Drip, drip, drip, lots of Tokyo showers

It's raining. But that's today. Lets go back to happier times, yesterday.


So after my sleep marathon on Monday, I finally emerged on Tuesday, bright as a button, fresh as a daisy, bushy tailed and all that stuff. It helped that the sun was shiney, the frost had gone, life in short was good.


Tokyo is very big and confusing and surprisingly enough there's a lot of Japanese signage around that's not the easiest to decifer. However, they do have a very good metro system which I truely believe is the solo travellers best friend whatever country you are in. I decided on my first day to go to central Tokyo, see the imperial palace and all that jazz. As it was such a beatutiful day I bascially spent about 4 hours walking about the imperial gardens as just when you think there can be no more, you find yet another one. And I missed out about three because I just couldn't take anymore folioage. I also found an area of park that was called "Shelter for people who cannot go home again". I was intrigued when I saw this sign so walked through it, expecting to see a homeless shelter, but in fact it was just an expanse of grass with a bunch of homeless people sleeping under trees. I think it must be a place where homeless people are tolerated as I haven't really seen many homeless people around the city. It was a sad little piece of land.

After my greenery marathon, I headed to the main shopping street in central Tokyo. It was very stereotypical with the big plasma screens and giant 3D watches, it was like being an advert for Thomas Cook- look this girl is in Tokyo, cue me standing in street surrounded by all the technology and people wearing faces masks (lots of people here are very worried about breathing in pollution so wear masks a lot when outside). It was a bit surreal. So to counter balance this, I went to a toy shop. What better way to feel normal again than to surround yourself with 5 storeys of plastic toys and lego. The lego was ace.

Anyway after all that excitement, I went back to the hostel and ended up having a few drinks with my dorm mate in the bar downstairs. He, like me, did the uni and job thing then went huh? that it? Quit his job and has resorted to a year of travelling on savings with no clear idea what he is going to do years end. Thank goodness I'm not the only one.

Today it rained, rained, rained and then rained some more. And it was cold. So whats a girl to do, but go to a landfill thats been turned into a fake island where there is about a million shops, a rainbow bridge and a fake statue of liberty? It was the campest place I have ever been to. It was fab.

However, the rain has continued on and on into this evening and everyone here at the hostel is a bit fed up of it. Its just so relentless, you can't really go outside and the idea of going out and doing anything doesn't stir up the imagination. So it a quiet one here in Asakusa, lots of civilised conversations and book reading. No one even wants to have a drink. Damn them all! Fortunately, I bought myself a cake, so all is not lost!



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