Tokyo, Day 5: Ueno, Ginza, and Sengaku Temple

NIHONESE KITTEH! I found it in Ueno, guarding a sleeping hobo. Yes, there are both cats and hobos in Japan.

So today was my last day in Tokyo. I leave for Taiwan at 10 AM tomorrow, meaning I have to leave the hostel by about 6 (since it takes over an hour to get to Narita airport by subway).

With the lessons of yesterday fresh in my mind, I set off with pants that are not too tight. My destinations: Ueno [上野] and Ginza [銀座]. Ueno looked really interesting in the guidebook, a "vital town where you can feel history and culture." On my way, I ran across Ameyoko [アメ横], a famous street of stores. It was boring, and most of the stores were closed when I went by. My real target was Ueno's huge Onshi Park [上の恩賜公園], a huge public area containing temples, museums, statues, and even a zoo! Before you get all excited, no I did not go to the zoo. I had originally planned to, but it was freezing outside so I said screw that. I did, however, go to the National Museum of Nature and Science. I made sure to check the gift shop, but everything there could have been purchased at the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History.


I SWEAR I did not pose the dinosaurs like this. Apparently Japanese kids are just as perverted as we are. Go figure.

On the rooftop of the museum is (and I really don't know why this is there) a "Parasol Garden". The featured parasols are special though. When you walk near them, they open up. But you have to watch them closely, because it takes them like five minutes to open, so you may think they aren't working.



After the museum, I went around to a bunch of temples. For those of you out there asking: does he HAVE to go to so many temples? No, and when you go to Tokyo, you can go to as few temples as you want. But for me, as a Sinophile, temples are fascinating. *Steps off soapbox* Anyway, The most famous of the temples in Ueno is the Toshogu Shrine [東照宮], which is famous for its giant bronze lanterns.



Sadly, Toshogu temple itself was closed for construction. So all I got to see was a giant cloth covering that had a picture of what the temple WOULD have looked like, had I not arrived while they were working on it. Wow, thanks. Then I attempted to find another famous temple, called the Kaneiji Temple [寛永寺], but as we know I fail at directions, so that didn't happen.

I was cold and hungry so I boarded the subway for Nihonbashi so that I could enjoy the same delicious ramen as I had yesterday, and then I went to Ginza. It was incredibly upscale. There are huge Gucci, Louis Vuitton, Chanel, and Armani buildings and tons of upscale restaurants and cafes. I'm sure I looked really out of place, sipping hot cocoa and people-watching in my hoodie and jeans.



I got bored of my perch in the Ginza coffee-shop very soon, and walked around Ginza a bit more. It was around 3 PM so I had a couple hours left before my hostel reopened, so I decided to retrace some of my steps. I bought a couple of charms that will supposedly help me do better at school and bring me luck.

I went to Asakusa, to look at some of the shops and see if there were any souvenirs I wanted. I noticed that the main Sensoji temple that I had visited (and even been inside) recently, was under construction. Suddenly the strange fabric "building" I had seen before made sense. The Sensoji temple is, and has been, under construction. Not sure how I missed that one the first time around X_X. But I did discover a whole new section of the temple grounds that I had missed before, including lots of miniature shrines.

My final stop was Sengakuji temple [泉岳寺] in the Shinagawa area [品川] on the southern side of Tokyo. This is where the Forty-seven Ronin are buried. Their (embellished) story is something of a Japanese legend, and represents loyalty to one's lord and to bushido, the way of the samurai.



That was my last stop before I went back to Asakusabashi and my hostel. I ate ramen again (cheap and delicious!) and here I am.