harajuku

an ultra cool bycicle, a photo by asihsimanis on Flickr.

I know that when you hear the word Harajuku, this image is not what you think of. You think of crazy looking people, who expresses themselves through crazy clothes, but let me tell you, Harajuku is so much more than that.

I have been lucky enough to be able to visit the place every time I come to Tokyo, so overall I have came to this place probably fur times or more, and I have also slept in an internet cafe there, showered there, shopped there, ate there, got lost there, and a lot of other things. This place never fails to impress me.

Harajuku is a place for art and culture expressed mostly through fashion. This picture I took is a scene from a museum that was build I think by that crazy community that calls Harajuku their home, its beautiful, and more importantly, this so called museum is free.

I found it rather by accident, so I might not be the person to ask where it really is located, but, that's the beauty of Harajuku. You can be one of those lazy tourist who only wander around the big streets and be happy with what you see because you will a hell lot of good bargains of clothes, crazy outfits and you will meet those crazy looking people you want to see in harajuku and you will be happy. Or you can be one of those more adventurous tourist and get lost inside the small streets of harajuku, and find yourself looking at this museum, and fall in love with it. This is not the only museum around harajuku, I saw a lot of other apartments its residents has painted fully with art, so I promise you that it will not be boring to pay a visit to the worlds capital of crazy fashion people call Harajuku -even when you are not a crazy fashion person-.

to see more of hajajuku from me, visit my Flickr page here.

takodabashi pier

the first sunrise of 2011, a photo by asihsimanis on Flickr.

Flickr is an obsession of mine. One of the things I love about Flickr is that it gives me information about things that I might be interested in. So in the break of 2011, I decided I wanted to see the first sunrise in Tokyo, the question was where? Of course I diligently looked for answers in Flickr. Where would the sunrise be nice in Tokyo? Then I saw a very beautiful image of sunrise  taken by this guy named Alfie|japanorama (who by the way takes amazing pictures, and is Tokyo based), and it was taken in this place he said was Tokyo bay. after I asked google about it, I found out that the name of the place was Takodabashi Pier, and it was actually located near Tokyo tower, where I already planned on attending the incredible balloon celebration at the change of the year. It was a perfect plan. 


So that night, together with my best adventure buddy pici (see her incredible Flickr stream here) we had the adventure of a lifetime. At the afternoon of December 31st, we decided we wanted to see the last sunset of 2010 in Odaiba, after that we went to the Tokyo tower, then we spent the change of the year in Zojoji-temple, where we watched thousands of wishing balloons being released at 12 o clock, in the change of the year. After midnight was over, everyone else headed to the Izakayas (drinking bars) near Tokyo Tower, to further celebrate the change of the year, some headed to the karaoke places to get some rest (in Japan, people sometimes sleep at Karaoke places, because it is cheaper than actual hotels), but me and pici took the other route, we went to a 24/7 McDonald's shop to try to get some rest until sunrise was close.


It turns out that you are not supposed to sleep in McDonald's, I found that out because the workers keep waking me up. but I still got some sleep after all. We already checked the sunrise schedule for the day, and started to walk towards Takadabashi Pier about an hour before sunrise. It turns out that the pier has a waiting room, with chairs and everything, so we decided to continue our sleeping there -although this was also done by some other homeless people, and other crazy kids who are there for the same reason, the sunrise -. When the sunrise was near, we moved to our spot to find that this place was really popular. I knew from google, that the Japanese don't usually celebrate New Year the western way -at the change of the 12 pm clock-, what the Japanese do is they watch the first sunrise of the year, and this place was obviously a favorite spot. I felt like we didn't make the wrong decision to come. I could feel the expectations of people around me. It was just a sunrise, yes, but it symbolized so much more. It symbolized the dawn of a new year, it was supposed to be about hope. After loosing my dad the year before, I needed that hope so much, so I felt my heart beat getting faster. I wanted to move on.


The sunrise was beautiful. I have to remind you that at that time it was still winter, so the temperature was really low, it was bellow 5 degrees Celsius, so the sun was like a gift from heave. I loved seeing it rising from between the buildings. I loved how the Japanese are so in awe of this process, it made my day. 


