IT'S COLD IN TOKYO … in more ways than one.

Date: Tuesday 31^st December 2013

MP3 track of the day: I'm yours – Jason Mraz

Weather: Hot but over-cast in Okinawa. Cold with clear skies in Tokyo.

Due to a rare early night, I found myself wide wake within my bunk bed at 6am. Not seeing the point of just lying there waiting for the clock to strike 7, I got up, got packed, washed and dressed before using whatever time I had left to read the latest news. Being an F1 fan, the news of Schumacher hit me personally and, right there and then, I wished him a speedy and full recovery.

At 8am I left and boarded a monorail system I was so used to by now, I could have used it blind folded. On the way to the airport I chatted to a Japanese guy – who had also stayed at the hostel last night – about life and traveling. Once at the airport we went our separate way, but not before swapping Facebook details.

Check-in was a breeze and once through I bought a pack of two 'onigiri' (rice-triangles protected by a layer of seaweed on the outside, with some kind of animal in the middle). I bought a salmon onigiri and a tuna one; being not too keen on tuna I ate it anyway as both were sold as a set. Soon after the call to board was given and so I did just that.

This flight was even more sparsely occupied than my flight out, resulting in I having my whole row to myself. Though more than helpful, I did notice that the cabin crew wouldn't win any 'best looking cabin crew of the year' awards, and I longed for the lady from yesterdays flight (had it only been a day?). Due to this I sat back in my chair and alternated between reading my book and looking out of the window.

As we moved further and further away from Okinawa the clouds got less and less dense until I could see the ocean (plus some beautiful small islands within said ocean). Due to the way flight chairs are positioned it did hurt my neck to constantly look out of the window; once my neck could take no more I switched to my book and, once my brain had given up reading, I switched back to the window.

The flight was just under two hours and we arrived at Narita Airport bang on time. This was a first for me but, after I collected my luggage, I actually had to prove it was mine before I could exit the terminal. I didn't mind doing this and with so many suitcases looking the same, I wondered why this wasn't more of a routine thing.

Once out of the terminal I headed down to the underground where I bought a ticket for the 'direct access train' to Asakusa. Unlike eleven days ago (is that all; it feels longer), I did wait thirty minutes for the correct train and didn't board the first thing which appeared. Waiting was an American (I presumed he was American as, A: he looked like an American and B: he had a phone case and bag with the American flag on). A giant of a man; not only was he tall but he was also well built making the average Japanese man look like a child. Needless to say, I sat opposite this giant and every oriental kept their distance until it was impossible for them to do so. I did feel for this guy; on the platform he looked lost. If he'd asked, I would have tried to help him but he did not. On the train other passengers gave him the same disconcerting (probably due to his size) look which I have been given countless times in the more rural parts of Japan and, admittedly, the more rural parts of the world.

After an hour we arrived at Asakusa station where I alighted before heading for fresh air as quickly as possible. I then proceeded to walk down the same streets I'd done eleven days ago before I reached my hotel for the evening. I was staying in a Toyoko Inn and standard procedures stated that check-in was at 4pm at the earliest however, given that it was New Years Eve the lady, though not in the pleasant tone I'd become accustom too on the islands of Okinawa, said that even though the time was 3:30pm, I could check-in and proceed to my room. Once again my room was on the 9^th floor however this time, the internet reached this far up.

After putting my stuff down I did quite an odd thing for me and 'freshened up' by taking a long, hot shower. I hadn't had any lunch and therefore I was starving however, I also felt quite drained from the flight and so a shower was required. By 4:15pm I was ready to hit the streets once more.

Even though I had a huge bag of 'omiyagi' (biscuits for my work colleagues) I still hadn't got anything for my friends. This was a strategic ploy as I decided, quite a while ago, that I would get their presents from Tokyo's Skytree. Sure I hadn't really been to Tokyo this holiday however, the banana sponge cake, filled with caramel sauce, was too good to miss; I therefore got myself a box of four. Going and coming back I stopped occasionally to take photos of Tokyo as the light faded. As I walked I noticed that people were going about their business without, it seemed, a care for the other people around them. I also noticed that people seemed a little more abrupt in their manner here than they did on the islands; not only was it cold temperature wise, but Tokyo felt cold through the people. I realised very quickly that the Okinawan islands 'family feel' had gone forever.

