After seeing all there was to see in Harajuku, we took a train to Shibuya station. Shibuya is overpopulated - there are people on top of people on top of people. It's wild. There's an estimated population of 195,877 and a density of 12,960 persons per km. The total area is 15.11 km². (I suppose I should site Wikipedia) :). One of the first things you see as you exit the train station is the infamous Shibuya Crosswalk.
Shibuya is famous for its scrambled crossing which is reportedly the world's busiest. It is located in front of the station's Hachiko exit and stops vehicles in all directions to allow pedestrians to inundate the entire intersection. Three large TV screens mounted on nearby buildings overlook the crossing. The Starbucks store overlooking the crossing is also one of the busiest in the world. The 2003 American movie Lost in Translation featured a scene at the crossing.
It's no joke either. Here's the proof:
An overhead view:
I was almost convinced I was going to get lost in the crowd & never make it to the other side. 
After successfully crossing the street we decided to find dinner. We stumbled upon a random restaurant, as we often do, and were happy to finally sit. So happy we ended up sitting for over two hours. We ordered chicken and fish - sounds safe, right? Need I remind you that I'm in Japan - no order is a safe order.
The chicken is a typical order for many restaurants. You get six chicken skewers with various chicken parts on each. You get a chicken wing, chicken livers, chicken skin, chicken balls (they're a mystery), chicken cartilage, chicken hearts, and chicken eggs. I don't know what kind of chickens produce eggs that small, but we ate nonetheless.
We also ordered fish. I just get slightly creeped out when you have to eat around the eye. 
Maybe we should have ate at the 24h McDonalds. We could have got some McPorks for 100 yen.
I stumbled upon a Coach store as we were wondering around looking for a place to sleep. Subliminally I think it was calling my name. It wasn't accidental. 
We wandered around an area called Love Hotel Hill - only for the scenery, not to stay. Finally we decided to splurge on a hotel that was right around the corner. We were so tired and after one night in a capsule hotel & one night in a chair at an internet cafe a bed sounded amazing. We checked in, made our way to the sixth floor & were asleep before we could take our shoes off. As tired as I was I did manage to find time to pay the tv 500 yen to see if there were any American sports or any American news on - of course it was a no go, but worth the try. 
We woke up refreshed & ready to spend our last day in Tokyo!! We headed to Starbucks to people watch. I got some much needed caffeine ... despite the great night of sleep I was still slightly dragging. I must be getting old.
The crosswalk during the day:
We crossed the massive crosswalk and went back to the station to visit Hachiko, Shibuya's famous dog.
One of the most well-known stories concerning Shibuya is the story of Hachik0, a dog who waited on his late master at Shibuya Station every day from 1923 to 1935, eventually becoming a national celebrity for his loyalty. A statue of Hachikō was built adjacent to the station, and the surrounding Hachikō Square is now the most popular meeting point in the area (again, my thanks to Wikipedia). 
I took this picture for my dad & to see if anyone could tell me exactly where the fire hydrant is? I see these everywhere & up top in the red it says 'fire hydrant' (yes it's in English, so I can't blame it on my poor translating). Where is the hydrant? Maybe they're so high tech they're invisible. 
Can anyone spot the tourists in the train station?
I left the navigating up to the others ... between the subway line, the JR train line, & the shinkansen I was confused as to how we were getting from point A to point B 99% of the time. I just followed the crowd. 
stay tuned for the finale ...much love
-tara-
xoxo
No comments:
Post a Comment