Day 13: October 30, Thursday

We spent yesterday and today hanging out in our neighborhood, trying to give the boys a chance to recuperate from their lingering colds. This afternoon, though, everyone seemed game for a trip downtown. So we boarded the train with one thing in mind: sushi restaurant. And not just any sushi restaurant. Rotating sushi restaurant. Our guidebook mentioned one, so after a bit of wandering we found it and it was, just as it is described, a restaurant where the sushi simply rotates around the counter and you take the plates you want. Archer was amazed at the "moving food!"

"It's movin'!"

Each plate cost 130 yen (just over a dollar), no matter what was on it. Some plates had 2 pieces of nigiri sushi, some had 4 pieces of maki sushi. You could even ask for special orders, so we got some toro (fatty tuna) and some other chef's choice special for just 130 yen! At one point, the chef offered Joe a giant rock, and we tried to get a translation on it but to no avail. On further inspection, we realized it looked like a shell or large barnacle, and watched the chef crack it open. In the end we ran out of time (and stomach space). I wonder what delicacy we missed. Oh, and Archer ate cucumber and eel rolled in seaweed, but only very tentatively. The rest of the time he snacked on a giant cream puff.

On our way out, we wandered around a bit and saw some interesting things in the "arcade" that the restaurant was located in.

In case you're still hungry after all the restaurants close down, you can order a hot dog or sushi or hot dumpling soup from a vending machine.

You know, sometimes the stereotypes just write themselves.