Irises, Baby Dolls, & Conveyor-Belt Sushi

So on Sunday, we decided to head back to Meiji Shrine south of Shinjuku to see if the iris garden was finally in bloom. Atari! (We were probably about a week early ... "Pete the Impatient One" strikes again.) These just might be the most coddled irises on the planet, fussed over meticulously by a team of crack gardeners (see picture). It was definitely worth the visit! Here are a few more pictures.




On our way across the bridge toward Harajuku, we ran the gauntlet of "Cos-play-zoku," which are kids who dress up in outlandish outfits and pose for pictures. I'm sure they're the subject of some sociologist's life-work, but they're also just funny to gawk at. Little Bo'Peeps here didn't seem to mind posing. If it weren't raining torrentially, I'm sure the scene would have been even kookier.

Since this is Japan, it was soon time to eat. In the mood for a sushi snack, we found a kaiten sushi shop. Kaiten = revolving. I think you can find restaurants like this one in the US, too, but they're rare. The plates are color-coded by price, so it's easy to keep track of the size of the hole you're digging yourself into. You just grab whatever looks good as it floats by on the conveyor belt (but stay away from the shrimp ... everyone else seems to?!). We both ate well for under $9, so I think we did better than most. There was a guy next to us with a Dr. Seuss-ish stack of empties he'd have to account for. It could have been us! Coolest discovery: the self-serve bowl-o green tea powder and our very own spout dispensing piping hot water. Look for something similar in the restaurant we may one day open.