As I was heading back to my hotel I stopped at a restaurant called 'Denny's' for an extremely late lunch, or an extremely early dinner (you decide) where I ate a 'beef burger steak'. As this was my last meal of the year I pushed the boat out and ordered whatever I wanted, which included a caramel dessert and a cup of hot chocolate. This was the same 'Denny's' my mum, dad and I visited back in March and, as I stared at where we sat that time, I started to reminisce about 2013's positives and negatives. I had been employed throughout the year in a job which, though at times I dislike, on the whole I enjoy (though I do worry that I'm wasting my time as it's a job which I can't see will lead anywhere). I'm still in Japan and loving living in this amazing country. I have been on holiday six times this year (Feb: Sapporo Ice Festival. Mar/Apr: on holiday with my parents and sister. May: Shimokita pensular, Aomori. July / early Aug: Southern Honshu plus Akita's summer festival. Late Aug: Sado-ga-shima for the drum festival. Dec: Okinawa) which must be the most I've traveled, in one year, bar my year around the world. My Japanese has improved so much over this last year that I can now hold a basic conversation though, I really do need to put more effort into reading Kanji. Finally beautiful women seem to be all around me and yet, it seems impossible to get hold of one; this shall hopefully be rectified next year (though I have no idea how as, though in Tokyo there are a lot of beautiful women, where I live all the women my age have buggered off to the bigger cities).

Once I'd finished my meal I wished the cashier a 'happy new year' and headed back to my hotel, which is where I am now writing this, rather short, account of my day. The time is 7:30pm and the 'plan of action' for tonight is to chill until 10:30pm or so, before heading out into the night taking photos of Japan's capital as it enters 2014.

Tomorrow night I shall be traveling home at this time so therefore, expect the last blog on the 2^nd of January. I've thoroughly enjoyed my holiday and don't want it to end though, if their has to be an end, seeing the New Year come in from the worlds largest city cannot be too bad.

Happy New Year!

Sightseeing in Tokyo

Sunday 25th March 2012

MP3 track of the day: AKB48 - Beginner - (Just to be clear; I choose this track because AKB48 are big in Japan ... NOT BECAUSE OF THE VIDEO)

Weather: Perfect; a great 'sightseeing' temperature with blue skies and fluffy white clouds. Twice the clouds darkened, but nothing came of it.

At 9:30am I found myself, with the day off, in Tokyo (a quick catch up: I've moved to Japan to teach English for a year or two). Not wanting to waste the opportunity I picked up my bag, handed in my room key and headed to the train station. The hotel, which I find myself staying at, is out of the city centre; therefore I had a forty minute train journey, followed by a forty minute 'tube' ride, to get to my destination, Shinjuku.

As I surfaced to street level, I let my eyes adjust to the light, before realising that I'd left the tube station through the 'eastern exit'. I therefore had the governmental heartland in front of me, and one of Tokyo's most beautiful parks behind me; I decided to go forth, into the 'urban jungle', before back-tracking to the park.

Being a Sunday, the area was deserted as most buildings were government offices; it was therefore relaxing to wonder around this maze of skyscrapers (head fixed, pointing upwards towards the sky) and not having to worry about bumping into anyone. The area had a 'Hong Kong' feel about it; each skyscraper was different and yet, it all seemed to fit together well. My guidebook made a fuss over the 'Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building', saying that it was designed by Tange Kenzo and that, some argue, it was “...the last great edifice of postmodernism...”. Well I'm not sure about that, all I'll say is that with its many towers, walkways and squares it was certainly an interesting building, however it was too 'concrete and glass' for me; I much preferred the glass skyscraper, with a egg shaped 'thing' in the middle, which I'd seen earlier. After wondering around for a bit, I decided to head back to the station to cross over to the west side of Shinjuku; however first of all, I had to find something to eat.

