Here’s my very late contribution to the Weekly Photo Challenge on Waiting. Three weeks ago, we had our great Tokyo adventure. Preparing for the trip itself involved a lot of waiting. Waited for confirmation of airline booking, hotel reservation and the most dreadful of all the visa application approval.
After almost a month of prep, we were ready to hit Tokyo.
The trip would not have been as easy if Hiro san from Tokyo Free Guide was not just an email away to help me sort out things. So many thing to see, taste and smell…and shop in Japan!
Waiting at the fascinating, confusing but very reliable Tokyo Subway. We spent a lot of time going up and down the subway and waiting for trains that will take us to the wonderful places in tokyo. But the the sights, the sounds, the tastes … all worth the wait!
I was just going to post on the weekly theme … but might as well do a post on trip.
Let’s start with my favorite part of the trip first. I loved our trip to Kamakura. It is one hour out of Tokyo via the JR Shonan line. For an extra Y20, we were able to go inside and check out the structure from the inside. Amazing design even from the inside. It’s worth the going up and down a narrow, cramped and dark set of stairs. And Kamakura! It was just bustling with activity. It is fascinating to note that most of the tourists are local tourists. They travel far and wide to visit the shrines and the temples. And I think for a spot of shopping too. 
) Just like near some of our churches, the street to the shrines and temples are lined with shops selling lots of stuff.
Another day, another time, another train … we were waiting in one of the pedestrian crossing lanes at the famous Shibuya crossing. Japanese Lifestyle described it as a “scramble crossing as the traffic is stopped in all directions, thus allowing pedestrians to walk in all directions through the intersection.” It was not as crazy as I imagined it would be. But then again, I am a Pinoy commuter and pedestrian lanes in Manila … oh well, bus, taxi, cars and motorbikes would say, “What pedestrian crossing?”
A few steps from the Shibuya crossing, we found Hachikō’s statue and paw prints. Hachikō knows all about waiting. “He is best remembered for his remarkable loyalty to his owner, even many years after his owner’s death. During his owner’s life, Hachikō greeted him at the end of each day at the nearby Shibuya Station. The pair continued their daily routine until May 1925, when Professor Ueno did not return. The professor had suffered from a cerebral hemorrhageand died, never returning to the train station where Hachikō was waiting. Every day for the next nine years the dog waited at Shibuya station. Hachikō attracted the attention of other commuters. Many of the people who frequented the Shibuya train station had seen Hachikō and Professor Ueno together each day. They brought Hachikō treats and food to nourish him during his wait. This continued for nine years with Hachikō appearing precisely when the train was due at the station” – Wikipedia
We were too early for fall! Heartbreak. I was afraid that we would be too late for fall. I was afraid that we will miss the turning of the leaves. Sadness, when we arrived, the leaves haven’t started to turn yet. We were lucky to spot this lone maple tree in Yoyogi park. (Hiro san told me that the leaves started turning last week.)
Couldn’t wait and couldn’t have enough of it! Loved the Harajuku area. The outfits, the look, so effortless. It was just too bad that we could not wait for the Fashion Walk. Our trip back to Manila was at 6pm. We just didn’t have enough time.
I would love to come back here in again. And the waiting starts all over again …
Tags: kamakura, Postaweek2011, tokyo, tokyo free guide, waiting, weekly photo challenge
Barney! Today is also the day before the Milo Marathon. 
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