Art and arctic winds

I am not sure whether we have gone soft after all this time in the heat or it is just bitterly cold here but yesterday was very cold again, I don't think February is Tokyo's best month.

So we decided to do an art gallery,  we had a brisk wander through the palace parks again to the Momat, one of Tokyo's many modern art galleries. We had spotted a poster which seemed to suggest that there was a big Jackson Pollock show on and were rather pleased to find it open. The Pollock exhibition was really good and very inspirational, if you want to know my opinion on what Pollock's work is about ask me when we get back as I found it educational walking though his work from art school through to his final pieces. The signage in the Pollock show was not in English but in the permanent collection the signage was good and we had an interesting time looking at 20th century Japanese art. The we enjoyed hot chocolate from a can, yes enjoyed!

Gallery done we headed across town to Shinjuku to the Tokyo Government towers to get a free bird's eye view of the city.

Tokyo doesn't really have a skyline as it is too big and has several centres so it makes for an different landscape than New York or Hong Kong.

The towers obviously had a gift shop like all good tourist attractions so we had a quick look around before we headed off to get food.

Amy is Excellent Beautiful

Matt is Truth Capital

I really wanted a Lightsaber Umbrella

Last night in Tokyo so we are off to brave the cold then Jump on an overnight bus to Kyoto.

Miraikan

Quick bit of background, Aimee and I love space stuff, Aimee has never been to a planetarium, so we have tried on a couple of occasions to get to one, we failed again but it was a good day out.

Yesterday the weather was really rubbish here, very cold, windy and raining so rather than trudge about in the cold we opted for a museum day. We found out about the miraikan (and its supposed planetarium) in our guide book and navigated 3 trains to get there.

The experience was a slight disappointment to start with as the planetarium show was fully booked and instead we had to pick a 3D film about world heritage sites at the end of the day. While we waited we went to check out the rest of the exhibits. We go to a lot of science museums and it has to be said the the exhibits here are some of the best that we have seen, almost all of the signage is bilingual, nothing was out of order and there was a wide range of hands on stuff. There was also a lot of exhibits on cutting edge science which was really cool, like a holographic mirror (although I did guess how it was done which amused the guy working the exhibit).

A simple fish, no he is a descendant of the first fish bred in space!

Talking of cutting edge I couldn't believe it when we spotted there was a live demo of Asimo, the little robot chap that you see on the telly from time to time when they have managed to get him to do something new.

Geek out! It's Asimo!

I can't really say a lot about this as it blew my geeky mind check out the video.

Genuinely still can't believe we have seen him.

We rounded out the day with the 3D show which was good, there was some really nice helicopter shots in New Zealand, but I was still thinking about how to get my hands on my own Asimo.

We finished off the day in the Akihabara, Electric town, with a meat free meal.

Off out now as it is not raining.

Sunny with a chance of a meaty encounter

Thought I would fire off another blog post while Aimee scrubs her teeth.

Tokyo is huge fun, we are cold and often confused but the sun is out and we are grinning all day.

Yesterday we checked out some Palace gardens, the shops in Ginza and the lights of Ropponggi.

Aimee doing what she is told

Trees often look like art in Japanese parks

I might be too excited to see the sun in this picture

I love Tokyo central business district it is not always pretty and not showy but the streets are wide and the buildings functional

We might see spring after all ... there were the odd buds blossoming

No we are not in Paris, Yes it really is painted orange

Tokyo tower from Ropponggi

The tower from Ropponggi hills ... not real hills but a sort of city in the city concept, all very futuristic

So we love Japanese food but ... it is very hard to order because often the menu looks like this ...

Food lotto

If you are a none fussy eater this is no issue but with our veggie ways this is a bit tricky and my digestive system payed the price yesterday for a bit too much rich meaty gravy I think. Oh well, we got someone to help us with the pronunciation of 'we don't eat meat' yesterday so lets hope breakfast is free of our meaty friends.

ps: There is no chance that either of us will be going back to eating meat we are definitely not having cravings after tasting the fleshy broths.

Shibuya and Harajuku

Err so we woke up a bit late, I sort of forgot to set the alarm, it was cold, it was really raining but we finally got to the local JR line stop at about 11.30. We are on the eastern edge of Tokyo, well sort of the edge of the middle really, Tokyo is so massive that it is really hard to describe where you are in it at any point in time. Like London and LA, Tokyo has a lot of centres and even more sprawl, it seems to never end, no wonder the public transport system is a bit confusing. We are starting to get the hang of the transport here now and have never actually got lost but it has been a bit 'jump on the train and hope' a couple of times. There are about 8 different maps to the Tokyo rail system each with different line colours, a different layout and sometimes even different spellings.

Those noodles are cold and get dipped in a bowl of soy and wasabi. It is really good.

The rain stopped some time while we were eating brunch so we were able to enjoy wandering around Shibuya discovering why Tokyo is one of the worlds fashion capitals. When we tired of looking at clothes we can't fit into our back pack we stopped for a coffee to people watch ... at Shibuya crossing, if you don't know it by name you will have seen it in a movie.

Every 4 minutes or so

It was difficult to move ourselves from that view but we had more to see.

Aimee waiting to cross at Shibuya

Hachiko. The meeting spot, a bit like Birmingham's Bull

The street vendors in Tokyo are a little different

We always find the Disney store

Although this one was a bit different, can you see the hidden Mickey's?