This morning I'd found myself contemplating breakfast as I was heading to the train station; I wasn't sure if the Japanese eat whilst on trains, therefore I decided to 'play it safe' and wait until I reached my destination. One thing lead to another and I found myself, at 11:45am, starving. Having eaten rice most of last week (for breakfast, lunch and dinner) I decided to go 'western'; I dived into a local Subway and consumed a 'Chicken Tika' sandwich, closely followed by a drink of Pepsi. Back on the streets I headed west, past the station, and into Shinjuku 'Gyoen' (gardens to you and me).

Described within my guidebook as:

“...The largest and arguably most beautiful gardens in Tokyo. Apart from spaciousness, the gardens' most notable feature is the variety of design. The southern half is traditionally Japanese, with winding paths, stone lanterns, artificial hills and islands in ponds linked by zigzag bridges. At the northern end are formal, French-style gardens, with neat rows of tall birch trees and hedge-lined flowerbeds. Clipped, broad lawns dominate the middle of the park, modeled on English landscape design...”

I paid the 200 yen (£1.50) entrance fee and walked into the park, heading in the direction of the Japanese gardens. With the cherry blossoms out in full bloom, I've now managed to see Japan's two most dynamic seasons. I have to say that I prefer autumn (November) as the range of colours are more broad, and dynamic. The Japanese gardens themselves were lovely; winding paths, small wooden arched bridges and loads of well kept miniature trees ... these gardens kept my camera busy for hours. Within the center there were at least three traditional Japanese tea houses, all forming beautiful 'focal points' for my photos. I walked this way and that, not really following any specific route (I had to back-track a couple of times) until I reached the French garden; this had a very 'imperial' feel to it, with its tree-lined walkways and central 'focal' area. I continued to walk south, until I reached the outer-gate; I checked the parks map, to see if there was any part of the grounds I hadn't covered. It was then that I noticed that I'd missed the English garden; I double-checked the directions and headed off.

It didn't take long to find the English garden; I went there to see if the Japanese had any 'crazy ideas', of what a traditional English garden should look like, but unfortunately there weren't any weird things; in fact, I'd go as far to say that it was all a bit bland. There were trees running along the perimeter, with a huge burnt-lawn in the middle. What it lacked in design, it made up for with its huge communal area. Both the Japanese and French gardens lacked an area where people could sit, play football and run around; the English garden allowed this and it was great to see something, labeled with my countries name, which gave happiness to so many people. I therefore headed back to the southern gate, with a smile on my face.

Once out of the park, I'd crossed boarders into the 'Harajuku' area of Tokyo. I decided to head west, to get to the northern end of Meiji-jungu. Before arriving I stopped at a local convenience store and had an amazing cream cake.

Meiji-jingu is Tokyo's premier Shinto shrine; encased within a large forest, the shrine is a memorial to Emperor Meiji, who died in 1912, and his empress Shoken, who died in 1914. After passing under a dark wooden tori I made my way, along a path through the trees, to the main temple which only revealed itself at the last moment. Inside many people were sightseeing, praying or relaxing; within the huge temple a big drum started to beat, and most people followed the noise. After a short while I decided to leave and let the worshipers have a little peace; I left through the southern entrance.

The whole point of my trip, to the western area of Tokyo, was to see hundreds of women in 'Cosu-play'. My guidebook said that, on a Sunday, the southern entrance would be littered with Japanese women dressing up as their favorite manga character; I've seen some of these characters and let me tell you, they ain't dressed for cold weather. I picked up the pace and searched around...

...three! That was it, three girls. I'm sure their outfits were very nice, however I couldn't really see because of the crowds. I decided to walk on, into the 'busy shopping streets' of Harajaku. Time was ticking on and my pace slowed due to the sheer volume of people; Takeshita-dori was particularly busy as its 'the place to go' for teen fashion. It was an experience walking through, seeing what was 'this years black', and some of the items looked very dodgy; I did wonder who on earth would buy them … and then I reminded myself that I was in Japan where the weirder you looked, the more fashionable you were. After about thirty minutes I was starting to loose my patience; over the last ten minutes I'd only achieved six or seven steps. I could see the end of the street and, once there I would bolt for freedom.

