Around Tokyo

Our first full day in Japan. With the change in time, Emma woke at 4.30 in the morning which woke both Sharon and I. At about 5.30 we realised there was no hope of getting her back to sleep, so we all got up early.

The previous night we bought what we *thought* was milk, and made some tea. It turns out it was drinking yoghurt. In a word, ick.

It was quite light by the time we finished getting ready, so we went out to explore in the garden around the hotel. I'm surprised that the hotel complex has such a large garden right in the middle of Tokyo. I managed to get few nice shots with my DSLR camera.

We came back inside picked up Sharon's parents and went off for Breakfast. We found a small cafe called "Art Coffee". After breakfast we went over to Shinagawa station to look around and buy a few things from the small supermarket. Almost everything for sale there is wrapped in plastic, even individual pieces of fruit.

Walking past the hotel we found a steak house, advertising steak meals for approx. $200 a head. 

We headed off to Ueno gardens to see some Cherry Blossoms. It started raining so it probably wasn't the best time to see the gardens, but there were plenty of trees still blooming. When the wind picks up a little, a line of cherry trees all losing their flower petals looks spectacular.

Ueno was only about 5 stations from Shinagawa, the trip takes about 5 minutes and costs about $1.60. At Ueno there was a bloke walking around with no trousers on. Lots of people in Japan wear surgical masks when on public transport, apparently so as not to spread germs. A nice gesture, but if your that sick, wouldn't it be better to stay at home ?

We came back to Shinagawa for lunch. We found a place called the "wired cafe". Emma wanted McDonalds, so she had McNuggets instead. 

After lunch Paul and I headed up to Akihabara (Electric town) whilst Sharon and Sue took Emma back to the hotel for a sleep. Akihabara is famous for all the electronics and gadget shops, so I was in heaven. I spent quite a bit of time in Yodabashi Camera, 9 floors of one shop selling every electronic gadget you could imagine. 

Unlike stores in Australia, everything was on display and could be touched, even some $7,000 Canon cameras. You didn't need to ask anyone. I was looking to get a small panasonic point and shoot camera, but changed my mind when I found out in Japan, panasonic only sell their cameras with the Japanese language enabled.

For dinner we went to Shibayu and also to have a look around. Sharon found a small shop selling all kinds of kitchen gear and utensils. She managed to find a few items we hadn't ever seen, so a few more to add to her collection. We also discovered a Kinokuniya book store. In the English language section we picked up a fantastic guide book for Kyoto that will come in handy on the next leg of the journey.

For todays pictures, head over to :-

http://www.flickr.com/photos/sg_harrison/sets/72157604419750870/