Who'da Thunk

So we take off from the hostel...no rain.

I have to admit we were running late, I don't seem to be on the top of my game and it is kinda tickin' me off! We only had a few stops on the rail luckily but in overall we had only about 15m to get to the Imperial Palace that we were suppose to already be at at that point (they ask early arrival). So I propose getting a taxi, we pick one and get in and ask the driver to take us to the location and he looks at us like we are insane. He repeats the location back to us and I say yes...he is, what I believe, telling us its close and we can walk *driver points* that way. I am so pissed, I don't care if its close I need to get there in a hurry and I am flustered and pissed off so I just get out. We head in the general direction that we know its in and walk as fast as we can. Walk....Walk....Walk and WALK. It is so late now and all I can think is how I wish that stupid taxi driver should have just taken us like we want, I was gonna pay him, he is there for a service, is he not!?!? But, whatever. I was stewing over the situation as we walked and I was like we are never gonna get in at this rate because our reservations were for 1:30p and it is now 15m past...I was desperate running up to a cop and asking him to direct us. Well thank you cop, I told Grace he should have been our taxi driver because he pointed us in the correct direction. Unfortunately it was the direction we had just come from...back...track. So then we get to this next road and turn where he said to and I am like where are we in relation to what he told us....ope, ask another po-po. He points - eureka - the gate we need to enter. I was mentioning to Grace that I was needing just a bit of luck today so that something might go right. Well, it came in the form of a tour guide waiting for the last two tourists to arrive. He was the sweetest thing, he got us in (because if you don't have them there are guards/metal gates you can't get past) and got our headset for English tour. It was beautiful. We may have missed several stops on the tour but we were able to finish it! Thank goodness for small favors.







We made a quick stop at Hibiya Park on our way to Ginza-ku. Nice but nothing too great that we need to stay. Then it was on to the swankiest shopping area!

The whole point of going to this district though was the Kabuki-za, a very famous Kabuki theater. We bought a standing ticket on the 4th floor that was for just one act. I wish we could have been able to photograph, there was this SOOOO ADORABLE kid who was also apart of the show. He was stomping and dancing with the rest of them in time (sometimes off) but it was the best thing ever. It was the highlight I have to tell you, he really was something, measuring up to the others he was equal, taking his acting job very seriously and performing it with just as much grace as any other actor on that stage, plus he was totally KAWAII!!!

We decide to travel down several side streets while we are in the area and meander around. Grace was like pachinko?? I was like I don't know how to play, but we can do other slot machines. So we go in, we have no idea how it works and we are totally just wingin' it. Grace leads the way upstairs, we sit, get some tokens and start playing. We don't do so well so we wander down a couple seats to different machines. Well Grace sits down at some weird dragon one so I sit next to her. Me I am doing horrid, losing everything that I put in, meh. Grace is doing ok, winning a couple at least and then the dragon goes crazy lighting up and making lots of sounds. Then this guy comes over that works there and just jumps in and plays the machine for Grace, of course he wins her some. It was totally weird and awesome at the same time. She decided to continue playing the machine and that is where her awesome gambling skill game alive. She won SOOO much in tokens. So when we were finally done we collected a slip to take downstairs and get our money. Well, there is this booth that gives these weird plastic squares, me and Grace are looking at each other like what the hell is this for and why are you giving us this. The lady at the counter couldn't describe what it was so the guy that showed us where the counter was in the first place was the one she directed us to follow. Well, he starts to head out the back of the building and it is in this weird corridor and then we exit onto the side walk and then he turns left up these weird steps...Grace recites some of the Travel Bible travel tips about how we aren't suppose to follow strangers into unusual places. She was like are we gonna die, I was like well if we do at least we had a hell of a time up til now... We didn't die obviously and the guy was just taking us up one flight of stairs to the money exchange for those weird ass plastic tokens. But, it was a totally awesome experience!

Of course too many shops that we would never be able to afford. But we can say we walked through the area. Then, like clock work, I pulled Grace into a cd store and can you guess??? I bought more music!
Nat: GACKT-SAMA (newest release)!!!!!! and Kagrra's new release too!!!!

Back to the hostel, first stops first, 7-11 for dinner and money withdrawal. Must do laundry, well basically still waiting for the dryer at this point. Then it is shower, pack and sleep...that last line was almost a twitter moment...thank goodness I don't cross that line!

P.S. having technical difficulties with picture upload so will do more later. Gomen.