Tokyo Treats

With Setsuko and Masaki taking turns showing me around their amazing city, I've had a ball seeing the best of Tokyo. We've spent hours walking around and soaking up feel of the different neighborhoods.

Shopping:
Harajuku was my favorite with a wide boulevard and nice stores mixed with fun places to eat. Setsuko and I had a wonderful lunch and then a fabulous stop a desert cafe one day. This is also the home of Budoir the only Western salon, run by an Aussie, for things like waxing. For even more excitement, young people in Harajuku dress up in crazy costumes (little bo peep, Elvis, Goths to Babydolls...) and hang out on a corner near the park on weekends for no apparent reason. Those crazy kids...

The Omte Sando area had a small village feel with upscale shopping mixed with great apartments. My favorite was the Prada store, which is the coolest building! Masaki and I had the most stylish lunch here and watched the beautiful people on parade.

And of course Ginza, which is Tokyo's 5th Avenue. A trip to Tokyo wouldn't be complete without a little shopping here.

City Centers:
Shinjuku is right down the street from Setsuko's house and you can get anything there. The Takashimaya department store is wonderful. All the major department stores also have great food courts in the basement for a quick bite or to pick up dinner.

Shibuya feels like Times Square. The streets are small and there is neon everywhere. The extremely crowded crosswalk that is always in movies, where all traffic stops and hundreds of people cross in different directions, is here. It's at once exciting and overwhelming!

Sights:
Asakusa Kannon-do, or Senso-ji, is a wonderful temple dedicated to the Buddhist Goddess of Mercy. It's a treasure right in the middle of Tokyo in an area historically known for entertainment, especially kabuki (traditional Japanese theater).

Meiji-jingu Shrine, set in the middle of a large park, is the Imperial Shrine. Setsuko and I had a very peaceful visit here (photo above). The clouds came and gave us a cooler afternoon to wonder around the park and shrine. The Emperor uses this shrine for ceremonies and it was certainly the most elegant shrine I have seen in Japan. Very understated and spiritual.

Food:
I've had countless great meals in Tokyo. I've already written about Ninja on my first evening in Tokyo. Masaki also took me to a neighborhood restaurant where we ate grilled meats and seafood sitting on the floor at low table. We entered through bamboo which has an immediate calming effect and sets the tone for a relaxed evening. Quite different from a neighborhood pub at home. But, the most exciting meal was the conveyor belt sushi (photo above). They are all over Tokyo. We had to wait for a seat and then just started grabbing the sushi as it passed by. There was self service green tea, and they count the number of plates you have to tally your bill. It was great fun!

The People:
Of all the places I've gone on this trip, I would most like to emmulate the Japanese people. While hard working and ambitious, the Japanese are the kindest and most considerate people I've ever known. Everyone bows out of respect for others, people are courteous to a fault. Everyone goes out of their way to help others. Despite tremendous crowds there is no pushing or shoving in the street or on trains, people always wait there turn. I can't count the number of times people have gone out of their way to help me. When I ask directions, someone will almost always walk me to my destination rather than just point me in the right direction. I have learned so much about how I relate to others here. I hope that I take some of Japan with me when I leave!