We said goodbye to Hong Kong today and hello to Tokyo today. The Airport Express to Hong Kong airport was fast and comfortable. Though it was nice to get some cash back we were a bit sorry to return the Octopus cards. These stored value cards were not only used as tickets on the MTR and trams, but also for purchases in bakeries, supermarkets and other shops. So nice not to fumble for change. Sydney is long overdue for this technology.
Both of our Cathay Pacfic flights have been superb, with the exception of the food. The entertainment system wasn’t working properly on this flight and was rebooted a number of times. This seems to be a common problems across airlines.
Our flight path took us near a number of storm clouds and things got bumpy as we skimmed along the high altitude cloud tops. Seems to be a common problem for flying north across the Pacific.
Caught the Narita Express to Shinjuku for the seventh time, it is all very familiar to us now. That’s the nice thing about staying here in Shinjuku. There’s a lot to see (and many places to shop), but we know our way around and we can relax now. Upon entering the hotel room we had a pleasant surprise. What was once a slightly run down beige and white room with a great view is now a hip looking space complete with a widescreen LCD TV and, still with a fantastic view. Cool!
We saw many cherry blossoms on our ride into Tokyo, so hopefully we’ll get a chance to walk amongst them during our stay here.