With only two days in Tokyo, it was always going to be action packed. However, when fatigue set in following our week of skiing, we had no choice but to factor in a little rest time!
Our first evening here (after bus and flight delays due to heavy snow in Hokkaido), we dashed to our hotel, dumped our bags and headed straight out to our pre-booked session at team Lab Planets.
This is a digital museum that only the Japanese could think of. It is unbelievable! From digital koi swimming beneath your feet, to walls of lights and mirrors, to live orchids hanging from the ceiling, to games to chasing extinct animals around a room. It is a must do in Tokyo and was the perfect way to get us excited about this awesome city after a long day of travelling.
The next morning we were up early (ish) and headed to Tokyo Skytree. A broadcasting and observation tower, this is the tallest building in Japan, rising 634m above the sprawling city of Tokyo. The views are stunning and really give you an impression of how vast and populated this city is. We had fun pointing out the buildings we recognised, as well as a number of outdoor swimming pools left to go green over the winter months!!! Can you tell we have a pool operator in our midst?
Last time we visited, we did Tokyo Tower which is older and smaller (https://thetravelbee.blog/2024/01/14/a-travel-day-and-a-tokyo-night/). If I had to choose, I think the Skytree was more impressive and offered better views.
After a spot of shopping, The Travel Bees were forced to retire for a nap before we planned to meet up with our Japanese exchange student for dinner.
At this point, I would like to explain how we are getting around this enormous city. Fortunately on our first visit to Tokyo in 2024 we employed the services of a guide, Taka who showed us how to negotiate the metro (https://thetravelbee.blog/2024/01/15/tokyo-by-taka/). He recommended loading a Suica card into our apple wallets. With this, it is easy to tap on and off. Teamed with Google maps, it really is pretty easy to get around cheaply.
In the evening, we met Noi at Ueno station and wandered through the streets of Ueno as she and her Mum introduced us to Japanese lollies, candied apples and games arcades before taking us for a traditional Shabu-shabu dinner.
Shabu-shabu is otherwise known as a hot pot. A pot of soup simmers on the table into which you add meats, vegetables and noodles. The more you want to eat, the more you order to add. We were continually grazing, while chatting and drinking a local Japanese wine. We learned that traditionally udon noodles or rice are added to the pot at the end after eating the meat and vegetables. The dinner was then completed with matcha ice cream. Yum!
It was wonderful to see Noi and to learn about some of her family traditions. We feel certain we will see her again soon.
TTB
The Travel Bee 