Today was spent soaking up the city culture. And completing shopping lists (and lusts *grin*). Our last full day in Tokyo found us on the subway to Shinjuku and Shibuya. Impressions? I rather like Shinjuku for its wide(r) streets and vehicular traffic-free Sundays. Walk with no barriers, mental or otherwise! But we didn’t find and buskers the guide book talked about. We *did* find the familiar Isetan shopping centre though, still using the retro yellow, red & green tartan print paper bags. I can see why people would like to stay in Shibuya. Shopping aside, there’s a certain sophistication to the business district that’s quite different from Ikebukuro. Older, bigger and somewhat calmer, the people are also that slightly bit more formal, polite and might I say, cold. If only the people in Shinjuku could be friendlier like those in Ikebukuro who spoke much less English, but for that reason seemed a lot more hospitable.
After our final shopping expedition to Sanrio Giftgate, Shinjuku, we went to Shibuya to check out youth culture in Tokyo. While we did not get to see really extravagant outfits and personalities as I’d hoped we would, we did see how some hairstyles can truly defy gravity and found an aspiring rock band playing music out in the cold for busy passing crowds to enjoy. Truly, no real crowd gathered to watch the band play. I reckon it was too cold even for the locals to stay static for long and really admire the musicians for their commitment to playing their instruments out in the cold, glove-less!
Noisy, crowded and a lot less reverent than Shinjuku and Ikebukuro, I thought Shibuya was interesting and pretty much fit my mental idea of what Tokyo should be like. Did I like it? Well… I’ll admit I’m old and found the energy of the place tiring than invigorating. I was glad to be back in Ikebukuro where I finally got my bento accessory shopping done at Tobu and experienced Japanese Aunty behavior – I got a box of sashimi knocked out if my hands by a lady who wad rushing for some fish at the food market just as the prices were being slashed for the evening. She neither turned her head back nor uttered an apology. So not all Japanese people are polite and Aunty is Aunty wherever you go.
At Sanrio Giftgate in Shinjuku. Not very much bigger than the Giftgate at Ikebukuro.