And off I went; as fast as a fast thing being really fast. It was good to have a bit of speed, though it was short lived as I had to wait, for the 'green man', before crossing to the other side of the road. I needed to head south, into the district of Shibuya, for my final sightseeing location. Once across the road the crowds became less and less dense. Every footstep away from Harajaku, the crowds got lighter … until I hit Shibuya.

Approaching the train station from the north, I stumbled upon an almighty crowd. Looking around I found myself, rather surprisingly, at my final tourist attraction for the day; a pedestrian crossing. Now, this isn't any normal crossing; used in many films this is thought to be the busiest pedestrian crossing within the world. This was a Sunday, and yet every available piece of footpath had a person standing and waiting. Once the traffic stopped, hundreds of people exploded onto the road from different directions … from above it must looked like a massive group of ants moving between each other. I did a quick walk around the station (to make sure I'd found the right crossing) before finding a local McDonalds; the idea was to have a hot chocolate, whilst I read my guidebook to see if I'd missed anything important. The reading went well, however it would appear that 'Ronald' had forgotten to stock this outlet with hot chocolate; desperate for a hot drink I ordered a tea and sat down.

After twenty minutes I closed my guidebook and finished my tea. It would appear that Shibuya is a 'night location'; being 3:30pm I didn't really fancy staying here until the sun went down. Plus, my feet were killing; almost five hours of continual walking and they were pleading for me to stop. Even though my brain wondered what else was closeby, by body took over and I headed towards the closest tube station.

Traveling around, using Tokyo's metro system is extremely easy; not only is each station named in English, but all stations are numbered and lines are 'colour coded'. Unfortunately, to get to my hotel I had to take a local train, which wasn't quite as easy. Purchasing the ticket was fine, but selecting the correct platform required a few 'excuse me, is this the platform for...' and 'thank you'; still, after one platform change I managed to get onto the right train, and another passenger confirmed that I was okay.

Unbeknown to me I'd caught an express train, and I was back in my hotel room in no time. I put on my computer, to upload my photos, and write this blog (haven't done this in ages). I also checked the F1 situation, only to find that 'Spanish good for nothing, half-wit' of a Ferrari driver had won the Malaysian GP. Still, Lewis has had two 3^rd positions; consistency is the key in winning the championship … hopefully in China Lewis can turn 'pole to victory'. I grabbed a large pot noodle, and a cake, from the local convenience store and consumed them while thinking about tomorrow. Being a Monday I should be at work, though I don't know what I will be doing yet; I have a lot of information to read, plus some washing, plus I'm going to try and download the last two F1 races to watch. Therefore, I don't think I'll be heading into the 'big city' again (plus it costs a lot on the train). This means that I'm not sure when you'll next hear from me; until you do...

Toodle Pip!

Japan's amazing

Friday 12^th November 2010

MP3 track of the day: The way of Life - The Last Samurai

Weather: Not too hot but quite humid.

So last night I opened my 'benton box' and started to eat the contents, whilst drinking my apple juice. Firstly the 'apple juice' was actually cold tea … yuk! I fared better with the 'benton box'; the meal may not have looked like a lot, but it was so filling that I couldn't even get close to finishing it. Most of it food was okay, I wouldn't call it 'mouth watering' but I could eat it. I then retired to my room where I went straight to sleep at around 9pm … and I woke up at around 7am the following morning.

I was too tired to look through my guidebook last night and so I planned my moves, for the day, as soon as I got up. It was a toss up between taking a two hour train to Nikko (North of Toyko, Nikko has a very impressive temple) or spending the day in Tokyo. I decided to stay in Tokyo as I could go to Nikko on my return here. Looking through my guidebook the area of Asakusa was a must, however I had to get out of the hostel first.

