Asia Adventure 2016

I just returned from a 3 week trip to Asia, and have decided to memorialize it via the blog. It was a work trip, so most of my time was spent doing work stuff, but the trip did take me to 4 cities in Japan along with visits to South Korea and the British Indian Ocean Territory. 

The Ramen Game in Japan is strong!

A street in Yokohama

The team I traveled with left on a Friday and after a short 12 hours of flying we landed in Japan on Saturday night. Sunday was a rest day due to the time change so we made the most of it by walking around Yokohama where we were staying. It's Japan's second largest city and had some cool attractions, most notably a HUGE museum to the Japan's favorite invention of the 20th century - instant ramen. 

Me at work. Working.

The work week was long, but during the nights we were able to get some authentic Japanese food and Chinese food, as we were staying in Yokohama's Chinatown.

Yokohama's Chinatown

On Thursday we went to the base of Mt. Fuji. Luckily it was a clear day so I was able to snap a pic with the mountain.

A clear day at Mt. Fuji. The locals taught me how to pose.

On Saturday we spent more time in Yokohama and relaxed a little bit before moving down near Nagasaki on Sunday. Saturday night had a beer festival, which was a great time. I had a coconut stout that blew my mind.

Relaxing by having fish eat the dead skin off my feet. Kinda gross, but it felt terrific.

Yokohama at Night

The team enjoying the Yokohama beer festival

Riding the bullet train

On Monday we traveled to outside Hiroshima, but between the work and travel didn't have much time to enjoy the local culture.

On Wednesday we took a ferry boat over to South Korea. It was a high-speed hydrofoil ferry that put the Seattle ferries to shame. A smooth ride was further made enjoyable by a couple of Japanese beers.

Getting off the Ferry in Busan, South Korea

We were only in South Korea for two nights, but it was a fun little adventure. I found the part of South Korea we stayed in to be very interesting, but the people didn't seem as friendly as they did in Japan. Due to the language barrier we ended up accidentally ordering Chicken Feet for dinner the first night. The second night we played it safe with a seafood barbeque hot pot type meal.

Enjoying some Soju before the accidental Chicken Feet order.

The accidental order of Chicken feet. I tried to eat one but gagged.

The better meal the second night. It was real spicy!

The second weekend we spent in Tokyo at a very nice hotel that is run by the DoD. It is in a great location.

We were close to nightlife in Roppongi, so of course we had to leave our mark on Tokyo by becoming the shot champions. And then going back the next night to re-take the record away from our challenger.

Becoming shot champions of Tokyo the first time.

Becoming shot champions the second time.

We also did a tour, since we felt we should do at least some tourist things and see the sights.

The view from the Tokyo Tower

We hit up the Tsukiji fish market, the worlds biggest and enjoyed our last sushi of the trip.

The fish market had lots of fish and other odd foods.

Sunday was a hangover day.

Monday we flew out to Diego Garcia which is in the British Indian Ocean Territory. We flew 8 hours to Malaysia and then another 5 to Diego Garcia. We flew in a plane than had been converted to mostly haul cargo. It took a long time to get there.

Diego Garcia from the plane

We were only in Diego Garcia for 30 hours, and then started our trip back to San Diego. That trip was even longer, and took about 36 hours, including 22 hours in the air. I was exhausted by the time I got back to San Diego.

I got to spend a total of about 10 minutes on the beach at Diego Garcia

Everything is a long way from Diego Garcia

We went to a Mardi Gras party in Diego Garcia. The cover band's guitarist did this during the solo of Freebird. Epic.

It was a good trip, but very tiring. Lots of moving around, and long work days. But it was cool to experience the different cultures and while I would go back, I wouldn't ever travel to or from Diego Garcia without a stop in between!