Yesterdays was Monday for us and we are on the bullet train from Tokyo to Kyoto. Last night we overcame most of our jet lag. We stayed up until 10pm and slept (mostly) through the night.

Yesterday, Easter Sunday was a full day. James had a rough overnight with a bloody nose. He is prone to them (like his mother) especially after a cold. So he and I were up around 1:30am, after falling asleep around 8pm after our first full day in Japan on Saturday.

James is a real trooper and after we cleaned up what looked a little like a crime scene we both tried to go back to sleep, without much success. Ah well, that is what Kindles and audio podcasts are for. Remarkably, Jim, blessed with the senior male gene, slept through all of the excitement.

We had originally planned to go to the 10am Easter Service. But, given our early wake up, we decided instead to go to the 8:30 service. We took a cab to Tokyo Union Church. The building is quite interesting and the inside of the church featured stunning stained glass, lit by the early morning sun. The flowers with tropical lillies filled the sanctuary with a lovely scent. As is typical we were welcomed warmly and enjoyed a meaningful and special Easter service led joyfully by the Pastor. The choir filled the sanctuary with the sounds of hymns throughout the service and I particularly liked that they sat in the pews with us for most of the service, singing the hymns with us.

The church was located in the Shibuya district of Tokyo. We decided to walk around a bit before heading back to the hotel by subway. Most Tokyo subway stations have at least once entrance that includes an elevator or escalator, and after some looking we found one and headed down.

Jim thought he knew the destination station that was closest to our hotel based on his iPhone map directions. James thought we should choose a different exit, Roppongo, since that’s the Tokyo district where our hotel is located. We went along with Jim, but he was wrong, and we ended up a half mile away. But it was a great mistake, teaching us about the serendipity of travel. It turns out the “wrong” choice led us to a fabulous “Cherry Tree” pedestrian walkway that went through a park next to the Ritz Carlton. That was another bit of serendipity, because as we explained to James, you can always get a cab if you’re at a hotel, even if it’s not the hotel where you’re staying. And Jim was ready for a cab ride to our hotel.

The exercise was great, but we were still pretty tired even after showering so we decided to eat at the hotel’s Italian restaurant rather than go somewhere else and it was the right choice because we had the energy to do something else on our list: visit the Tokyo City View from the observation deck of the 50 story Mora Building next door. It was a great way to cap off our night. I’ll let James describe the view and compare it to the view from Toronto’s CN Tower which he visited in 2025.

Back at the hotel we were all fading and decided to rest before heading out to dinner. James got up first and went to the hotel gym for another work out. James ran on the treadmill first and then I joined him for a quick swim before dinner.

I’m looking forward to seeing our AirBnB in Kyoto in person. The Hyatt was a wonderful Hotel with great service and a fabulous Concierge. But our room was small like most affordable hotel rooms in big cities and of course we couldn’t open a window so there is no fresh air.

It was a beautiful morning this Monday morning so we decided to eat breakfast in the sun on the hotel’s 2nd story patio restaurant. .Eating outside was perfect and we all enjoyed the food and the sun. I got to enjoy a Japanese bento box breakfast, which I love. The men had eggs and very unusual, but yummy pancakes.

We took a taxi to Tokyo Station to catch the 2 hour “Shinkansen” bullet train to Kyoto. We planned to enjoy the shops and food before heading to our train but, unlike the other Japanese train stations we have used, Tokyo Station had almost no services after we passed through the turnstiles. So we arrived early but then had to wait an hour for our train with no shops or restaurants. No worries.

While I’ve written this blog sitting comfortably in our seats, our “Shinkansen” bullet train left Tokyo, first into the industrial area and then the country side. We’ve passed a big lake (Lake Biwa), photographed Mt. Fuji in the distance and passed lots of hills dotted with blossoming cherry trees. I even saw a large ferry boat crossing Lake Biwa.

Our Kyoto Airbnb.

We made it easily from the train to our Airbnb. The neighborhood is great and really quiet. The instructions were pretty good to get us to the small apartment. The pictures are similar to the unit. It does have 2 bathrooms and 3 bed/matts. Everything is very clean, but . . . very small. We expected small, but this is smaller than we expected. The staircase upstairs is sturdy, but as James would say “sketchy”, with no railing. The screen door is in good condition, but because it doesn’t have a rubber seal that connects to the sliding glass door the bugs can just go around the screen and follow the light into our living room. But the proprietor has been very responsive and hopefully will fix it tomorrow.

After we got settled and laughed quite a bit, we headed out to the coin laundry near by. We met a local there who gave us some tips and we had a great conversation. He’s studying modern and contemporary history (specifically imperialism affecting Taiwan). His English was excellent. While we were waiting for the laundry, we headed out to grab a quick bite.

On our way we crossed the canal and came across the most beautiful cherry trees reflecting in the water. Then we came across a Mexican restaurant in strange little office building that also housed some other small ethnic restaurants.

Here’s the entrance. James was worried. He said it looked sketchy. We thought it was pretty ideal. The food was simple, but good. James was a little worried but soldiered through.

James: Easter was great. Our pastor was full of energy and it was a cool building. It felt just like a regular Easter back in the home in the states. It took some walking after that, but it ended up being even better because of the aforementioned cherry trees. One of the main things I’ve found with this trip is that going the wrong way, more often than not, leads to another adventure. It’s been great to be able to workout and swim, too. The hotel had a very nice workout room and pool. Plus, I think I’ve finally stopped the bloody noses. The night before the train we went to the observatory and had a great view of the city lights. The Tokyo tower is the best at night. The bullet train was interesting; It felt kind of like a mix between a plane and a regular train. Our view of Mount Fuji was awesome. Pro tip: When going from Tokyo to Kyoto, sit on the right side of the train to see it better. I am writing this from our Airbnb. It is small, but it works. The beds were on the ground, but surprisingly comfy. I slept great. I am excited for the sumo wrestling demonstration at lunch.

After the appropriate time we headed back to the coin laundry, folded our clothes and then headed to the local market where we stocked up for breakfast.

Today, for lunch, we are going to a sumo demonstration and chicken hot pot meal. Stand by!

Jim: I’m continuing to enjoy sharing time with my two travel buddies. Our Easter service was one of the best I’ve attended in years. The Pastor was definitely in tune with the Holy Spirit, and the setting, music and sermon were perfect. The Easter miracle and our individual lives are, as the Pastor said, definitely analogous to the miracle of dormant cherry trees awakening, blooming beautifully, living vibrantly, returning to dormancy and re-awakening again, in accordance with God’s plan. T

The rest of Easter was full of serindipities, ending with the beautiful nighttime lights of downtown Tokyo from 50 stories up.

The Shinkansen “Super Express” Nozomi bullet train is always a treat, as we journey 230 miles in just over 2 hours, including just 2 short stops along with way.

Our Airbnb in Kyoto is a very small 2 bedroom, 2 bath apartment, but it’s in a very quiet neighborhood next to a Buddhist temple. We sleep on floor mats which are quite comfortable, but for me, getting up from the floor takes some effort, especially in the middle of the night.

This morning we watched the NASA feed of the Artemis II spacecraft just before and after it went through a communications blackout as it went around the far side of the moon and began its journey back to Earth.

Now we are heading out to begin our exploration of Kyoto with James on foot, including lunch at a Sumo wrestling demonstration. Tomorrow, we’ll be e-biking around Kyoto in a 5 hour guided tour. I’m much better at e-biking than walking so I’m really looking forward to that and the weather should be sunny all day!

Dewa Sayonara!