. I declined because I don’t engage in unofficial monetary transactions. Then, to Shinbashi Station. This time, I went underground to buy my ticket and go through the wicket. I noticed that a vending machine on the platform had plum drink, so I bought a couple of cans to take back to Yokosuka and a can of UCC’s The Coffee" to drink there. The train didn’t pull up to the end of the platform, so I had to run back to get on. Since it was a short train, I hoped it wouldn’t stop at Zushi to uncouple cars. Oh well. Between Shin Kanagawa and Yokohama I saw a line I hadn’t seen before. I couldn’t find it nor its destination, Izumoshi, on my maps(3). I’ll find out sooner or later. And so, back to the barracks.
(1) Probably Hinode, across Harumi Dori from the Kabukiza.
(2) Famous kabuki dance http://www.kabuki21.com/renjishi.php (http://www.kabuki21.com/renjishi.php)
(3) Izumo-shi is way to the west in Shimane Prefecture very near the coast on the San’in Main Line. It seems unlikely that I saw a train going there from Tokyo that late at night, so I must have read the destination incorrectly.
6 June 1983 (Mon): It appears that Shindo is closed on Mondays. Therefore, I had to go elsewhere for lunch. Elsewhere was Ryu-En. I thought I ordeed pork soup noodles, but they brought me pork yakisoba. Oh well, it was very good. After lunch, I made a quick stop at Seiyu for tea bags and then bought a kobanyaki for dessert. Now I’m on the 1704 tokkyu to Yokohama. I was in the mood for cooked food, so I didn’t have sushi. I saw an unagi-ya and had an urge for unagi. The jo unaju was delicious. I had time after supper, and so went into Lumine’s "Delicious Market" for pastry. The rest of the day went as usual for Monday [AA meeting].
7 June 1983 (Tue): Lunch was at Hippo. The chicken rice was interesting and well made, but I didn’t care for it. I didn’t mind the spiciness, but I would have preferred something other than frozen peas & carrots in it. The corn was okay. Perhaps they don’t put cabbage in the rice because they use shredded cabbage in the salads. Carrots do look good with the pinkish (catsup in the cooking water?) Rice, but they could use a little grated fresh carrot. If they don’t have a chicken or meat cream sauce spaghetti, I may have to stick to the spaghetti & meatballs. After lunch, I went grocery shopping at Seiyu (for duty day). They have a special on fish, but it would have given me more fish than I could eat, so I bought some of the more expensive fish that wasn’t on sale. Well, I’m speaking of sashimi, rather than "fish" per se. I also bought a bundle of asparagus. The thin kind didn’t look fresh enough, so I bought the thick kind. It wasn’t really sweet, but it was very good. I also bought milk and yogurt drink for later use. They still didn’t have the Pasco peanut butter, so I didn’t buy any bread and/or jelly. For dessert use, I bought some donuts at Mr. Donut. I tried a couple of different kinds, "old fashioned" and "twist" (tsuisuto!), which were very good.
8 June 1983 (Wed): For lunch today, I had something [gyu-don] I had noticed on the menu at Shindo. It was tolerable. I won’t order it again. It was like a mini-sukiyaki, minus the liquid, over rice. Since I don’t like sukiyaki, I didn’t care much for this. After lunch, I went in to Seiju, found a pair of opera glasses I liked, and bought them. I hope they aren’t too strong. After work, I first stopped at Club Alliance to buy Yen. Then, I bought coffee and a yellow-orange melon I can’t recall having tried before, at Seiyu. The coffee is something of an experiment. I bought a new brand of canned coffee. It is produced by UCC(1). I had originally intended to have supper at Kujakuen, but I was more in the mood for pizza, so I went to Pinocchio for a "sea chicken" [tuna] pizza and a crab salad. Afterward, I was too full for dessert, so I returned to the barracks.
