Japan - Tour Day 2

Since we are staying in the Times Square of Tokyo (Shinjuku), our complementary breakfast was a jammed pack affair with loud hip hop music and people trying to fill their trays with all of the ‘free’ food. But, they did have some nice Japanese offerings that made a good start for my day. 

Tour started at 9am with our guide (Sho) handing out our day passes for the subway. Then, off to a Buddhist temple where we learned about the history of the introduction of Buddhism to Japan (fishermen ‘caught’ a small, gold statue of Buddha in their nets) and how to properly pray at the temple (bow, pray, bow). 

This happens to be Golden Week in Japan where there are 4 national holidays (Showa Day - for the Showa emperor, Constitution Day, Greenery Day - to promote the emperor’s appreciation of nature, and Children’s Day). So, many places are either closed, or have geared up for the celebrations and are extremely busy. We thought the Buddhist temple was a sea of humanity, but it was one of the quieter places we visited today. But, since it is Golden Week, we were treated with many stalls of food including octopus dumplings, deep fried rice cakes, mozzarella pancakes, chocolate covered bananas, squid on a stick, etc. So, lunch was a fun experience of sharing things we may not normally eat. 

Then, a train ride to a Shinto shrine dedicated to a former emperor and his wife. A beautiful setting where each of the regions in Japan donated a tree to the shrine 100+ years ago and now those trees are a beautiful forest that line the path to the shrine. We were fortunate today because there was a traditional Shinto wedding ceremony and procession happening while we were there and it was an honor to witness. The Shinto religion originated in Japan and it formed from the belief that all natural objects embody a spirit. Hence the deference to mountains, and trees, and water, etc. 

So, after such a spiritual Setting, we walked to the Harajuku district  which is known for its trendy food and stereotypical Japanese teenage fashion trends. This was the most crowded and over-the-top scene we’ve experience in Japan. 

That completed our first full day of the tour - whew! We headed back to the hotel before grabbing a quick bite and then hitting the subways again to meet up with our Trilogy Travelers to go to a bar for some local cocktails and wind down time from the tour.

Let’s see what tomorrow brings…