Part Two - What does Tokyo Sound like?

Something you don't see everyday in Shibuya is a major road closure. It was a surreal experience to walk over six lanes normally packed with cars. The exact reason for the road closure escaped my keen intellect; I'm assuming it was either some kind of corporately-sponsored advertising blitz or holiday cultural event. Because the stage erected in front of Shibuya 109 (another department store owned by the Tokyu corporation, the title is a play on their name) was blaring live J-pop, I am leaning toward the former. Although there were traditional taiko drums set up on the stage too, which might have made the J-pop bearable had they blended the two together. But I digress, the road closure started from the intersection I referred to in my last post, up a block past the "Y" intersection at Shibuya 109, and continued both directions for a couple of blocks. I read a sign that said the road was closed from 12:00 to 5:00. I found it surprising that they would even consider closing that thoroughfare, so I think it was pretty extraordinary to see.


Other areas I visited this trip were Ueno, which is home to a really cool, old-school, shopping district housed under the raised train tracks. I would recommend for anyone visiting to check it out. Wandering through the narrow streets peaking into all the tiny - and I mean tiny - shops was really fun. I had ramen here in a shop with only five seats at the bar. Too funny. Before I had set off for Ameyayokocho (the name of the spot) I had built up a sizable appetite at the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum and the National Museum, another thing Ueno is known for. There are four different museums situated in a large park opposite the station. The Tokyo Met was especially good if you like modern art. The image below is of the National Museum.


Also not to be missed is Shinjuku. This is a fast paced area of Tokyo were shopping and culture meet business as many corporate offices are located in this district. Shinjuku station is probably one of the more intimidating stations. The station itself seems old (if mid 70s is old) and is not very well laid out for visitors. The thing is just plain labyrinthine. Another inundating factor is all the people rushing around that now what there doing and where they are going. One really has to keep their wits about them at this station (if they don't want to be knocked over). With more time I would had loved to have seen Chinatown and also a small camera district, both located in Shinjuku.




To return to thoughts of home; it has reached my ears that my father and brother are buying all sorts of interesting electronic gadgets that I, while here, am unable to enjoy. So in an effort to push back I paid a short visit to Akihabara. This area is known as electronic city. Amazing place, just as big, just as busy, but dedicated to everything electronic. Again the narrow streets dominating the are area hard to explain, not only in the brightness and gaudiness of their signage but also in the narrowness of their specialization. I loved the little shop that sold nothing but TV's for cars. The cell phone store as big as Chapters was pretty cool too, but I didn't venue to far inside because of the din coming from inside. Akihabara is not only home to small specialized sellers but also the biggest of the biggest electronic stores. Yamada Denki and Big Camera both have flagship stores in area, but none competes with Yodobashi - Akihab. They say if you can't find it at Yodobashi, you can't find it in Tokyo. This is a huge electronic department store that is hard to imagine until you visit it. I'm just gasping at things to compare it too. Their headphone section had every model from every maker in Japan and abroad- all demonstrable I might add. They had the best selection of high-end stereo equipment I have seem assembled in one place. They had so many specially items too; want to build you own speakers? Even their Apple computer area was larger than the Apple store I had seen in Shibuya. I only bought a camera bag there, but it was a hard choice. It was like an online store. They had every model from about seven companies. If you are going to be the best in Japan you don't mess around.



The picture directly below was taken at the end of the block my hotel was on. It was taken just before 9:00 PM. Other random pictures follow. And extended part three comes tomorrow.