Day 2 - Tokyo - 11th July

11th July

Day 86 of 91, eeeeeeeeeeeek!!!!!!

6 days until we arrive in Adelaide, eeeeeeeeeeek!!!!

 

 

This time differences is doing nothing for any of our sleep patterns as we were all awake at 5am, lights on and playtime began!!  Here is Narita sharing Jemima's clothes

 

Thankfully we are coming to the end of our hand washing experiences!!!

 

This is the extra piece of room that we have with the wardrobe but we still don’t feel like we have a lot of room!!

 

Amy has worn her Hello Kitty gear today as Hello Kitty was made by a Japanese company in 1974, I didn’t know Hello Kitty was that old!  Here we are getting our Narita Express train tickets for tomorrow morning!  The train is half price coming from the airport and it is full price going back to the airport!!

 

Amy has just read a sign on the pavement saying that ‘smoking is prohibited on the street’ and then I spy a smoking area so that is why we don’t see many people smoking!!

 

Bizarre gardens in the middle of the road!

 

There are loads of these little stores with pictures and prices next to them, we think they are concert ticket stalls but not sure nothing is in English??

 

We are walking to the Shinjuku Gyoen National Gardens so we thought as it is lunchtime before we have headed out we would head to McDonald’s for lunch and then do all the touristy bits we would like to do today.  We can see the McDonald’s across a busy road but we are not sure how to get across the road so we go down thinking it is an underground walkway to take us across the road

 

This is where we have come out at so we head down the road and then Amy and I notice the same things around us, oh gosh we have just walked round in a circle!!!  So we head round another way and here we are……

 

McDonald's!!

 

Colin ordering the food, the guy appears to have good English which helps!!  Surprising is that no McDonald’s take cards it all is cash only!!

 

I’m not that hungry so I opt for a Happy Meal!!  Here are the two kids and their happy meals!!!

 

So after our food Amy and I use the toilets and look they have different toilets here!  So I press the Flushing Sound again and Amy’s disapproving look (she has learnt from the master at 'the look'! ha ha!!) but it is hilarious so I mess about with the volume like a little child knowing that you have done wrong but it just isn’t going off, oh dear!!!  I am in stitches though and Amy still has 'the look'  So Amy and I have now been to the toilet and washed our hands and the flushing sound is still going on but then it eventually does go off, phew!!! 

 

So here we are at another crossing point!

 

I am surprised by how many people wear these surgical masks in everyday life I had to take a sneaky photo as it is hard trying to get a photo of people in the street!!

 

This building is the cinema, it is massive!

 

Unusual shape to these leaves

 

Gosh the scooter brings back memories of Bermuda

 

 

Now this is to refresh your memory Colin, you get up in the morning and go to work and that is what pays the bills etc I am just not totally convinced that house husband is your thing really!!! Hee Hee!!

 

 

Here we are at the entrance to the Shinjuku Gyoen National Gardens

 

They have a lot of rules for the gardens that is for sure!

 

Amy is certainly rosy cheeked as it is 34 degrees C and 60% humidity today!!  We are all sweating buckets, Colin more so though certainly takes us back to the memories of high humidity in Bermuda!

 

Ok let’s get the tickets to get in, only cost about £3 to £4 to get in for all of us

 

Look at that my change came as 2 coins 500 and 100 Yen! 

 

I’m not sure that sentence translated well into English!!  I went to the staff and got an English map, perfect!

 

A view of the TV Tower from the gardens

 

Okay look at this photo and what do you see???

Amy and I have both the same thought there is the TV Tower and Colin says ‘this would make a perfect hole for a golf course’

just proves we all view the world differently that is for sure!!!

 

We walked through the appropriately named ‘Mother and child Forest’ perfect photo opportunity for the girls!!

 

Colin’s favourite part of visiting these parks is when you can see the city buildings through the greenery

 

We headed towards the Traditonal Japanese Gardens

 

We are all sweaty and not enjoying the gardens to what we would do if it was cooler and the beasties are out biting at our tasty legs so we decide to bail out quickly from the gardens.  That is the Taiwan Pavilion or the Kyo-Garyo-Tei building behind us

 

Beautiful gardens though just wish we could appreciate them better

 

 

To cool off Colin decided to take his flip flops off and walk through the grass but the grass was spiky so that didn’t last long!!

