Wednesday 26 September 2007. Day 37. Travel from Tokyo to Hiroshima on the Bullet Train - Shinkansen

Check out and get the tube to Tokyo station, and get the Shinkansen to Hiroshima. Train is great – loads of room and very comfortable. Man next door to Lou soon move seats – no doubt sick of the constant coughing and hacking from Lou! See Mt Fuji out of the window, although it is quite overcast so don’t get a great view, plus some great views of the sea, towns, and countryside. Change trains part way and arrive about 3.30pm.

Taxi to Comfort Inn hotel – room is ok with 2 single beds and a strangely positioned mirror on the wall, which due to the height of it, allows you to see your stomach but not your head – maybe a Japanese thing! Go out to explore and look for a Teppanyaki restaurant. End up at the Gran Via hotel by the station in the basement, and go in and order beef, chicken and vegetables. We are then told we will be cooking our own tea on the griddle in the table in front of us – much to our surprise, and so our food arrives (there seem to be mini portions of meat – 2 squares of beef and 3 of chicken – and we gingerly get cooking! We also have a handful of beansprouts, plus a slither of green pepper, a slice of onion each and a couple of pots of sauce plus a chunk of butter to cook in. We duly cook our dinner before wolfing it down in minutes and escaping the restaurant, a little unsure how we ended up cooking our own Teppanyaki – Ieuan has assured me that this is not how it’s usually done! We supplement our tiny meal by stopping off at J’s café for some fruit juice, potato wedges and chocolate cake!