Since I was delayed a day, I missed out on visiting and staying at the Tokyo temple, but I still got to see it and even use the restrooms inside (heated toilets and bidet!).
We visited Asakusa that afternoon/night and were able to see a giant paper latern that leads to Senso-ji - Japan's oldest buddhist temple. We enjoyed a nice night of walking around and then headed to our hostel. Tonight we were staying in a capsule hostel. Capsule hostels are basically small little tube like bed chambers. They are cheap and popular in Japan.
For one night it wasn't too bad, but one night is more than plenty. The bathrooms were Japanese bath-house style (no privacy) and they offer traditional Japanese toilets (floor) or western style for us foreigners.
The next day we went to an English speaking ward in Japan and then headed off to see the Imperial Palace grounds. You can't actually go onto the grounds of the Imperial Palace, but you can walk around the outer lying park. From there we headed to Tokyo Tower where we met it's interesting mascot.
After visiting the tower, we went to Harajuku. Harajuku is a great area where the young people of Japan hang out and display their unique fashion, dancing and more. Sunday is a big day for them and we definitely got an eye-full.
While in Harajuku, we visited the Meiji Shrine. We were able to see a traditional Shinto wedding procession take place in the courtyard of the shrine area - it was beautiful. As you head up to most major shrines in Japan you will see a water station that is there for people to clean their mouths and hands with. It's believe that this purifies them before they pray at the shrine.
We spent the rest of the day at Yoyogi Park and were able to see more kids dressed up in the Harajuku style, a band peforming in the park, a demonstration of fighting with bamboo sticks and tons of little dogs. The park was gorgeous and it was a fun way to spend our evening.
Our next day in Tokyo we headed out to Mt Fuji. We weren't going to climb Mt Fuji, but we still wanted to go there and see it. Three hours and a few bus transfers later we were there and Mt Fuji wasn't. It was too cloudy and Mt Fuji was completely hidden.
Since Mt Fuji was a bust we visited Akahabra, the electronic capital of Japan (and possibly the world, this place was huge). We then headed out to Rainbow Bridge and saw the Statue of Liberty. I've now seen all three statues - New York, Paris and Tokyo.
Next up: Kyoto!
We visited Asakusa that afternoon/night and were able to see a giant paper latern that leads to Senso-ji - Japan's oldest buddhist temple. We enjoyed a nice night of walking around and then headed to our hostel. Tonight we were staying in a capsule hostel. Capsule hostels are basically small little tube like bed chambers. They are cheap and popular in Japan.
For one night it wasn't too bad, but one night is more than plenty. The bathrooms were Japanese bath-house style (no privacy) and they offer traditional Japanese toilets (floor) or western style for us foreigners.
The next day we went to an English speaking ward in Japan and then headed off to see the Imperial Palace grounds. You can't actually go onto the grounds of the Imperial Palace, but you can walk around the outer lying park. From there we headed to Tokyo Tower where we met it's interesting mascot.
After visiting the tower, we went to Harajuku. Harajuku is a great area where the young people of Japan hang out and display their unique fashion, dancing and more. Sunday is a big day for them and we definitely got an eye-full.
While in Harajuku, we visited the Meiji Shrine. We were able to see a traditional Shinto wedding procession take place in the courtyard of the shrine area - it was beautiful. As you head up to most major shrines in Japan you will see a water station that is there for people to clean their mouths and hands with. It's believe that this purifies them before they pray at the shrine.
We spent the rest of the day at Yoyogi Park and were able to see more kids dressed up in the Harajuku style, a band peforming in the park, a demonstration of fighting with bamboo sticks and tons of little dogs. The park was gorgeous and it was a fun way to spend our evening.
Our next day in Tokyo we headed out to Mt Fuji. We weren't going to climb Mt Fuji, but we still wanted to go there and see it. Three hours and a few bus transfers later we were there and Mt Fuji wasn't. It was too cloudy and Mt Fuji was completely hidden.
In front of Mt Fuji
Since Mt Fuji was a bust we visited Akahabra, the electronic capital of Japan (and possibly the world, this place was huge). We then headed out to Rainbow Bridge and saw the Statue of Liberty. I've now seen all three statues - New York, Paris and Tokyo.
Next up: Kyoto!
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