Web City Travel

Tokyo just might be the biggest city in the world, made up of 23 individual wards, all with their own unique characteristics.  Foreigners are simply intimidated by the sheer expanse of Japan’s capital city and its 17 million inhabitants ( 5 million are commuters ) ; {however ,} due to this volume alone Tokyo has developed an unequalled public transportation system and an intricate network of visitor friendly information resources.  The best way to go Tokyo’s delirious bustle is to permit the train to steer the way.  A loose itinerary will draw you into true Eastern life through unexpected encounters and more intimate experiences. 

Tokyo : A patron Capital

It could be ironic that one of the most expensive towns in the world also has one of the most rampant and flamboyant patron cultures.  Tourist attractions in Tokyo consist of many gargantuan shopping complexes in addition to the cultural favorites.  The Ginza retail zone reigns supreme for ostentatious spending habits, with thousands of mega-stores, shops and an exaggerated array of non-functional novelty stores for the easily entertained within us all.  For a dose of New York in Tokyo, visit Shibuya, which is rife with top-end shops, shrines, King-Kong-sized plasma TV screens and the busiest pedestrian street crossing in the world. 

A Culture of Retrospect and Reflection

There’s an inclination to become inundated and desensitized by the fluorescent lights that line the city streets like masts in Japan’s sea of technology.  While these electric temples work to extol a hyper-modern age, Tokyo also has got some of the most idyllic and tranquil shrines and pagodas in the country.  Meiji-jingu is the most electrifying of Tokyo’s Shinto shrines, built with japanese cypress and copper plates for the roof.  Even though the shrine was wiped out during World War II, the reconstruction has not lost any of the grandeur.  Just north of the city, Bonsai Park treats visitors to the zen-like art of cultivating these fastidiously placed tiny trees and experiencing the calming of the mind.  An essential experience for anyone journeying to Tokyo is the view of Mount Fuji in the early hours of dawn.  This is possible from inside the city, atop one of the giant skyscrapers like the governing body Building in Shinjuku.  Directly in the center of Tokyo, the Imperial Palace ( Kokyo ) is an inner-city refuge that is home to the Imperial Family.  The public can visit the surrounding East Gardens and walk along the double bridge over the tranquil moats of the palace grounds, but the palace buildings and inner yard are closed to visitors. 

Travel to Tokyo with an eagerness to get lost among the hustle and maybe end up again in the silence of a shrine.  The expansive city and system of trains make it almost impossible to make a wrong turn.

For more information about travel and useful tips for tourists, visit famouswonders.com and check out Byodo-in.