2/22 Sapporo back to Tokyo

2/22/2013: First, the end of 2/21: The bus dropped us off, I managed to get back to the New Otani Inn without getting lost, and then went back out into the cold to find a place to have some dinner. I found a little spot about a block and a half away that sold grilled things on skewers. I ordered a beer like a pro (birru kudesai…."beer please") but had a serious issue ordering food. I used the usual method of pointing at things on the menu, but there apparently was a snag with this process, and the teenager at the counter couldn't get across whatever the issue was. I found in my "Japanese Phrasebook" app a phrase that said "what do you recommend," and then I gave a thumbs up, meaning "I'll have whatever you recommend." The boy hesitated but went away, so it seemed to work. Food arrived shortly after and I ate it. Then another server came by with about 3 times more food than what I had just ate and apologized, acknowledging that it was a ridiculous amount of food. I'm guessing I ended up getting whatever I had originally ordered, and also whatever the boy recommended. Another server came back with a pencil and paper and asked me where I was from in broken English. I said the US, which he wrote down. Then he made a baseball swinging motion, and we both nodded together enthusiastically about the existence of baseball. He said Yu Darvish is from Hokkaido (the island we were on). I don't think he took any more notes. Later the chef came over to talk to me, but he didn't know much English either. He did some flamboyant skiing motions, meaning he skis occasionally, so we talked a little about skiing. The meal ended up costing around $30. I considered it a "not knowing the local language tax." Bummer though.

The next morning I skyped with Ariel, did some work, then headed to the airport to fly back to Tokyo. I arrived back at the hostel around 5pm, so it ended up being a whole day of traveling again. I was starving when I arrived at the airport, so I had some udon there, and ended up not needing dinner. My cold was at its worst that night, so I spent a decent amount of time trying to find cold medicine. The guy at the hostel helped me translate my symptoms into Japanese script, and then gave me a map to the pharmacy. I took it easy that night.