Shrines, gardens, crepes, sushi - and hangovers! - Thursday 23rd

Well goodness me, this morning we are both in the worst condition of the holiday! Mainly self-inflicted, I'm afraid to say.  WOW may be my passion but WAW (whiskey and wine) has been our nemesis!!  Everything aches more than ever - why is it that last night nothing ached at all, not even our achey bits, and the world was forever fabulous? Pity that the booze wears off and the hangover kicks in whilst one is innocently sleeping ... still, it was a most memorable night with our new Finnish friends and I can only hope they don't feel as bad as we do!

So this new day dawns and we kinda wished it hadn't! Brett gets up, showers, gets back into bed. I notice but I do not stir. I dare not stir or my head might fall off, it is feeling very fragile. A bit later he gets up and put undies on. I do not stir and I get the feeling he wishes he hadn't bothered either. Some time later he is fully clothed, yet back in bed. I have still not stirred. I think I've been dreaming of Lapland and Aurora Borealis. It is getting on for midday!!!  Oh god help us, it really is time to get going. Aaaargh.

We have missed breakfast but our vouchers are good for the sandwich bar at the hotel so we sit and eat rather meekly, feeling worse than death warmed up. I think that death cooled down might be easier to cope with but I cannot be sure as I don't think I'm capable of thinking about very much at all right now. It wasn't just the WAW, you must be assured - we were poorly to start with!!

Today's mission is to make it to Harajuku where we will visit the Meiji Shrine and gardens.  It's a warm day, around 18 degrees. We find our train without problem and alight at the other end. The walk through the shady trees is therapeutic, there is no need to hurry. We are actually in a forest and surrounded by Camphor Laurels - the same variety of tree as the big one our house is built around. Only these are much younger, much smaller. Ours is the granddaddy of them all.  It's a shady and uncrowded wander, good head-clearing territory.

We visit the shrine and it is all very nice and peaceful, with that sacred vibe that is hard to describe. There is a reverence surrounding the place and I think the deities are allowing us to feel better with each passing minute.  We wander through the Meiji gardens - it's not so spectacular at this time of year as the irises and azaleas aren't out, but we stroll and envisage and find a quaint little sacred well and watch lots of hungry carp and it is all good stuff to bring the body back to some semblance of order.

We leave the tranquility of Meiji and head for the mayhem that is Harajuku - we wander down a street the is humming with life. It's lined with trinket shops and bling and pink and candy everything. Costume shops and creperies, cosmetics and junk. It's all here. People are wandering around with huge sticks of candy floss that is a cosmic blend of pastel green, yellow and pink, in the shape of a spaceship or UFO.  Gaggles of girls are consuming just about everything they come across. It's pandemonium in the sweetest way.

We feel tired. We are, in all honesty, struggling to put one foot in front of the other ... both of us have an aching-back-of-knee syndrome which we cannot fathom ... too much skiing? Too many stairs? Too much WAW? Too old, too sick, too knackered ...? We can't put our finger on it and have never had it before. And we both have it. Walking up or downwards is not easy. Good god, what has marriage done to us!!!?

I am transfixed by the crepe places ... there are heaps of them in this one small strip.  You can have virtually anything you like in a crepe that is then presented to you like a massive ice-cream cone.  There are plastic models of every concoction under the sun - banana, cream and ice-cream; strawberries, cream and custard;  cheesecake and cream; tiramisu and ice-cream.  Or ham and egg and so on if you must be sensible and go savoury.  I spend ages trying to decide what I will have and eventually settle on banana, cream, ice-cream and choc sauce. OMG it is a taste treat that far exceeds my excited expectations.  It is Easter Show and Disneyland and Pancake Parlour and the thrill of winning horses all rolled into one piece of edible heaven.  I immediately feel so much better.

We head back to the hotel, oh-so-very weary. We put our aching legs up for a bit, cough and splutter and lament being crook; the hangover is a distant memory but the ailments persist. It's actually a blessing we are both ill - would have a real bummer if just one of us. At least we are both just happy enough taking things easy rather than anyone needing to compromise or sacrifice or feel they are missing out on account of the other or holding the other one back. Thank goodness for small mercies!

We head down for a quick sushi. There is an excellent sushi bar beneath the hotel, it is busy and the sushi is fresh, delicious and filling. Actually, we can't finish it and they don't do doggy bags, dammit.

Soon enough we are asleep, after a tranquil low-key day that was all rather pleasant despite the very slow start and quiet finish.

OBSERVATION OF THE DAY: The Japanese males certainly look very sharp in their beautifully tailored coats. The fabrics and designs are a wonderful sight to behold and, what's more, all the guys, young and old, seem to really enjoy wearing and showing off these items of beauty. The Japanese man is a stylish being who carries himself with aplomb and confidence. Nice!