Author Topic: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun  (Read 38313 times)

Offline cozmohoot

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #20 on: September 03, 2015, 06:41:51 PM »
Suddenly tinkering for a shwarma!

Offline Yehoshua

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #21 on: September 03, 2015, 06:43:37 PM »
Hey, that was a teaser section. Funny stuff.

Offline Adam101

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #22 on: September 03, 2015, 07:12:08 PM »
Can't wait for the rest.  Arigato gozaimasu!

Offline shoobi

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #23 on: September 03, 2015, 11:29:42 PM »
literally LOL'ed... Love the style! and the creativity! Keep it coming please

Offline AharonInIsrael

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #24 on: September 04, 2015, 02:46:00 AM »
Love your style! Keep it coming!

Offline ash

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #25 on: September 04, 2015, 03:26:56 AM »
lol
great writing

Offline shwarmabob

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #26 on: September 08, 2015, 06:22:22 PM »
Finally, the day of departure draws near. After a couple of negative remarks by others on this forum, we decide to skip the POM meals. The fact that in Tokyo we are staying within walking distance to both kosher restaurants makes this decision easier. I am also concerned that the POM meals would defrost once we depart Tokyo to the Kansai region.

We load up on dry goods at the kosher supermarket – this is what the 5th knapsack is for. As we are driving home in heavy traffic from the supermarket, Mrs. Shwarmabob discourages me from cutting off the troopers ahead of us – why can’t those guys speed up a little? She explains that getting a court summon two days before our family vacation would be something that only a nincompoop like yours truly can accomplish. I listen to her gentle words –not for nothing our sages said that she possesses Binah Yasaira – and we cruise home peacefully.

The following day, a sweltering commute in a subway car packed to the brim with sweaty straphangers prepares me for our journey. A NYC parking ticket that I appealed gets denied. I also get a letter from that beloved government agency, the IRS, that they can do a much better job deciding what to do with those few dollars in my pocket than I possible could therefore I should quickly dispatch a check to them for underpayment of taxes.

Now, I am not generally a yoga guy, but at this point I do decide to experiment with some deep breathing techniques. After my impromptu subway meditation, I reach the conclusion that these are all mysterious signs from the Divine whose summary message is: Get me out of here!

I pick up our Hertz rental on the way home. Once arriving to our Yiddishe Heim, I realize that the only one that needs to finish packing is actually none other than yours truly…

Next morning, we return the car at Newark Airport, hop on the Airtran to terminal C. Our flight is United 79 direct from EWR to NRT. After dropping off our luggage and getting our boarding passes, we head back to Terminal B to visit Art & Lounge. We daven shacharis outside its closed doors, we are early - they open at 9AM. At the 9th stroke of the clock, the doors open and we are in:


We make up for the skipped breakfast at home:


My mood instantly improves:

Offline stbaum

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #27 on: September 08, 2015, 06:35:29 PM »
Any chance I can go on vacation with you next time? You sound like a barrel of laughs!! Thanks for the installment!
My greatest achievement? I am fluent in FRIENDS quotes

Offline yitrap

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #28 on: September 08, 2015, 06:42:26 PM »
Priming to be up in the TR classics...Can't wait for the next update

Offline Yehoshua

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #29 on: September 08, 2015, 06:46:05 PM »
It's always such a joy to read your next installment! Can't wait for the Japan parts.

Offline Yaalili

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #30 on: September 08, 2015, 06:48:55 PM »
What was the situation like in the Newark lounge terminal b? Kosher food spread?

Offline Super Speed

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #31 on: September 08, 2015, 07:35:32 PM »
Any chance I can go on vacation with you next time? You sound like a barrel of laughs!! Thanks for the installment!
Well said!

Offline rediplus

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #32 on: September 08, 2015, 09:55:33 PM »
Great TR so far. Maybe a subsection for TRs with kids is in order.

