We’d discussed getting out early today in light of the forecast heat, but we both overslept thanks in part to a big quake at 2 a.m. that set off alarms and rocked at least half of Honshu.

I slow-rolled the departure, setting out at 9:12 after hearing from José he was awake and getting ready, with the goal of meeting up at Nihonbashi at 10. It took a few kilometers for my body to forget about all the eating and drinking last night and settle into a comfortable pace for the ride. For a change, José was waiting for me when I arrived at Nihonbashi.

We spent some time pumping up tires before I asked José to guide us to Tsukiji. From there I took over the navigating and led us to Tokyo Big Site, where we spent more than half an hour chatting over convenience store food.

From Big Site to Sumida river it’s a long, straight slog with far too many traffic lights. It’s always been this way, but having the heat hovering around 30C doesn’t improve the ride experience.

En route to Sumida river I decided to take a brief stop at Tomioka Hachimangu, the birthplace of sumo. I’ve often wanted to stop here for photos, but there’s no good place to stash the bicycle. I figured with the two of us, we could take turns watching the bikes and getting pictures. José pointed out the sign prohibits riding bicycles, not walking, so we got off and waded into the market, only to discover the main shrine building is being refurbished.

I’ve already whinged about all the traffic lights between here and Sumida river. I was glad to find the path on the riverbank free of festivals and other impediments as we pottered along to Sakurabashi.

After the selfie I mentioned to José I might push my bike up the climb to Ueno Park, out of respect for the heat. As an alternative, he found a very straight run back to Nihonbashi that would avoid the climbing around Ueno and Tokyo University — the trade-off being it was all heavily trafficked urban riding. We chose the flatter but busier route.

I said goodbye to José at Nihonbashi and continued onward to Budokan. Despite what I’d told José about the climb up to Ueno Park, I felt fresh when I reached Kudanzaka and rode up it without hesitation — albeit in my lowest gear and at a very level pace. I only paused briefly at a bench beside Chidorigafuchi, to send photos to Nana and let her know to expect me home by 2:15. I had a cake in my bag, but not enough water to wash it down with. It was 30C at this point and I wanted to get home before it got any hotter.

There’s not much to note about the remainder of the ride except that I ran out of water on the way, as expected, and I made a couple of lights that I usually get red. I pulled the bike to a stop at the tower entrance at 1:50 and messaged both Nana and José that I was safely home.

It was neither a long ride nor a particularly taxing one. I had several options on tap to extend the distance depending on our condition, but in the end José and I quickly agreed that we just wanted to get out of the heat. That said, it was an enjoyable ride for both of us, and much better than if we’d just spent the entire day at home under the A/C.

On a moving time of 2:38:21, I averaged 17.8km/h. I was gratified to see an additional two hours in the elapsed time, a good part of that spent in conversation with José.