Because I was leaving before 10am, the main door was closed and so I had to use the side door; this door had a lock on it which, for the life of me, I couldn't open. After, what seemed like an age, I managed to get out … however an alarm had started to sound. I then started pressing every button, in every conceivable combination, hoping that the alarm would stop … it eventually did.

As you may remember in yesterdays blog my plan was to go to McDonalds and get … oh maybe a pancake and syrup breakfast however, before arriving at McDonalds I had to go by a local supermarket and so I popped in to see if there was anything for breakfast that didn't include fish. I was surprised to see a bakery stand, within the supermarket, which had loads of hot pastries. I picked up two huge pastries (a banana loaf and danish pastry thing) for 260 yen (£2) and took them to Asakusa.

By the time I had reached Asakusa the pastries were cold but it didn't matter, I found a seat and eat my breakfast, feeling pretty full after wards. The area of Asakusa was amazing; there is the Senso-ji temple which has a long narrow street leading to it. At either end of the street there are two huge gates erected to guard the temple. In between these gates are a row of shops (which looked good for souvenir shopping when I return to Tokyo); all of these structures are built in an old Japanese design (however they were all built post-war) and the whole area is so beautiful. There were hundreds of people within this area, particularly located around the shots; I spent ages walking through the crowds taking hundreds of photos and loved every second. Just outside the main temple there was a 'well' looking structure with a guy burning incense that passers by wafted towards themselves so they could breathe in the fumes … not sure why. Other things within the area included a place to put wishes which were then knotted onto a metal line. The place was amazing, the experience was full on and it was lovely just to stand back and take it all in. It's hard to explain what the area was really like in words; to have a look please see my photos on my Flicker account.

I spent around three hours in the crowds, just admiring the history of the place, when I decided that I had seen enough and that I wanted to be somewhere a little more peaceful. Two stops on the underground later brought me to the station of Ueno, which is located on the west side of Ueno park. I spent about an hour walking around the park free of having to squeeze between people. The park was okay, but it was definitely in the shadow of Asakusa; after an hour I was pretty hungry and so I headed into town to find something for lunch. Again I found myself in a supermarket; outside the window to my right I could see the golden archers of the McDonalds 'M'. A slight debate occurred inside me; do I opt for another, but quite different, 'bento box' meal that was located in front of me however, I still didn't know what was in it (it looked like chicken). Or do I go for the safe option of McDonalds, which is American food that I can eat anywhere in the world. For quite a while I looked at the 'bento box', then I looked out the window and then back at the meal. In the end I went for the 'bento box' which had plenty of rice in it (at least it's something that I would like) and I was surprised to see that it only cost 460 yen (about £3.50). Just encase I didn't like the contents, I bought a packed of crisps and some cheese stick things. One more surprise was that, once at the cashier, the lady put my meal in the microwave to warm it up for me, and then gave me a fork and something to wipe my hands with after eating. I took the meal back to the park where I sat down and opened it up. This meal was quite nice and, what I thought was chicken, was actually chicken. After finishing my meal I had a further walk around the park before heading back to the underground station at around 2pm.

My final port of call for the day, and the furthest away from my hostel, were the areas of Roppongi and Akasaka. From Roppongi station I immediately headed north into the district of Akaska. The walk was pretty long but I found what I was looking for, the Hie-jinja shrine. Quite small compared to the Senso-ji complex, it didn't take me long to walk around the shrine. It was all very nice however, by now, I had seen enough ancient Japanese buildings and so I continued north to a hotel, which my guidebook said had a beautiful Japanese garden open to the public. I walked into the 'New Otani Hotel' where, immediately, I felt as though I didn't really belong there. The hotel was very posh and everyone was suited and booted; bless the Japanese, no one commented or even stared at my hiking boots and t-shirt … I even got a few bows from the staff. As I had traveled all this way I was determined to find the gardens, however I did feel really uncomfortable and so I only had a quick look around, following some signs but not getting anywhere. I decided to leave the hotel and instead, I would walk around the perimeter of the building. Across the street was a small park, however it didn't look like a garden and it was closed. I continued my hunt until I found a sign to the Japanese Gardens. As I got closer I noticed a few signs stating that things were shut, but I couldn't work out what was shut. I went through the entrance to the gardens but I couldn't see anyone else around. I decided to leave as I was pretty sure that I would find other Japanese Gardens in other places (If not I could always come back).