(1) http://www.ucc.co.jp/eng/ (http://www.ucc.co.jp/eng/)
9 June 1983 (Thu): Some days Genroku Sushi is better than on others. Today was one of the better days. They had a wide selection and what I had was fresh and quite good. Afterward I bought coffee sugar in Saikaya. Seiyu is out of the bags of coffee sugar and only has "sticks". Today I did have supper at Kujakuen. Once again I was able to try something new (shredded vegetables with vermicelli–it was heavy on the vegetables, which was okay) and have an excellent supper. The "familiar" dish was chicken with peanuts. After supper, I still had room for dessert, so I went to Fujiya. They have some new desserts and I tried the cassis/yogurt parfait. Yum. Before leaving I bought some ice cream and cheese tarts. I was glad to see more customers in Kujakuen. I do hope they stay in business. It will be quite a disappointment if I lose both the shinten and the honten ["new shop" and "original shop"]. The shinten will eventually be opening a "restaurant theater", but I’m not interested in that sort of thing. Invariably, either the food or the "theater" is second-rate, if not both, and the prices are high. I may be mistaken, but I don’t expect to be going to the Dancing Peacock.
10 June 1983 (Fri): Today’s lunch was at Chuka Hanten. I would have enjoyed some form of [ton] katsu, but I didn’t think I should test the temporary crown so soon. I went in with the intention of having tenshin don, but saw some lunch specials including "mabodofu (1) rice" and tried that instead. It was very good (and very soft!). Such a convenient power failure! A little after 1530. We closed the office and I’m now on my way to Tokyo Bunka Kaikan to blow the day’s budget on a concert. If I can get a ticket to the Garrick Ohlsson concert, I’ll attend that one. If not, I’ll attend the Fiedel Quartet concert. Surely they won’t both be sold out. One of the reasons that the Fiedel Quartet isn’t first choice is that I’ve already heard the Borodin String Quartet #2 this year. I plan to go direct to the ticket office. I’m not sure I’ll have time to eat supper. When I arrived at TBK, I learned that the ticket office quit selling tickets for the day’s events. Since I had about a half hour, this led me to try the restaurant at the park exit of Ueno Station. I have wondered about it for years. What I ordered was an ebi tama teishoku, sort of an ebi furai on a plate instead of over rice in a bowl (don). I ordered and went to the restroom. When I returned, the waitress had arrived with the meal. Schnell, nicht wahr? On seeing the ebi tama I was disappointed. However, it proved to be more tasty than it looked. The seaweed (?) accompaniment looked like what I used to get at the Pearlridge Daiei(2) with the mizutaki, but this was different and better–quite tasty. All in all, it was a nicely satisfying meal. I suspect the use of a microwave to heat entrees prepared in advance. I didn’t think to order dessert at the restaurant, which proved to be an error. Once back in TBK I went up to the area where the pre-concert ticket office is. Shortly thereafter, a line formed at the entrance. Even though people were paying, I suspected that this was a line for people who had reserved tickets. No one else was queuing at the booth, though, so I got in the line, just in case. My initial suspicions were correct. However, there were at least a couple of Japanese who made the same mistake. The booth opened a few minutes late, but not as late as I had thought (how time crawls when you’re doin’ nothin’). I bought my ticket and went up to the snack shop, only to discover that all the tables were occupied. Since I won’t sit at an occupied table except through the intercession of a waitress/waiter, I went elsewhere. At the coffee shop on !F below the restaurant (station), all the tables were occupied there also. I could see that a storm was approaching, but I was in a stubborn mood and headed for the omiyagi area below the park across from the station main entrance. Actually, if I could have bought something worthwhile to drink from a vending machine or kiosk at the park entrance, I would have settled for a drink and some candy, but all I could buy at the park entrance was Coke/Sprite/etc., in a cup. Sure enough, while I was down looking through the counters, it started to rain. My, did it rain. And not only that, there was hail–in June. I did buy a box of manju/tea cakes. When the rain became less intense I headed back up to the TBK. It was more of a problem than I had anticipated, because of a low place in the path. That put me out of sorts. I didn’t have time to backtrack and go the back way (as it happened, I did, but I might have found water in my path along that way also). With great difficulty, I managed to make my way past using the rail, but I was still fairly wet. The concert was most interesting Ohlsson is a pianist of formidable skill, but I suspect that he has some "original" ideas about tempo and note values. Still, it was a very enjoyable concert and it introduced me to the music of Scriabin, music I will definitely explore further. I made good train connections returning, but the Yokosuka Line train from Tokyo Station was the most crowded I’ve seen one of those trains in years. Still, I got a seat at Totsuka or Higashi Totsuka. And so, with a stop at the office to get my coffee from the refrigerator, back to the barracks.