If you want to see the whole collection of pictures I took that day, please go here.thank you so much for visiting my blog. I will try to keep things interesting.

odaiba

my favourite spot, a photo by asihsimanis on Flickr.


Odaiba (or Daiba) is a popular shopping and entertainment district on a man made island in Tokyo Bay. It originated as a set of small man made fort islands (daiba literally means "fort"), which were built towards the end of the Edo Period (1603-1868) to protect Tokyo against possible attacks from the sea.


More than a century later, the small islands were joined into larger islands by massive landfills, and Tokyo began a spectacular development project aimed to turn the islands into a futuristic residential and business district .Odaiba developed into one of Tokyo's most popular tourist attractions and date spots with a wide selection of shopping, dining and leisure options. 

THe scenic of the place is incredible, you can see from the picture I took, where else in the world can you have the statue of liberty (a smaller version of the one in New York, but was also given by the French government as a sign of friendship), the rainbow bridge, AND the tokyo tower all in one frame? If that is not a dream scene, I dont know what is.

Odaiba, with Zojoji-temple (look at a picture I took of Zojoji-temple here), and the Shibuya crossroad for me are the best scenic spots in Tokyo, Everything else in Tokyo is more of a bunch of little amazing things you have to experience. Odaiba is something to complete your eye. Not to mention that the Mall near the Liberty has a small Indonesian Restaurant. 


For those people who love photography, and are in to scenic things, than this place is a must see.

disneyland tokyo

Disneys dancers., a photo by asihsimanis on Flickr.

Tokyo Disneyland is a theme park based on the films produced by Walt Disney. It was opened in 1983 as the first Disney theme park outside of the United States. Modeled after Disneyland in California and the Magic Kingdom in Florida, Tokyo Disneyland is made up of seven themed lands and features seasonal decorations and parades. These seven themed lands are World Bazaar, Tomorrow land, toontown, Fantasyland, Critter Country, Westernland and Adventureland.

Going to Disneyland might not be my idea of Japan, but I have to say it was very pleasing and interesting. Of course Disneyland has that effect on people. It is amazing how Disney has transcended that love with his movies across the globe, he was last centuries Hans Christian Anderson.

I loved that in Tokyo Disneyland they had that 4D movie about Michael Jackson, it was so entertaining. And the Japanese are incredible in decorating the place too. I love the Japanese for dressing up to the occasion, even the grown ups wear cute little Disney accessories in Disneyland. If you ask me, if you have a long stay in Japan, and you love Disney anyway, a visit to Disneyland might be quite fun.

Asakusa

walking down the street in Asakusa, a photo by asihsimanis on Flickr.


Asakusa is the center of Tokyo's shitamachi, literally "low city", one of Tokyo's few districts, which have preserved a certain atmosphere of the old Tokyo. Asakusa's main attraction is Sensoji, a very popular Buddhist temple, built in the 7th century. The temple is approached via the Nakamise, a shopping street that has been providing temple visitors with a variety of traditional, local snacks and tourist souvenirs for centuries. 

The atmosphere in Asakusa is a little different and more old school than in other parts of Tokyo, which is nice for those who long for the older style of Japan. However I think that it is way too crowded and also way too touristy, meaning that there are too many tourists in Asakusa. You probably will have difficulties to enjoy it if you are one of those people who hate crowds. 

Asakusa can be easily explored on foot. Alternatively, you can consider a guided tour on a rickshaw (jinrikisha, lit. "man powered vehicle"). A 30 minute tour for two persons costs around 8000 Yen. Shorter and longer courses are also available.I myself never rode the rickshaw, they were too expensive for me. but I love seeing those very strong guys who carry the rickshaw. It is fascinating how they have the strength to do that. If you have some extra money I would really much recommend the ride.


One of the things that I find fascinating in Asakusa is their fortune telling paper which they have translated too English, so you could purchase them without understanding any Japanese. My friend said to me that Asakusas has one of the most reliable fortune telling paper. So I would recommend you to get that experience for only 100 Yen.