Japan: Days 3 & 4

     Day three really kicked my ass. I don't ever remember having to walk so much in my entire life. I was gassed before we had even reached our first stop!Our third day was devoted to the many, many shrines in Kamakura. Typically, in the morning we stop by the Family Mart that is right around the corner from our hostel to pick up a breakfast pastry or sandwich, snacks, and water for the day.  After loading up, we jumped on the metro and headed toward Kamakura.

     I don't know if I was properly warned how long of a hike it was to even get to the shrines. I guess I didn't realize how far back from the "city" it was. Regardless, that was our plan for the day and even though it wasn't the most fun thing we could have done, it was a part of Japan that deserved to be experienced and explored.
Once we arrived at our stop we were not too sure where to go. Everyone was busy trying to find a map and then translate and figure out where we were and where we needed to go. There were obviously too many cooks in that kitchen so I hung back and ate my breakfast. Hah!

After figuring it all out we walked...and then kept walking...and walked some more....

We walked through the little town, through residential streets, and then up certain side streets until we got away from the actual town and towards more vegetation.

That's when I saw the uphill hike we were about to take. I wanted to cry. [This is coming from the girl who's dream is to go to Machu Picchu which requires fit and capable people to even get there!]
Ashley hung back with me and we took it slowly. Thankfully it wasn't so much as my back giving me issues as my out of shape-ness.

Our first shrine was the Zeniarai Benzaiten Ugafuku Shrine and after finally reaching the top, it was littered with people visiting and taking pictures in front of it. We waited to take our own pictures and then entered the shrine.

 We looked around, paid our respects, burned incense, and even washed our money in the shrine! It is a very popular shrine because the waters of a spring in its cave are said to be able to multiply the money washed in it.

 

 

 

 

Next up was the Sasuke Inari Jinja shrine. It was adorable and filled with fox statues and figures.

 

[It is customary to wash your hands before you enter the shrines.]

 

After leaving the cute little foxes behind we made it to our third [and my last] stop. We went to see the Great Buddha of Kamakura. Kōtoku-in shrine.

They spent a lot of time in this shrine, so after I took all of my pictures I took a look around the gift shop and enjoyed a refreshing Kirin beer.

After visiting the Great Buddha, I was pretty much done with looking at shrines. I think I was just trying to conserve my money and all of my focus was on our upcoming week and the exciting [to me] places we were going! So the shrines really weren't doing it for me that day and the walking really made me grumpy. Besides, I was still dealing with the strange stomach pain from the food.

So when we reached the next shrine and had to pay to get in, I might add, I decided to wait for them outside. My feet were killing me and I didn't want to pay to get inside. So I let Ashley take my camera and they continued on. Apparently, there were passages to a couple other shrines, so they took a look around those ones before finally coming back to get me. [I sound like such a loser today!]

 The coolest part though, was after we were all done with shrines for the day, we went in search of dinner. We actually were looking for unique things to eat while we had the opportunity and was curious about having a Japanese hamburger.

Shonna and David searched online for the coolest hamburger to try. We settled on a small hamburger place in Shibuya. We hopped on the metro and then had to walk through a pretty desolate neighborhood until we found the tiny shop on the corner, Reg-On Diner. It was rad and full of retro signs. The burgers were SO good. I was still battling the stomach issues so I was pretty upset that I couldn't enjoy my burger more...or finish it! [sad face]

On our 4th day we woke up earlier than the others so we got up, ate breakfast, and got ready.

 

Trying to pass the time we ventured around the corner from our hostel and stumbled upon the Kappabashi district! It is also called the Kitchen town street in Tokyo. This street is almost entirely populated with restaurant supply shops. Thy sell everything from kitchen utensils, furniture, decor, and some retro/antique items. We really got a kick out of the plastic food display items that are found outside Japanese restaurants.

We left the restaurant district with some food magnets and souvenirs and headed back to the hostel to pick up our missing friends.

 

Today was Sunday and we were heading to Yoyogi Park and Harajuku. 

The park was originally Ashley's idea since she read that there were a group of Rockabilly/Greaser boys that hung out at the park. [I don't even understand where this information is available online...or why?] This is her thing though and she planned most of this trip so we were more than happy to oblige. 

We got out at the Harajuku station and headed to the park. It is actually quite beautiful with the forest of trees and the shade! 

 

 

 

We ventured around the park and it's offerings. There are many little turns you can take to go deeper into the forest but we stuck to the main road which took us to the entrance of the Meiji shrine. 

I asked Ashley to take a picture of me and all of a sudden David creeped into my picture! It was too funny so I leave this here.

 

 We never did find those Rockabilly boys so we left [with Ashley's heart broken] and went in search of lunch. On the way, while deciding what sounded good, we spotted this Alice in Wonderland store! Actually we weren't entirely sure what it was at first but I saw Wonderland and that immediately got my attention. The group wanted to continue towards lunch but as an avid Wonderland fan I made a note to come back to this place as soon as I could!

I saw the cutest entrance to this Italian place and kind of did want to try it but I don't think the rest of the group was feeling it.

 We eventually agreed on this Soba noodle place which turned out to be fantastic! It came hot or cold and was served with tempura and rice! Very filling and a pretty good deal.

Afterwards we did some shopping in Harajuku and had a creme brulee crepe for dessert! 

 We split up in Harajuku and Ashley, Emily, David and I decided to check out Odaiba and the giant Gundum Statue.

 

 After taking our fill of pictures with the life size Gundum statue we went to the Megaweb, an exhibit hall for Toyota. It was full of all kinds of classic and just the cutest cars!

 Afterwards, it was too late to go see any other attractions so we headed back for the night. We had a long week of fun ahead of us!



Until next time!