Tokyo Archives - Page 2 of 2 - Wander Wonder Wonton

Tokyo: Day Three

April 16, 2013

I know this will come as a surprise, but I had yet another huge day! It’s not even 5.30pm and I’m exhausted.

I am currently sitting atop the Fuji TV Headquarters (only $5aud to get up) in a globe shaped observatory patiently waiting for a hopefully beautiful sunset. Sun doesn’t seem to be doing much though so thought I’d start this.

I slept in this morning then headed to Shinjuku where I visited the Tokyo Metropolitan Government buildings. They have an observatory (free) on the 45th floor. It was a great place to get a view of Tokyo.

Next stop was Ginza. I really wanted to go to a patisserie called Laduree after seeing this blog. Thanks guys! So glad I made an effort to go there and find the place, what incredible opulence and delectable goodies. I could have eaten everything in there. I will write a separate blog about it.

After filling up in sugary goodness I went for a walk around Ginza which is basically a very upmarket shopping area, lots of wealth.

I ended up walking to the Tsjukiji fish markets. I just wondered around for ages looking at all the different fresh fish, dried fish, shell fish and food on offer. To see the big fish bought in you have to get up and be there by 5am so this was my attempt haha.
Being the freshest seafood around I thought I should sample some of the fish. After carefully selecting a restaurant (there are literally hundreds in the markets) I was guide by the chef to try a tasting plate of different guides on tuna. YUM!! This was followed by some scallop and salmon nigari and a green tea. By now I was well and truly full. Three meals and only mid afternoon!

I followed the path to Hama-Rikyu Gardens and spent about half an hour walking around the peonies and different fields. I realised I could take a boat somewhere and found it it was to Odaiba, another spot I wanted to visit! So I bought a ticket ($6aud) and took this crazy looking sea bus under the Rainbow Bridge. Beautiful sights, I recommend checking it out.

You arrive on the waterfront so I went for a walk around before heading to DECKS Tokyo Beach, a shopping mall designed to resemble a cruise ship deck. While a cool design, it was pretty boring inside.

Next on the list was FUJI TV Headquarters where I sit right now waiting for the sun to do something cool. It STILL hasn’t. Come on buddy.

Anyway after this it’s back to Shinjuku to meet my mate Ichi for dinner at an Isakaya – will write more then!

So happy I got to see Ichi, he bought me an amazing Japanese meal – radish salad, edamame, lotus root, chicken karagi & octopus flavoured with wasabi. So delicious!

We went for a walk around Shinjuku – I love that place! So many bright lights and so much fun! We went into an arcade and took some super cute photos 🙂 thanks for a great night Ichi!

A Loris of a morning

April 15, 2013

Slow Loris that is!! You can’t imagine my excitement when I realised there was a Slow Loris right in front of me!!

They are so damn cute I actually nearly cried of surprise and happiness. I spent ages watching it but got a little bored as believe it or not, it was slow.

It was difficult to get a decent shot due to them being nocturnal and in a dark enclosure but someone else used their flash so I got a good one then.

Spent the day at Ueno Zoo in Tokyo and that was definitely the highlight. And to think I was excited about the pandas!!

Tokyo: Day Two

April 15, 2013

What a big day.

Started with my alarm for work going off at 7.05am – not happy as I wanted to sleep in, and ended with me taking the wrong train, which just so happened to be an express, half an hour in the wrong direction. Considering home was only 4mins away from where I was I wasn’t too pleased. Another little adventure!

I just came from dinner with Seiji, as always he chose a funky little place I would never have found myself. I had raw tuna with rice and what looked like a raw egg. Seiji taught me that you break up the egg and mix it into the rice and tuna. Much better as raw egg and me ain’t good mates.

Prior to that Seiji took me to the best thing ever. A head spa! I’ll write about it in another post as it was so good it deserves one!

I spent the day at Ueno Zoo, where I met a Slow Lorris – also in need of its own post. Fell in love.
It’s only 600¥ to visit the zoo which is roughly 6$aud – imagine going to an Australian zoo for that! However… I must admit the cages weren’t fantastic. A few times I felt a bit sorry for the animal and carried on before I thought about it too much. Polar bears, pandas, giraffes, lemurs, gorillas, tigers and a whole heap of animals I’d never seen before were there. Settled on a pork Katsu curry for lunch, sat and people watched for some time.

I was delighted when a Japanese lady speaking English to a group turned to me and spoke in Japanese until I removed my glasses! Think it was the bow in my hair haha.

I found a shrine when I first arrived in Ueno, and all these beautiful wish boards. I read a few of them but thought I couldn’t do one as they all looked quite old. I found a little old man around a quiet corner selling them though so bought one for my family. Made me feel a bit homesick! One of the best things I have done here so far though.

