B&E Photography: April 2013

The Alps in Japan are fresh, peaceful, and full of hot springs. From small mountain towns with historic relics covered in snow to monkeys bathing and swimming in natural hot springs.

We started out in Nagano where they had the 1998 Winter Olympics. It was a great little town that served as a central hub for venturing to the surrounding towns and villages. The first town we went to was far away in the hills where a troop of monkeys had made a naturally occurring hot springs their home. While the winters would dip into freezing temperatures, the monkeys would stay nice and toasty in the 103 degree mineral water bubbling naturally from the earth. It was completely hilarious seeing a monkey personify the spa experience. After our trip with the monkeys, we went and visited a Japanese castle in the city of Matsumoto where we toured one of the last 5 castles left in all of Japan. It was pretty amazing since a castle usually conjures up the image of a huge stone structure like those in Europe. However, this castle was almost completely made of wood and housed the local Samurai responsible for keeping it and the surrounding areas safe.

From the alps, we moved on to Tokyo. This city is brimming over with technology, activities, fashion, sushi, and people. We walked to an intersection called Shibuya crossing where every hour an average of 100,000 people cross the street. It is basically like a mini Time Square complete with restaurants, clothing shops, and lights. Not far from the crossing we caught a baseball game at the Tokyo Dome where the Tokyo Giants smashed the dreaded Dragons. It was a great game! What made it so interesting was seeing people eat sushi while they flagged down their favorite little beer girl that ran around filling up cups from the mini keg strapped to her back. However, the best sushi we had in all of Japan was found at the all too popular Fish Market where the famous Tuna auction is held everyday. With only 120 visitors allowed per day to see the auction, we had to get in line at 2:30a.m. to see the auction at 5. However, it was completely worth seeing the best and biggest tuna being sold off as if it was a prized antique. So prized in fact that sales from the market reach an annual level of 8 billion dollars. After the auction, on the grounds of the Fish Market, we ran over and got in another line where sushi that has just come off the boat is filleted and served to your salivating mouth. Man did that taste good! Now if you're not a fish eater, the next night we had the best beef we've ever had: Kobe. This beef melted in our mouths like Cotton Candy and had a marble running through it that would make Michelangelo jealous. It was simply an amazing dinner and I can't believe something could taste so good! Wait....actually....I can. For the price we paid, it better!

With our trip coming to a close, we ditched excess clothes and items that we no longer needed, packed up our things, and headed to the airport to catch our flight back to LAX. With our trip completed, we look forward to settling back into our lives and the thrill of getting to eat Mexican food once again!