Ninjas and stuff

Went to the Ninja restaurant the other day and saw my first Ninja! It's super kitsch but super fun. You walk into a room with no doors, then a panel suddenly slides open and a Ninja pops out and takes you down a series of narrow passage ways till you get down inside. Turns out the Ninja is your waiter and he delivers everything to you in a Nijaesque way.
Being sent off in grand Ninja fashion.

Other weird things I've seen...
Is the glass half empty or half full? This guy either won big at Pachinko or he's about to spend his life fortune.
Red Bull spends a lot on vehicle advertising. Look at this pimped out jalopy/jeep with turntables in the rear!

The Japanese Aesthetic...
In Rem Koolhass's book, SMLXL he analyzes the Japanese Aesthetic. You see it everywhere...
The simplistic sake pitcher...

Organized garlic...

Perfectly marbled beef...

Subdued colors of package desgin

This stuff rocks. If you like Calpis, you'll love this.

Akira

My brother from another mother, Akira made this ring for me. I'm so impressed with it. Akira is a super talented actor who I met in HK 8 or 9 years ago. He's living with his family in London, but is back in Tokyo on a little vacation. I'm glad he's here cause Tokyo just ain't the same without him! It's nice to have friends like him.

Toyko Randomness

So I've been here for just a bit over ten days now and am just beginning to get settled in. I know my directions now and I am getting to know my hood. The subway and train system is insane but I'm figuring that out too. The food here rocks. Ramen has been my staple but I'm moving on. The above phot is of the awesome Prada building in Aoyama designed by Herzog and De Mueron. So nice and classy. Too bad such a nice building is wasted on a fashion outlet. Below is some other randomness that I've been seeing.
I was walking around Ikebukuro the other day and suddenly saw this tower. What the hell is it? Does anyone know? It's got a couple windows on it and it wasn't emitting any smoke or steam so I don't think it's a power station. It looks relatively modern too.
Puffer fish. An aquarium of death. I have yet to try this dangerous delicacy. I heard it's delicious.
My good friend and spiritual brother from another mother, Akira, is back in Tokyo and he took me to see his friend who runs the only isolation chamber in Tokyo. I had been hearing about this thing forever and have been wanting to try it for so long. It was a really cool experience.
An hour and a half went by like it was 20 minutes and my mind went off while I was floating in the warm, body temp water in total sensory deprivation. They say it's like being in the womb again. I'm not sure about that, but I did have a huge craving for a glass of milk afterwards. I wouldn't try this if you are the least bit claustrophobic. If your in Tokyo and want to give it a shot or you just want to learn more check out the Ecco Project.
Seryna in Roppongi is one of Jackie's favorites. Beef downstairs and Japanese hairy crab upstairs. It's a real old school joint with waiters in vests in bow ties and the waitresses in kimonoes. The beef is like butter and the crab is the sweetest you'll ever have.