I managed to have a much more chill day after my day trip to USJ. In the morning I had a haircut booked with my usual stylist, Tanaka-san. I got to Sakae a bit earlier and decided to stroll around the area, but once I stepped out of the subway onto street level I completely lost my bearings. I worked ever so briefly at Gaba’s Sakae office, but it was like I retained nothing from my time there. Without Google Maps it would have taken me forever to find the hair salon.

Luckily I made it to my appointment on time and it was nice to catch up with Tanaka-san after all these years. I also loved sitting in a chair getting pampered for an hour. Once I was done I headed back over to LACHIC to grab lunch at my favourite Soup Stock Tokyo. I was happy to find out they honoured my old points card, which I had been diligently collecting for the past 10 years. I saved 650 yen off my curry rice and soup set of 1,200 yen. =P

I wandered around Sakae for a little longer and grabbed a few things, including cake from HARBS. Then I slowly made my way back to Nagoya Station and went in a few shops I had marked down earlier in the week. There was a lot of construction happening around the station and I was surprised by how different everything looked. The one thing that stayed the same was the Nana-chan mannequin, whose never-ending outfit change is always a source of amusement.

The ride from Nagoya back to Shinagawa was pretty uneventful. It was nice having that time to myself to reminisce and also relax after the hectic first half of my trip. However the relaxation didn’t last long cause I was arriving at Shinagawa Station during rush hour. Thankfully it was only one stop to Oimachi, but with my hand carry and a couple extra bags, it wasn’t the smartest idea getting crammed onto a train. However I made it back to my hotel in one piece and that was the only stressful activity I had all day.

After unpacking my bags I freshened up, then took my time to figure out what I wanted to eat for dinner. I didn’t feel like venturing outside of Oimachi, but I wanted something a bit more exciting than the champon I had on my first night. I found a restaurant called Gyutan Iroha which is at the entrance to the Higashikoji Shopping Street. The street is lined with restaurants and izakayas that bring you back to the Showa-era alley houses.

The izakaya was at capacity when I got there, so they told me to come back in half an hour. I took the chance to wander around the shopping street. By the time I came back they had a spot ready, so I quickly sat down and tried to make sense of the menu. 

I took their suggestion to order their signature gyutan, but I made the mistake of ordering the thick cut. It was such a struggle trying to chew through the meat – I will never make the same mistake again. The taste itself was fine and the rest of the dishes did make up for it. I think I was just happy to be eating at an izakaya to end off a long, but somewhat uneventful day in Japan.