Tokyo! Day 03 - 25/12 ~ Christmas Day!

Christmas day dawned bright but cold like all the days we spent here and Maggie and I returned to Harajuku as we had heard the Harajuku boys and girls came out on Sunday afternoons the the bridge near the station to show off their outfits. As we neared the bridge the only sight to greet us was a police van and several weary looking cops patrolling the area. The fun police had arrived before us. The of the reasons why we had come here was Steph planned to wear her lolita dress and join the others but as she rocked up to the bridge an hour or so after us the police just glared at her so the five of us moved on to join the throng in the main street. We stopped by some gothic/lolita shops for some additions to Steph's wardrobe and stopped by a cafe for some tapioca cream teas. Those things are the shiz.

Steph the daredevil dances with danger in front of the police truck.

Before the others had arrived Maggie and I spotted a giant torii shrine gate at the other side of the bridge and followed the groups of people walking towards it and found ourselves at the Meiji Jinju Shrine – another thing to do on out internal itinerary, but we just dawdled around it, after you've seen a few shrines you've seen them all. We did however buy some charms at the charm stall, bypassing the luck with study and the driving safety charms and heading for the victory charm. I felt I needed this to help me get through Skyrim so it hangs above my computer giving me more luck then any Daedra lord can give me.

It was so chilly at the shrine you could see the cold.

It was Christmas and we had made bookings to eat at a British pub called the Hobgoblin in the very upmarket Roppongi so we made our way there after a quick trip to Ikebukuro where I picked up an out of print anime figure of the teacher Itoshiki Nozomu from Goodbye, Mr. Despair hanging himself. I couldn't contain my joy but the hordes of otaku squished in around me managed to contain it due to movement restraints. 

What I don't miss from Tokyo.

The restaurant was good and it was a full house with the only Japanese people being with gaijin, although I think there was one Japanese family there looking fish out of water. The food was good though. First an entree of smoked salmon, lettuce, capers and garlic sauce (I ate mine and two others in the same time everyone else ate half of theirs – I was hungry woman) and on to the main course which was turkey and cranberry sauce, carved by a Maori guy from Wellington, roast veg, stuffing balls, and a whole bunch of other stuff. This may sound pretty average, but when you've had nothing but freakin fish, rice and noodles for four months you will cry with happiness. It was a buffet so we went back several times before finishing with a Christmas pudding. Shiawase~!

A real roast! 

We wandered around Roppongi for a while and could see Tokyo Tower in the distance so we walked towards it. A giant heart was flashing from it and the lights around it sparkled as all along the way couples stood on the sides of the road taking photos of it. Unlike the Western world, Christmas in Japan is a time not for families but for couples and when our route led us to the bottom of the tower this became more apparent as we watched the multitudes of couples milling around under the fairy lights. The presence of Tokyo Tower sparked a recollection for Steph from the anime Detroit Metal City where the main character Krauser II rapes Tokyo Tower. Steph was adamant to get a shot of her doing the same but there was a giant building in the way at the bottom of the tower. I felt her profound dismay, I too would have wanted to do that.

"Look, Tokyo Tower likes it!"

I was freakin tired after this long day so I headed back to the hotel while Janelle went back to her hostel but the others went on to Tokyo Station to look at the lights there. Unfortunately it was late and they had turned off many sections of them but they also had a selection of costumes on display used by the Takarazura – a group of all female theatre performers that are insanely famous here in Japan.