BUSY TIMES IN THE LAND OF THE RISING SUN! Updates on Various Comings and Goings

The cherry blossoms are always a sight to see, especially along Meguro River!

Having just moved to Tokyo from Gifu Prefecture, I've been busy. So I haven't blogged as much as I could have. Plus, not having Internet installed at home yet makes things that much more difficult. So I'm going to do a quick update on some of the things I've done since moving to Tokyo at the very end of March. Enjoy!

One highlight was attending an elaborate Eiji Tsuburaya/Ultraman exhibit in the Shinjuku Takashimaya department store. Plenty of artifacts, props, and even suits were on display. Japan remains the only place to see such cool stuff.

I also visited the brand-new Kaiju Sakaba bar in Kawasaki. After waiting in line for nearly two hours (!), I finally was able to sit down and order food and drinks. Was it worth a two-hour wait? Not really. It lacks the heart of the now-closed Kaiju-ya in Shibuya. Still, once the lines become shorter over time, Ultraman fans will want to check it out.

The biggest highlight so far was visiting Godzilla series composer Riichiro Manabe again. I brought him some Japanese sweets, which he enjoyed. We had a nice chat about things, and he's doing well. I look forward to visiting him again.

Although I didn't go inside, I got to see Atami Castle for the very first time. I'm saving the trek inside for a future visit. Definitely look forward to it!