Tokyo Day 2: I Ate Sushi

Our second full day in Tokyo had an ambitious agenda. I have this weird FOMO thing about travel. I fear the person who says, "What? You went to Tokyo and didn't do such-and-such? Lame!" You know, because I totally hang out with people who say stuff like that. So I was bound and determined that we would cram as much as we could into our second (and last) full day in Tokyo.

After having roughly figured on the subway system, we managed to get from our hotel to Shibuya Station where we had our photo op with the statue of Hachiko. Hachiko's owner was a professor at the University of Tokyo, and Hachiko waited for him at the train station every day. Even after the professor died, Hachiko came to the station each day at the same time to wait for his owner. Hachiko did this for over nine years before he died. The story is a lovely one, and particularly celebrated in a culture that values loyalty so highly.

After leaving Hachiko, it was time to cross at Shibuya Crossing. This is one of the busiest pedestrian intersections in the world, and it utilizes what is called a "scramble crossing": traffic is stopped in every direction and pedestrians can cross in any direction all at once. Of course, everyone is holding up their phones taking video or using selfie sticks to document their crossing at this insane place. The girls were unfazed.

Shibuya is a fashionista kind of place and is similar to Times Square in terms of the large screen advertising. I fit right in, having chosen my Keens to express my style. If you have seen Lost in Translation, Shibuya probably looks familiar to you.

So we crossed one of the world's busiest intersections to get coffee at one of the world's busiest Starbuck's.  The Starbuck's perked all of us up, especially since it was adjacent to a music store that allowed the girls to sample some J-Pop.

I'm impressed if you can look at Zoe and not laugh. The whole scene is ridiculous, starting with the carousel horse lady and ending with the fact that there is still a store that sells this many CDs.

Next stop: Meiji Shrine. This Shinto shrine was dedicated to Emperor Meiji, the first emperor of modern Japan, and his wife Empress Shoken. The shrine is within a forest of 170 acres not far from the bustling Shibuya. The shrine was built in the 1920s, although parts had to be rebuilt in the 1950s as a result of the Tokyo air raids during WWII.

A traditional Torii gate marks the entrance to the Meiji Shrine

The sake brewers from around the country dedicate these barrels of sake each year to show their respect for the Emperor and Empress, and also to pray for the continued success of the sake industry. These barrels are empty although sake is used in many ceremonies and is donated to the shrines for their ceremonies.

There are also barrels of wine that were donated from Bourgnone in France. Emperor Meiji had reached out to the West, and appreciated many Western things, including wine with his meals!

Unbeknownst to us then, and in fact I just figured this out now, we were there for Shichi Go San (also know as the 7-5-3 Festival). This is a day when 3-year-old girls and 5-year-old boys make a visit to a shrine in traditional clothing "to celebrate their growth and well-being". For the 7-year-old girls, it is when they are first allowed to wear the obi with their kimono.  Needless to say, there were many beautiful families decked out in the finest traditional clothing. You can see one girl below, who I presume to be 7. But let's be honest: we took this photo in order to capture her stylish little brother. I love the contrast between the traditional and the modern!

We also were able to observe a traditional Shinto wedding processional. The bride and groom are under the red umbrella. It was really interesting to see so many different Shinto traditions while at Meiji.

After Meiji we headed back to Shibuya crossing to check out Genki Sushi which was recommended as a good place to go. I had decided ahead of time that I absolutely needed to try sushi and this seemed like the place to do it. I was also trying to be a good role model for the girls in the "trying new foods" department.

Although we had been to a conveyor belt sushi place before, this was even better! There were two "tracks" for orders to be delivered on, and each customer had a personal ordering screen.

You could order up to 3 dishes at once, see photos, prices, and your running total. The dish would come out on the track and stop right in front of you. The only thing that did not come on the track was our beer.

So I ordered the Shibuya Roll. I have no recollection what was in the roll, but it was a "when in Rome" kind of moment.

That's me. Eating sushi. There. I did it. I think I actually ate two pieces before handing the rest to John.

If you look at the photo above you can see a McDonald's cup. We had fed the girls there first so we could actually enjoy the Genko Sushi experience. They ordered desserts from their screens and liked watching other people's food go by. To be fair, Maddox kinda sorta tried a cucumber roll after we told her we'd give her 200 yen.

The girls really wanted to go up in Tokyo Tower, and so we figured that would be a good way to end the day. The Tower's highest point (the lightning rod) is 333 meters. The observation deck we were on was about 250 meters in the air.

We honestly could not have planned it better had we tried. We were there on a beautiful evening and were getting off the elevator at the top at the perfect time to see the sunset over Mt. Fuji. Really, we're spoiled.

And then we went to the "Club 333" level where these girls were performing. Like One Direction meets the Spice Girls. It was pretty great.

We ended the night with some souvenir shopping and takeout from the Tokyo Tower food court which we brought back to the hotel.

Tokyo Tower at night

Reflection of Tokyo Tower in building across the street

It was a bit of a marathon day, but it was worth it in retrospect. It definitely gave us a good feel for the modernity of Japan, in contrast to Okinawa and to what we were about to see in Kyoto. Tomorrow's agenda: the bullet train!