Tokyo, Japan

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A Buddhist Temple outside of Tokyo.

My first trip to Japan was a business trip that included stops in Amsterdam and Tokyo. At the time I was working for a big four accounting firm. The client was a software company located in San Francisco California’s Silicon Valley. My responsibility was to go to the Europe and Asia subsidiaries to look at controls they had in place to ensure that the company was in fact receiving all the royalties they were due for licenses issued.

After leaving Amsterdam, I flew to Hong Kong by flying over Russia and China, a twelve hour flight. There was a short layover in Hong Kong and then I flew for another eight hours to Tokyo. Arriving in Tokyo's Narita International Airport was a much greater language challenge than Amsterdam. The customs information to be completed was thankfully in both Japanese and English. However, due to security concerns and Japanese immigration procedures, customs took about an hour to clear.

After going through customs and picking up my luggage, I quickly found an ATM and picked up some Yen. Then using a tour book that explained about the JR (Japan Railway) Narita Express Train to downtown Tokyo and a helpful person at the travelers’ information desk; I was able to navigate the airport, purchase a train ticket at a ticket office in the Narita terminal, and then locate the correct train to the Tokyo station.

The trip to downtown was about an hour on the train. Sitting on the train I couldn’t understand the announcements, but there was a scrolling English language sign that indicated the various train stations. A Japanese mother with a small boy sat across from me on the train and even though I didn’t speak any Japanese, the boy kept laughing and talking to me. I just smiled and said hello. My stop on the JR Express was the Tokyo station where I was able to grab a taxi to my hotel the New Otani Hotel. When I entered the taxi I just said "New Otani Hotel" and the driver said "Hai" (Yes) and we were off. Evidently, even though he didn’t speak a word of English, he knew my hotel or at least I hoped he did. One word of warning about taxis in Tokyo is to be careful opening the door. The driver opens the passenger door automatically and if you reach to grab the door you can end up with a smashed hand. I only made that mistake once.

Flower Arrangement in the lobby of the New Otani Hotel

Arriving at the hotel, I was greeted by ladies in kimonos that bowed and welcomed me to the hotel. I checked in and was up to the room in a flash. I showered and waited for a call from Catherine, my wife. Catherine was flying in from San Francisco so we could spend the time together in Japan. Very shortly, I received the call from Catherine (thank God for cell phones). She had also grabbed a taxi and let me know she would soon be at the hotel. I ran downstairs and was very happy to have her with me. After some rest we went out on the town for dinner.

The gardens at the New Otani Hotel in Tokyo.

The accommodations at the Hotel New Otani included an American style breakfast and you could look out at the hotel's ten acre Japanese garden that has waterfalls and ponds. On a clear day, when you got off the elevator on the way to our room you could see the Tokyo skyline and off in the distance Mount Fujiyama. The main hotel in Tokyo opened in 1964, to coincide with the Tokyo Olympics and I remembered seeing the hotel in an old Cary Grant film made during the 1964 Olympics.

Another view of the gardens at the New Otani Hotel.

In the mornings, as I got ready for work, I watched Japanese Television that had a show of puppies playing with classical music in the background, nothing else no commentary, just the puppies playing for about half an hour. I don’t know why, but I found it to very peaceful and entertaining. Catherine was especially helpful on this trip because her mother was Japanese and Catherine had heard some spoken Japanese when she was growing up. As a result even though she doesn’t speak or read Japanese she could use a Japanese phase book and correctly pronounce the words.

My wife Catherine flew from San Francisco, California to meet me in Tokyo, Japan

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New York City, New York - Part II

I went to New York City on a business and my wife Catherine took vacation from her job to join me and we left on a Saturday so we could enjoy the city.

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Statue of Liberty from Battery Park at sunset

Catherine and I waited for the ferry at Ellis Island to go back to Battery Park and there was a beautiful sunset with the Statue of Liberty in the background.

Ellis Island Immigration Museum

After we left the Statue of Liberty we took a ferry to Ellis Island.

New York City skyline

On the ferry from Ellis island we had great nighttime views of the New York City skyline.

Personal memorial at World Trade Center Ground Zero

We walked from Battery Park all the way back to our hotel on 28th Street. Along the way we saw Ground Zero at the World Trade Center site.

World Trade Center Ground Zero

Firehouse Memorial across the street from the World Trade Center site

This is a 56-foot long bronze sculpture that shows firefighters battling the smoldering towers, located on the side of New York City's Engine 10 Ladder 10, directly across from Ground Zero. The memorial wall, the largest bas-relief sculpture in North America, has an inscription on its upper portion that reads, “Dedicated to those who fell and to those who carry on – May we never forget.”

A listing of active Fire Department members lost on 9-11 is displayed on the sculpture by rank (in alphabetical order) and includes each member’s company number. A timeline of major milestone events pertaining to attacks and the Department’s rescue and recovery effort is also incorporated into the base of the memorial.

Firehouse 10

Memorial inside the New York Fire Department Fire House 10 is located across the street from the World Trade Center site. They were the first to respond.

Christmas Trees

As we walked we also saw lots of Christmas lights.

