Busting in on the Scene : Toyko Wanderings

This is the second in the series of posts about my six-day trip in Japan

Unsatisfied with my spaghetti sandwich, Kat and I made our way to a Japanese, greasy-spoon diner, where despite the massive efforts of Japan to curb the appetites of its nicotine-loving citizens, patrons could still happily puff away.

After a long morning of travel, we happily dug into a meal of the Japanese versions of Salisbury steak and chicken-fried steak, the latter the enormously popular dish called tonkatsu, a breaded pork cutlet served with Japanese "gravy." By the time lunch was over, it was time for check in at the well-appointed, clean and friendly, Anne Hostel in the historic Asakusa neighborhood.

We got settled and then wandered down the street where we interrupted a film crew shooting in front of Senso-Ji Temple, the oldest in Tokyo dating back to 680 A.D. Night had fallen, and the temple was closed, so we explored the booths of the Nakamise-dori marketplace teeming with snack foods and souvenirs, both cheesy and classic.

Now, dear reader, you will know that I am the most honest of narrators when I confess, 12 hours in my vacation in Japan, I am not diving into a bowl of icy soba noodles or spearing a too-fresh-to-be-believed sliver of raw tuna ... No, I'm sitting at Denny's.

I saw those brightly illuminated yellow letters and was overcome by my need for a honest-to-goodness tuna melt. Don't ask me where these crazy cravings come from. I also blame, in part, the last novel I read, which took place in a Tokyo Denny's.

We opted for the non-smoking section -- not that it mattered in the big, square restaurant. I opened my menu, flipped through all 10 pages -- twice -- closed the menu and walked right out of Denny's.

The have NO tuna melt.

"I'm only in Japan for six days -- that's 18 meals -- and I'm not about to stay in a restaurant out of courtesy," I told Kat who was feeling abashed for drinking the water and then bailing.

We left and had some lovely curries and nan down the street from Anne Hostel. There would be time enough for sushi tomorrow.

Check out my photos, "Tokyo, Metropolitan Mecca," on my Facebook page.