Japan - Sapporo

I got off the train and straight onto the subway to Susukino and into my hotel. I love the Japanese underground system, all stations have signs telling you what exit to leave from for your destination. I was staying in a Toyoko Inn, the love this hotel chain and it would be the first time for me to actually stay in Susukino. I checked in and then headed out to check out the electrical shops for my camera. I went to the outdoors shop but they didn't have the Nalgene bottle I wanted. I went to Kinokuniya, the book shop, and actually found a few books I wanted to buy. When I lived in Hokkaido I would sometimes go to this book shop and leave empty handed, I hated that. I bought my camera, new memory card,camera case and Gorilla pod for a great price at Bic Camera. Afterwards Keiko met me at Sapporo station and we went back to her house. I got to meet her husband and his family. It was a lovely relaxed evening and just what I needed, a totally brand new memory. I went back to the hotel and had a beer in bed with Edamame. I miss buying beer from vending machines!
I wandered around Sapporo the next morning, since I had gotten most of what I had wanted to buy the previous day there was no pressure. I met Vanessa James at Sapporo station and we went for lunch. It was really good to see her, we weren't close friends when I was in Hokkaido but she is going through the same experience as I went to prior to leaving. She is happy where she is but is coming to the end of her JET five year contract and so needs to consider what she wants to do next. She doesn't want to go back to Australia and I can understand that, I didn't want to go back to the U.K.. After lunch Vanessa took me to a dessert food court and we had coffee and cake, it was a lovely afternoon. I headed back to the hotel and relaxed until it was time to go and meet the guys I was going to hang out with. I had emailed some people on Couchsurfing and two Japanese guys said they would meet up woith me and we could do something for the evening. I met Kosuke and Tomo at Sapporo station and we went to a near by restaurant for dinner. We left at about 10pm and went to the the observation floor of Sapporo tower, I had never been here so it was another new thing. There was a bar set up so Kosuke and I kept on drinking and chatting,Tomo wasn't drinking. Another thing I love about Japan is that they don't jack up prices on evenings like that and in places like that so the beers cost us the same as they had in the restaurant. Although of course it is way more expensive than Vietnam. After the countdown we hung around for a little longer, Kosuke then walked me to the underground station and I went back to my hotel. If I had known that I was going to spend so much time around the station area I would have booked a hotel there,ah well, you live and learn.
The next morning I caught the bus to the airport about thirty metres from the front door of my hotel, so convenient. I checked my Samsonite hand luggage, the check in lady was a bit freaked and asked me if that was all I had. The flight to Narita was uneventful and it's then a straight walk into the international terminal. I had 3 hours to kill so did some shopping, ate sushi and changed my left over Yen to dollars. I figured I could use them for my next holiday at Tet. Got on my ANA flight and headed back to Vietnam. I didn't get to catch up with everyone I wanted to and I didn't get to snowboard, but it was a good visit. And it won't be my last, so next time I'll be better organised and give everyone more notice. And now it's 2011 and I am only a few weeks from seeing Darren. I am very excited.