Taking the Shinkansen we arrived around mid afternoon experiencing Tokyo’s mesmerizing underground system but loving how clean and pleasant it was.
First stop Ali, Kyla, myself and Kyla’s friend Kieren went for a ride on Tokyo’s equivalent to the big dipper at the Tokyo Dome!. We did all think the drop was never going to end but we survived and lived to tell the tale! We all went to a Chinese restaurant (after the rollercoaster) before retiring ready for the weekend ahead.
Friday 16th March - La Foret and Womb!
This morning Kyla left early for an interview leaving her mobile phone in the hands of Ali and myself so we could meet up afterwards. We met at the unmissable huge Starbucks in Shibuya and walked to Harajuku to embark on some serious shopping. We spent 6 hours and a few yen in La Foret - a boutique shopping centre just packed with nice clothes shops. We even split up in desperation to find something we liked within the allotted time! After hitting shopping overload we managed to tear ourselves away and back to meet Kyla’s friend Kat. We began with some chu hi’s, a quick shower and some sunnies before making our way (a long journey, stopping for photos with stranger, combinis and illicit substances!) to Womb to see a British DJ, Nathan Fake. A great night had by all. Dj was wicked, club was massive and me and Ali got to see the famous Japan dance! We made it back to hostel via a Maccy D’s and a Japanese taxi.....At 6am!
Saturday 17th March - Electric Avenue!
Bumped into 2 girls from Daventry, my home town, in our hostel! They were travelling and were staying in Japan for a week at the same place we were!!! After getting over the shock we all made our way over to electrical city, Akihabara, in Tokyo. I have never seen so much technology in my entire life wow! Neon lights and apple computers galore! Kat bought a camera and Kyla some straighteners before heading to Harajuku. Stopped of in a café before walking to see the Meije shrine– the biggest in Japan, it was really impressive. We also took a walk around the Yoyogi Park and saw various performers like Covent Garden I guess, but here they perform for fun and publicity and not for cash. We then met with Kat and Madz before they began their St Patrick’s Day celebrations (their not Irish, just festive!). We went to the cinema next to the hotel where some of Lost in Translation was filmed. All the films were sold out but found the best ice cream parlour ever, Coldstone. They make the ice cream in front of you and sing ‘twinkle twinkle little star’ whilst making it! Sunday 18th March - Baseball Japanese style! Today was Tokyo Giants v’s Tigers playing at Tokyo Dome. As avid fans we arrived at early doors to avoid any seating discrepancies, and to ensure we had our fan caps! Manged to sit next to a wild Japanese family who became very talkative after a few rounds of beers! The baseball was impressive too. The Line Up The Mascot And the game. Afterwards our last supper consisted of Fish and Chips at ‘Bubba Gump’ a Forest Gump themed place. Emotions were flowing after what had been the best two weeks ever, knowing it was coming to an end. So much so, all track of time was lost. We knew it was getting on so made our way back to the hostel to collect our bags. We took the tube to go to the express train to the airport - only to discover we had several stops to get past and not much time! After much deliberation amongst ourselves, the station master and a random train passenger we took what we thought the best option. We had to have the quickest and most disappointing goodbye ever - with 3 great friends it wasn't easy and we all wanted to express our thanks and appreciation to each other. Ali and I arrived at the airport (after stopping at the wrong terminal) 1 hour before check in. The lady behind the desk was not concerned at all. It was just Ali and myself a little harassed. We managed to speak to Kyla before take off to say our goodbyes, who had also just made it to the last shink home!
What a trip – the trip of a lifetime.
Thank you Kyla and Ali with all my heart. Louise x x x
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