Day 3: I love Tokyo!

Today was great! I had so much fun! I fell in love with this city!

We went to Shibuya today. You might think that this district only consists of people around 20, who are good looking and stylish to death. One of the most impressive moments today was the famous Shibuya crossing. It is like the whole population of Tokyo came to Shibuya to this crossing. It is packed!

The famous Shibuya Crossing (the sight from Starbucks)

 

The famous Shibuya Crossing (the sight from the Shibuya train station)

 

 The famous Shibuya Crossing (the sight from in front of the Shibuya train station)

 

One of my most exciting lunches in my life:

sitting up in Starbucks, secretly eating a Avocado subway (there is no such thing in Germany!!), drinking Starbucks Café Latte, and watching the crowds crossing Shibuya Crossing ^^ 

I could sit here all day...

At Shibuya train station there is the statue of Hachi-Ko.

The famous story is now even made Hollywood material:

In the 1920s a professor had a dog who waited for him every day at the station when he came from work. Even after the professor died the dog kept coming to the station waiting for his master. It came every day for 11 years until it died. The Lonely Planet says that locals recognized this and erected this statue to honor the dog's loyalty. I wonder if the story is true. It sounds very sad.

 

We went to the Shibuya 109, a huge department store with clothes, accessories,... It is favored by teenage girls. It is crazy, there is so much stuff! 

We went to H&M. Many clothes were sold for only 1000 Yen (ca. 7-8 Euro)! 

I did not know that Japanese like H&M. I always thought it was too basic for them. But at these prices in Germany H&M would be hell, women fighting each other for clothes. But here it was pretty calm!

I went to Uniqlo later, where they also had sales, and there it was packed! Japanese stop to be polite in trains, subways, and in Uniqlo!

We went to Yoyogi Park because we heard that it is full of freaks. There was music playing everywhere, people running around in weird costumes. It is really a freak show.

In front of Yoyogi Park - people giving away free hugs.

More freaks. I read that many are bullied at school and the weekend at Yoyogi Park is a possibility for them to meet expres themselves.

 

 Takeshita-Dori in Shibuya - it is packed! 

The masses reminded me of Kyoto. Only that most of the people were teenage girls.

This street is full of boutiques, stores selling colorful stuff, shoes, accessories, socks,...

We went to a really cool okonomiyaki (Japanese pizza) place. It was hidden in an art gallery. The place was really cozy and each room has been painted by a different artists. This is the building of the gallery.

A really interesting place - and in here there is an okonomiyaki restaurant?

 Miriam and Fabian making okonomiyaki and soba meshi (fried noodles)

 

 My first self-made okonomiyaki - yummy!

After dinner we checked out the rest of the gallery - a really cool place!

Today was also really relaxed. We have so much time here in Tokyo and do not have to rush from one sight to another. Also, when we come back from out daytrips, we come home to a cozy apartment, where we can drink tea, use our computers, relax. It feels so much more home and nice in Tokyo staying at our friend's apartment ^^

Shibuya is a really lively and young spot. It is a shopping paradise, a cool place to watch people and their crazy or stylish fashion, a good place to find many affordable restaurants,... I love Shibuya! 

And the weather is also perfect. The sky is blue, and it is not extremely cold (like in Germany).

Also, we start to understand the subway system a little bit better. We also bought a Passnet card, which you can use to enter any station without having to buy a new ticket each time, thus saving much time.

When we walked around today we thought that the city looks very nice. Maybe the weather played an important role. But the atmosphere, the look of the whole city and its streets in Shibuya are very enjoyable. The liveliness was sometimes overpowering, but next to bustling streets you can suddenly find yourself in a quiet and almost deserted street. We could find a nice balance in this part of the city.

Last, but not least.
Would you like to see Shibuya Crossing in action?
It is like watching a fish aquarium.