 

 

Amy followed suit and then realised that the grass was HOT and SPIKY so put her flip flops back on quicker than she took them off!!!

 

Some massive trees here as we are making our way out of the gardens now!

 

Amy is trying to cool off a little with shade from the umbrella

 

That is over to the English Landscape Garden but it looks like a large lawn area from the map so we didn’t bother going to see it, let’s just get out of here!

 

Nice coloured Hydrangeas

 

Yippee it’s the exit!!

 

Unusual apartment block

 

Cooling off in Forever 21’s air conditioning waiting for the crossing lights to change to green man!!

 

Next we are heading to the Government Buildings where they have a free observatory to look over the city, perfect!  So we walk through the shopping mall, certainly cooling off now!!

 

In between shopping malls we hear some noise and then come across a group of people trying to sing, it would be too cheeky to call them a ‘band’ and a guy in grey on the left making lots of movements I wouldn’t call it ‘dancing’ either, wow that is random let’s move swiftly on!!

 

Exactly where we are heading!!

 

We have heard of these air conditioned walkways but never experienced them but here we are!

 

And here we go again through another walkway certainly beats walking in the full heat of the sun and sweating buckets!!

 

Oh look the Highland Express gosh that would be an extremely long journey to the Highlands of Scotland on a coach tour eh!!  It’s okay though as the number plate isn’t British!!

 

Statue with pretty flowers

 

Here we are at the South Observatory, let’s go up then!

 

Wow that is a bit harsh!!

 

Bag searched and now we can head on up!!

 

Amy watching the floor numbers go up to number 45!

 

Mode Educational Institute Cocoon Tower appropriately named for the bullet shaped tower

 

Skytree Tower

 

Where we have just come from the Shinjuku Gyoen National Gardens

 

The spire is Yoyogi Building

 

Tokyo TV Tower the red and white spire

 

Out to the shipping port and the sea

 

The clouds are starting to look menacing!!

 

These buildings are massive, no wonder this area is called Skyscraper District but before we arrived I did think the whole city was going to be skyscrapers to accommodate the population of Tokyo with it being the most densely populated city in the world!

 

And it is buildings as far as the eye can see!!

 

Over in the direction of Mount Fuji but we don’t think we can see it??

 

The rain and the sun’s rays in the same shot

 

That is some rain cloud with heavy rain falling!

Is that Mount Fuji with the snow at the top or is it clouds hovering around the top of a mountain???

 



 

Criss cross of rain and sun, cool!

 

 

Just glad we are not stuck in the middle of that weather system!

 

Watching the weather has captivated me and Amy has decided she has seen enough so time for a seat!!

 

 

 

And look at the top of this skyscraper looks like a box with a  ………

 

 

a helicopter landing site, oh not thanks wouldn’t fancy that at all!!

 

Storm clearing is it Mount Fuji or not??

 

Looking across at the North Observatory

 

 

Looking down!!!

 

Storm is calming down slightly and moving away from the mountains but is Mount Fuji behind the weather front or not, who knows?!?!

 

Here we are down from floor 45 and outside the Government Buildings, so because we went inside from an underground walkway we have no idea what the building we are in looks like??  The view opposite the Government buildings

 

Amy’s legs are tired so let’s go explore the skyscrapers being carried!

 

Wow we are surrounded by skyscrapers

 

Didn’t know that Tokyo are hosting the Olympic games in 2020

 

Colin has the camera for a change!!!

 

Here we go through another underground walkway this one must be used by the homeless community as there are cardboard mats laid down on their patch already!

 

That is where we have just been!!!

 

Cool Government Building

 

Nothing like copying the statues I thought this one was like Adam and Eve but no sign up around it so who knows??

 

Petunia’s around this statue

 

Flip Flop feet are feeling flipped flopped out now as we have done more walking than we thought we would be doing today

 

Feeling the Granite under our feet!!

