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Kanazawa to Tokyo

We finally made it back to Tokyo! 

The Shinkansen trip from Kanazawa was pretty smooth - the seats were a bit newer than other trains, with more hooks to hang things, adjustable head rests, and plenty of space to recline even if the seat behind you is occupied. Of course, in preparation for the journey, we bought bento boxes - this time, I chose a two-tiered box, featuring specialities from Toyama. It was a lot fancier than I expected for less than $15 - coming in a cloth-like wrapper (like a home-made bento), with an illustrated map of Toyama, and even a printed menu of all the items included! There were so many different foods that it took me awhile to finish, as I tried my best to savour the flavour of each bite.

When we reached Tokyo, we settled into our APA hotel with a sense of returning to familiarity. I forgot one more thing in my earlier comparison with Via Inn - APA provides a couple of water bottles when you check in. Tiny differences in the grand scheme of things, but the little things do add up to a nicer overall experience. 

Since the Tokyu Hands in Kanazawa didn't have a woodworking section, we decided to check out the Ginza location, which has a whopping 5 floors. It was really neat walking around the larger store because it had so many more niche items like DIY miniature projects, felting supplies, earring supplies, and lunch box bags. We ended up picking up a few more things to bring back home as souvenirs!

Dinner tonight was in Shinagawa - back to a favourite izakaya near the train station. Sushi no Isomatsu was much busier than I remember from previous visits, probably because their food was still delicious. I was so excited to finally eat proper anago after so long that I was a bit worried my memory would be better than reality - luckily the reality proved worthy! We enjoyed lots of fresh sushi - including their omakase and their tuna sampler. 

Maybe because I had stayed in Shinjuku previously, I had the perception that Tokyo was a city that never sleeps. This was definitely not the case as we walked around both Shinagawa and Ginza in pursuit of some dessert, and found most places closed by 9:00, with their last call at 8:00, on a Saturday night. Ah well - we'll hopefully have a bit more luck tomorrow once we get settled in.

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