(1) Mabodofu (aka "country tofu", "grandma’s tofu", and suchlike) is a dish of Chinese (Sichuan) origin that can be found outside of Chinese restaurants in Japan, like gyoza. In addition to the tofu it typically contains ground pork and sometimes some green peas, all in a spicy tomato-y sauce.
(2) A branch of the Japanese Daiei chain in Pearlridge Mall in Pearl City, Oahu, Hawai’i.
11 June 1983 (Sat): The weather can’t make up its mind today. When I awoke, it looked like it would rain. When I left, it looked like it would clear. On the train there was a rain squall, followed by mixed rain & clouds. At the moment (leaving Shinagawa) more rain seems likely. Getting up at 0800 is early enough to get me to Tokyo before the Tourist Information Center closes, and thus in time for lunch, as long as I don’t dawdle. I made a trip to the laundry, but that doesn’t take long if it isn’t crowded. I’ve been lucky enough to get seats all the way (change at Shinagawa Station to the Yamanote Line), so I’m primed for an afternoon on my feet prior to this evening’s kabuki performance (providing I can get a ticket to said performance). After getting a Tour Companion at the TIC, lunch was the next item on the agenda. It occurred to me that Indonesia Raya was around a couple of corners. That sort of food sounded good, so I went there and had the Bali rice set. I originally had my eyes on the chicken with coconut sauce, but rather than order a la carte, I had the set, which gave me a substantial meal for less than 2000 Yen. Last night’s concert still being on my mind, I went to Yamano Music to check recordings of Scriabin’s piano music. The most interesting items were two records of sonatas played by Ashkenazy and individual records of the complete piano music played by Ponti. Then to Matsuya Ginza. In the small Art Salon there was some attractive glass work, boxes, and objets, by a group. In one large room, there was a mixed exhibit whose significance escapes me. However, there was a fine samisen from 1770, examples of Japanese samisen notation, and a gorgeous Noh costume. In the other large room, there was an exhibit consisting of waterfront scenes and flowers. I much preferred the flowers. To me, waterfront/harbor scenes almost always look like the sort of thing you see in hotel/motel rooms. It occurred to me that I was thirsty, so I went up to Restaurant City. I noticed that there was an ikebana exhibit also on 8F and from what I could see, it was promising. However, I still wanted something to drink. Everyplace in Restaurant City was crowded, with the exception of the expensive Shiseido Parlour. I took the elevator down to B1 and escalator to B2 and had an iced Wiener coffee at the Capital coffee shop. Excellent. Then, I went back up to the ikebana exhibit. As is the case with any large exhibit, some items weren’t worth seeing. However, there were many items which were quite beautiful and/or ingenious. Even the "medium" items frequently contained unusual and/or attractive types of flowers. It was an exhibit well worth seeing. After that, it was time to mosey on down to the Kabukiza. I bought a ticket and was given a discount even without a passport. It occurs to me that the sales lady indicated that it was in the rear of the second floor. I hope it’s a better seat than I could have had on the third floor. After considering the matter, I decided not to get something to eat before the performance. I simply wasn’t (and still am not) hungry. I was thirsty though, so I bought a can of Canada Dry 100 percent orange juice. It "hit the spot." I didn’t bring the program with me, so I bought another one. I can send it to Mother. The kabuki was great! I liked it much better than the newspaper reviewer did. I didn’t eat anything meal-like, so I’m committed to having supper afterward. The reviewer complained that the spooky and/or grotesque stage business was cut or underplayed, but I thought the play was done quite well enough(1). For instance, the scene where Oiwa combs her hair is very effective as played. Oiwa’s lack of reaction is a good counterpoint to the grotesque sight of her hair coming out in chunks. Also, the sight of Oiwa’s ghost floating out of a lantern and through walls in the last act should be spooky enough for anyone. I liked the play. I didn’t consider it advisable to eat in Tokyo before returning to Yokosuka (I never do after the kabuki), so that means supper will most likely be Korean food. At about 2240, Hatsuten was still open and had several customers. However, Korean food sounded good, so I went to the old Korean barbeque restaurant and had kalbi, bibinba, & kimchi. Excellent. By carefully looking at the menu, I could see that they have a wider variety of items for barbequeing than I had realized. I must investigate the possibility of ordering pork or chicken. And so, back to the barracks.
