冬のソナタ 東京! #2 | Winter Sonata Tokyo

Day two arrived with cloudy and cold weather. In Bangkok, the weather report said sunny and 32 C....ah~...I shouldn't be in Japan in the winter! [>_<]

But.. I found something in the newspaper the day before leaving for Tokyo: an outdoor ice skating rink smack in the center of the city! Wow!! 行きたい〜！(I want to go!!) ^_^

I took the Tokyo Metro early in the morning to Akasaka station. There, I walked to the TBS (TV station) building and found the skating rink. It was soooo huge!! My mood became very excited and happy. ^_^

View:

I went over to get a ticket and ask how things worked. You need to have gloves, which of course I didn't have, so I bought some for ¥300. The entrance ticket was good for one day. Nice!

Ticket and locker area:

I laced up my skates, which I brought from Bangkok....^_^

...and enjoyed skating for almost 2 hours. I took photos of the great views:

View 1 (TBS building):

View 2 (station exits):

There was a guy practicing jumps and spins. He was pretty good..^_^ I wish I could still do that...@_@ (cutenekko secret: I took figure skating lessons from age 3~11. I learned: jumps, spins, ice dancing and precision team skating.)

After skating, I was pretty tired and hungry. The nearest shop was (gasp!) a Starbucks. I really don't like SB, but I was hungry...

My lunch:

I even sat outside and enjoyed the views some more. People walking by must have thought I was crazy. (laugh) But really, it wasn't so cold...and I drank a hot chocolate to warm up.

I think ice skating in different countries is my new passion. It's so much fun and very easy to make new friends or chat with strangers. The staff at the rink were all really kind to me. I was impressed with the quality of the ice, the size and cost. I would rate this rink a 9 out of 10. The only bad point? No music! When skating, I really want to listen to music.

While living in NYC, I skated in Central Park several times. How many countries have I covered so far? Let's see the checksheet!

Countries skated:

1. Canada
2. U.S.A
3. Thailand (weird, I know..)
4. Japan
5. ...next?^_^

After skating, I visited Maruzen (a book store) in Tokyo station. I picked up a really good book, "The book of Questions" by Gregory Stock, PhD. Inside, are over 100 unique questions that make you think. Some examples:

Question # 1: For a person you loved deeply, would you be willing to move to a distant country knowing there would be little chance of seeing your friends or family again?

(laugh...already did that... many years ago!)

Question #4: If you could spend one year in perfect happiness but afterward would remember nothing of the experience would you do so? If not, why not?

I am really enjoying this book. It's so interesting. ^_^

Later, I met a friend for ramen. Eating ramen was my request, since my friend often travels to Kyushu on business and mentioned "Ippudo"-- a famous noodle shop from Kyushu. We ate really yummy tonkatsu (pork based) ramen and chatted about music.

My ramen...

...and my friend's:

We also enjoyed gyoza (of course!):

During our music chat, my friend, who loves metal music, mentioned a famous guitarist: Yngwie Malmsteen. I had never heard of him, so my friend sent this video:


After watching, I could understand why many guitar players admire his style. His technique is flawless. o_O

I rode the crowded subway train back to my hotel during rush hour. It was really fun to experience the sensation of losing 3 kg by jamming oneself into a crowded train with 100 others. I laughed at Nihonbashi station; passengers literally fell out of the train doors to get onto the platform. Ah ~ Tokyo! Never dull...^_^

Akasaka Sacas ice skating rink will be open from 12/8, 2011 ~ 2/19, 2012. Entrance fee: ¥1,000 (333 baht / $10) Valid for one day. Time: Fri~Sun. 11.00 ~ 21.00 | Mon.~Th. 11.00 ~ 19.00. Access: Tokyo Metro, Akasaka Station. TBS Building exit. Skates, gloves, & lockers available to rent/buy. Helmets & knee pads are free. Gaijinpot has a great article with pictures of the night views. Very lovely! Visit HERE.

Ippudo is a chain of Kyushu style ramen shops. There are branches in Japan, Singapore, even NYC! Cost: ¥700+ ($7 / 250 baht). Website HERE.