sean's musings

Today was the last day Amanda and I had together for sightseeing.  We started off going to Harajuku again, and I was happy to see a strange person this time to photograph

Saw a few other interesting people along the way, but not as cool as that dude.  He actually posed for me as I was taking his photo.

We then headed back to Odaiba for the day, especially to see the Gundam during the day time.  We spent the whole day walking around the area, and had dinner in our favorite spot again

Here’s the sunset from where we ate:

Here’s a few other pics for the day.  Full set can be found here

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(Back posted for the 11th)

Today we had a whirlwind day.  It started out again at the Tsukiji Fish market in hopes of catching the auction.  We got there around 7am, only to find out the main auction viewing was from 5:00 – 6:15.  We at least got to see some of the guy cutting up giant tuna to turn around and sell, so that part was cool.

We figured out the cheapest way to travel around today would be to by the one day pass for the Tokyo Metro.  Each minimum segment is around 170 yen, and since we’d be doing a bunch of stops we got the all day unlimited pass for 1000 yen ($11 or so).  Turned out to be a great value.  We chose to ride the subway a bit more, and walk a bit less than last week.

We went to Akhiabara, which is termed “Electric City”.  We went into a large store similar to Frys.  The camera equipment took up an entire floor and you could play around with many different lenses.  It was quite impressive.  We wandered around the streets and found a small temple which had some awesome artwork.

Next was the Shinjuku area.  There is a free tower you can go up in to get a view of the city at the Metropolitan Government building.  Unfortunately it was a bit overcast, but it was still a great view.

From there we rode down to the Area of Harajuku where the Meiji-Shrine is located.  Very beautiful shrine, and we happen to arrive when there was some sort of wedding procession going on.  It was very beautiful, with everyone dressed in traditional clothing.  The shrine was very big and quiet.  Very cool.

The Meiji shrine borders Takeshita Dori, which is the area famous for “strange people” hanging out.  It’s supposed to be the area where people dress up as characters, the goths hang out, and other interestingly dressed people.  Unfortunately I was a bit disappointed today as I didn’t get to see anyone that fit the description   I was hoping to photograph some of them.  Oh well, we may come back tomorrow.  The main street is jam-packed with people as it’s where the younger fashionable crowd comes to shop.  It’s pretty interesting to walk around, but it all starts to look the same.

Next it was off to Shibuya.  The guide books say the crossing is one of the most crowded in the world, and rivals time square in new york.  I’ve never been to times square, so I can’t compare, but they time the lights such that everyone crosses the streets in all directions at the same time.  It’s utter chaos for a few minutes, then stops again.  It’s quite impressive.  You can go up into a starbucks which sits above the intersection and watch it all unfold.

We headed back to the Tokyo Tower to get a few things and were treated to a street monkey performer.  He did a bunch of sweet tricks and I was able to get a few pictures We also got to hang out with a Giant Squid Mascot, Nippon.  Kinda creepy looking, but who can resist getting their picture taken with it .

Below are some of the best pictures, with the full set found here

Click pictures for full size, and easier scrolling.

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This should have been posted last week, but I’m a little behind in getting updates up.

The work week went by pretty well.  Each morning I wake up, go down and get Starbucks, eat, shower and put on my business casuals.  Yes that’s right, me in business casuals   Each morning I join the millions of people who ride the metro system to work.  It’s a fascinating thing to watch and be a part of.  The first couple days I rode the monorail “new transit” line directly from the hotel to work.  It takes about 30 min, is rather crowded, but has a great above ground view of the Tokyo Bay.  Riding over rainbow bridge is the highlight with a 270 degree loop to get onto the bridge.  The faster way, which I took most of the week and will continue to take, is on the subway.  It’s actually less crowded because I’m going against the grain for a couple of stations.  Riding the subway here is not much unlike the subway in Moscow.  Everyone is relatively silent, with most either reading, listening to music, playing their nintendo ds/psp, or sleeping.  After I get off the train, I join the shuffle of people moving in unison towards the stairs and eventually the exit.  It’s definitely an interesting experience.  No one saying a sound, yet everything almost perfectly orchestrated.  People are polite and gather into lines as everyone walks up the stairs.  The only thing you hear is the clatter of each persons business shoes on the steps as you head up.