(1) The play was Tokaido Yotsuya Kaidan or simply Yotsuya Kaidan http://www.kabuki21.com/yotsuya_kaidan.php (http://www.kabuki21.com/yotsuya_kaidan.php), which is usually presented in an abridged form. Oiwa was played by Bando Tamasaburo http://www.kabuki21.com/tamasaburo5.php
12 June 1983 (Sun): Supernumerary today(1). Therefore, I’ll only be venturing out for meals and quick shopping. I was in the mood for fillet katsu today and decided to try it at Shindo rather than the new katsuya. It was delicious! I suppose that’s where I’ll go for fillet katsu. Afterward, I went to Seiyu, but only bought milk. I had remembered while eating that I needed milk. For supper, I considered the Bistrot de Jeunesse, but decided that I would rather have sushi and so finally went to try the 50 Yen place. I was disconcerted because they don’t have a sushi bar. Unlike every other sushi-ya I’ve seen (excepting conveyor belt shops), you order the sushi all at one time rather than one order at a time(2). It came out okay, and I got everything I wanted. I was surprised at how cheap it was–only 720 Yen. For dessert I went to Fujiya and had another one of the new items, Bavarois aux fromage. Delicious! If they had had any savarin(3), I might have bought some goodies, but they didn’t, so I didn’t. Because of the rain, I splurged and took a taxi from the Main Gate.
(1) That means I was supposed to be available in case the person who actually had watch suffered some sort of calamity (or went "over the hill") and was unable to stand the watch or finish it.
(2) Well, of course you can order all at once at a regular sushi shop if you sit at a table, but this restaurant did not have the option of a sushi bar, which was unusual in my experience (except as noted). My term for the restaurant was derived from something on the window–I couldn’t figure out the actual name.
(3) Cakes soaked in syrup.
13 June 1983 (Mon): The people next door(1) did their best to interfere with my lunch. It’s a good thing I like sushi. In the interest of eating without waiting for the food, I ate at Genroku Sushi. It’s fortunate that they weren’t full. As it was the last time I ate there, the sushi was quite good. The time before that, the sushi was mediocre and the selection was limited. Since my supply of juice at work was running low, I went to Saikaya and bought a bottle of grape juice. I tried a new brand, Sun Ray. It hadn’t started raining by the time I left work, so I felt committed to going to Yokohama. I just missed the 1657 kaiso tokkyu. In actuality, I could have caught it had I run pell-mell up the stairs, but I’m not inclined to do that sort of thing. The 1704 tokkyu will get me there quickly enough. Once in Yokohama, I considered tenpura (there is a Hageten in Porta), but chose the Porta Chinese restaurant. For some reason, the waiter had trouble understanding that I wanted rice. Nobody else has that problem.(2) Anyway, the squid dish was excellent. Since there was enough time, I looked in Lumine Delicious Market for some goodies and found a section selling Chinese foods. I bought some pastries that aren’t as good as Kaseiro’s, but that are nonetheless tasty. On the way back, someone else living in Yokohama offered to give the Yokosuka people a ride to a train station. And so, back to the barracks.
(1) This is a reference to the assistant department head and the Chief Petty Officer who worked with him in the non-administrative part of the department office. I worked in the "Admin" part of the department office. They brought "do right away" work over just before lunch so often, it was obvious that they were doing it deliberately.
(2) I was asked whether I wanted bread or rice probably more often than a Japanese person would have been, but I hardly ever encountered resistance when I ordered rice.
