Today was a bit of an odd start. Marina and I had made plans to go to Nikko but apparently after I went to bed she realized it was going to rain in Nikko and messaged me that. In the long run we got a little crossed up but decided to go to Yokohama instead (fortunately neither of us went to Nikko). This being my third trip to Japan and staying in Tokyo I was happy to finally get to see Yokohama so I agreed it would be a good idea. Originally I had the intention of getting back early and heading out to Fuji to climb it today but when I got to Yokohama I could feel my calves were still far too tight. I didn't want to injure myself on the climb so I decided before Marina and I met up that I would not do the Fuji climb today but would instead do it on my return day from Sapporo. I realize that it makes it a tad more difficult to make sure I do it but all the same I would rather not cripple myself in the process and not be able to enjoy the rest of the trip.
We both got to Yokohama by our own separate ways as it was easier for each of us and met at the station, eventually at the west exit. From there we took a short subway ride out to the Gaijin Cemetery. The cemetery was used to bury foreign soldiers from WWII that had died in Japan. There is a memorial to the fact that Admiral Perry was there. We then walked out to the waterfront of that area and then started a circuit of all the foreign style houses that decorate the region even stopping in a couple of them. They all used to be owned by gaijin but eventually they have turned into restaurants or museums. We worked our way down into the town where we finally made it to the famous Chinatown region of Yokohama. In Chinatown we ate at the Kafuku Chinese Restaurant which basically serves everything in smaller portions. You pay 1980 yen and get up to 128 dishes. Only serious eaters could make it through 128 dishes I am sure. It was basically a non-buffet way of serving a buffet. We had a lot of different types of food from preserved duck eggs to dumplings to chicken with cashews. To list them all would definitely take some time. The food overall was very good. I had a couple beers to go along with it all. After lunch we walked a bit more then chose to have coffee. I had mine iced (they do that here) as it was so incredibly hot out. It was around 90F for certain and very humid too. After the coffee we walked to Yamashita Park and saw the Hikawa Maru which was a 1930s passenger liner that had been converted to a medical ship by the Japanese during the war then turned into a transport by the allies after it was over. Eventually it again became a passenger ship before it was moored where it is today and has stayed since the 1960s. With both of us having leg troubles we really didn't rush to get anywhere though so we sort of hung out at the park for a while then eventually made our way to Osanbashi Pier where we again took it a bit easy and basically waited for it to get dark to see the city in the night time.
Around sunset we made our way outside and began to take pictures of Minatomirai and the other various portions of the city that you can see from the pier. Minatomirai is the "New City" of Yokohama and has a very large ferris wheel that was at one time the largest in the world (not anymore). The wheel lights up in may patterns and colors when it gets dark out. You can also see the rainbow bridge from the pier so I have seen that from both sides. When we had exhausted our need to take pictures we decided it was time to start heading back and to find something to eat on the way back. We sort of took the long way around to Kannai Station which is further out than Yokohama Station from home but it appeared to be where we needed to go. On the way we found a Matsuya restaurant which basically is a ticket restaurant. We both got a Korean beef over rice dish and I had a beer to go along with it. Matsuya is a chain restaurant but the place was spotless clean and the food was actually quite good. Ticket restaurants are basically the Japanese answer to fast food. Buy a ticket for the meal item you want and they get you the food very quickly. After dinner we made it the rest of the way to Kannai Station. Marina rode to Yokohama Station and then hopped off to connect to her train back to Shibuya. I just stayed on and waited until I reached Hamamatsucho. I think in the long run she had a shorter ride than I did. I made it back by 10:30 and then spent a few minutes soaking my legs again in hopes it would help them get better. It felt good anyway. They had turned off the AC in my room while I was out so I had to crank that up for a few minutes but the cold water helped cool me off. Even though it was dark out by the time I got back it was still very very hot outside.
The pictures from today are located here.
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