This morning we woke to a dismal sight outside. It was rainy and foggy. We made our way downstairs hopping to go and have a western breakfast Japanese style but were greatly disappointed when we discovered it was closed, (NOT). We decided first to head to Roppongi hills. We caught the Oedo subway there, which luckily is close to the hotel so Dad and I did not have to walk far in the rain. Not that I minded with my snazzy new umbrella. We arrived in Roppongi, a masterfully designed complex with many facilities. We braved the wind and rain and looked for a place to eat. I in my westernized genius and distaste for change casually suggested we head to familiar and trustworthy star bucks. (My underlying motif being I wanted a caffeine infused, cream and caramel sauce topped delight.)After our culinary delight (the Japanese do a mean lemon scone.)We then headed to the Mori art museum and the Tokyo City View. That we would soon learn was a mistake.

The museum was great. It was filled with many interesting displays, my favorite being the flaw covered in silver, black, white and gold tape. We then headed to the Tokyo city view. We were disappointed and annoyed to find that the heavy cloud cover obscured our view of the city and all we could see was a sea of white cloud with the occasional glimpse of the beautiful city below. Dad and I felt cheated. Being mature I was able to put this unfortunate misshape behind me. The cloud cover changed my perspective and I was rather excited whenever I caught a glimpse of the city.

We then ventured to Akihabara the electric town. There we witnessed quite literally possibly the BIGGEST electrical store ever. Before we ventured into the colossus they deem a shopping centre, time being tight we whizzed past a French bakery and grabbed and Franco– Japanese pastry. Weather permitting (it fined up) we followed our original plans and headed to Harajuku. We were worried that the Gosurori (oddly dressed girls) we not be out due to the weather but were pleasantly surprised to see a decent amount of them had braved the rain and turned up on Jingu Bridge. Dad like the every professional photographer was snapping away, as I was taking shelter behind his back to embarrassed to ask for a photo. However used to shy tourists like me I was approached by a Harajuku girl and had my picture taken. She was very excited to find out I was Australian, and exclaimed “Ah Kiwi”, clearly we have some educating to do.
On a high felling very special, I made my way to Meiji Shrine with Dad. This is Tokyo’s largest and grandest Shinto shrine. The gardens that hold the shrine were created by Emperor Meiji for his Empresses Shoken. Meji’s rule, saw Japan end its isolation with the western world. At the shrine we were fortunate enough to see not one but two traditional weddings taking place. The brides looked stunning in there pristine white kimonos.

Tired and with aching feet I was looking forward to my customary bath. Dad however had different ideas and lead me the WRONG way back to the subway. This detour however served as a blessing and we passed AWSOME hotted up vans, (made me think of George) and walked around a bit. We passed awesome buildings like Louis Vouton (whose shop front had their emblems illuminated in lights) and the Prada building, made entirely out of glass.

After my much looked forward to bath we headed out on a hut for a traditional Japanese restaurant. We landed on this small underground joint that served Yakatri. Dad had wanted this. We sat down in a bar like area situated in front of the grill used to cook the yakatori. We were slightly surprised when we found the menu to be entirely in Japanese. However the chef/host was very happy and using his limited English recommended to us a certain yakatori dish consisting of, beef, chicken and tofu skewers. We also embraced Japanese culture and dipped our yakatori in radish past and soya sauce. I thought it was quite funny when the host raced up to find us when Dad left our adaptor in the restaurant. This was a pleasing end to a wonderful day. After the jam packed day we’ve had I am looking forward to snuggling in bed and devouring the Da Vinci Code.