Advertisement
Two’s Company….
After spending Saturday people watching, I headed to the old district of
Asakusa to check out the Asahi Brewery and the Sensoji Temple. The brewery wasn’t open when I arrived but it was more the architecture of the building I was interested in anyway (though some may not believe me there). The building is designed to be a glass of beer with the froth on it but I think it looks a little tadpole-ish if you ask me.
Sensoji Temple is one of the major temples in Tokyo and on Sundays it is visited by thousands of people who then stroll through the parkland or visit the bustling markets that lead to the tori gate. It is a five tiered pagoda with outer buildings and it’s said if you rub the smoke of the inscence on you , you’ll receive good fortune.
Back on the train and bound for Harajuku, I noticed out the window an enormous rollercoaster. Well, one of my missions in life has always been to ride the great rollercoasters of the world, so this was an opportunity I couldn’t pass up!!!
Tokyo Dome City in
Suidobashi is an amusement park, a
baseball stadium and a shopping complex in one. The Giants (I think it’s the Tokyo Giants but I’m not sure) had a game on so there were fans everywhere. I made a bee line for the
best ride ever!!!! This rollercoaster not only is taller than the stadium, it involves a free fall and the track goes through both a building and a ferris wheel…. Not that I saw much of that when I was on it…. I was too busy laughing my head off!!! The complex itself is full of fountains and rides but I was running out of daylight so left the rest for another time.
Having previously talked to another traveller about the gardens in Tokyo, I remembered he had said about a particularly good one next to the dome so I headed off in search of the entrance. Koishikawa Korakuen Gardens were an oasis in the heart of madness. Dating back to the 1600’s it had been preserved beautifully with lakes and rice paddies, forests of maples and bridges over waterfalls. I ended up losing myself for nearly two hours before realising that I was now very late getting to Harajuku.
Harajuku is the
teenage fashion capital of Tokyo, with celebrities like Gwen Stefani now putting the spotlight firmly on them. It is also the area of the city that attracts the teenagers that dress up as their favourite characters from comics to display themselves on the bridge over the railway tracks. Although late, there were a few still out but just a walk through the main mall will open your eyes to a whole new world of fashion that only the Japanese seem to be able to pull off.
Monday , and I was starting to get excited!!! Mel flew in just after 5pm so I met her at the airport. Exhausted would be an understatement after 14 hours in planes and airports, but glad to finally be in Japan. It was just a room for the night and dinner because the next morning was an early start to get to Kyoto…. our first shinkasen experience!!
"To awaken alone in a strange town is one of the pleasantest sensations in the world." —Freya Stark
Advertisement
Tot: 0.272s; Tpl: 0.015s; cc: 16; qc: 64; dbt: 0.0843s; 1; m:domysql w:travelblog (10.17.0.13); sld: 1;
; mem: 1.2mb