After checking out Shibuya we walked a couple of blocks to Harajuku and even more mad shops. Harajuku has a really odd mix between Teen-pop culture, Hip hop Tokyo style and High fashion shops.

The shop sold pretty girly clothes!

Getting a bit chilly, better find some food

Then on the way home we spotted this giant snow ball, how very odd. We are going to try and get an early start again tomorrow lets see how it goes.

コんにちわ

コんいちわ Konichiwa.

Check me finding how to switch to Japanese on my keyboard!

We are very much in Japan, the airport played us lovely soothing music as we left the plane and also apologised for the 5 minutes we had to wait for the shuttle across the airport.

For me this is a return to Japan, I was lucky enough to get here on my previous trip to Asia 8 years ago and as many people will attest have been harping on about it ever since. I am so excited to be back I just wanted to post a couple of photos:

First, a mountain poking its head above the clouds as we started our decent into Tokyo, I am going to believe it is Fuji San even if I am provided with evidence to the contrary.

It's Fuji to me!

Next me in our hotel issued "evening wear".

Evening wear!

Not sure what we have planned for tomorrow, not actually sure where we are in Tokyo. The confusing thing about Japan is that everything seems really normal until you actually try to do something. We are still a little surprised that we made it to the hotel so fast, we were following directions provided by the hotel but they made no sense and were even more confusing as we tried to apply them to the actual Tokyo rail system... but then all of a sudden we were at the hotel in our tiny, comfy room. Weird.

Sleep needed now, while we have this amazingly fast Tokyo internet access I will try and post again tomorrow with our reaction to our first day.

Parks, markets, malls, restaurants

We are still in Hong Kong and we are still loving it here. Hong Kong is a world away from any of the big cities in South East Asia; there are pavements and traffic lights and seat belts and more forms of public transport in HK city than in most countries. Actually HK is like a country which has had the excess space sucked out of it like a vacuum bag, it has all of the people, buildings, buses, trams, parks, markets, bars, malls and restaurants but without all of the wasted space in between. And we love it! 

Think this is my favourite skyscraper. 

Matt and Gary enjoy the view.

Since our last blog post we have spent a lot of time in and on those buses, trams, trains, markets, bars, malls and parks. We have eaten many meals ( I didn't know so many animals were edible, thanks Gary). We have taken a lot of photographs. We have been to a mall that spirals down like a galaxy and ones filled with boutiques of unique clothes and imported Japanese toys. We have seen the uber rich playground malls with imported super model shop assistants and the geeky dens where the air con is a wall of computer fans wired together.

Spiral Galaxy.

We have seen tourist markets filled with boring knock offs and dodgy paintings, produce markets with live fish and vegetables that look like black hair and flower markets that smell like a spring field.

Vegetarians worst nightmare? 

Hong Kong's parks, which are landscaped to within an inch of their lives are a fantastic way to relax after a busy day/ large meal. We spent a lazy Sunday afternoon walking around the beautiful Zoological gardens, ice creams in hand and enjoying the summer like weather. 

Terrapins enjoy the sun.

Pinkest flamingos ever? 

One of the most memorable experiences for me is the peak tram which rises steeply above the skyline like a scene out of Inception, as our tram climbed the peak the humongous skyscrapers seemed to jut out of the earth at a 45 degree angle. Without a doubt, the Hong Kong city scape is my personal favourite, it is so beautiful and has to be seen to be truly appreciated. That many people living in one place means an awful lot of twinkly lights come night time. 

One of the reasons we have enjoyed Hong Kong so much is the fact that Gary and his family have been here, during our stay they have shown us amazing sights and taken us to unexpected restaurants that we just wouldn't have  experienced if it wasn't for them. It has definitely made an unforgettable experience even more special. 

Here are a few more pictures of our time in HK, told you we took ALOT!! 

Enjoying the beach.

Beautiful bamboo.

Just to show you how foggy it was!

Amazing graffiti in Kowloon. 

Matt didn't like this picture but I do! HK never stands still! 

Tackiest Valentines decorations ever?? 

Enjoying the star ferry. 

The Junk!

Our time here has flew by, I cannot believe that we are in February already. Tomorrow we will be in Tokyo, the penultimate country on our trip, where oh where does the time go?? 

DisneyLand

The day had arrived for me to tick off the penultimate park in my quest to visit every Disney park in the world. (well, until they finish Disney world Shanghai, but that’s for a different trip!) The day started with our journey on the magical express (not its real name but I feel it should be) train to the park.  The excitement I experienced at the Mickey shaped windows and handrails was slightly inappropriate for a 25 year old, but then this is the power of Disney.

Best window in the world??

Eeek!

Fast food at Disney HK. 

The park itself was pretty quiet which was great as it meant we could go on the rides as much as we wanted without queuing. Although the castle here was even smaller than the one in California, the park did not disappoint. And rather importantly I felt it had the best It’s A Small World so far. Guilty pleasure that ride.

Matt could not contain his excitement at being in another Disney Land. I think he
was ringing Gary for help. 

Eagerly awaiting the ride!

Just for Lisa, Becky, Hannah and Dan.

And I still came second on the leader board.

Sexy Buzz- Hong Kong style. 

Where's Wally? 

Mickey was busy but these two were free.

After another exciting day in the land of magic if was off to meet Gary for some food and a catch up!