A view of the hotel room at the Park South Hotel on 28th Street

While I was in New York I stayed at the Park South Hotel. For New York City it was a large room, centrally located in Manhattan, and very clean.

Catherine going to Grand Central Station from the subway system.

I told Catherine that I would take her picture and she is waving and trying to look at me, but is very distracted by the window shopping.

Catherine and I inside Grand Central Station.

One night we took the subway to Grand central Station and then walked to the Chrysler Building.

View of the the Chrysler building and lights reflected in a building next door.

Chrysler Building lobby

GE Headquarters at Rockefeller Center Plaza

We then walked up to Rockefeller Center and watched the ice skating and looked at the Christmas lights.

Ice skating at Rockefeller Center Plaza

Rockefeller Center Plaza

Bloomingdale's with snowflake lights

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New York City, New York - Christmas

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At the Empire State Building

My employer gave me the opportunity to go to New York City for a week. My wife Catherine took vacation from her job to join me and we left on a Saturday so we could enjoy the city. As usual when I am trying to catch a flight I was in a hurry getting ready and this time I left my camera at home. This was a big disappointment because I had especially wanted to take some pictures for this site. Catherine and I caught a JetBlue flight from Oakland International Airport to JFK Airport in New York. I was again very impressed with JetBlue for having a clean airplane and good service. As I have said before, they have become my preferred airline for domestic travel.

We stayed at the Park South Hotel on 28th Street in Manhattan. After we checked in we walked to the Empire state Building that was just a few blocks away. I have been there before, but my wife hadn't and I wanted to show it to her. There was a long line and it took perhaps an hour of standing in line before we arrived at the observation deck. However it was a clear night and you could see the lights of the buildings in Manhattan all around you. If you have never been before, be prepared for the long lines, but it is well worth it. By the way if you are military in uniform you can bypass the lines.

Since I didn't have a camera with me, we purchased this picture of ourselves at the Empire state Building.

Lobby of the Empire State Building

I thought you said you didn't have a camera? More on how I got these pictures later.

Lobby of the Empire State Building

Empire State Building with red and green lights for Christmas

The next morning was Sunday and we had the entire day to explore New York City. We walked up to Macy's on 34th Street and the windows outside were decorated with Christmas scenes. In the windows along 34th Street were scenes from the 1947 movie Miracle on 34 Street with Natalie Wood. Sorry no pictures, I didn't have a camera yet.

We then went to a camera store and I purchased a Canon digital rebel XT. On another night Catherine and I took the camera back to the Empire state Building and that is how I got the pictures of the lobby and exterior. For most of my trips I have been using a Canon 35mm SLR and a Kodak Easyshare digital for backup. I was a slow convert to digital because I felt the picture quality was so much better with film than digital. I have found that the picture quality has improved dramatically and having digital pictures makes it much easier to share pictures over the Internet. I didn't have time to play around with the setting in the beginning and I just shot using the automatic functions.

Empire State Building from Macy's on 34th Street

This is one of the first pictures I took with the new camera.

We then caught a subway train to Battery Park to catch a ferry to Liberty Island to see the Statue of Liberty.

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Ellis Island from the ferry

Statue of Liberty from the ferry

Another view of Miss Liberty

Catherine on Liberty Island with New York City skyline

Me and Miss Liberty

New York City skyline from Liberty Island

Original flame in the monument's lobby museum

In 1916 Gutzon Borglum, sculptor of Mount Rushmore, modified the Statue of Liberty original copper torch by cutting away most of the copper in the flame, retrofitting glass panes and installing an internal light. After these modifications, the torch severely leaked water accelerating corrosion inside the statue. A new torch with gold plating applied to the exterior replaced the original, which was beyond repair because of the extensive 1916 modifications. We took a tour of the Statue of Liberty and the Park Ranger told us that French sculptor Frederic Auguste Bartholdi, who sculpted the Statue of Liberty originally wanted the flame to be gold with light on the outside shining on the flame and that is now how it is constructed.

Life size of the face of the Statue of Liberty in the monument's lobby museum

Life size replica of the foot of the Statue of Liberty in the monument's lobby museum

For more information on our trip please check out: New York City, New York - Part II.

If you enjoyed this post, you might also enjoy previous posts Amsterdam, Netherlands or Swiss Alps - The Schilthorn, or Baden-Baden, Germany - Bavaria.

Use the search box at the bottom of this page to find previous postings on London, Amsterdam, Japan, Germany, Austria, Yellowstone, New York, Boston, Switzerland, Alps, Plymouth Mass., Washington DC, San Francisco, Manila, San Diego or Quebec.

New York City, New York - Pictures at Christmas

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We have returned from our trip to New York City and Christmas decorations were going up everywhere. Here are a few shots until I have time to post more information.

For more information on our trip please check out: New York City, New York.
If you enjoyed this post, you might also enjoy previous posts Amsterdam, Netherlands or Swiss Alps - The Schilthorn, or Baden-Baden, Germany - Bavaria.

Use the search box at the bottom of this page to find previous postings on London, Amsterdam, Japan, Germany, Austria, Yellowstone, New York, Boston, Switzerland, Alps, Plymouth Mass., Washington DC, San Francisco, Manila, San Diego or Quebec.