It’s warm (80F) and muggy, so by the time I get to the office, I feel as though I need another shower.  The humidity definitely takes getting used to, as it saps your energy.

Each night after work, I ride the subway back to the hotel, change out of my business casuals, and into my usual attire for dinner.  Amanda and I have been trying a couple different places for dinner.  We ate at a tempura restaurant one night, Mos Burger (Japanese Fast Food), and TGI Fridays.  Now before anyone gives me a hard time about eating American Food while in Japan, I’ll say 2 things.  1, I’ve had plenty of Japanese style food during lunches with co-workers.  2. Do you eat American food every night in the States?  Some nights we wandered around looking at the sites, and some nights we came back to the hotel to relax.  One night some tourists asked US for directions.  I guess we look like we know where we are.  Getting around Tokyo has been pretty easy actually.  The subway system is very well layed out, and well signed, with almost everything in English and Japanese.  The only time we’ve gotten “lost” or turned around, is when walking the streets.  It’s hard to have a sense of which way, north or south is, which can make reading a map a bit difficult   We always seem to find our way to the destination.

Either way, it’s been a good, busy week.

Here are some of the various pictures from the evening time.

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Well, Amanda covered most of day two over on her blog, so check it out here.

I’ll just mention a couple of things.  One is that the Senso-Ji temple was very cool.  It is a buddhist temple, and the entry way is lined with many small shops (geared towards tourists of course), but fun to explore nonetheless.  In front of the main temple was an area where incense was burning and people were wafting the smoke towards them.  It was very interesting in addition to a fountain where people were drinking the water and pouring it over their hands.  It looked similar to holy water, and other rituals we observed in Moscow.  We were able to witness a couple ceremonies in the temple, which was very interesting.  One thing I have been facinated with is the customs and traditions of other religions.  While I may not believe the same things they do, there is something I can relate to in seeing their devotion and dedication.  It has been interesting to see to say the least.  I’m looking forward to visiting the Shinto Meiji Shrine this weekend.

It was very disappointing to walk all the way to Ueno park only to find out the Giant Panda is no longer with us.  Who would have thought to look it up on the internet before going to make sure the panda was really there!! Oh well, I guess we’ll have to visit the San Diego zoo sometime to see one.

Below are some selected pictures from Day 2.  Full set (unprocessed and unfixed) can be found here

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As promised, here is the first picture update from Tokyo.  Today we got up early, after a night of messed up sleep and went down to the Tsukiji Fish Market.  It’s only about 15 min walk from the Hotel, so we figured it’d be a good way to start exploring the city.  We missed the world famous auction, but there was plenty of action going on!  I can’t count how many times we almost got run over by guys in small cars as they went from place to place.  It makes pikes market in seattle look like a spec of sand in comparison.  Next up, we walked towards the Imperial Palace, stopping by the Ginza area to check out some of the stores.  Very high class, and very large buildings.  Unfortunately the actual Imperial Palace is only open 2 days a year, but the grounds is open for wandering.  And that we did.   There is a famous bridge which sits below the actual palace and makes for great pictures.

After that we walked back to our hotel for a little rest.  I’m finding that I don’t like warm + humidity.  It saps all of your energy.  It was around 80 with a very high humidity.  Making sure to drink plenty of water

After resting for a bit, we took our recently bought PASMO(like a credit card for subway fare) cards and hopped on the subway up to the Tokyo Tower.  The subway is very easy to use, and reminded me a lot of the other two major systems we’ve used in Moscow and London.  All of the stations are in Japanese and English as is the “next stop” messages.

We paid our $800 or so yen and went up to the first observatory of the Tokyo Tower.  What an incredible view! I only wish it weren’t so cloudy and hazy so we could have seen Fuji-san.  Either way it was worth the trip up.  We also went up to the “special” observatory at 250m high.  That’s 750 feet for the metrically challenged.  It’s taller than the Eiffel Tower in Paris!  From there we walked another mile or so up to the Roppongi area and ate at the Hard Rock Cafe.  I know..we’re in Japan and eating at the Hard Rock?  Well, its something of a Tradition now.  We’ve been to the original in London, the one in Moscow, and now here.

I quickly dumped the photos and did some VERY quick touchups so I can put them on here.  At some point I’ll upload the final copies, but here’s something to look through for now.  Click the gallery and click through for captions.

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Full Photo set can be found here