Today, I met with Mina, a friend of mine in Tokyo, and set off about the city. First we went to ((insert temple name)). It was gigantic with many people walking through the shopping arcade before arriving at the temple itself. It is one of the most important temples in Japan. At a temple such as this, you wave smoke over your head to give yourself good luck and wealth. Quite a few people, including myself, went about this practice before heading into the temple proper. There were beautiful frescos on the roof of the main temple building, depicting Buddahs flanking a dragon. The monks were keeping everything running smoothly, even as they wore their summer clothes (robes of mesh!).
After leaving the temple, we headed for Ginza, the fashion center of Japan. After checking the prices at various boutiques (Coach bags were 3 times the price they are in the US), we headed for the Sony building. Sony doesn't do any actual work here, they just show off their gear. We got to see the supposed "iPod Killer", as well as the Aibos. Sony has a lot of work to do to catch up with the iPod. We passed by Kabukizu, the main Kabuki theater in Japan. Kabuki is the major dramatic form in Japan today, with modern Western plays and Noh theater a distant second. While it was closed, you can see some of the gradeur of the building itself.
We wandered through Ginza for a while, stopping in many stores, before heading to Tsukiri, a gigantic fish market and the central shipping point for all fish that head through Tokyo. We looked in a few of the shops that were open, but unlike much of Japan, Tsukiri runs on a reversed schedule, with the work day starting near 10 PM and ending at 8 AM or so. In the distance, you can see Landmark Tower, as well as some kind of radio reception/foxhunting van.
After heading through Ginza again, we saw an incredible sight - the Apple Building in Ginza. 5 stories of Apple goodness, with a G5 exterior on the building to match. Many people inside were playing with the new iPod Minis - worshiping the new Cult of Apple around a softly glowing, neutral white altar of style.
Catching up with one of Mina's friends, we headed off to Kabukicho, kind of a rough area in Tokyo proper - you can find whatever your pleasure is here, from movies to women. First, before heading into Kabukicho itself, we went up into the Tokyo Metropolitian Government building, and headed up to skydeck. The blue objects in the one photo are squatter towns set up in the parks - a common enough sight in Tokyo. The police don't force them out, and the people just don't seem to care, so the squatters set up tent cities right in the parks. The sunset was beautiful and the surrounding buildings were really interesting.
We then crossed over to Kabukicho, and I put my camera away to avoid it being stolen. There we saw a street show or two, then went to eat. I had raw horse meat, served sashimi-style (thinly sliced). It was delicious!
After spending sometime in Kabukicho (most of it eating), we split from Mina's friend, and headed to Kamakura. There we went out to the beach, which is about 5 minutes from their house, and we took some pictures under the full moon. A great end to a great day.
