Meji Shrine

Today Ann and I were on our own to travel about Tokyo. We had a good lesson on the train from Alicia, so we're ready to go to Meji Shrine.

While waiting for the train, we noticed an interesting add for doggie massage that we thought was funny. The pooch seems very relaxed, I wonder if they give that treatment to humans, or are they only licensed for canines??


Doggie Massage Ad
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We got off the train in Harajuku and started walking where we thought Meji Shrine was located. I have to admit, sometimes I like to just start walking before figuring out where we are. We ended up walking to a park that I thought must be the shrine, but it turned out to be another shrine. I assumed there was only one shrine in the area, but I quickly found out that you shouldn't assume that in Japan!

We ended up at a shrine dedicated to Admiral Togo of the Japanese Navy during WWII. The shrine was interesting, but I was glad it wasn't Meji because I expected more!


Ann doesn't think we're at Meji Shrine. Of course we are!
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Come on Ann, it's a shrine isn't it? This must be Meji Shrine!
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The guide book says nothing about a small school next to Meji Shrine. Ok, maybe this isn't the place (cute kids, though).
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Ok, so it wasn't Meji Shrine. I stand corrected.

We walked back to the station and got our bearings, THEN walked over to Meji Shrine which was about a block away in the opposite direction.

Anyhoo, Here's some pictures from the shrine. I really liked this shrine. It was in a large park with huge trees. You forgot you were in the middle of Tokyo. Very peaceful, and easy to imagine you were back in the time these were built.


Huge torii entrance gate made of Huge cedar logs.
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Inside Meji Shrine
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Prayer Cards around Sacred Tree
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On the way out of the shrine park, we noticed a wall of what we first thought were lanterns. Turns out these are barrels of sake that are left as an offering to the gods.


Sake Offering
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After Meji shrine, we decided to stop for lunch in Harajuku. As I mentioned before, there's some great peoplewatching here. We stopped at a noodle shop that looked good; Ann and I ordered a tuna noodle dish with what I thought was a lot of parmesan cheese on top. After I took a few bites, Ann mentioned that the white stuff on top are little fish. The ad in the restaraunt called the dish "tuna with crispies". Apparently "crispies" means lots of tiny fish.


"Crispies" means lots of little fish
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Ann and I didn't think the fish were too bad tasting (even with the little eyeballs still attached), but it was the sheer volume that turned us off. When it went from parmesan cheese (which I like in great quantities ) to little fish (which I like in small quantities), it was a little tough to finish the meal.

For dessert, we tried the crepes they have all over the area. They take a crepe and wrap a variety of fruit and ice cream inside. We had a strawberry and cream crepe, tasted good. Wash down all the little fish we just consumed.

After lunch we decided to walk from Harajuku to Shibuya, which wasn't too far. We noticed a construction area where you had to take a detour along the sidewalk to avoid. There was a worker posted at each turn in the detour to make sure people navigate OK (even though it was the only way you could possibly go). It appeared this was their only job. They politely pointed us in the direction the sidewalk was going. Thanks guys, you're lifesavers!

We arrived in Shibuya, which was not quite as busy as the night we were there previously, but still a good amount of people. Here's a picture of the crowd of people crossing the street:


Shibuya crosswalk
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There are some interesting buildings in Shibuya, and lots of them have the big jumbotron screens that we saw when we were in Shibuya at night.


Tower Records
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Odd building in Shibuya
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After another day of seeing some great things, we went back to Mike and Alicia's and took it easy with the boys. Bryce liked to make himself comfortable, I guess those extra pounds are good for something.


Bryce on the Steve-o-Lounger
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Next post will be our trip away from Tokyo...