May 23 Tokyo Day 2

Welp, I predicted it and I was right. Instead of waking up at 5 AM this morning we awoke just after 9 to Sarah calling the cell phone. She was at the station but couldn't find us. We were luckily able to communicate with her and she headed to meet us at our hotel. However...the plan was for Brenda and Aaron to meet us at the train station at 9 as well... and they weren't in their room when we went to check... So we had no idea where they were. The only thing we could do was hope!

After we all showered we headed out. The group really wanted some pastries for breakfast, so thats what we got. Which, by the way, is my favorite thing to eat in Japan. There are lots of little bakeries with fresh donuts, rolls and all kinds of treats, its fantastic. So after that we were off to explore Tokyo!

We went first to the electronics district where there are just hundreds of different electronics shops with their walls packed with merchandise. It was crazy and overwhelming. They don't have nice stores with big floor layouts like Best Buy. All of the shops look like what we would call "sketchy." What's different about walking the streets of Tokyo compared to other cities? TONS MORE PEOPLE. Everywhere you go its like there is some kind of big event going on. All over the electronics district there were maids... Probably because this is a big spot frequented by Otakus. I mean, the maids were everywhere. Popular stores: Anime DVD shops, J-pop stores, random crazy electronic accessory stores with unnecessarily bright florescent lighting, and PLENTY of arcades, big ones.

After the electronics district we headed to the Senso-Ji temple. One of the BIG tourist attractions in Tokyo. There was actually an article about it in the magazine on the plane. It was just as described and pictured in the magazine. Upon entering, like all temples we have visited, there were two giant guardian stautes on both sides of the entrance gate. They remind me of things out of Mortal Kombat!! There was then a long, LONG, avenue of vendors selling souvenirs, ice cream, treats and other things. Ryan and I stopped and got some soft serve ice cream, I got mandarin orange and he got rose petal. We got up to the actual temple and just as the in-flight magazine described, there was a huge bronze incense holder. It gave the place a sacred atmosphere. Smoke surrounded us and the hundreds of people passing by and our clothes absorbed the scent of the incense. Inside there were buddhist monks chanting and meditating.

We took some pictures of the temple then headed to Shibuya for some shopping. We got off the train and before we left the station we stopped on the 3rd or 4th floor and Sarah pointed out the busiest intersection in the world. Not busy from car traffic, but pedestrians. Over 1 million people a day pass through it! We watched the streets as they were clear, then when the signal to cross lit up it was flooded with bodies! You could barely see the pavement. We walked out of the station and merged into the sea crossing the intersection.

We did some shopping at the department stores but things were super expensive. Most of the group was overwhelmed by the crazy fashion styles! Ryan was lost and confused. We headed deeper into shopping territory. I swear there is an ABC Mart on every block in urban shopping environments in Japan. It is a shoe store that sells all kinds of gym shoes for guys and girls, they have crazy colors of Nikes, Reeboks, Adidas, Vans, all of the big brands. The group went into a restaurant to eat, but with so much to explore, I wasn't ready to sit down for a meal. I told them I would be back in a half hour or so and I went in search of shoes. I ventured into a few sketchy stores owned by Nigerian guys peddling resold merchandise but couldn't find any fly kicks for a reasonable price. Everything is soooo marked up here.

I met back up with the group and we continued our journey. While waiting outside a backpack store that the girls went into I saw a sign for BAPE! That was another one of my goals, to go to a BAPE store! It was just around the corner and I ran ahead of the group. There it was! I walked inside and, Ah! was i supposed to walk in here? I was standing on top of a moving shoe display! I felt like i was trodding on a beautiful display case but this was really the entrance. Clear glass with shoes moving underneath and bright LCD lights changing colors from shades of red to blue to green to purple. It was the most INSANE store layout i have ever experienced! Not only were there crazy lights, but mirrors everywhere making it look much bigger than it actually was! The cheapest t-shirt I saw was $85. Jeeeeez...

Annalise, Ryan and Sarah left to go do Karaoke with some of Sarah's friends so Marietta, Taylor, Gabrielle and I got some dessert at a restaurant. After that we walked around a while longer before getting a call from Sarah that Aaron and Brenda left a message at the front desk of the hotel with a number to contact them! So we went to a payphone and called Aaron. The plan was to meet at Roppongi at 9. We headed to Roppongi a little early so that we could explore a little before they got there. Roppongi is the touristy area with lots of bars and nightclubs. It's the only place you can find dance clubs in Japan...because they just don't dance!

We finally met up with Aaron and Brenda who were relieved to see us. We walked the streets for a bit searching for the best place to dance. We passed an arcade that I ventured in to see if they had DDR. AND THEY DID! I played a couple rounds for a few hundred yen and it worked up a sweat. Cross "DDR in Tokyo" off the bucket list! We decided to go to a GasPanic which seem to be the best places to dances. It wasn't very big but it was a lot of fun! Marietta danced with us and we all laughed watching Japanese people attempt to dance. The only bummer was that we had to leave before 12 because the trains shut down at midnight. We got back to the hotel and everyone is exhausted. Tomorrow we are going to the Harajuku district!