Travel Day. And what a travel day it was!

Today we traveled to Chiba City, which is across Tokyo Bay from Tokyo.

I started the day by going for a walk with Elise, a member of our group. We had a very refreshing walk. In the process we found a quiet neighborhood with some really nice supermarkets. Exploring supermarkets would become one of our favorite past times. It is amazing the different foods and products you can find. We decided to purchase sushi and drinks for the bus ride. It would be a picnic on wheels, while we did some sightseeing on our way to Chiba City.

When we arrived back at the hotel the Akasaka Shrine was having a festival in the hotal parking lot. The festival consisted of a parade with people in traditional costumes carrying an object that appeared to look like an alter. Not being familar with the costums I cannot explain the festival very well. It was very interesting to watch and makes me want to learn more.

We boarded the bus at noon, as scheduled, and were off. A little while later we were enjoying our picnic and chatting when all of a sudden the bus swerved and stopped. I looked up and our guide was flying forward, down the steps, and hit her face off the dash.

What had happened? There was all kinds of chatter and then we realized we had hit a car while coming through the intersection. We looked out the back window and could see the car crashed into a gaurdrail. The bus had hit the car, the car had spun around and hit a truck, then the car spun again and hit the gaurdrail. The driver and passenger were helped out of the car by some men. At the same time, I went up and checked on our guide. She said she was fine, obviously shaken, then immediately started making phone calls. She is one very tough lady.

When we looked out the window we could see men sweeping the street with small brooms. Even a monk stopped to help clean the glass off the street. I was surprised cars continued to move through the intersection, no one stopped traffic.

The EMS arrived very quickly. They checked on the people in the car, then checked on us in the bus. They had a card that stated in English "does it hurt here" and then they would point to body locations on the pictures. It was a very good way to communicate. You could tell they had delt with foriegn patients before. They were very professional. I was amazed how small the ambulance was. The EMTs had a backpack on that looked to contain medical supplies. That would be very handy.

Luckily no one was seriously hurt. We were taken to our hotel by taxi. Then went about our trip as if it was just another day.

We went out to dinner in a large group. We decided to go to a sushi restuarant. The shushi traveled in front of the counter on a track. You picked the plate you wanted. When you were finished the wait staff calculated your bill be adding up how many plates you have. There are so many costums that are based on the honor system. I always wonder if it would work in the U.S. this way.

The interesting part of this sushi trip was eating whale. Yes, it was whale! The meet was very dark and marbled much like beef. It had a very firm texture and did not taste like fish. Very interesting to the palette.

The last interesting experience for the day was wandering around a shopping area. We stopped to listen to some young street musicians and watch teenage girls giggle at them. We purchased there CD for 500 yen ($5). The girls insisted we wait and have the two guys sign it. The guys were very flattered when they signed our CDs and handed them back we gave them each a business card (maishi). The looked at us in surprise and said "sensai?" (teacher?). It made me miss teenagers from the states.

Another day of adventure. What will tomorrow bring?