Tokyo just might be the largest town in the world, composed of 23 individual wards, all with their own unique traits. Foreigners are easily threatened by the sheer expanse of Japan’s major city and its 17,000,000 inhabitants ( 5,000,000 are commuters ) ; {however ,} due to this volume alone Tokyo has developed an unrivaled public transportation system and a complicated network of visitor friendly information resources. The simplest way to travel Tokyo’s delirious bustle is to allow the tube to guide the way. A loose itinerary will draw you into true jap life through unexpected encounters and more intimate experiences.
Tokyo : A patron Capital
It may be ironic that one of the costliest cities in the world also has one of the most rampant and flamboyant consumer cultures. Traveller attractions in Tokyo consist of many gargantuan shopping complexes in addition to the cultural faves. The Ginza shopping district reigns ultimate for ostentatious spending habits, with thousands of mega-stores, shops and a unjustifiable array of non-functional novelty stores for the simply entertained inside us all. For a dose of Manhattan in Tokyo, visit Shibuya, which is abundant with higher-end shops, shrines, King-Kong-sized plasma TV screens and the busiest pedestrian street crossing in the world.
A Culture of Retrospect and Reflection
There’s an inclination to become inundated and desensitized by the fluorescent lights that line the town streets like masts in Japan’s ocean of technology. While these electrical churches work to extol a hyper-modern age, Tokyo also has got some of the most idyllic and serene shrines and pagodas in the country. Meiji-jingu is the most impressive of Tokyo’s Shinto shrines, built with Eastern cypress and copper plates for the roof. Even though the shrine was annihilated during World War II, the reconstruction has not lost any of the grandeur. Just north of the city, Bonsai Park treats visitors to the zen-like art of cultivating these meticulously placed tiny trees and experiencing the calming of the mind. A necessary experience for anyone traveling to Tokyo is the view of Mount Fuji in the early hours of dawn. This is possible from within the town, on top of one of the giant skyscrapers like the governing body Building in Shinjuku. Directly in the center of Tokyo, the Imperial Palace ( Kokyo ) is an inner-city refuge that is home to the Imperial Family. The public can visit the encompassing East Gardens and walk along the double bridge over the tranquil moats of the palace grounds, but the palace buildings and inner yard are closed to visitors.
Travel to Tokyo with an eagerness to get lost among the hustle and perhaps end up again in the silence of a shrine. The expansive town and system of trains make it almost impossible to make a wrong turn.
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