14 June 1983 (Tue): Finally, I ate at the old sushi-ya [still can’t remember what or where this was]. However, I didn’t have sushi. I ordered jo tendon. I’m certain I said it clearly enough. However, the person who took my order must have forgotten exactly what I ordered, because a few minutes afterward he started asking me something. It took me a bit to comprehend that he was trying to ascertain which dish I wanted by asking about prices. He mentioned 1000 Yen, which is the price of the ebi ju don, and to avoid further confusion, I agreed with that. It was only 100 Yen more than the jo tendon. I didn’t get away from work until about 1700 because of an artificial crisis next door. Because the weather was so fine, I felt obliged to go somewhere. I chose Kanagawa Hakkei, which I’ve been considering for a while. There is a large bakery, Aoki, near the station. I kept it in mind for my return. There isn’t much in the way of restaurants in the vicinity of the station. There is a do-it-yourself okonomi yaki restaurant, but I’m not familiar with the process, so I don’t do-it-myself. There is a French-style restaurant, named Renga Goya, which has small servings and high prices. Next to it is a place specializing in kamameshi, but that isn’t my favorite dish. I set off down the road and reached the Sunny Mart, which may be the largest shopping center this side of Yokohama. However, it has a paucity of serious restaurants. Plenty of snack shops, but no serious restaurants that I saw. There was a snack shop named Kilimanjaro that looked like I might get a full meal there, so I tried it. Salad wasn’t on the menu, but they do have it. The salad went with the mix pizza coffee set and strawberry yogurt. It all made a very good meal. As luck would have it, in a corner of the center that I had overlooked, there is a restaurant. Oh well, I can’t complain about the meal I had. On the way back to the station I bought pastry at Aoki. The stock had been reduced substantially just in the time I had been gone. After I returned to the barracks, I had half of what I had bought. It isn’t quite as good ad Don Q or Belle’s pastry, but it’s tasty and they have a bigger selection than I can get from Pompadour at Saikaya (Yokosuka).
15 June 1983 (Wed): The last time I was at Shindo, it occurred to me that I could make a substantial meal of oyakodon and shumai for less that 1000 Yen. That’s what I did today. A substantial meal is indeed what it makes. In the interest of getting back to work on time, I didn’t eat the last few mouthfuls of rice. It does indeed look like there will be rain tomorrow (if not tonight). During the rainy season especially, it behooves me to take advantages, afforded by the weather, of going out of town for supper. Tonight I’ll go to Kamakura. The last time I was there, I didn’t look at the area around the station. That’s what I’ll do this time. By "area around the station," I include the narrow shopping street (Komachi Dori) that leads toward the Hachimanguu (shrine). The hydrangea are blooming. This weekend, perhaps I should go to that temple that is noted for its hydrangea. Speaking of hydrangea, I wonder where I can get an evening English-language paper this side of Yokohama. While looking in back of the station, I saw a store named Kinokuniya about a block away. I could see that it was closed, but I wanted to see if it’s a branch of the book store. It’s a supermarket. While looking around the station here & there, I didn’t see a whole lot (I missed one area), so I went to Komachi Dori. There were restaurants in fair number, not all of them what would interest me. A couple of the interesting ones were places where I couldn’t order by myself. I seriously considered a tiny Japanese restaurant, but I needed a restroom and wasn’t sure it would have one. I took a closer look at the menu of a place I had noticed the first time I passed it. It looked interesting, but I had more-or-less intended to eat at a new-looking Chinese restaurant I had seen. I had only gone a short way when I reconsidered. The restaurant, Saint Tropez(1), had three full meals for less than 2000 Yen each. That sort of bargain in western food is not exactly common in Yokosuka. So, Saint Tropez it was. It was an excellent choice, because the meal was delicious. I’ll definitely be returning there. None of the courses was very large, but there were many courses. On the way back to the station, I looked around some more and found many restaurants on side streets perpendicular to Komachi Dori. I should go to Kamakura more often. If I could have found or thought of a place to buy fruit juice for work, I probably would have, but I didn’t, so I didn’t (in actuality, there is the store in the Honcho, but their/its prices are too high). In front of the Club Alliance there were four drunks [American, obviously military], one passed out and another getting violent. The violent one was pushed into the bushes. Fun & games. And so, back to the barracks.
(1) As I recall, it was "Saint Tropez" and not "San Tropez".