My feet were really starting to hurt and so I decided to take the long walk back to the underground station, passing through a small street with shops on either side and lots of illuminated signs. Once near the station I asked just a little bit more of my crippled feet and I walked for a further ten minutes to see Tokyo Tower, a cheaper version of the Eiffel Tower, which was okay. Finally I got on the underground train and headed back to my hostel; I went back to the same supermarket, that I went to for breakfast, to purchase some goodies for tonight.

Tomorrow I shall be heading to Hiroshima. As my train doesn't leave Tokyo until 12pm, I shall take it easy in the morning, purchasing breakfast and some snacks for the journey from the local supermarket, before checking out of my hostel, hopefully around 10:30am.

It's impossible for me to write all the different experiences I'm having in Japan; everything I hear, everything I see and everything I smell is new … it sometimes feels like an overload, and that's why I think I'm feeling a lot more tired than usual, but I'm loving it!

Toodle Pip

Oh look … fish

Thursday 11^th November 2010 (Remembrance Day)

MP3 track of the day: - In Flanders Fields

Weather: Hot during the day but it's getting dark around 5pm, I think I've arrived near winter.

Last night I boarded the plane, bound for Tokyo, with no particular problems; the flight was scheduled to leave just after 10pm, and arrive just after 6am, the perfect flight to sleep through. There was one slight problem however; due to me having an early tea, by 10pm I was ready for the meal that would be distributed, on the flight, around an hour later. This meant that I had to wait up for that, eat it, and then probably get to sleep around midnight.

I wasn't planning to watch a film (as I wanted to get to sleep asap) but I decided to start to watch 'Eclipse', the next part of the Twilight Saga, whilst having my meal. I thought that I would probably turn it off before it ended. Actually I managed to watch the whole film (not a bad film, better than 'New Moon'), and a episode of 'My Family', before I had finished my meal. The reason for this was that, firstly, it took forever for the plane to make it to the runway (and the seat belt sign was on so all cabin crew had to remain seated); at one point I thought we were going to drive our way to Tokyo. The captain came over the speaker to apologise and explain that, due to a wind direction change, we've had to drive to another runway to take off. Then I was one of the last people to be served my meal; the problems with that being that I would be the last person to finish eating and the last person to have their tray taken away, meaning that I would be the last person asleep.

However there was another problem with my meal; when the cabin crew member came to give me my meal she apologized and said that they had run out of the chicken (the choice I wanted) and so I had to have the fish. The cabin crew member did say that, due to the fact I was served last, and didn't get my preferred choice of meal, she would serve me breakfast first in the morning (meaning that I get woken up earlier than everyone else … brilliant).

The fish was okay, and I was nicely tucked up by 1am Sydney time (11pm Tokyo time). I must have had around four or five hours sleep before the cabin lights came on for us to have breakfast. True to her word the cabin crew member did serve me breakfast first and I had the choice of either the eggs or the fish … umm, looks like fish again. I pealed off the tin foil to find a lovely piece of salmon and rice … it would have been a great meal, if it wasn't for breakfast.

We touched down in Tokyo twenty minutes later than scheduled; I really didn't mind as it was nearly 7am by then and so rush hour was just starting in one of the biggest cities on the planet. I planned to take it nice and easy, no rush, and just apply for my Japanese Rail Pass, get some money out and probably wait around the airport until 8:00am / 8:30am (the airport is around ninety minutes away from the city center and so, I reckoned that rush hour would be over by 9:30am / 10:00am). There was a long queue to get my Japanese Rail Pass and, after withdrawing 30,000 yen (£220 to you), it was 8am and so I went to the train platform.

