19 November 2019
Training day
The Tokyo Metro Museum in Kasai
Today was my last rest day. Tomorrow, hiking, Thursday, fly home.
I had no plan, so I just scrolled around google maps while having my breakfast coffee. I landed on a train museum. I like train museums. Last year I went to the big one near Omiya and that was great. Today I went to a small one at Kasai, in the East of Tokyo, and it was ok. It is small and cheap, but held my attention for an hour.
The highlight is undoubtedly the spot where you can stick your head through a hole and take an idiotic selfie. Apparently I am too old to play train driver with the school kids, otherwise that might have been the highlight.
After absorbing all the knowledge on offer about the Tokyo metro, I re boarded the Tokyo metro, and saw that it went to Takanodababa, across the other side of town. That is close enough to my hotel, so I went there and walked around and had some lunch. Nothing interesting about that, but I did manage to have a mochi rice ball in syrup with whipped cream sandwich for lunch. Luckily I did not choke on it and die, because that seems to happen with alarming regularity!
This just left a pleasant stroll back to my hotel through Toyama park, which is not in Toyama (I have been to Toyama which is near Kanazawa). I am now relaxing and drinking a lot of water because I think I let myself get dehydrated yesterday. Tomorrow might be one of my shorter remaining hike options, perhaps one without any sliding down sandy and rocky cliffs so that I dont ruin another pair of pants.
Well, rain was forecast. It rained just before dawn. It was not raining now on the streets of Kasai, and soon after, clear blue blinding sky again.
Around Kasai station there is a giant fan, which had Koreans fleeing in terror of fan death.
These are the two full train carriages in the metro museum. The one on the right is a full replica of the first ever subway train to operate in Tokyo.
The inside is the same as the subway car I rode to the museum on, except its pink. Why are they not pink anymore? I scoured for info. All I could find was paragraphs of information on the silver seat fabric they used to use to designate seating for old people and what they reused it as when they phased it out. It is quite weird which bits of the museum had extensive English translations and which did not.
There are not many trains, so here is a bonus shot of the trains they do have. The entry fee to this place is only $2.50.
Japan had elephants? I thought it might have been a translation error, so I quickly searched, and yes, Japan used to have a native elephant species!
I got 9 out of 9.
My head is way too big to fit through the hole.
The school kids in matching colored mullet hats were aggressively preventing me from getting a turn on the train simulator.
Even Rod Stewart is jealous of this model railway. He has been in the news recently because he proudly allowed reporters to see his own awesome model railway he has been building for 50 years.
Red sultana drink? It debuts today, and is available across Tokyo in huge displays such as this. I think its a can of red wine?
Its my old car! In yellow. I wish mine was yellow instead of boring silver, but it is a GT3 MkII club sport just like mine.
Here is one of the alleyways of Takanodababa, a fun place name to say. featuring identically dressed business men.
Takanodababa is a busy place, multiple rail lines go through here.
The walk back towards my hotel was blinding! Japanese roads are very reflective, especially the paint.
Clear Pepsi Max (NEX). Great stuff. Lacking in potassium though.
This is Toyama park. It is just a neighborhood park, but quite large.
My journey back towards my hotel took me through Koreatown again, which was already quite busy in the early afternoon. Thats all for now.