Traveling & Sightseeing in Tokyo

Yeeehhhaaaaa it's Friday. I'm in super good mood today because I was given a seat when I hop on into the train this morning + I met an obaachan (nenek) who was playing with baby SN in the train and keep saying that baby SN is kawaiii (chomeyl) desu + baby SN behaves well in the train today *no crying and shouting*. Since I'm in the psychologically mental state characterized by positive mood; I nak bawak u all jalan2 ke Tokyo. Nak ikut tak? Jommmmmmmmmmmmmmmm.....

With its reputation as Japan's largest city and the world's largest and most densely populated metropolitan area, traveling in Tokyo seem daunting to me in the first place. Imagine traveling around Tokyo with a 7 month old baby hanging on my shoulder while hubby is carrying heavy bag-pack full with our stuffs, tough job isn't it?. Nevertheless it didn't stopped us from enjoying the 1-day-city tour and sightseeing in Tokyo.

(1) Shinagawa Station

We started off the tour at Shinagawa Station (品川駅, shinagawa-eki)which is is the first major station south of Tokyo Station and is a major interchange for trains operated by JR East, JR Central and Keikyu. This station is a large yard complex consisting of Shinagawa Carriage Sidings, Shinagawa Locomotive Depot, and Tamachi Depot.

We took a bus from this station by buying a one-day-economy-pass which offers unlimited use of the bus within 23 wards of Tokyo for one day. If you are planning for sight-seeing around the city then I strongly suggested you to get this ticket and travel by bus. We decided to travel with bus as we will have the chance to cuci mata and on top of all that is it is convenient compared to traveling with the super-packed subway and train in Tokyo. Despite its slower access, we have nothing to complain sebab kami dapat duduk dan rehat dengan selesa dalam bas hohoho.

(2) Tokyo Tower

Tokyo Tower is a famous Japanese and Tokyo icon and landmark. I'm pretty sure you have seen this famous building through many Japanese films and anime. Tokyo Tower is modeled after the Eiffel Tower in Paris, France. It is situated in Minato-ku, Tokyo with a height of 333 meters tall making it the world's highest self-supporting iron tower.

Unlike the Eiffel Tower, Tokyo Tower is located in the middle of a city block. The tower only weighs about 4000 tons, which is extremely light compared to the 10100 ton Eiffel Tower, and it is painted in white and orange according to aviation safety regulations. From dusk to 11 PM, the tower is brilliantly illuminated in orange.*At least lawa sikit lah dari Eiffel Tower yang sekali imbas nampak macam besi buruk je eheh*

(noticed anything funny in this pic?. masa hubby snap gambar I ada lampu nyala kat tower, masa I snap gambar hubby..takde lampu pulak hohoho)

The first floor houses an aquarium, home to 50,000 fish, the third floor is a wax museum and an attraction called the Mysterious Walking Zone, and the fourth floor a Trick Art Gallery. There are also two observatory floors, the main observatory (at 150 m) and the so-called "special observatory" (at 250 m); both afford a spectacular 360 degree view of Tokyo and, if the weather is clear, Mt. Fuji.

(3) Tokyo Tower Wax Museum

Tokyo Tower Wax Museum was officially opened in 1970. Wax figures exhibited were imported directly from the Workshop in London, where they were made. Also added are the figures of great personages who "decorated the 20th century" and played an important role in and out of Japan country.

(a pose with Ho Chin Minh: a seasoned revolutionary and passionate nationalist)

(hubby's pose with J.F Kennedy; the 35th President of US)

Some of the figures that we met in the wax museum are Mahatma Gandhi, Albert Einstein, Sharon Stone, Julia Roberts, J.F Kennedy, Mother Teressa, Lady Diana, Anne Frank (the author of the mega hits dairy : The Diary of Anne Frank), Ho Chin Minh , Elizabeth Taylor, John Wayne, Monalisa, Leonardo Da Vinci, Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles, Deep Purple, and many more. When it comes to actress and actor, hubby has no idea on who they are and I play my role as "mami jarum" to introduce them to him ehehe.

(weird pose with the weirdo character of Star Wars)

(hubby is performing with the band)

Baby SN was sleeping soundlessly on the carrier and don't want to be bothered by our cam-whoring activity inside the wax museum ngeeee. I've been to Paris Wax Museum about two years ago, and when comparing Tokyo Wax Museum with the one in Paris I could say that Paris Wax Museum offers lots more figures than in Tokyo. But still, the tour inside Tokyo Wax Museum is consider nice, worth-it for your money as the admission ticket fare is consider cheap (500yen = RM20).

(muka I cuak takut ship tu nak karam uhuh)

(muka hubby poyo bila dapat jumpa Einstein)

*slide-show wax museum in Paris, June 2006*

(4) Guinness World Record Museum, Tokyo

World records recognized by the Guinness Book of World Records are introduced in this Museum with more than 400 life-size figures,photo panels,and memorabilia for the enjoyment of both adults and children can see,experience and learn about the wonderful,unusual,and interesting records that are authenticated by the Guinness Book. Hubby took the chance to pose with the figure of "the world's shortest person" *baby SN is even taller than her* while I pose with the figure of "the worlds tallest person" *aiyooo, tinggi giler, I sampai pusat dia je*.

(5) Rainbow Bridge, Tokyo

The Rainbow Bridge is a suspension bridge over the Tokyo Port, located on the northernmost part of Tokyo Bay, connecting the Shibaura Wharf and the new waterfront development area, known as Odaiba in Minato-ku ward. This new symbol of the bayside Tokyo, completed in 1993, is 570m (1870 ft.) in length. It is also possible to walk across the bridge at times when the walkway is open. My first impression when looking at the bridge is that it surely look alike with the Golden Gate Bridge in San Fransisco.

The towers supporting the bridge are white in color, designed to harmonize with the skyline of central Tokyo seen from Odaiba. There are lamps placed on the wires supporting the bridge, which are illuminated into three different colors, red, white and green every night, using the solar energy obtained during the day.

(6) Statue of Liberty, Tokyo

You might have seen this Japan Statue of Liberty if you've watched the Jap-drama entitled "With Love" starring Takenouchi Yutaka and Tanaka Misato which is a big-hit drama back in the year 2000 *masa ni I kat matrix, beria tengok dgn kawan2, siap hafal skrip lagi eheh*.

This statue is actually a replica of the US Statue of Liberty which has came to Odaiba (お台場) which is a large artificial island in Tokyo Bay. Odaiba is a popular shopping and sightseeing destination for tourists. Unfortunately, when it was about time for us to pose with the Statue of Liberty..the camera went out of battery. Cehhh, letih I sengih2 tunggu hubby snap gambar I. We took picture with the camera phone but the quality was bad, so I just googled the pic of this Japan's Statue of Liberty.

(Statue of Liberty replica at Odaiba, overlooking the Rainbow Bridge in Tokyo Bay; pic credit : farm 1 flickr*)

That was all the places that we've covered during the 1 day tour in Tokyo earlier this month. We wanted to go to so many other places but both hubby & I were too tired to walk in a fast pace thus we cant really cover many places. Overall, I'm happy that we were given a chance to travel in Tokyo right after we finish the interview session *read: Of interview thingy*.

# Info gathered from : tokyo tower, japanese lifestyle, wikipedia #

Pssssttt : I've read in Japan Times Online that Air Asia X will launch new route from KL - Japan (Tokyo, Fukuoka, Osaka) probably by Jun 2010. So, kumpul duit dari sekarang, nanti bila route tu dah bukak cepat2 tempah tiket occay!.