I was amazed to see so many English signs about (plus a lot of staff spoke English) and I got to my hostel a) in a reasonable time and 2) quite cheaply (less than £10 for three subway journeys for a total of 1hr 40mins). Once at the hostel a nice lady checked me in and I was surprised to find out that I had my own room. I was pretty certain I hadn't paid for an individual room but I wasn't going to turn it down. I dropped all my stuff in my room and I then went into the common room to use the FREE internet (it's soo much faster than Australasia) to catch up on emails, photos and my blog.

It was now midday and with all my internet stuff completed I was itching to get out into Tokyo. My first job was to do a 'mock run' of the trip I will have to take in two days time, to catch my train to Hiroshima. This meant that I had to get to Tokyo's central rail station, which was located near the Imperial Palace … two birds with one stone I thought. Before this could be completed lunch was needed; with me having fish last night, fish this morning (which I'm not sure agreed with me) and I was certain I would probably be having fish tonight, I really wanted something 'unfishy'. Therefore I headed to MacDonalds to get some … well you can read the receipt for yourself:

You're Japanese not as good as you thought … it's a chicken nugget meal.

My mock run went pretty well, and I also managed to reserve a seat for my trip to Hiroshima at the train ticket office, within Tokyo central station. My train leaves at 12:03pm on Saturday and arrives at Osaka around 15:03pm. There I have to change and board another train at 15:22pm to finally arrive in Hiroshima at 16:54pm.

All looked good, apart from the lack of time between my train change; however, as I have a rail pass, I don't need to worry too much about missing my connection as I can always get the next train without any cost penalties. The best thing about this rail journey is, I think, that I shall be traveling on the bullet train, one of my musts whilst traveling in Japan.

Confidence was high, all was looking good and I was beginning to forget my worries about traveling in this fantastic country. I left the train station and found the Imperial Palace (it's a little hard to miss) which is stunning. Most of the palace is out of bounds with barriers restricting access … which is a good thing as this means no stupid tourists getting in the way of my photographs. I walked arou

nd the whole perimeter of the Palace complex before entering the gardens. The gardens were nice, however I had to rush due to it being just after 3pm and they close at 4pm. Like I said, the gardens were nice, but the best bit about the Imperial Palace was just seeing parts of the palace rising behind the stone walls … oh and all the ancient gates, this is what I came to Japan for!

After looking around the Imperial Palace I decided to head for home. It was now 4pm (slightly bad timing as it was rush hour again) and I was getting pretty tired. On my way back I purchased a 'bento' box; this is a meal you can pick up at train stations for around 1,000 yen (£8) and is designed for train journeys. As I was taking a journey in a couple of days time I wanted to try one out beforehand. Each box is beautifully designed with the food inside carefully placed; it looks lovely (my sister would like it here) but I have no idea what I will be eating ... but that's half the experience isn't it … oh and there is fish in this box too.

I then purchased a bottle of apple juice (well I think it's apple juice … looks like it but the label is all in Japanese) before reaching my hostel. So far a few things have amazed me; firstly just how easy it is to get around Tokyo and how much English signage there is. Secondly that the Japanese drive on the left hand side of the road (so that's Fiji, New Zealand, Australia and Japan now). Thirdly the, almost confrontational, stance between old and new architecture, I am certainly making it a point to photograph that (like an old building with new, modern, sky scrapers in the back ground). Finally I have been amazed at how reasonable the prices seem to be, I've spent less that 4,000 yen (£30.00) today and, apart from not paying for breakfast (which I may visit MacDonalds in the future to get something other than fish), it's been a full day of activities. It's early days but maybe Japan might not be as expensive as I first thought (though it is a pain to divide every price you see by 131 to get the UK equivalent).

Tonight will be an early night as I'm pretty shattered. I shall soon be having my meal (which maybe very short depending on how it all tastes) before reading up on what I want to do tomorrow, oh and booking my Hiroshima hostel. I've been told that there is a good train line that runs around Toyko city center, passing all the sights, so maybe a day pass on the trains will be a good move.

Toodle Pip!