So, why go to Japan?

Good question.

Because it's there?

Yea, pretty much that's it.

So, on the heels of our London trip in November 2016, we decided that we always wanted to have a trip in the works.  To have something else to look forward to.   When we came back from London, we had some ideas, but certainly nothing that we would submit our VISA card for.

Fast forward to mid January, 2017.  Still no definitive plan for our next trip.  I enjoyed the London area so much that I wanted to go back and see more of the country.  And, to see some of the stuff I didn't get to see before (more world war 2 sites and other museums, mainly).

And, there was talk of going to Friedrichshafen, Germany.  Why an obscure corner of Germany?  Well, the largest hamfest (Amateur Radio event) in Europe happens there.  A great excuse to visit Europe again - specifically, Germany.  Donna was there back in the 80's and loved it.  She wants to go back.

So, since we went to a hamfest in London during our visit, it seemed like the right thing to do.  Visit hamfests that happen to be in other countries that I wanted to visit, anyway.

Then I get an email.

Art, N7CC (his amateur radio callsign), is a world traveller.  He spends most of his summers overseas (usually southeast Asia), and his winters back in the US or Canada, being a ski bum.

His email was pretty simple:

"I'm going to the Tokyo ham fair on Sept 2-3. You guys should use it as an excuse to go to Tokyo. Why the heck not?"

Well, that was a good question.  Why the heck not?  It fit my new criteria of 1) it was in a country that I wanted to go to anyway, and 2), there was a hamfest involved.

So, within 24 hours, I had done some hard time on Expedia, and found a "Deal of the Day" for round trip flights and hotel stay in Tokyo for just about $1000 per person.  With added trip insurance and a modification to the flight selection, the total was about $2,200.  Not a bad deal for direct flights from SEA to Narita, then a hotel stay in Tokyo.  I only took the hotel for 9 nights, with the intent of travelling outside of Tokyo for a few days.

So, we're committed to going to Tokyo at the end of the month.  There's still plenty to plan out as far a local attractions, getting around, and some hotels to acquire for the last few days of our journey.

But, working out the travel details - that's the part I like.

Next Chapter:  Getting a reciprocal ham radio license in Japan.