The Excitement of Sumo

I was up at the cracka. 6.00am. A quick shower and a stagger 'round - got my bearings and headed out into the mornin' to find the Sumo Stables and get my ticket for this afternoon.

There's an AMPM around the corner - a lot like a 7/11 - which sells juice and water and all the handy things for a day out on foot.

I made my way over the river from Asakusa to Ryogoku to find the Stables...naturally, I got lost. Ignored the explicit instructions given me by Kenichi and found myself at a Temple. Thank god for the convenience store across the street and the nice lady who struggled through my plea's for Sumo and pointed me in the right direction.

Incidentally, Sumo means little to the Japanese, but if you mention Kokugikan - you're there.

Despite being lost, I still made it to the Stables by 8am. Little did I know tha they weren't to open till 9am. That's okay, I had made a spot for myself in the queue and waited.

Right on 9am - believe me, the head security guy was monitoring his watch - the ticket booths opened and they started selling tickets. Japanese efficiency permeates everything. Gotta love it.