Day 10 - Imperial Garden, Asakusa, and the Skytree

This next day was another busy, jam-packed day as our time was winding down! We had only a few days left and we were about realizing it was almost time to go back home. This was also a very fun day indeed!

So we begin by going to the Imperial Gardens at the Emperor's palace. The palace itself is not open to the public, but you can stroll through the gardens. It's a nice oasis in the center of busy Tokyo. The area surrounding the garden is popular with runners as they can run around and generally not be disturbed by traffic. Entrance to the gardens are free and it's a great spot to go and find some inner peace.

I can't really describe the beauty of the gardens. It is a text book example of a Japanese garden - manicured lawns, with special attention to detail, lots of calm moving waters, and smooth stones. It is quiet in the gardens, everyone is out and enjoying the nature.

They have some stations throughout the garden that are great spots for resting and cooling down. You can learn more about the gardens, what kind of rituals are held there, and buy some ice cream. On this hot summer day, we definitely wanted some ice cream!

The gardens were very nice to enjoy. Part of our trip also had a relaxation aspect to it, so it was a great moment to sit and just let the view relax you. There's something about lily pads and smooth rocks that bring zen to you. With the towering skyline around you, it felt as if you were in a small, remote island with all of the world's worries outsides the gates.

We hopped on the metro and began our trip to Asakusa. Askusa is a very magical place in Tokyo, it's surrounded by modern age, but it a very traditional part of the city. It's also home to one of the most famous shrines in all of Japan - Sensoji Temple.

This temple is dedicated to the Kannon, the Goddess of Mercy, and is Tokyo's oldest temple. When you arrive, there are large gates called the Kaminarimon, or the thunder gates, that you enter through. these gates are very famous, but were under renovation for the Olympics.

Entrance to Sensoji temple

The actual temple

While we were walking around the shops and stores lining the street up to Sensoji, we stopped and grabbed lunch and some souvenirs. The streets are very traditional, they're not paved but have a nice gravel to them. It brings you back to traditional times, but with the Skytree looming over you.

Old Japan meets new Japan!

Beautiful pagoda

The temple

on the way into the temple

Inside of the temple

We went and go our fortunes, and it turned out I had some bad fortune! Good news, if you tie it to a fence you'll get the fortune removed!

As we were done with Sensoji, we were walking back to the main gate of Asakusa when some one came up to us and asked if we needed a ride somewhere. He was wearing traditional Japanese clothes and said he would give us a nice ride with a great view, and learn some more history. Then he points to his ride - a rickshaw.

Josh and I thought, what the heck, when in Rome. So we took the man up and he gave us an awesome ride through Asakusa. During the ride, he pointed out restaurants to try out - some where over 200 years old!

We were so worried that we would too heavy for him, but he managed us very well. He would stop at various points of interest and show us the history behind certain buildings. It was a very touristy thing to do, but it was actually a lot of fun. We were able to get a view of Asakusa we didn't think we would get. check out the video below:

He dropped us off where we began and gave a good tip on how to get to the Skytree. We hopped on the metro and went off to the Skytree.

We even got a cute picture!

The Tokyo Skytree is the tallest tower in the world, and the second tallest building after the Burj Khalifa in Dubai. When you arrive, you just stare up and look at the Skytree. It it so tall and huge! Inside is a "Skytree Town" which has various shops and restaurants to eat at.

Tokyo Skytree

We went walking around and bumped into something so exciting - a Pokemon Center! It was a store dedicated to all things Pokemon. I wanted to buy everything in there. Sadly, this is also when my camera battery decided to die.

Thankfully, our phones are also cameras so I was able to continue there. The Skytree was a really cool building. We did not go to to the observation deck as there was already a 30 minute wait, and it was a bit expensive. After being in the observation decks of Tokyo Tower and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, we felt like we had a good view of Tokyo from high up.

Walking around the stores was pretty fun, there was even a store dedicated to all things Gundam! I'm a huge Gundam fan so this was exciting for me. We then came across a Cold Stone Creamery and they had some amazing ice cream.

Gundam! 

We saw everyone's ice cream and all the cool flavors, so we had to try some. Just like here in the US, they sang a fun song while making our delicious treat.

We then made the trip back to the hotel, we soaked in the onsen for a bit then decided to go and grab dinner. Sadly, no pictures as my battery was charging and I was worried my phone would die while we were out.

Overall, it was an exhausting day as we travelled all over Tokyo. For dinner, we had a Japanese style hamburger - called hamburgu and it was so delicious. It's essentially a bun-less burger, cooked with veggies. We've decided to cook that at home.

More to come!