Since arriving in Tokyo my feet and ankles have been swollen. They dont feel any different except for the fact that all my shoes are extremely tight. Any excuse to buy some new shoes, right? So I left work at 5:30p (very early for Tokyo) and headed to the Ginza district which is filled with high end shops and 8-level department stores.

Two hours of shopping and two pairs of shoes later, the department stores close at 8pm. Leaving Matsuya Ginza, the employees were lined up at the bottom of the escalators on each floor bowing and bidding the shoppers farewell.

I wandered a bit and found a place to eat where I saw lots of locals enjoying themselves, it looked welcoming, so I sat at the bar and ordered the 5-piece chefs choice. Thinking it would be sushi, I figured it would be a good start while I got myself acclimated. And instead it turned out to be a potato, hard boiled egg, cabbage stuffed with something, and tofu, all in a brown broth and served with spicy mustard. Like an Irish stew but Japanese style. Google tells me I had oden for dinner.

I managed to eat 90% of it and can’t say that’s a meal I will crave upon returning to the States. Thank goodness I found Pompadour for a pastry while I strolled the Ginza streets.