My alarm sounded at 0500h but I was awake before then. I spent Friday night at a friend’s in London Kings Cross. The noise of the city, cars zooming around, drunk revellers singing and a foxes yelling them to keep it down, left me with little sleep.
The tube to Heathrow went smoothly, and check in just as easy, before I knew it I was boarding my flight for my next adventure.
What followed was a 13 hour flight in cattle class. I had downloaded the recent BBC series: Pilgrimage, Road Through the Alps. That killed 3 hours – still 10 remaining.
I interchanged between reading my book ‘Wild’ by Cheryl Strayed and trying to sleep. Over Beijing, I was treated to a thunderstorm display. I was mesmerised watching the fork lightning, streak through the clouds far below. Other than that, it was pretty much what you’d expect being stuck on a plane for 13 hours.
The sun rose once we entered Japanese airspace. The plane flew around Mt. Fuji on its approach, the snow capped mountain posed for photos. The size of Tokyo is immense. I knew it is the most densely populated city in the world, but seeing it from the air, was something else.
Just before 7 we landed and worked our way through immigration, then took the tube to the Chuo district where our hotel is.
Straight away I spotted a quirk, everything sings or plays a tune. Getting cash out of the ATM: it plays a happy tune. A minute before the train pulls up to the platform: a cheerful melody is played.
We dumped our bags at the hotel then went for an explore. First stop the Imperial Palace Gardens.
Trees and flowers were decoratively planted with the clean and ordered precision, that Japan is known for.
From there we headed back towards our hotel grabbing some food along the way. Check-in was 1500h. I slumped on my bed and fell asleep instantly – I had been up way over 24hrs.
A couple of hours kip and a shower later I was back out. Headed to the Sky Room. A bar offering views over Tokyo. The vast city, illuminated in all its glory, as our backdrop.
We then stopped in the Asakusa district and browsed through the Don Quixote Store. The placed sold everything, and it was an assault on the senses!
We then had a look around the Senso-Ji temple. A red building underneath flared tiled eaves and a grand curved roof, a typical example of the Irimoya-Zukuri style which Japan is known for.
The grounds are dotted with little shrines and rows of lanterns that contrasted well with the bright red temple.
From there we found a back street restaurant where I had a beer and tried Sashimi for the first time. Not what I expected but it didn’t deter me.
Stu's Camino 