Japanese Super Advanced

So we managed to get ourselves an invitation to the JT60SA fusion research reactor, which was highly informative (for the physics oriented of us). They are currently going through the process of upgrading the previous reactor to a newer design, and as such, we actually had the possibility of being able to look through the scaffolding and into the reactor chamber.

Getting back out of the place was an experience by itself as well though. We managed to take a camera with us, but other than that we got shoes (with a great big radioactive symbol on them), and a yellow cloak. Upon trying to exit, our feet and hands were checked using a Geiger counter, and my camera got a very thorough inspection by a handheld Geiger counter. It was a very intense minute as I just kept on hearing it crack and was starting to wonder how to interpret their facial expressions.

Going back and directly heading for Ginza, we discovered that everything must have a multiplier on the price tag. Having dinner seemed to cost around $40 per person, and the food didn’t look like $40 food. Interestingly enough, the first half of the first character for Ginza (銀座) so 金, actually translates to Money. Other than that, for a few people without any 金, Ginza seemed like any other part of Tokyo where we could do even less than usual.

Tomorrow will be our last day here which we can properly enjoy. Some of us still have some shopping to do. I’ll probably be trying to squeeze the last great sights out of this place. And the day after that we are heading to our next exciting destination. This trip isn’t over yet!