Tokyo, first destination in Japan

Sunday afternoon, April 30th, I flew from Shanghai to Nagoya, Japan and from there I took a direct train to Tokyo. In advance, I bought the Japan Rail Pass. With that, I can travel by train throughout Japan for seven days. Only the night trains and a few private lines are excluded. The pass is not cheap but you can still save a lot of money.

So I went to Tokyo and I was lucky enough to stay with a great Couchsurfer there. On the one hand, you can save a lot of money with that and on the other hand, it's always good to get tips from locals. Takaya picked me up from the subway in the evening and then I fell asleep pretty quickly on my futon bed.

The next day, Takaya still had to work. So I explored the city on my own and in the evening we were meeting for dinner. In Tokyo, I stuck to the things that interested me. First, I went to Shimo-Kitazawa. That's the hippie district of the city and it would definitely be my place of choice if I were to live in Tokyo. There are lots of bars and nice shops that make the atmosphere open and friendly. The opening hours are particularly cool. Many pubs only open at around 7:00 or 8:00 pm and then stay open until at least three or so. In this district, I also treated myself to a new hat. I practically still don't have...

After this calm and alternative place, I visited Harajuku. The main street of this part is full of brands and shops with famous names. So it's the complete contrast to before. But if you turn into a few side streets, you'll find many small, nice shops. These are also all brands but much nicer than the ones on the main street. And it's not Gucci or anything like that, but Dr. Martens and Prima Vera. I went to these streets because of a gallery, yes a gallery. But it was worth visiting. On the one hand, it was free and on the other hand, the building alone was really cool. The artworks were also okay. :D Different artists exhibit at the gallery. There's everything from jewelry to painting, fashion, and photography. Plus, the gallery is integrated with a café that plays cool music. I can definitely recommend Design Festa to all non-art enthusiasts, it's a cool place. :) Before meeting up for dinner, I visited a shrine. It wasn't anything special in itself but it's located in a really beautiful park. It actually looks more like a forest because there are only old trees. In hindsight, I read that it's the largest shrine in the city and therefore a well-known attraction. Oops, :D I still found the park more beautiful. Then, as I said, I went out for dinner with my host and we also had a beer. It tasted pretty good, but it wasn't particularly bitter. Not suitable for lovers of spicy flavors.

The morning after my second night, I started with a baguette roll just like in Germany. Oh, it was cool to eat a well-baked baguette again. Then I packed up and went to Shibuya with Takaya. The area is exactly how you imagine Tokyo. It's crowded, overloaded with screens, and just this typical image you have of Tokyo. I probably wouldn't have gone there alone. But my host said there's a cool skyscraper where you can see the city. And he was right. We went up to the 46th floor for free and looked at Tokyo from above. A bit later, we found a rooftop terrace with a similar view in a department store. It wasn't quite as high, but there was a park in the picture. The green definitely had something. Between the two views, we wandered around the area, I bought coffee for China, and then we had another coffee.

So my time in the most populous city in the world was over. In the evening, I took the train towards the Japanese Alps. I also started writing this on my phone on the train, so there might be a few more mistakes. Somehow more mistakes slip in when using the phone. I hope you forgive it. ;)

So much for the beginnings from Japan. (: The rest of the time will follow.