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| Takeshita Street |
Japanese people, though vertically challenged, can walk as fast as I can! Yesterday I was trailing an older Japanese woman who almost got away from me! She walked two steps to every one of mine - the difference between 4ft and 6ft! I'm often the one caught in that scenario where you need to dodge right and left with the person coming towards you until you almost crash… well not here - they make a decision about where they are headed and they bee-line! Oh and just to make it tricky, the majority of Tokyo believe in "keep left"… except for a few areas that have European influence - particularly towns West of Tokyo, where the rule is "keep right". For the most part I end up getting out of their way!
"Japanese people don't make a scene"… this is what we were told at cultural awareness training - so far it's 100% correct. Case and point was yesterday, my train home from work, there was a homeless man in the priority seating who exuded a body odour similar to cow dung… one by one I watched people step on the train - the smell hit them - 80% didn't move from their spots (close to the odour source) only one or two politely moved up the carriage 10m or so… I was one of them but in an confined space, there is no escaping the smell!
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| Gardens at Roppongi Hills |
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| Ralph Lauren - Omotesando - hubba hubba |
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| Markets next to the Temple |
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| The building where Buddha's ashes are - a gift from India after WWII |
On Sunday we had a tour of Tokyo - our tour guide, Kuniko-san took us to two Shrines, a temple, the Tokyo port area and to a few more shopping districts that are "must-see". We're hoping to collate a comprehensive sightseeing schedule for any potential visitors :) The one area we visited, Takeshita street, is where the young "punks" hang out and dress up like Anime characters and other styles - unfortunately we got there too early so we'll have to go back another time to have a giggle… it's right next to Omotesando …hmmmm shopping. The Sensoji Temple and Asakusa Shrine were a highlight of the day. Kuniko-san showed me how to pray at each place of worship… it involves throwing a coin and saying a prayer… the shrine worship adds some clapping and bowing. It's interesting how Japanese can be both Buddhist and Shinto religions… our guide explained that Shintoism focuses on worshipping nature, where as Buddhism is more about how to lead your life. Might be worth doing some more reading on the subject! As well as praying, I also waved the incense smoke towards me from the vat which is suppose to have healing powers… in the absence of an ailments, I walked away not smelling too flash! The Shrine also has fortune telling, where you pay ~$1, pick a draw (from hundreds) and read the fortune note… if you get a bad fortune, you tie it to the stand next to the boxes and leave your bad fortune behind.
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| Asakura Shrine |
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| The incense vat |
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| Dessert last night - not sure what it was, but it was YUMMO! |
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| The French designer was might unimpressed when height restrictions meant he couldn't straighten the flame tip! |
We haven't quite figured out our favourite foods just yet - most meat is pork - if in doubt, it's pork. We thought we'd bought some rice and chicken the other night… turned out to be garlic tofu…damn! The texture of the tofu here is quite different… similar to a crème caramel… but obviously not quite as delicious! Last night we opted for soup from Chowder at the Shinagawa train station - definite winner… plus there was room for dessert :)
We're hoping to catch an ice hockey match this weekend - the two teams playing are from the area around Niseko… just need to figure out tickets … apparently you can buy them from a 7-Eleven!
No language lessons yet - waiting til we move into Yokohama...so lots of "sumimasen" and "arigato" and sign language...
xo
Karate Kate
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