Blogs from Tokyo, Japan, Asia - page 229

As you can tell from the title, this is a bit late coming, but better late than never. Fireworks excursion The Independence Day festivities began with Ryan and I leaving the lab early around 4:30 to buy our cache of explosives for the night's festivities. We originally intended to head to a neighborhood near Asakusa that's well-known for its especially good fireworks, but figuring that there was no way we could make it all the way across Tokyo in time before the shops closed (one learns quickly never to assume shops to be open past 6pm in Japan), so instead we settled for the closer option of the Tokyo Hands in Shinjuku near Shinjuku Times Square. After wasting time with silly costumes and old school video games, we settled down to the task at hand and ... read more

Part 2 of our latest shenanigans! Greetings Sports Fans! Crazy Cam here as your detailed sports caster for all things sporty. Tonights show looks at our visit to the national sport; our intrepid trek to what Tokyo-ite's affectionately call "the big egg"; that's right Indian fan's, we're off the ballpark for some baseball! Okay, enough silly bugger talk. In a (sort of) repeat of my boys night out with Steve and Kevin last year, Meg and I went to the Tokyo Dome - one of the largest sports arenas in Tokyo - to see that wacky national obsession, baseball. Before we indulged in some baseball, we ventured into the theme park next door for some high-speed highjinks on a rather bumpy but fun indoor rollercoaster, and then went for the big boy version that travels across ... read more

Hi everyone, As some of you already know, I recently celebrated my 25th birthday here in Tokyo. After a couple dinners and parties with my friends and fiance, I realized that getting older isn't always such a bad thing! The first couple of pictures are from July 9th, my actual birthday, when Larry took me to the beautiful Tokyo Emion Bay Hotel for a delicious, Italian dinner at a restaurant called LaLa. LaLa, as you can see by the picures, was a gorgeous place....only lit up by candlelight. I even got a special dessert here with the message "Happy Birthday Melanie" written on the plate in chocolate syrup! The next group of pictures are actually from a few days before my actual birthday, when we went to celebrate at Monsoon (one of my favorite restaurants here) ... read more

Harajuku a.k.a. Tokyo's fashion district is a great place to discover Tokyo's sense of fashion. Anything goes here and I mean ANYTHING. Sunday is the best day to discover all senses of fashion, from jaw dropping styles to "oh my gosh, I can't believe they're wearing that" styles. It's common for teens to dress up in their Sunday best (literally) and come to Harajuku to show it off. They don't mind having photos taken, as tourists enjoy discovering Tokyo fashion. For those who are familiar with Singer, Gwen Stefani (from No Doubt), her 4 female Japanese dancers are Harajuku girls. Harajuku girls/boys dress in a certain style common and known to the Harajuku area. Harajuku is also a great shopping district. My favourite shopping area in Harajuku is Takeshita-dori (dori is Japanese for street). Enjoy the ... read more

Tokyo...impossible to describe in one word! Exciting, bustling, bright, loud, serene, traditional...12.2 million people! It is described as city that everyone must see once in their lifetime. I agree! Those of you who know me well, generally know that I'm not a big fan of large cities. I find them intimidating and overwhelming, an assault on your senses and peace of mind. However, I had a fair idea of what I was in for before I visited Tokyo. When I first arrived in Japan last August, I spent three days in one of the busiest areas of Tokyo, Shinjuku, in a fancy hotel, attending seminars for my new job of teaching English as a Foreign Language to high school students. Really, the only glimpses of the city I saw were when I went out for dinner ... read more