Travel in Japan '10 [TOKYO Part 1]

Friday, July 30, 2010

We left Osaka today. Even though we were heading to Tokyo, I didn’t have the heart to leave this beautiful city, its friendly people, and its delicious food! Believe me when I say, Osaka is sooo much better than Tokyo. Tokyo people won’t really greet or even look at you in the eyes; meanwhile Osaka people can treat strangers like friends after moments knowing each other.

The Shinkansen trip from Osaka-Tokyo only took less than 3 hours. I didn’t get to see Mt. Fuji due to thick clouds in the mountainous area. As soon as we arrived, we met my high-school friend, Lehud, now studying at a university at Tochigi.

Day spot: Tokyo Imperial Palace and Akihabara area

According to Lehud, people can enter the imperial palace during special days (national holiday, royal birthday celebration, etc). I had my shares of castles in Osaka and Kyoto already, so no more castle visit!

Akihabara is famous with electrical gadgets and appliances in latest style at affordable prices. If only I have a lot of money, I would’ve bought a new camera or video camera there. Lehud told us, there used to be a popular spot of Cosplay performance almost every day, but was stopped after a crazy truck driver trashed the street, killing several performers or audience about 3 years ago. Stupid lunatic!

Night spot: Ginza

Ginza is a popular spot for avid shoppers. There were many high-branded stores. Just name any brand, you might find it there. I had fun just watching the merchandises; since my money has almost ran out, my desire to shop also decreased (T__T)

We stayed at the Malaysian Student House; the Japanese traditional house is actually reserved for Malaysian students studying in Japan under JPA scholarship, or Malaysian government officials visiting Japan. But we just crashed in by pretending to be students from Kanazawa XDDD

Saturday, July 31, 2010

Day spot: Shinjuku and Harajuku Street

We came across a big parade for Summer Festival somewhere in Shinjuku. Many roads were currently closed, so we decided to stay and watch the whole parade. There were drum performances, traditional dances, etc. After that, we just walked around the district. I saw the huge baseball-shaped Subaru Tower, Shinjuku LOVE structure, Takashimaya Times Square, and Shinjuku Tower.

We also visited Takeshita St. which is the landmark of Harajuku. People were crowding the street, so we just briefly stopped by. Then we walked to Omotesando Hills area, and took a short rest at a nearby park garden.

Night spot: Shibuya and Roppongi Hills

We had a long walk from Harajuku to Shibuya district. At HMV Shibuya, I was happy to find a special section for TVXQ/ Tohoshinki although the group wasn’t really exist anymore back then. As memories, I bought few DVDs of them at the store. Shibuya is always busy with local residents and tourists; in fact, we can take pictures in the middle of the main street during the walk sign is on. I could see the Shibuya 109 Tower, where the gigantic poster of Tohoshinki’s Best Selection 2010 album was supposedly hung several weeks prior.

We walked again to Roppongi Hills arena, and enjoyed the night view of Tokyo city from the tower deck. I could clearly see the famous Tokyo Tower not far away! Also, we paid for a tour in the Mori Art Museum – there was a contemporary art display at that time.