Scale

This is, I kid you not, the map of the rail and subway lines of Tokyo.  Tourist version.

We had another early morning at the buffet table.  SS had what I thought resembled a Rubenesque egg white omelette.

The Strings atrium looking down at the glass bridge and cafe

Pritzker Prize for Least Creative Use of Concrete.  On the Planet.  Wow!

The Tokyo Sky Tree

After breakfast we went down to the harbour for a tour up river.  We started at Hanode Pier, where a few luxe hotels nestle the shore, for a 40 minute trip to Asakusa.  Although it was really interesting, historically, there was none of the charm of Vancouver or awe of Manhattan or majesty of the Thames.  As SS pointed out a few times, Tokyo was flattened in WWII, and rebuilt without the intent of a grand European city.  And certainly without the flair.  But this trip between neighbourhoods gave us a glimpse of the ludicrously huge and sprawling city where a population equivalent to Canada call home.

 

Back side of the world's most famous fish market, Tsukiji. Some back sides aren't much to look at...

The Chuo-Ohashi bashi or bridge, probably the most interesting in the bay

The Asahi beer building

Asakusa is a touristy but really appealing slice of old Tokyo, with a Buddhist temple, a Shinto shrine, and side streets “preserved” in the Edo style.  Tiny shops, stalls, restaurants and local flavour.  I had sourced a free walking tour (retirees provide a goodwill service) and about six of us followed a 72 yo ex-exec through the laneways and backstreets.  Unfortunately, the promised light rain turned heavy so we cut short our tour.  So many cool spots to see though; we’ll return in a day or two.

 

Scale model of the Asakusa neighbourhood

Wedding couple

Behind a canvas door in a thimble sized bar we stopped for lunch.  But when I discovered the menu was sushi, and only sushi, and not even a yam roll to be had, SS ate alone, while I sipped some miso soup.

Sushi.  All sushi.  Big bowl of sushi.

Chrysanthemums are the royal flower.  But each year the contenders for best grow smaller.  Apparently Japanese youth have lost interest in growing Sumo blooms.

For the afternoon we went to Roppongi, where there are myriad shopping malls, and which gave us an excuse to keep dry.  In Midtown, a complex with the Ritz Carlton, Fuji has its headquarters.  In the lobby is a small museum with a history of their product.

We stumbled across a used watch store with antique gems, Omega, IWC, Rolex, at astonishingly high prices.  Plus we passed a dog store with a “to die for puppy” at $2800.  In the land of Hello Kitty, cuteness demands a price.

 

1956 Patek Philippe: $28,000.  No, I did not get that wrong.

We circled back to the hotel without a single purchase.

A bamboo lined driveway in the elegant ward called Aoyama