TOKYO DAYZ

Arriving in Tokyo Narita airport at 3pm Tokyo time was 2am Florida time, but despite being exhausted, we were able to efficiently get our suitcases and go through customs and immigration before heading to the JR ticket office to cash in our 14 day JR pass vouchers (including starting it the next day) and also buying a one-way ticket from Narita to Tokyo Station.  Wait time was about 1/2 hour for the train and you stand on the platform which corresponds to your car and seat assignment.  The trains are very punctual.  FYI...not all trains accept the JR pass, so look for the JR sign and show your JR pass coming and leaving to the agent.  For the high speed bullet trains, Shinkansan, you will want to go to the JR ticket office to get actual reserved seat assignments. This doesn't cost more, and I hear the non-reserved cars are very crowded.  The trip into Tokyo was about an hour and the walk to the Courtyard Marriott Tokyo Station was 2 blocks.  We found this location very convenient to all things we wanted to see and assessable to the green JR Yamanote line which circles the city.  FYI...Order the portable Wifi which was delivered to the hotel.  Also get a battery charger as it drains the wifi and your cell and you'll need to recharge.  Google Maps is very helpful to get around.

DAY ONE...The first night we slept poorly with the time difference, so we were up quite early.  If you want to see the tuna auction at Tsukiji Fish Market before it moves in November, 2016, it was sold out by 3am, so get there early as only 250 tickets are available for the auctions at 5:30 or 6.  We took a taxi to the market around 5 and watched the merchants getting morning deliveries and setting up shop.  The market officially opens at 10 if you want to visit all the shops, but I hear if you arrive at 8am, you will also see them cutting the fish after the auction.  We were lucky and did see a shopkeeper carving a tuna with large swords!  It is interesting to see the market in operation, and we had a sushi breakfast before hopping on the Ginza line and heading to Asakusabashi to see wonderful shrines and a glorious park and markets.  Lots to do and see here and it is traditional Japan!  The free shrines were open early, but the stores start opening at 9:30.  There was a certain pleasure in arriving early before the tourists and seeing the streets before opening as the metal gates covering the doors openings are all hand painted within unique Japanese street scenes.  Make an offering at the shrine or shake the container and release a chopstick with a Japanese letters which you match with a corresponding drawer to get your fortune.  If it is a bad fortune (mine was), tie the fortune on one of the racks you will see with little origami like papers tied to it for better luck.  You can also buy a wooden plaque and write a message and tie it to another rack.  You will see that each Shrine has a different picture on one side of the wooden plaques depending on what that shrine is devoted to. We especially enjoyed wandering in and out of the back streets in this area.  Hopped on the subway to Ueno park which is filled with activity...we actually returned later in the week, but today we used it to access the Yanaka Cemetary nearby which was very interesting with all these notched sticks resembling skis that contain messages or blessings to the deceased.  We also visited the markets under the trains near Ueno Station.  Jet lag forced us home at this point for a good nights rest.

DAY TWO...spent the first part of the day trying to visit the grounds of the Imperial Palace....we missed the 9:30 tour (get in line by 8:30 as there are limited tickets) and unfortunately, the day we went, the east gardens were not assessable. Afterwards, we enjoyed wandering up the streets of the neighborhoods, Shibuya and around the Shibuya Crossing and station, and Harajuku and the beautiful Meiji Shrine, set in a forest in the city.  We should have also gone to Shinjuki while we were nearby, but were tired and headed home and figured it was more for night life.  We visited the main branch of one of the largest department stores Mitsukoshi, and spent an hour in the food court.

DAY THREE...headed back to Ueno Park and visited the main building of the National Museum with wood block prints, Samarai uniforms and swords, lacquerware and old kimono.  A very nice overview.  Then headed back into the park to see the beautiful Toshogu Shrine and lanterns and pagoda.  There are Tori gates there near other shrines, the head of a giant Buddha, a zoo, bands playing, lots to do there.  We walked to Akihabara to see the hightech area, stopping for lunch at a soba noodle restaurant and then headed to the Ginza district for exclusive 5th Ave like shopping.