WE LOVE TOKYO

So we haven't blogged since we have been here, but Tokyo is absolutely amazing. The flight was long, and we were annoyed because we didn't realise you have to prepay your meals with Jetstar long haul. So we had no meals included, and you also have to pay for the in-flight entertainment (the movies and stuff) which is usually all included. Annoying. But we both watched Big Hero 6 and loved it. It's so good.

We landed in Tokyo around 8-9pm and headed to the train station to catch the train to Asakusa.

We were SO confused! We ended up chatting to an Australian guy who was going to the same station as us, and another Aussie couple and just followed them. We checked into our hotel, The Gate. It was so cool! There's an amazing view from the top floor where the reception and restaurant are. 

After checking in, we went in search of food. We love it here because food is so easy to find, and SO cheap too! A lot cheaper than we expected. We went to a place called Denny's and I had a salad with fried chicken and fries and Luke had something. (He had no idea what it was, he thinks it might have been eel.) They don't really have menus in English a lot, but all the menus have photos of the dishes or they have like plastic versions in the window so you just point to what you want and hope for the best. After dinner we went back to the hotel room and collapsed into bed, exhausted. 

The following morning, we got up and went up to the top floor for breakfast. You get to choose a hot dish from eggs benedict, scrambled eggs or french toast, and there's a buffet too with vegetables (for breakfast???), fresh fruit, granola and pastries. There's also a honeycomb dripping into a pot of honey- mm. I opted for French toast while Luke ordered eggs benedict and we both had a bowl of granola with honey. 

After breakfast we took the subway to a place called Ginza, where there are loads of shops, and started off in a huge department store called Matsuya. First we walked around the food area, where there were loads of fresh cakes and chocolates! They looked amazing. Then we went upstairs and I spent a while drooling over the expensive designer bags before we left the department store to go and find Dover Street Market (for Luke). After walking in a circle we asked a policeman who pointed us in the right direction and then asked a lady who worked for a hotel in the car park letting the cars in and she actually took us there. Japanese people are so friendly and helpful like that, it's so lovely and a refreshing change from British idiots!

In Dover Street Market, we found the Bape store, where Luke found a shirt and a coat he loved, along with a couple of things he thought Jack would like. All the items had two prices on the tags and when we asked, the shop assistant told us that if we had our passports we'd get the items tax free (unlike other countries where it's refunded at the airport). Unfortunately we had left our passports in the hotel so we put the items on hold and caught the subway back to our hotel.

After getting the passports, we left the hotel to discover the skies had opened and it was pouring rain, so we quickly ducked into a corner shop to buy an umbrella, before finding a sushi place opposite our hotel and stopping for lunch. 

So good! 

We went back to Bape and Luke made his purchases, and we wandered around the whole of Dover Street Market and a lot of Ginza, we bought a waffle dessert each before returning to the hotel. We went out again later to get some dinner. We found a little Japanese place where the dishes were all on display in the windows (plastic versions) with numbers on them. We then went inside and there were machines to order on. You have to put money in and then select the number of the dish you want. It's the future.

We both had a Katsu thing with rice and egg. Again, so tasty (and so cheap). After dinner we went for a stroll around the streets and came across quite a few homeless people. We've seen a lot of poverty like this on our travels but never in a place where it's this cold. We were freezing ourselves so we couldn't imagine how horrible it must be to sleep on the street in weather like this. We went to a minimart and ended up buying coffee for 8 homeless people to warm them up, feeling terrible that we couldn't do more for them.

Another long day and again we were exhausted so we went home and went straight to bed (okay, we stopped for dessert at Denny's first).

The following morning we got up and went up to breakfast, switching our hot food orders and hitting the buffet again. This time, the granola was a little different, but I filled my bowl, poured milk and honey on top and sat down. Wait, why is there corn in my granola??? And carrot??? WHY DO ASIAN COUNTRIES PUT CORN IN EVERYTHING!? It was gross. I tried it because I'm always open to trying new things but, no. 

We ordered a taxi from reception and hopped in, we didn't want to lug our bags on the trains again. We arrived at our new hotel early, so our room wasn't ready. They stored our bags and we headed out to do some shopping at Shibuya. If you haven't heard of it, it's the place with that huge crazy crossing known as Scramble Crossing. Shibuya is amazing. We went in the department stores (more bag drooling), Disney Store, and we found a pet store with tiny puppies and kittens in glass cases lining the walls (it was so sad). Of course, we found the Bape Store where of course Luke made a few more purchases. In one of the department stores I fell in love with a Vivienne Westwood bag and matching purse so I treated myself, and then again with a Comme Des Garçons clutch purse, so we both went home with arms full of bags and empty bank accounts! (Well almost). 

^spot the Courtney!

We had dinner at a little Japanese place near our hotel. We both had beef bowls, which are really popular here. Basically it's a bowl of rice with beef on top but it's super tasty and always really cheap. 

After dinner we explored the area a little more and discovered a cafe where we treated ourselves to hot chocolates before taking them back to the hotel and sipping them in the cosy warm comfort of our bed! Shopping tires us out, as you can tell. There will be no wild nights out in Tokyo! 

Today we headed back to Shibuya because we felt like we missed a bit. We were right, we found ANOTHER department store, and we found a brand we think Luke's brother, Jack, might like! We also went to the Supreme store where Luke got shouted at for trying to take a photo. Then we went to a FamilyMart (like 7/11 or co-op kind of thing, corner shop) and discovered that they do hot drinks in plastic bottles and cans. They're stored in like a hot fridge, it's so weird! We bought a bottle of hot chocolate each for less than £1 and then caught the train to Harajuku. 

It was so crazy! Harajuku was unbelievably busy, it's difficult to even walk down a road with the amount of people. It's worse than Birmingham Primark! We managed though, browsing a few shops on the way down the famous street, Takeshita Street. We then found a Vivienne Westwood store and a Barbie store before heading to Bape, Supreme and A.P.C. 

We each made a couple of purchases before heading back to the train station to return to the hotel. By this time it was getting slightly darker and even colder, so we wrapped up warm before heading out to dinner at another vending machine ordering place. After dinner we popped in 7/11 for bottles of hot chocolate before returning to the hotel room and getting our hotel pyjamas on. 

So far, we love Tokyo. It's such a crazy place! The food is amazing and cheap, and easy to find. The people are insanely polite, they bow to each other and to us. And the toilets all have seat heaters. What's not to love?