Holiday in Japan (2): Tokyo
The journey out was straightforward but l-o-n-g.
When I went to Japan in 1998, it was a direct flight over Russia, especially Siberia, which took about about 12 hours. But now we have the Russian invasion of Ukraine and no flying by the shortest route.
We flew with Emirates: London to Dubai (three hours ahead) in an Airbus A380 for 6.5 hours and Dubai to Tokyo (eight hours ahead) in a Boeing 777 for another 9 hours. The only problem on the flights was that one needed a degree in biochemical engineering to open the tiny pack of butter.
When we reached our hotel, my journey door to door had been 26 hours. The hotel itself, the Keio Plaza Hotel in the Shinjuku is HUGE: two towers with a total of 1,438 rooms. The first culture shock – literally – was the toilet which had a heated seat. Another surprise – at breakfast – was a robot delivering used plates back to the kitchen.
At 10 am on Monday, the Great Rail Journeys group gathered for the first time. There are 38 of us, 22 from the UK and the remainder – who flew here on separate flights – from Australia, South Africa and Canada.
We have a Glaswegian Tour Manager Bill and a local guide Kazoo and it’s difficult to decide who has the stronger accent, but both are immensely knowledgeable and unfailingly helpful.
Tokyo is, of course, the capital of Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper, it is one of the most populous urban areas in the world. The Greater Tokyo Area, which includes Tokyo and parts of six neighbouring prefectures, is the most populous metropolitan area in the world, with an amazing 41 million residents.That’s one-third of the entire population of the country.
We began the city tour with a visit to the Meiji-Jingu Shinto shrine in the Harajuku district.This was constructed in honour of modern Japan’s first emperor. Next stop was to the much more expansive and colourful Buddhist temple of Senso-Ji in Asakusa. This dates from the 7th century and was built to honour Kanin, the Buddhist goddess of mercy.
Our local guide told us that Shintoism and Buddhism co-exist without conflict and that some Japanese follow both traditions. At the temple, we were given time for lunch and Jenny and I found a place to share two dishes of traditional Japanese food and each of us had a bottle of Sapporo beer.
The afternoon started with a visit to the vast, landscaped Hama Rikyu Gardens. We are in Japan at the height of the cherry blossom season which only lasts one week. The final stop was the famed Shibuya crossing where up to 3,000 people at a time make use of the facility coming from all directions. Round the corner is the statue of the Akita dog Hachiko, remembered for his loyalty to his deceased owner.
Back at the hotel, I was able to reconnect with two Japanese friends whom I’ve not seen for around a quarter of a century. I worked with Masako Ano Lynsey in London in 1999 and with Yoko Ogawa in Tokyo in 1998 and an hour with each was enough to keep the flames of friendship burning bright.
Dinner was provided to the group in our hotel. It was European food because – our British guide advised us – Westerners cannot cope with Japanese food. When I was in the country in 1998, that was all I ate and I’ll be sure to eat more of it at times on this trip