#14 A Quick Update from a Tokyo Tourist

So I have visited Tokyo Dome, Akihabara, Tokyo Tower and Shibuya (in that order too). And I have noticed a pattern emerging - they're boring. Well not the attractions, just going by yourself. My plan is to go alone and check it out, and then to go back with a group. While at Tokyo Dome I didn't go on any of the attractions, I didn't go up Tokyo Tower and I didn't buy anything in Akihabara or Shibuya. This has kept costs down while allowing to wander freely around these places without having the annoyance of only doing what the group wants. It means you get more of what you want done, but it also means it can get boring. It's just not as exciting as if there was someone beside you you can share the moment with. Nonetheless, here are some quick updates of what I've been doing:

Tokyo Dome - suprisingly big (Credits: ME!)

I thought Tokyo Dome was just a big concert area, plus a ferris wheel and rollercoaster. When I got to the entrance it said 'Tokyo Dome City' - and by god is it a city! There's a big shopping area, arcade games, children's amusements, a haunted house, an aqua centre, restaurants. . .the place is big, and it is good. The nice part is you can walk around without spending a yen, but then again if you do decide to go on the amusements you could be forking out about 10,000yen per attraction.

Akihabara (aka Electric Town)

The only thing I bought in Akihabara was a little travel  iron for about 1000yen. And it doesn't really work. On another note, the lights at night are great and the people shouting at you to come in and buy something is fantastic. There is a wonderful selection of just about every electrical item ever invented from lighting to fans to cameras to rice cookers. From the cameras I looked at I could tell that most of the models weren't available in Ireland, and these were more advanced. I'm planning on going back so I'll research the prices then - but from what I'm told most items are only up to 10% cheaper than at home, which isn't the massive discounts some people think are available.

Tokyo Tower, like the Eiffel tower except with a temple

I've been to the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France. And Tokyo Tower is a carbon copy. Nonetheless, it is a fantastic structure and well worth a visit. It is situated in Shiba park, and right behind a massive temple, Zojo-ji. On the evening I went, there were film trucks and crew tidying up after filming there for some upcoming Japanese movie. So you can see it's a pretty cool place. Also around there is a Japanese graveyard (surrounded by cats, it was a little creepy) and, also creepy, were hundreds of statues covered decorated with wool hats and scarves. These Jizo dolls represent all miscarried, aborted and stillborn children in Japan.

At Tokyo Tower, just in case you  get bored of the amazing view or the fact you're at Tokyo Tower, is an aquarium, wax museum and amusements centre.

Shibuya shopping district

Shibuya is pretty expensive. While it does have massive shops like H&M, Forever 21 and Uni Qlo, you'll find these once again have similar stock and prices to at home. The Shibuya 109 centre is great for a look to see what's going on with Tokyo fashion - but that's all. The little boutiques in there aren't for those on a budget, to say the least. There are lots of little market type shops around the streets selling things such as shoes, but I still found they weren't cheap. If you're interested in fashion it is a great place to go, and if you're not it's still a good way to fill in a day, looking at all the shops and wandering through the winding streets. The famed Shibuya crossing - the busiest pedestrian crossing in the world apparently - isn't that exciting. After being in Tokyo for a few days you get used to the masses of people surrounding you everywhere. So when you're walking across a road with another 800 people it doesn't feel particularly special. However, if you were looking at it from a height it would probably look good. At the train station you can also see the statue of Hachiko, the dog who waited at the station for 9 years after his dead owner failed to return.

Note: I picked what places to go purely out of convenience of location as opposed to real desire - there is so much to see and do in Tokyo it is hard to make a list. I also want to save things that require an entry fee (such as Ueno Zoo and Skytree) for when I have friends with me. 

I happened to be on the train to work when I looked out the window and noticed the top of Tokyo Dome so the next day I decided to get off the train there, the same with Tokyo Tower. Akihabara is a popular place to transfer between train lines, so I was already in the area and decided to stay a while. I was meeting a friend at Shibuya so that's how I ended up there. Other locations such as Shinjuku and Harajuku have their own stations so they are convenient to find on the maps.