Thank God for Friday’s


JapanJune2005/IMG_0873A long day today… I had plans to go try Fuji, but I discovered that the mountain doesn’t open until July. Then, I thought I would head down to Kyoto, but found out late last night that it would cost me something like $300 round trip just for the train tickets, if I had just planned ahead one day, I could have gotten a round-trip ticket, and a hotel room for ~$190. Extremely disappointing.

So, after reading an article in Time Magazine about the Epson Aqua Stadium, I decided to take a trip down and see what it was like. I walked the mile and half to Shibuya station and hopped on the JR Yamanote down to Shinagawa station.

I wandered over to the Shinagawa Prince Hotel, and saw a line going into the Aqua Stadium (which is really just Japanese for an aquarium). The place was packed with people, but I was finally able to squeeze in, and was able to snap some pictures of this pretty little guy, and a picture that I love, of a kid watching from his dad’s shoulders.

After spending a few hours there, it was getting to the end of the day, so I thought I’d like to see the sunset from one of the skyscrapers. I hopped on the Hibiya line, and headed to the famous Roppongi Hills. There were a lot of people there too, which was surprising, considering that the view was rather hazy. I got some pictures of Roppongi-dori leading to Shibuya, Aoyama Cemetery and the U.S. Base, the new Tokyo Downtown project (bottom-right). For a feeling of how high I was, take a look at Roppongi Hills West, which is itself one of the taller buildings in the city.

I was pleasantly surprised that the ASIMO robot lives in Roppongi Hills, and I got a picture of him strutting his stuff.

Afterwards, I headed down to TGI Fridays, and got a hamburger (I was dying for one) and snapped this picture of Tokyo Tower at night.

After the long day, I soaked in a hot bath for an hour, and continued reading through The Last Disciple. I’ll be writing up my thoughts when I’m finished.

Food for the Day:

  • Breakfast: Nothing – Â¥0
  • Lunch: Sushi – Â¥1400
  • Dinner: Hamburger, Chicken Fingers, Beer – Â¥2000
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