Started the day off slowly, as is starting to be the very relaxed routine, and then at one ish headed to the office with Pete to hopefully get my new insulin pump. Unfortunatly, it won't actually be here until tommorow due to a customs clearance delay, but I managed to edit a chunk of my book, and also read the end of it, which was less cring inducing than it might have been - O certainly did provide some good inspiration! I think the fact that none of the jokes seemed familiar/I couldn't remember what I'd written, probably means that I've been editing waaaaaaay too slowly! Maybe I should use the inspiration of NANOWRIMO to finally get the damn thing done.

Pete had a meeting in Meguro (I think) at 4:30, but since he said there was nothing to do really in that area, I embarked on yet another transit adventure to try and get my 'gaikokujin toroku kisai genpyo' which roughly translates into 'proof of residency form'. Since I don't have my alien registration card, but I want to open a bank account, I needed to find the Shibuya ward office (like our city hall), and pay them 300Y to print out a piece of paper with my address on it.

The actual ward office was fine, but finding it was quite the challenge! First, I got off at the wrong station - confusing the JR 'Yoyogi' station, with the Metro 'Yoyogi Koen'. Whereas Yoyogi Koen would have been OK, Yoyogi definatly wasn't, so after I wandered around for about half an hour, I gave up and re found the station, to get back on a JR train and head down to Shibuya station. Which was fine, except that Shibuya station has about 10 different exits, and when I finally got outside I was completely turned around. Luckily, there was a touch screen map, in English on a street corner nearby, so I was able to punch in 'Shibuya Ward Office' and get directions...

After I got my little piece of official paper, I headed back into Shibuya (the ward office is a little bit out of all the action), and headed up to the 7th floor of tower records, which is the best english book section in the city. I ended up picking up a rough guide to Tokyo guidebook, and then checking out all six of the music floors while waiting for Pete to finish up a meeting he was having in the area...

Met him in a Tully's coffee, and then we headed to Sonoma, a funky little place on the third floor of a building in an alley/super narrow street in Shibuya. Pete actually thought we were heading to a curry restaurant he'd been to about ten years ago, but the space has changed hands, and we ended up in a california/mexican inspired restaurant with some asian influences I guess...

Our waitress had flawless English, without an accent, so Pete asked where she was from, and she told us - Kobe. So he asked if she'd lived overseas, and she said - "Well, for the last four years I've been in France". Her English was very impressive, and Pete is guessing maybe she went to an international school... We had spicy spring rolls, and a chicken appetizer, and then Pete had sword fish and I had chicken enchiladas w/ beans and spanish rice. It was very good! Although not exactly Japanese, this meal, unlike all the others, involved chopsticks, so I suppose we're progressing culturally....

Came back home and watched some gymnastics (!!!!!!) on TV, and while reading Metropolis,
discovered that there is a touring show of RENT coming to Tokyo in November!!!!!! I'm soooooo excited!!!!! Also found a foreigners welcome tennis club, and a couple of women's soccer teams, so I have to look into that...

Tommorow we'll be either going to China Town or to Roppongi Hills, in either case photos to come. Also, Pete feels we need to be including more of him on this blog, so stay tuned for 'Peter and Venus' photographic house tour' in the next couple of days...

D