 

That building at the back looks like a ghost or a fake building?

 

 

Another view of the cocoon building

 

This sign can direct us to another blood donation room, wow I wonder if they get good uptake for the service.  Walking along shopping and then see the sign oh yeah might go and pop in and donate some blood, would that happen nothing would surprise me here!!

 

Sumitomo Building that we have just seen from up high!

 

Looking up!!

 

Where we have just been in the observatory looking down here!!

 

Another walkway underground, these are cool places to walk in when the sun is beating down but the clouds are starting to look menacing?!?!?

 

Mutsui Building

 

Gardens at the bottom of the Sumitomo Building

 

 

Clouds are starting to congregate I think it might rain soon!!

 

And yes we were right it did say on a weather website that if it has been sunny during the day it quite often rains early evening and right on cue it is 5pm-ish

 

 

 

And a little globe that reminds us of Epcot building

 

Awh love you too Amy xxx

 

Wow ‘Authentic Transportation!’ 

 

Police Station

 

With a mean looking policeman on his motorbike, don’t mess with him!!

 

 

These buildings are just massive, certainly appropriately named Skyscraper District

 

We popped into a 7 Eleven store to get some water and picked up some goodies.  Never seen this before Iced Coffee so take your cup of ice to the counter and they fill it with coffee, sounds yuck but then again I don’t like coffee hot, cold or even the smell!!

 

Now I think something like a bottle of wine has sprung into your hands Col I thought it was the water supplies we were getting!!

 

So here is Colin again like last night he has a chance of a free prize draw, what you going to win tonight??

 

And here is the winner, ding ding ding ding!!!!! 

 

Down it, down it, down it!!!!

 

And now speak to me ha ha!!!  Think if I pop the cheeks I would get soaked with water!!!

 

Where we have just came from and the rain is very heavy now!!

 

 

 

Tokyo big on recycling as these bins that look like frogs are dotted around the place but there are a lack of rubbish bins on the street but .....

 

 

we have just noticed that shop entrances have the recycling stations, clever but what happens when the shops are closed where does the rubbish go then as the streets are spotless?!

 

 

 

 

Just heading out of the Skyscraper District

 

We are walking along and spy this building oh yeah this must be Joenji Temple but this looks like a house with the car parked outside but then a few steps away here is the …….

 

Jeonji Temple entrance

 

 

 

The true looking Japanese trees at the entrance

 

This looks like a grave but no descriptions are in English so we are back to the guessing games!!

 

Here is the entrance to the temple, grate bit for making your wish, incense burning and then into the actual temple

 

When I walk a bit further round near the entrance I see that there is a full sized graveyard, this place is massive!

 

I am not sure what the resemblance of the sticks are at the graves??

 

and then we spy just above the graveyard where Colin should sign up to in preparation for becoming a house husband ha ha!!  That would give him some use of his new Lefty oven glove!!

 

Inside the temple

 

and the buckets of water now that we know what resemblance they have

 

Cloths for washing the stones I presume as this place is pristine, so well looked after they certainly look after each stone and the whole area, great respect for the dead that is for sure

 

And the temple is next door to this skyscraper as we are just on the outskirts of Skyscraper District

 

 

Here is walking out of the exit to head back to the hotel.   Thankfully the hotel should be close by as it is still tipping it down!!

 

True Japanese style restaurant, no thanks our tummy’s are full!

 

 

 

This is the lane at the back of the hotel

 

 

 

Our final view before heading back into the hotel

 

 

Here we are Reception to our hotel is on the first floor and McDonald’s is on the ground floor but we have just found a sneaky door that will take us to the lifts, perfect!!

 

Amy having a snack of Pocky biscuits like thin breadsticks covered in chocolate at last something that Amy likes!!

 

So that is our days over in Tokyo.  Tokyo has certainly been very clinical in their actions and around the city, everything has a method, routine and procedure to follow and they stick to it!!

Our next adventure begins tomorrow - Beijing, one more stop can’t believe it, where time has gone!!