Our next stop was Tokyo. My impression of Tokyo was that it was a mixture of traditional and modern culture. We visited the Asakusa Temple (top row), Tokyo Imperial Palace (2nd row, 1st pic), dropped by Diamaru during its opening hour at 10am (2nd row, middle pic), saw some kimono-dressed Japanese at Ueno (middle row, last pic), witnessed the crowd at Shibuya cross junction (3rd row, 1st pic), saw cosplay "maids" near Akihabara train station (3rd row, middle pic) and rode the shinkensan (bullet train) (3rd row, last pic).
Hachiko the Dog
There was a Japanese tale about a loyal dog named Hachiko. The dog accompanied his master to the train station every day and returned each afternoon to greet him after work. Sadly his master departed one day, passed away and never returned to the station. Hachiko faithfully returned to the same spot at the station the very next day, and every day to wait for his master. This faithful dog touched many people. A bronze statue of Hachiko now sits in his waiting spot outside the Shibuya station as a permanent reminder of his devotion and love.
We also went to the futuristic-looking Odaiba (top row), kitchenware town (2nd row, 1st pic), saw Pokemon and Doraemon at Tokyo Animation Centre (2nd row, middle pic), passed by Prada building (2nd row, last pic), visited the famous Tsukiji Fish Market (3rd row, 1st pic), dropped by Shinjuku at night (3rd row, middle pic) and collected some stamps (chops) at the JR train stations (3rd row, last pic).
What is a Japan trip without trying its authentic mouth-watering food (see above)? Oh yummy!
Our first stop was Kyoto. Kyoto is more traditional and life is of much slower pace than Tokyo and Osaka. We were glad to stay in a traditional ryokan in Kyoto. We also visited nearby places like Nara, Kobe and Himeiji. I still remembered the traffic crossing lights that play music during the green-man crossing, instead of just beep.
