Poplitea

 This morning we checked out from the ryokan, but left our luggage, and then split up for the morning. I took the bus over to Asakusa, and prowled the small shopping streets around Sensoji temple. Then we met up at 13:00 by the Hozomon gate, bought lunch together from the various food vendors around before taking the subway to Harajuku together just to have those crepes one last time (they really were delicious <3) before splitting again. I went on a mad spree to buy some last omiyage to bring back to the family. Hubby hadn’t thought to buy any so far, at all, so now, on the second to last day he started panicking over it, while I’d been buying small things here and there for the entire trip. So I said I’ll handle it, since I actually find it enjoyable to shop for things, unlike him.

By 18:00 we met up by the ryokan again to pick up our luggage and then on to Ikebukuro to meet our friends one last time in Japan. We had dinner at some place trying to emulate a 1920’s yakuza atmosphere, which would have been impossible for just us as tourist to stumble upon, and our friends had to do all of the ordering since there weren’t an English menu. And it was all very tasty :3 And they even brought a late surprise birthday cake for hubby, so we got to sing him (to the glad bemusement of all the Japanese patrons) “happy birthday”.

Finally, we took a train from Nippori out towards Narita airport, and we arrived at our last hotel for the trip around midnight (yet again. Midnight is apparently our perfect check-in time, no matter how little I enjoy finding my way through dark, unknown streets, dead tired and with heavy luggage).