Protect you from red shells where ever we go

Blake and I may not have a car or any plans to get one just yet, but having our SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement) driver's licenses will still come in handy. We will probably rent a car on various occasions, or possibly borrow one sometime. 

It also gives us the opportunity to rent a go cart, dress in costume, and drive around downtown Tokyo - Mario Kart style! And for New Year's Eve, that's just what we did!

What's that ahead? It's just Tokyo Tower, no big deal.

We joined up with several friends from work and had three guides showing the 20 of us around. At times, we were zooming up to 60kph (37mph), all around the real streets of the heart of Tokyo. Was it frightening? A little. I was scared of getting left behind, and there were a few times some of us got stuck at stoplights and had to really work to catch up, but no one ever got lost for long. We had to navigate around cars and buses and each other, but no one crashed. Sure, we question the true legality of it, and it certainly wouldn't ever happen in the United States, but It. Was. Such. A. Blast!

We were like celebrities! Lots of people were out for the holiday and many of them took pictures and gave us high fives!

Okay, yes, driving by Tokyo Tower was actually a big deal to me.

That's one handsome Mario!

There are other route options, so we will likely do this again sometime. And if we ever do get a car? Well, I've already survived driving around Tokyo in a go cart, how difficult could a real car be?

After driving, we went to dinner, and I made sure to include soba noodles in my order. Toshikoshi soba, or year crossing noodle, is traditionally eaten on New Year's Eve as it lets go of the hardship of the year because they are easily cut while eating.

We made it back to base with just a few minutes to spare before midnight. We joined the countdown at the restaurant on our detachment, but headed home to bed a few minutes later. Can't imagine that all of our New Year's Eves will be this exciting in the future, but this was certainly one of our favorites thus far!