…a little of that.

First up, food. Let me say right off that food is likely to come up quite a bit in these posts. It’s probably because I’ve never seen so many restaurants jammed together in my life. I would bet a dollar that more people eat in restaurants here per capita than anywhere else in the world. We were told by a native that the reason Japanese restaurants are usually of such high quality is because there is so much competition. There are 13-plus million people here all very hungry, and all (seemingly) with money to spend. Whatever the reason, you will never starve in this city, although you may go broke.

So not only are there restaurants galore, there are a plethora of specialty store and shops supporting the culinary industry. There is a store that sells nothing but salt. Yes, salt. A bewildering array of every type of color, texture, and flavor (if that’s possible, given that salt tends to have an underlying ‘saltiness’). I’ve observed that McDonald’s fries seem to be much saltier here, which I consider to be a good thing. Oddly enough, Heinz ketchup is notably sweeter; not so good. Speaking of McDonald’s, we were at a Shinjuku branch over the weekend and like most restaurants and establishments, there was more than one floor. On the second floor eaters are treated to counters and and almost cubicle-like layout. My quarter-pounder wasn’t ready at the same time as Amy’s hamburger but no worries, a helpful associate brought it upstairs to me after it was freshly cooked. Now that’s service.

On to the pictures of the school girls. I took those photos today and tried to be discreet, not wishing any mothers to call the police. Every time we’re out and about and see the little kids in their uniforms marching along resolutely, we invariably turn to each other and say, ‘they’re so cute!’ I don’t know if it’s a private or public school thing, but all of the kids seem to wear uniforms of some sort, only distinguished by their age and grade. They are invariably equipped with large, sturdy backpacks and sailor-style hats. Today, walking around Roppongi (one subway stop away) school had just gotten out and there were lots of kids heading toward the subway. Many of them were with parents, but these two, who couldn’t have been more than seven or eight, were walking along by themselves, chatting and giggling, without a care in the world on one of the area’s busiest streets. Kids here are very independent (and as you can see, very cute).

Dinner tonight was Mexican. It’s a restaurant in the area that Amy assured me had received good reviews. It was described online as ‘…the best Mexican restaurant in Tokyo,’ which is kind of like me being described as the ‘tallest person in our apartment.’ But I was pleasantly surprised. The staff was friendly and the food was good, if different than the usual California-Mexican fare. We’ll go back, but next time we’ll get a reservation. Believe it or not it was very busy on a Tuesday night.