Today I decided to write about one of the great city in the world for its technological advancement. As you are all aware about the recent earthquake & tsunami that hit Japan, struck about 400km north-east of Tokyo on 11 March 2011. So this post is dedicated to people of Japan. So here is a little about my visit to Japan back in 2007, I really loved those 3 little weeks in Japan. I had not walked the streets with eyes wide open like that from India. Everything is incredible, colorful signs that cover close to 100% of the surfaces of walls in certain streets, -cool teenagers in parts of Tokyo or Osaka, too many “salary man” in suit and tie on the busy roads.
Beside, there is a lot calmer Japan in superb temples everywhere, because they do not mess with the order. Everyone must toe the line, follow the girls waiting to pay close attention to his physical appearance, not to speak too loudly, do not give an opinion whether it might be frowned upon. It is striking and somewhat damage I think.
Tokyo is the city that I’m most looking forward to since the beginning of this journey, and I’m really not disappointed. Everything is oversized, exaggerated, absolutely fascinating atmosphere. Neon on all fronts of buildings, the fluorescent clothes, urban madness in all its glory, Yeah, it’s just that. Second Tokyo culture shock, it seems that all life is directed toward consumption and leisure. There are supermarkets, shopping malls, restaurants, game rooms at each corner. And people do not hesitate to kick it once out of work or classes. Suffice to say that the wallet is … expensive.
Other experience aside, the discovery of “Love Hotels” Imagine a hill dedicated to the pleasures of the flesh, where sex shops and original rooms (romantic, trash or futuristic) form a sort of Pigalle in the Japanese. Fun, colorful, anything but murky. For cons, the room is about 35 € … 3 hours!
Akihabara, known as “Akiba”, or “The Electric Town”. A place for fans of electronic gadgets of all kinds, welcome to paradise. Video games, computers, manga villains, all kind of shops are concentrated on a few streets, with a few arcades – nay, building arcade.
Shinjuku Station area’s is busiest place in the world with more than 3 million users per day. At peak times, it’s really quite a show … Again, the neighborhood is a mix of luxury department stores, malls, glittering neon and video screens. Advertising is at its peak at this area.
What else? The district of Tokyo Bay! reminder that the city is well on the beach (not many beaches but a few artificial islands, which allow more time to gain ground on the sea failing to build in the mountains. Island of Obaida, where a small statue of liberty throne overlooking the bay, the view of Tokyo is quite impressive from this place.
The Museum Ryogoku Edo, the former name of Tokyo, which has many of the rebuilding cities over the centuries.
In this same neighborhood is the Ryogoku Kokugikan stadium which hosts sumo tournaments. It could not attend a game but we came across several of these strange characters in the streets surrounding the stadium.
Yes I must Hiroshima! The city itself is not very interesting as compare to Tokyo, but still it is amazing to see that much has been rebuilt in 60 years. After a short tram ride (one of the few cities in Japan to own one yet), here we are at the Genbaku Dome, nicknamed “the A-bomb dome, ground zero of the first atomic bomb. This is one of the only buildings to remain standing after the explosion; he was retained as such as a monument in memory of the tragedy. Ambiance.
Accommodation in Tokyo sometimes became a hassle, first, be aware that accommodation is very expensive in Japan. For those who lost the last train, with no place to sleep, and do not want to ruin their trip, there are several solutions rather original but not necessarily comfort:
Spending the night in “manga cafe. These are the local cafes. Small individual cabins with a good seat quite comfortable that we rent by the hour to surf the Internet, read books etc … And at night you can rent the cabin for 5 or 8 hours to snooze.
Much crazier! Spend the night at Mcdonald, Here most of McDonald are open 24/24. It is common to come, buying a small hamburger, and once swallowed, put his head on the table and fall asleep. The staff is accustomed to sleep and leaves. It is much cheaper but I am not sure we will make sweet dreams…
Third option, a little more reasonable but a bit more expensive, “capsule hotels”. These are hotels where we sleep in small “boxes” lined up and stacked. Each capsule is 2m long and 1m wide and 1m high. Gain a place at the Japanese. Within each capsule, a comfortable mattress, a radio, a lamp, and even a TV. Claustrophobic abstain. I really wanted to try that … and it was very funny! Hard to believe if we did not try, but there was more space than I imagined, it feels less confined than expected. In the end it’s a bit like a dormitory, except that is quiet in his corner.
