Tokyo Madness

The last 8 days I have been exploring Tokyo.  Most of my time was spent in Ueno, Roppongi, and Shibuya districts.  I also took one day trip to Kamakura, which was a nice change from the bustling city.

My second night in Tokyo, I went to the Sumida River Fireworks Festival.  The best way to describe this is madness.  Nine hundred thousand people congested in one area to see the fireworks.  I was in the subway car with my face planted against the window and two kids crying at my side.  Luckily, I only had three stops.  The fireworks were nice, but the shear number of people made it chaotic.  Police were everywhere, moving us around like sheep dogs.  It was an experience!

On Thursday, I went to Harajuku station where fashion rules.  This strip is supposedly where Gwen Stefani gets inspired.  Walking down the main drag, you see people in a variety of crazy outfits.  For second, I though it was Halloween.  I took some pictures and especially loved the designer umbrellas!  In any case, its a good place to sit and people watch.

Tokyo is a little mad, but you can learn to love it.  The people are so friendly and willing to help you with no hidden agenda.  Everyone was interested to talk with me and could not of been kinder.

Tomorrow to the airport.

Chris