Offline shwarmabob

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #33 on: September 08, 2015, 10:55:40 PM »
What was the situation like in the Newark lounge terminal b? Kosher food spread?

Sandwiches, chips, cookies and a salad bar. Some warm food. Kosher wines, champagne(?) in addition to the standard espresso machine and beverages.
If I correctly recall the kashrus is by Vaad Harabonim Of Queens. It's not a restaurant, but it is a nice place and the fact that it is kosher is a welcome change from the usual lounge experience of beer/coke/ChivasRegal/orange juice/bananas variations.

Offline Ergel

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #34 on: September 08, 2015, 11:09:28 PM »
LOL
Life isn't about checking the boxes. Nobody cares.

Offline Yaalili

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #35 on: September 08, 2015, 11:49:44 PM »
Sandwiches, chips, cookies and a salad bar. Some warm food. Kosher wines, champagne(?) in addition to the standard espresso machine and beverages.
If I correctly recall the kashrus is by Vaad Harabonim Of Queens. It's not a restaurant, but it is a nice place and the fact that it is kosher is a welcome change from the usual lounge experience of beer/coke/ChivasRegal/orange juice/bananas variations.

Great, good to know.

Offline shwarmabob

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #36 on: September 10, 2015, 06:49:50 PM »


At Art & Lounge, we make up for the breakfast missed at home by sampling the sandwiches and salads laid out. I elevate my blood pressure by downing a few lattes, and then lower it to a healthy level by sampling the kosher wine selection (don’t try this at home). We leave the lounge in a more buoyant mood then we entered. We head back to Terminal C, sail through security with our GE/TSA-Precheck – no pat downs no nudo-scopes - and onto the plane.

Now, this is where our luxuries end. The United bird’s interior is quite worn-down, reminds me some 3rd world flights from the past. Actually, Air Asia in Cambodia was much nicer. However, I don’t want to be critical, this is what we paid for. We settle in to our seats. Mrs. Shwarmabob safely sits across the aisle, while I sit next to our brood – three of us in a row.

If flying in Y for 14 hours is something that was erased from your memories ages ago, let me remind you, it IS painful.

The two ladies manage to sleep a couple of hours. I remind Shwarmabob Jr. to watch appropriate movies only - so he watches American Sniper four times in a raw. If he maintains the same enthusiasm for Abaya veRava I am looking at a future gadol.

I do laps around the plane every hour. My biggest disappointment is that the flight tracking map is not working and I really wanted to see our flight path live.

The time passes and "Layehudim haysa ora v'simcha" we land at Narita Airport early afternoon. We totter off from the plane. Mrs. Shwarmabob wants to know if our GE helps us here. How easy it is to get spoiled! – I would say if it wasn’t for the previous 14 hours.

I am a bit nervous about smuggling in our dried kosher meat. I read that in Japan once you are arrested you are presumed guilty until proven innocent – they don’t hold by the Justinian Codes. But nothing of the sort happens.

I am attaching the pics our budding photographer took before and after watching American Sniper.

Manhattan from the sky


Approaching Narita a day later

Offline Yaalili

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #37 on: September 10, 2015, 07:00:23 PM »
Nice pictures shawarma! Yes sitting so long in Y is brutal, last I did was on etihad AUH-JFK.

Offline MosheD

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #38 on: September 10, 2015, 07:03:26 PM »
Nice pics!
I checked out the Art lounge and thought it was lame, but I didn't know it was kosher, so I just had the regular...
Funny that I've never heard it's kosher before this tr. Thanks for the info

Offline Yaalili

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Re: Shwarmabob's adventures in the Land of the Rising Sun
« Reply #39 on: September 10, 2015, 07:04:24 PM »
Nice pics!
I checked out the Art lounge and thought it was lame, but I didn't know it was kosher, so I just had the regular...
Funny that I've never heard it's kosher before this tr. Thanks for the info

The lounge was made for ElAl customers, IIRC.