As 10AM rolled around I was off to Tokyo, using the Seishun 18 Kippu. At about 7PM, nine hours of train travel, I walked through the gates at Tokyo Station.
People say when a trip starts out bad, you should postpone the journey for a luckier day. Maybe I should have taken this advice. After checking into my hostel and paying for it, I had about $60 in my pocket. This $60 is all the money I have left in Japan. But no worries, I had a plan! I had $300 left in my U.S. bank account. All I had to do was withdraw that! WRONG!
Went to the ATM. Declined. Another ATM. Declined. Now I was worried. Stuck in Tokyo, one of the most expensive cities in the world with $60 in my wallet. I was going to hook up with some people from the hostel to go have a fun Saturday night out in Tokyo, but alas it was a night of a $5 Yoshinoya Beef Bowl and a bottle of water.
The next day I headed off to Nikko. The transportation was "free" because I already paid for the Seishun 18 Kippu. After a 3 hour train journey I was greeted by snow! Nikko, unknown to me previously, is very cold! It apparently has weather similar to Hokkaido. But finally I could go see the 3 wise monkeys (hear no evil, see no evil, speak no evil). A 1000 yen combination admission ticket got me into most of the temples, the lady even gave me a 300 yen discount!
Hear no evil, speak no evil, see no evil.
Nikko's sacred bridge
Unfortunately because I still had no luck with my U.S. ATM card I couldn't afford to try some of the famous yuba cuisine of Nikko.
After getting back late to Tokyo, I ate another beef bowl. Then I saw a Burger King, a rarity in Japan, so decided to indulge myself in a thick juicy Whopper. Then back to the Hostel for another night. I have an itchy throat, I hope I am not getting sick. I am drinking 1000mg of vitamin C every night at the local seven-eleven.
I meet Damien and Michelle on Tuesday.
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