Andy's meeting meant Chris and I were on our own for the morning. We had made some plans based on his suggestions the night before and had plans to meet up about lunch time...
But first breakfast at McDonald's...
By now, we were feeling pretty comfortable both with Google Maps and the train systems. We made it there with no issues even with one transfer and change of lines.
The stand with the beautiful sakura treats were unfortunately prettier than delicious...
But it did match the beautiful manhole cover...
Even the Lemonsquash Cafe (aka lemonade truck) was super cute!
Ueno Park was established in 1873 and it's official name means "Ueno Imperial Gift Park." This sprawling park includes a zoo, six museums, a huge pond, statues, temples, shrines, mausoleums, a concert hall and two academies. (We hardly got to see any of it in the few hours we were there.) But it is most famous for cherry blossoms.
The first trees were planted on the site in the early 1600s, though none still survive. Every year the park attracts over 2 million visitors for Hanami!
Known as the Time Forgotten Tower, this statue is a memorial to the victims of the American air raids on Tokyo during WWII...
There was also a live monkey show that was a ton of fun to watch even though we didn't understand any of it...
The pond is very large and beautiful! And I got a viewing platform all to myself to take a few pics because I would guess most people didn't feel comfortable walking past the three homeless men sitting on a bench drinking beers and shaving. This was the one place we knowingly saw homeless people and apparently there are large homeless camps in the wooded areas of the park...
A walking path lined with sakura trees divides the pond. On one side is the weeds and on the other is the swan boats!!!
While I was super excited about paddling a super cool swan boat, Andy was not. He said we could eat lunch and do the boats and he would meet us there later.
We grabbed a bite to eat at one of the food vendors near the Benten-do Temple. It is dedicated to Benzaiten, the goddess of music and performing arts...
Since we had already eaten, we didn't have to worry about the no eating on boats rule. And since we're pretty good swimmers, we didn't have to tell the staff we were hoping for a life jacket...
Andy met us at the boat dock just after we finished our ride and he took us to Akihabara, or Electric Town...
We enjoyed looking at the shops and wandering through a couple of second-hand stores: one was all electronics and the other was clothes. Andy and I were both able to pick up a few things super cheap! Like $2 each cheap!
The Meiji Shrine was built in 1920 and dedicated to the Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken. He was the first emperor of modern Japan when the feudal era came to an end. It was destroyed in WWII and rebuilt shortly after. The trees of the Eternal Forest of about 100,000 trees surrounding the shrine were planted during construction and donated from all over the country. It is a beautiful and peaceful place with no bustling shops or food stalls. It is all done in neutral woods and colors to blend in with the surrounding natural setting. Nearly 3 million people visit here every New Year to offer prayers and many Shinto weddings are performed here.
Our next stop couldn't have felt more different than Meiji Shrine: Takeshita Street! It is the center of the trendy kawaii pop culture Tokyo trends. Everything is colorful, outrageous and sweet! From the shops and cafes (ones where you can eat with puppies, kitties or even otters) to the crowds of people, it is a bit overwhelming!!! Fun but overwhelming!
So we walked through a tunnel that contained the only graffiti we saw on our trip and had a very fancy sushi dinner/experience instead. It was definitely not a picture taking kind of place but I had to sneak in a few...
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