Welcome to Tokyo (ようこそ東京へ)

From now my adventures will be coming to you direct from Tokyo, where I will be for the next 4 months. 

Tokyo is an intense, mad, crazy and debaucherous city filled with even intenser, madder, crazier and more debaucherous people.  My first impression: Tokyo is like New York City on acid.

The contrast to life in Melbourne is dramatic.  Whilst venturing into the Melbourne CBD late on a weeknight might be like visiting a morgue, Tokyo is pumping like a heart that has just been ripped out of a man's chest Indiana Jones-style.  You get out of the subway at Shinjuku and you can feel the pulse in you - the fluroscent lights, the streets filled with people, restaurants jam packed, everyone going somewhere.

From my office in Akasaka, the city looks no different to any city.  But when you hit the street and walk across the road, you know it's on.  Each street is lined with multi-storey buildings and each floor has a business, most of which are restaurants or bars.  Imagine Curtin House in Melbourne (home to Cookie, the Toff and Rooftop Bar) lined up on each side of the road for miles on end. 

Food-wise, I am yet to have a bad meal - fresh sashimi sliced in front of your eyes, generous helpings of soba noodles served with spicy miso broth, crunchy perfectly cooked chicken katsu - the list is endless and will feature in more entries to follow.

Like any big city, the challenge is always avoiding the distractions and getting to the soul of it - finding the source of the pulse.  That is my goal in Tokyo and I hope you'll all follow me on this wild adventure.

Sayonara!!!!!!!!!!!!