Today we set out to explore Yoyogi Park and the Temple there. Using Google Maps (second tip- We downloaded an eSim, in this case Ubigi, before we came to Japan and this proved to be cost effective and very useful). Although quite a distance, we were soon in the park and made our way to the Meiji Jingu temple as our first experience of this traditional Japanese site. 
Fortunately, as we arrived there was a wedding party entering in traditional costume and we joined the crowd to admire this procession. Apparently, you have to be very important to get married here.

As we explored further, other guests arrived and I was able to capture a young child in traditional costume that I sketched later on my iPad.
Sue was keeping a journal of our trip and had started to collect memorial stamps from the places that we visited. She had one from the hotel, one from the government building and today she collected a Goshen shrine stamp. She continued to do this throughout our trip. We spent time looking round the shrine area and we visited all the other buildings, admiring the architecture and ethos of the place.

Leaving the park, we entered the busy town of Harajuku that was quite upmarket and had one small highlight which was a mirrored stairway. leading into a shopping plaza, where tourists travelled up one escalator then came down the other side taking photographs. The effect of all the mirrors provided a kaleidoscopic view. 

Moving on, we left the busy part of town to explore the side streets and eventually came across what seemed to be a building containing small studios of young artists showing their work. It was interesting to see these young people dressed in unique ways often linked to their work. One customer caught my attention and provided another super subject matter for me to sketch on my iPad.

​Below is some of the artwork on show and a couple of animators hard at work.

Next, we made our way to the famous Shibuya Scramble Crossing. As it was a Saturday the crowds were out in full force. It was exhilarating to stand amongst them. We then followed the advice given to us in a guide book, to go to the second floor of Starbucks and watch the crossing from here. Another memorable experience.

After walking through some of the side streets, we made our way back to the hotel before going out again for something to eat. A long day with us covering over 30,000 steps but well worth it.

The only thing we weren't looking forward to was the seven hour flight then a two hour layover before a ten hour flight. On arriving at Manchester airport we soon found out there was a delay on our flight and this meant there was no rest in-between flights as we boarded straight away at Abu Dhabi.
Arriving at Tokyo's Narita airport, we were surprised by the long queue to get through customs (first tip- Pay for fast track there). Because of this, the taxi we had booked decided not to wait and we had to find a new one, which added an extra delay. It was an hour long drive to our hotel, so by the time we arrived, we had gone through our tiredness and decided to explore the area before an early night.
Our hotel was situated in the Shinjuku district which is in the western part of Tokyo. Rooms in Tokyo's hotels are small and our was no exception! However, we soon settled down and slept very well.

Rising just in time for breakfast, we looked out of the widow and our spirits were immediately lifted with the view.
Deciding to go for a walk to the government building, we took the free lift to the top and had a stunning view of the city where, apart from a brief glimpse, Fuji successfully hid 

Exploring further, Tokyo proved to be everything we hoped for with brightly lit streets and a range of interesting areas to explore. The youth seemed to have a unique style sense unmatched in our travels elsewhere, even though subtle colours were mainly the fashion.

Sitting for a snack on a row of benches, I captured my first image that I could sketch on my iPad, a local worker relaxing next to us.
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After a while, we had our first Japanese meal before returning to the hotel for a rest as we were heading out to meet one of Sue's friends who lives in Tokyo, later that evening for a meal.

Setting off to meet him, we used Google maps. Unfortunately, we did get a little lost and it didn't help that half way there it changed from English to Japanese. We were looking for the Godzilla head, which, when found, was not hard to miss if you looked upwards. With her friend living here it was nice to get a locals view of the area and helped us feel more confident.
​He had booked a meal for us and being quite plain eaters this was a little worrying. We were soon impressed by the restaurant although it took a little getting used to when they shouted a loud welcome to every one who came in.
The main courses were meat dishes cooked on the table with sauces to dip into. These were varied but proved very enjoyable. 

​After the meal, we explored a little more around the area, taking in the sights and sounds, before a final drink in a pub. We returned to our hotel, tired but looking forward to exploring  more of Shinjuku the next day.