Back in Cyberspace

Well, it has been a long time since my last post and for that I apologize. Before Christmas I was in England with Tony's mother and once I got back it was full steam ahead for the Christmas run. Hugo and Ryan arrived 5 days before Christmas and Henry and Cat piled in on Christmas Eve. They all took side trips to Kyoto and Hugo and Ryan had a couple of days in Osaka. In between times we took in some great days of sightseeing and shopping (mainly window shopping at the current prices and exchange rates) and had some terrific meals. One of the highlights was New Year's Eve. We had dinner at Gonpachi, a famous restaurant used as the backdrop for a well-known fight scene in the movie, Kill Bill. Then near midnight we went over to the Zojoji Temple, near the Tokyo Tower.

There was a huge crush of people and the sides were lined with stalls selling food and drink. At midnight everybody released clear helium balloons and the year was lit up on the tower. There was much good-natured cheering, singing and jostling. If you have to be in the middle of a huge crowd, this is the place to be! We attempted our own little 'gaijin' corner singing Auld Lang Syne, but were less than effective.We nearly lost Tony as the crowd heaved and he thought he might land in the middle of the stand where they were frying potatoes (the Japanese LOVE potatoes), but we managed to hold on to him. The crowds were enormously jolly and very well-behaved.  It was a truly memorable night....I am including a video of the temple, showing the balloons being launched and the tower in the background;