If Casey was too excited to see Mickey Mouse I was too excited to see Hachiko! Obviously, my husband got that in the photo. He was bringing the stroller as Casey was asleep already. I was studying the map and trying to figure out which exit to take to get to Hachiko. I pretty much rushed to him when I saw the pawprints on the ground leading to the famous dog.
For those who don't know the story of Hachiko, read through the link and after which find the DVD of Hatchi, A Dog's Tale. The movie is starred by Richard Gere as Hachiko's owner. Prepare tons of tissue!
Ticked off one of my lifetime wish list -- visit Hachiko in Japan! :)
I was too excited my heart really skipped a beat when I saw his statue. There were too many people there as it was apparently a famous meeting spot in Shibuya Station. A landmark not only for dog lovers but also a very convenient spot for teenagers to meet. We took our time and waited until we had Hachiko all to ourselves. I just got to have a picture with him! :)
Shibuya is one of Tokyo's busiest train station. The famous Shibuya Crossing is a must see if you ever get to Tokyo! According to TIME Travel: "It would be a shame to come to Tokyo and not take a walk across the famous intersection outside Shibuya Station. On sunny afternoons or clear evenings, the surrounding area is packed with shoppers, students, young couples and commuters. When the lights turn red at this busy junction, they all turn red at the same time in every direction. Traffic stops completely and pedestrians surge into the intersection from all sides, like marbles spilling out of a box."
I haven't see so many people crossing the street at one time but this crossing! Of course, I was just being overly dramatic in the picture. :)
Just right outside one of the mall by Shibuya Station, was a performance by one of Japan's artist, Safarii Summer Lovers. Their song was actually nice. A mix of English and Japanese lyrics with a beat that reminds me of Peter Andre's Mysterious Girl-- song that really reminds you of summer and the beach!
Asking for directions again for our next destination, the Meiji Shrine. :)
We found this ancient 1,500 year old cypress 40-foot torii impressively stunning! The function of a torii is to mark the entrance to a sacred space. Meiji Temple is dedicated to the deified spirits of Emperor Meiji and his wife, Empress ShÅken. It actually means a lot to the history of Japan that even a world leader like Hillary Clinton recently visited the place to show respect towards Japan's history and culture.
Finally, our little model woke up and his reaction when he saw the torii was so cute. He stared at it for quite sometime before eventually going near and doing a discovery of his own.
Apparently, it is quite a long walk to the temple from the torii gates. The temple features an iris garden. The pathway was made of pebbles that is quite difficult for our stroller. We decided not to go inside and go to one more POI instead.
My son saw the ice cream sign again, obviously in this picture we are on our way to get him another cone. Now, in Singapore, my son already knows how to ask for ice cream. We have to be extra creative and put it in a cone for him too... just like how it was in Japan.
Family pose before going to another Point of Interest (POI).
While in the train, my son was charming this little girl even when the dad was looking at him quite fiercely. ~wink
Before heading to loiter around the Asakusa District, we found a self service ramen shop. This would be our first ramen in Japan-- it is cheap and delicious! All you need to do is, go to this vending machine by the entrance and choose the noodle that you want (like picking out soda in a vending machine). The machine prints out your ticket and you give it to the cook. It basically serves as their self-service cashier. All you need to do next is, wait for them to call your number and pick up your order.
We were walking along the Sumida River and found ourselves walking towards this black odd-looking building with an enormous, gold, shape object on top. This is the Asahi Beer Hall and is supposed to be one Tokyo's modern structures back in 1989. It is shaped like a glass to complement the golden pitcher-shaped building beside it. This is the Asahi headquarters-- one of Japan's famous beer.
A significant event happened in this building in terms of Casey's development. He walked the lit steps on his own without grabbing a hold of the rail! He always shouts help from us and demands to hold his hand at the sight of stairs with no object to hold on to. I am not so sure if its the lighted stairs or the Japan air but my son was pretty gung ho about the whole idea of climbing the building steps on his own.
We finally ended our day and headed back to the hotel-- dropped by this fruit juice first. We have somehow accustomed ourselves to juicing so we searched for fresh juice and were glad to find one inside the train station.
We were not very lucky in finding a cake though. We wanted to buy one and have Casey blow a candle as we sing happy birthday. We ended up with different sweets from a convenience store. Casey was happy about it all the same.
POI's for this post;
+ Hachiko Statue
+ Shibuya Crossing
+ Meiji Shrine
+ Asahi Beer Hall
Up next, the reason we came to Japan-- Mickey Mouse for his main birthday celebration! :)
No comments:
Post a Comment