yokai

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    Wonderful Weekend Of Superb Cycling

    Blessed with outstanding weather and lucky schedule breaks, I’ve just finished an amazing three-day weekend of cycling. I got to get on the bike as part of a cycling club’s call for riders to share their cycling experiences. My duties to the local estate threatened to put paid to my riding over the weekend, but things worked out and I could ride on all three days of the event. Today was the highlight, and I was supposed to lead a ride from Tokyo Station to Inokashira Park in Kichijoji. We were to follow the delightful Kanda River cycling course, which weaves through the central city, through the leafy suburbs and…

  • A Monster Mashup In Western Tokyo

    Given the gift of an afternoon off, I got on my bike and rode somewhat familiar paths to get reacquainted with old monster “mates” I’d encountered in days gone by. First, I met green Godzilla, a topiary treat from Toho, before heading toward Chofu to see a collection of the yokai spirits created by Shigeru Mizuki. A little bit of a roundabout journey followed, dropping by the Ghibli Museum in Mitaka and then onto the Kokubunji Totoro before racing back to pick up a new phone bought because the battery in my old one conks out within a couple of hours of using it. Unfortunately, performance on the new phone…