Its been almost 2 months since the WKC in Tokyo. I'm sure for many it was the final piece on a long road of preparation and hard work. And I'm sure I'm not the only one to have taken a well deserved break! 

I've now been in New York for just over a month, and in that time have only practiced twice! I have simply not had the motivation or desire to go to the dojo. This could be a number of things, no goal to work towards, burn out, lack of motivation after leaving Japan, stress from moving country etc etc. But to be honest, I now feel refreshed and ready to get back to training.

In the very beginning of my kendo journey, one of my sempai said that kendo is a cycle and that eventually it always comes back around to the beginning, to Kihon. And that it was especially important after shiai or grading to go back to basics.

Demonstrating Kote Uchi at Dublin Kendo Kobukai.

So over the next few weeks, I hope I'll be able to get some solid training done where I can focus on my Kihon.

Before the WKC I was having a lot of problems with weight balance (I'm not fat. lol) I was one day leaning too much on the left foot and the next too much on the right.

That will be my No. 1 point to fix, balance and body movement.

My other focus points:

• Relaxing shoulders and upper body
• Cutting with good tenouchi and soft hands
• Keeping the back straight and posture
• Pushing from left foot and making proper hiki-tsuke
• Improving my footwork for ni-dan and san-dan waza

Now that the lodgings for competitors and delegation members have been confirmed, I'd like to introduce some top attractions near by. 

This is a list of my personal must sees that are within walking distance or a short train journey away from the Olympic centre. 

#1 Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building 

Stunning city views (FREE) 

• Directions and Map

Tourists both local and from abroad come to this building for the free 360 degree view of the city. The Tocho building has two towers, each one with a free 45th floor observatory. From here you can see most of the city and even Mount Fuji on a good day.



The best time to visit is around sunset, watch as the sun drops behind Fuji San and as the neon lights of Tokyo spark into life.

Image - http://media.afar.com/

This building is in the Shinjuku Skyscraper district, there are lots of other buildings to check out and some good places to grab a bite to eat with the salary men.

I've already spoken about how to get to and from the Airports Narita and Haneda. In this post I'll focus on getting around Tokyo itself.

 

This time I'll be taking a look at how to get to and from Haneda Airport. Haneda is located within Tokyo itself and is a much more convenient option (if available when booking) for arriving in Tokyo. 

Note, Haneda was meant as a domestic terminal initially. International flights do land here, but most of them, especially the cheaper ones, come in at inconvenient times, early morning or very late at night. Flights landing after 11:30pm in Tokyo will see passengers with limited options for transport to the city. 

Option 1: Monorail 

Yup.