Pleasant Surprises!

Hello all!

So after my exhausting first day in Harajuku and Shibuya, I was able to meet up with Rob (remember, we’re going back in time before I actually started work). 

We decided that we’d spend a day being typical American tourists. After meeting at Hamamatsucho station in Central Tokyo, we made our way to Tokyo Tower. We really didn’t know which way to go, so we followed the white and red tip of the tower as it poked up from beyond the skyscrapers. The first turn we made was on the Tokyo World Trade Center (or something with an extremely similar name). We thought nothing of it until we noticed signs that advertised the observation deck at the top of the 60+ story building (I think that’s how big it was...). The tickets were fairly cheap for a tourist attraction (600 yen) so we thought we’d make a pit stop and enjoy the view. 

The 360* panoramic deck had breathtaking views. We were both able to point out random places that we had only read about in history books. Rob pointed out Zojouji Temple as a spot he wanted to visit. I very much obliged as its impression from both the books I’ve read and the sky was magnificent. After pointing out some random spots we wanted to go to and spending time catching up, we headed to the temple. 

Tokyo Bay!

Tokyo Tower and Zojouji from the sky!

On top of the world!!

Zojouji is a stop that you absolutely must go to if you ever go to Tokyo. It’s central to the corporate business and government sector of Tokyo and stands at the very base of Tokyo Tower.Tokyo Tower looked impressive from the base, but there is hands down no comparison to the beauty of Zojouji to Tokyo Tower. The past trumped the present in the case of comparing the two. I was blown away by both the size of the temple and the details in the architecture its decorative accents. 

The inside of the Temple was just as beautiful as the outside. I didn’t want to be rude to the people who were actually there to pray, so I didn’t take any pictures, but the center focus was a giant Buddha. It was a little smoky from people burning incense, but it was still an experience nonetheless. I had been to one other Buddhist temple in Singapore, so the whole process was still a little new to me. 

Zojouji and Tokyo Tower

Old Rafters of a Side Entrance Gate

A side Temple in the Complex

Side Buildings in the Complex

The Main Temple

After sitting for a few minutes in silence and admiring the Buddha we decided to walk around the huge grounds. We found cute little stone dolls that we assumed to be children with yarn hats and offerings in front of them. We couldn’t really figure out what they represented, but there were TONS of them. Rows upon rows that spread the length of the entire temple grounds. 

Once we saw everything at the temple, we wanted to try Tokyo Tower. However, on the walk over we decided that since the basic ticket to the top of the tower was slightly more expensive than we had planned, we decided to save it for a day when Tokyo wasn’t cloudy. Our main goal being that we could see Mount Fuji at a later date. 

So then I suggested that we try the Imperial Palace. Walking without any sense of direction as to where the palace was became slightly tiring so we stopped to grab some lunch at a Chinese restaurant. The quick pit stop gave us a bit more energy, but we found that we were still both exhausted from jet lag as soon as we left the restaurant. 

As we continued walking, I noticed a small patch of hydrangeas on the side of the road. My dad’s mother, Nona, used to grow them so it brought back really great memories of her home when I was little. Needless to say, I felt nostalgic and homesick. 

<3 <3 <3

Wandering led us to what we thought were the Imperial Gardens, but they were just regular gardens. And by regular, I mean one of the most beautiful gardens I’ve ever been in. Japanese maintenance standards have made a regular park into what Americans would consider a national landmark. There was a huge pond in the center of the park with a traditional Japanese tea house on a dock in the middle of it. We figured resting our legs would be good so we paid 500 yen and participated in our own little solo tea ceremony. The waitress handed us instructions and let us choose where we wanted to practice. 

Beautifully Sculpted Tree

Traditional Japanese Bridge

We decided to order the (absolutely non-traditional) cold tea because it was so hot outside and お菓子 (おかし/okashi: traditional Japanese sweets). Rob knew everything down to how you were supposed to position your feet when you sit in the traditional pose called Seiza. I pretended like I knew what I was doing, but I really had no idea. The instructions couldn’t even really help me, the ceremony is quite complicated. 

We forgot to take a picture before we ate the okashi.

Tea House

Stunning view from atop a hill in the park.

After we finished our tea we noticed a group of older Japanese women who had just got their tea and were drinking it in the most beautiful way I had ever seen. It was really cool to be able to see locals participating in such an iconic part of their history. 

As we got up to put our shoes on at the tea house exit, one of the older women came up to me and offered me some bandaids for my blisters that I had accumulated over the past two days. “They look like they are excruciating.” she said and was so surprised when I thanked her and agreed in Japanese. Rob patiently waited holding all of my stuff while I sat there and gingerly put on the new bandaids. 

We decided that we were through with trying to find the Imperial Palace and decided to try and find our friend Minako in Shinjuku instead. Some background on Minako, she came to Arizona with some other students from Tokyo International University in the spring and we all quickly became friends. Her mother is Chinese and her father is Japanese, so she is bilingual and extremely pretty. 

When we finally found her at Shinjuku station she suggested that we see a little bit of Shinjuku before we went to an Izakaya. Fun fact: Shinjuku is known for its weird nightlife. “Love” hotels, nightclubs, “fun” saunas, etc. We stopped at an arcade and took some purikura photos. For those that don’t know, purikura are the Japanese photobooths that blow peoples eyes up to giant size and make everyone look doll-like, pastel-y, and, overall, a little creepy. 

When we got to the izakaya we were ravenous. We ordered a round of extremely girly cocktails (Rob’s being the girliest: Lychee and with mandarin orange vodka). After stuffing our faces, we decided to head home. Poor Minako had class all day and then had to trek around with lame foreigners. (有り難うみなこ！＾＿＾）

Bar snacks: East meets West

Minako!

In Shinjuku

When I finally got home I could barely move, my feet were throbbing and my shoulders hurt from carrying my heavy bag around. I immediately passed out. Overall though, it was a day full of unplanned, yet exciting surprises. :)

I’m really working on trying to catch up to where I am today. I’m hoping that this will become a daily journal type of thing. I know my family at least is interested in my daily life here.