Tall buildings, sushi and Harajuko

Despite sampling sake for the first time last night I managed to be up bright and early this morning, the sun was shining and Tokyo was calling.....five hours later Cathal and I managed to leave the house. We're not quite sure what delayed us...Vietnamese coffee, big breakfast, exchange rate checks, weather checks, looking at Spanish sportsmen on the internet, deciding that Feliciano Lopez is no longer in my top ten list of attractive sportsmen, recounting stories about Spanish footballers I have met, failing again in mastering Japanese slipper wearing etiquette and committing further crimes against tatami, recapping on Japanese pronunciation, spreading more of my belongings around the house, trying on hats, hanging out washing, bringing washing in....the list goes on.

When we finally made it into town first stop was Ginza and I went straight to Uniqlow to get some more suitable Japan clothes. Cathal had kindly agreed to come with me but soon had second thoughts. I accomplished my mission of jeans and a couple of warmer tops in 1/2 an hour, not bad I thought. Ginza is probably equivalent to Oxford Street and although there we lots of people around it was closed to cars so didn't feel busy. There is also a much slower pace here, which really surprised me, people tend to stroll through the streets rather than rush and every one queues.

Next stop Shinjuko, the world's busiest station and the skyscraper area of Tokyo. Today was a national holiday so there were many less commuters but still a nice buzz. Some of the buildings were impressive and we went up the Government building for some roof top views.We then found a small sushi bar for a very late lunch/early dinner. On the whole this was a pleasant experience and of really high quality except for the sea urchins....I have only eaten cooked ones before so did not know if the rather acrid taste ( which reminded me of toilets) was normal or not. Cathal volunteered to try one too and confirmed my suspicions.....sea urchins which had passed their prime.:(. We are both confident that our robust constitutions will withstand the small mouthful of dodgy sea food and that the beer we drank and ginger we ate will combat any bacterial attack, so far so good.....but  watch this space.

Our last quick stop was to Harajuko, a famous trendy shopping area...think Carnaby Street/Kings Road/North Laine. It was the wrong time of day for the real hard core fashionistas, although I did spot a few fairy girls but still well worth a visit.

We were lucky to get a direct train home and I've thrown a few random items into a bag ready for our road trip to Nikko tomorrow.

Loitering with intent

Happy with my purchases

The name of a gym