Tokyo Trip Day 5: Hanegi & Shinjuku

Our 5th Day started out with a relaxing walk through Hanegi park at Umegaoka to view the Ume (plum) blossoms that are currently in season. The flowers are beautiful and I got to play with my camera quite a bit (hence the mass amounts of photos), but as the park is situated on the edge of a hill, it was bloody freezing up there. I tell you now, so glad that I had put on quite a few layers that day. Unfortunately, because it has been so much colder this winter than in the past, the poor trees had not completely bloomed. We were told that it generally only snows once over winter and that is normally around December / January. It makes me feel better that its not just the Australians who found it just a little chilly over there. And believe me when I tell you that some days we felt like we were almost frozen solid.

Thankfully though, most places that you go are actually heated. *some to the point where it is downright hot inside*. The nicest though are the trains, that have heaters under the seats. If you are lucky enough to snag a seat (avoid peak times) then you end up with a toasty arse and legs. So very nice, but it does make it feel quite a bit colder when you go back outside. I felt like the entire time over there I was constantly taking off my coat inside to try and regulate my body temperature.

After all our photos at Hanegi park, we hopped on a train and made our way back to Shinjuku, where we walked on down to Shinjuku Gyoen Park to stroll around the various gardens. Ironically, there were Ume blossoms in flower there too, and wile there wasn't the variety of trees on display, they were in heavier bloom. We wandered through the traditional Japanese Gardens and made our way towards the tea house to do a traditional tea ceremony. I have discovered that Green Tea is really not my thing, but I poured it down at any rate. And it was very beautiful inside.

What surprised me most about the Gardens was the constant ongoing work there. Sure, it is run by the government which means that it has decent funding, but as you look around, you notice that there are workers trimming trees, work trucks passing by, new bridges being built and a new greenhouse being constructed. What stuck me, is that most of it is not to replace existing structures or pure maintenance work, but progress, ie the creation and development of new gardens. It's something that you would not normally see in and Aussie national park or garden.

After a few hours of strolling to our hearts content, we made our way back to the city proper for some more shopping. Who would have thought? One shop that I spotted along our route was an Innocent World shop. I was over the moon, because we had not been able to find the one in Harajuku; so I stocked up on super cute accessories. After checking out a few more shops, we made our way back to Minowa for a unique dining experience.

Ainead and L, took me to an Izakaya, where the general idea is to purchase a number of small meals and share them amongst your group. We sat in our own little booth with closed doors while L proceeded to regale us with anecdotes about her Japanese toilet experiences.

Japanese public toilets differ greatly from Australian ones. For a start, you cannot always guarantee a European style toilet, but when you do; most are a cut above. While being very clean, the seats are heated, they make trickling noises when you sit to disguise your private business and they include accessories such as a bidet and a "lady shower". Then comes the flushing, some flush after you have stood up and others flush as you pass your hand by a sensor (no touching required). What really puzzled me at first were the hand basins. I was trying to press buttons to get soap and turn on the tap. It turned out that they are also motion sensor. I felt like an absolute idiot when a young Japanese lady showed my how to use it. It's all very clean and hygienic when you think about it, as the only thing you are really touching is the lock on the door. Who knew I had so much to say about loos in Japan?