A lovely man had a chat with me on the train, he wanted to practice his English and had visitors NZ. Made me laugh when he asked where my boyfriend was. Didn’t have the heart to tell him there wasn’t one so settled with ‘he’s at work.’ White lie.

Stopped off at a sushi station for a snack in Shinjuku.. No English. At all. You stand at the bar and order your sushi. I ordered by pointing at the fish I wanted and hoping for the best. It was delicious, such fresh fish with generous portions. 200¥ for two nigari pieces, I went for salmon, tuna and scallops mmmm.

Oh! Forgot about the markets in Ueno – they’re awesome! So bustling and crazy! Looked like a delicious place to eat, I was full however. Heaps of cool nic-nacks from clothes to toys to make up. I just walked around for about an hour getting lost in the side streets. Might go back there actually.

Anyway – time for sleep.

Tokyo: Day One

January 22, 2018April 14, 2013

I arrived late last night and settled into my mate Seiji’s house. He lives in Suginami-ku which is only 15mins by train to Harajuku and Shinjuku. Lucky for me he has given me full use of his apartment while I’m here, saving me a fortune in accommodation! He is staying at his girlfriends house.

After checking my social networks (yes I’m addicted) I fell into a deep sleep and only awoke at 9am! Decent sleep in for me.

I got changed and headed for a walk to the local supermarket. My family owned a supermarket most of my life so I LOVE going to new ones, especially overseas and seeing how they run and what try stock. Add my love of random food and you’ll understand why I was on there 2hours!

You can find sushi, tempura snacks and a large assortment of I have no idea as I can’t read Japanese in their supermarkets! There’s a massive range of drinks as confectionary. Something I found interesting was that all beauty, health and pet products were stocked completely separately upstairs, you buy your produce and general groceries, pay for them, then head upstairs to the rest of it.

Anyway I came back home and Seiji had slept in and was late for our lunch so I cleaned up the tiny apartment until he arrived.

Seiji took me to his fave cafe for lunch. It’s a cute little place and all the furniture is imported from his home town Matsyuma. I had karagi chicken with salad and rice. Not sure what Seiji had but it was pork haha.

Seiji went to work and I made my way to Harajuku – one if my fave places ever. I bought some gifts and spent hours just floating around taking everything in.

Come 7pm I headed back to Seiji’s hood and tried Mos burger. Teriyaki chicken burger was my choice – yummy but could see the fat dripping off it.

Day two tomorrow, no plans but to meet Seiji for dinner – anyone have any tips for places to visit?

Decent nights sleep… LOL

April 14, 2013

Who was I kidding?!

After the gig we drank at the surf club until they closed the bar and kicked us out. So we did the logical thing and went to the Casino!

A retarded amount of shots and cider later and we headed to Broadbeach for pizza and kebabs. Clichè , I know. But I did get some free pizza thanks to a lovely Turkish guy. I’m not sure what time that was.. Maybe 3am? Not sure.

At home half the crew jumped in the pool but I was distracted by a phone call from one of my fave people, Sheldon, who lives in Essex, London. Had a chat for about an hour before checking out the others were up to and decided that I was exhausted and sleep was a better option.

Come 6.30am I was awake.
I can never sleep before a morning flight, just too much in my head and the worry I would fall asleep and miss my flight. Especially in my delicate (read hugely hungover) condition.

When my parents called me at the airport I was so hungover and tired I could barely string together a sentence!

Flight was delayed an hour but they put us on the aircraft first which meant we couldn’t use out phones. Now poor Seiji will be waiting an extra hour for me.

Good news is I have 4 seats to lie across in here!! Someone was looking out for me ad knew I needed a decent nap.

So I will leave you with my thought of the moment:
Why are airplanes so damn cold?! BBBRRRR

Japan here I come!

January 17, 2013

I’m going to Japan again WAHOOOO!!!!

Soooo excited right now!!

So the plan is to head to Tokyo and just chill out. Live in their city, do what they do.
I have been before, done the touristy thing and this time I just want to hang out with my mate Seiji and his girlfriend and explore tokyo. Eat far too much. Get lost in Harajuku.

AND if I’m lucky, I will get to experience the Sakura festival! The dates can change every year by up to 2 weeks depending how cold it is and the trees only bloom for 2 weeks. So with a bit of luck I will catch the end of the festival and be frolicking in fields of baby pink blossoms.

I haven’t booked my flights yet but Jetstar have a sale so that’s easy! $600 return from the Gold Coast plus I can stay at my mate’s apartment for free. Done deal.

Now if only I can persuade someone to come with me! It’s always more fun sharing your experiences. Especially if things go wrong!

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