On the road again: Arisia, day 1

In a first for me, my room came complete with underwear hanging on the bathroom door.

No, I did not try them on.

No, I was not tempted. Stop that. You don't want that image in your brain. Neither do I.

I have to wonder if anyone will have the guts to call the hotel and ask for their missing, zebra-striped thong underwear. I considered taking the small garment to the front desk on the off chance that such a call might occur, but I ultimately decided that what such a visit might cost me made it a bad idea. So, now the underwear is in my bathroom trash.

If I find it on the door again in the morning, I'm asking for a new room and refusing to explain why. Let someone else deal with a haunted thong

On a happier topic, in addition to travel and lots of work today, we had a wonderful dinner at Oishii, a truly excellent Japanese restaurant.

This remarkable dish featured a large block of ice supporting a very small bowl of toro tartare floating in a delicious sauce. Inventive and wonderful, it came first and set a high bar for a long series of additional dishes, all of which were excellent. We focused, as you might expect, on the insanely rich stuff: Kobe beef, foie gras, and toro, and each small plate ended up a winner. Foie gras sushi. Toro and truffle roll. Kobe roll. I could go on and on, because we sampled a great many menu items, but you get the idea.

As you would guess, the food was also quite expensive, but it was worth the cost.

If you live in Boston or plan to visit here, save up for a great meal and go to Oishii.