Shibuya Afternoon and Other Pictures

This article is based on a visit made on Sunday, 20 May 2018.

Previously on Sekai Ichi, I took my grandmother to visit the Sanja Festival in Tokyo's Asakusa district.  That was pretty much the last big event for the rest of our holiday together, but we still did other stuff for the rest of the afternoon and evening, so I'm putting them together in one last article which will finally, after two years, wrap up my fourth Japan vacation on this blog.

From Asakusa in the northeast of Tokyo, we took Tokyo Metro's Ginza subway line across town, to Shibuya in the southwest.  This was all the way from one end of the line to the other, although not a terribly long ride at under 35 minutes. 

In Shibuya, I escorted my grandmother on a search for some kiriko (切子) glassware, which she had seen a picture of during our calligraphy lesson earlier that day and fell in love with.  When we got there, I introduced her to the famous Hachiko statue in front of the station.

I also introduced her to the Hachiko scramble crossing, and the Starbucks that provides one of its best viewpoints.  The last time I saw the crossing, it was on a sleepy weekday morning, so coming back on a weekend afternoon made for a better contrast between its "stop" state...

...and its "go" state.

There was yet another festival going on in Shibuya that day, around the Center-gai avenue, but sadly it was wrapping up by the time we came down to get a closer look.  It wasn't all bad, though.  When we went to one of the many department stores in the area, my grandmother picked out a lovely blue stem vase.

After taking her safely back to the hotel, I went on one last shopping trip of my own, to Ameya-Yokocho and Akihabara.  In the former, I found a small sight I had never discovered before, a temple by the name of  Marishiten Tokudai-ji (摩利支天徳大寺).  It is located just a block from the market's south entrance at Okachimachi station.

Finally, on my way back "home" to the hotel, I passed by this closed alcove illuminated by pink lighting.  An odd sight, but no less cool for it.

All that was left for us the next day was to pack up and catch our flight home.  My grandmother had us reserve a taxi to take us down the road to the monorail station; it was a short ride, but with both of us taking suitcases with us up to the station platform, I'd say it was a good idea.  Early on, the Tokyo Monorail passes the Rainbow Bridge, which I have crossed numerous times before on a different rail line, the Yurikamome.

One of the stations on the monorail serves the Oi Race Course.  If horse-racing isn't your things, the site also hosts a flea market on weekends, and the Tokyo Mega Illumination, the city's largest nighttime illumination park, which takes place daily from October through December, and on weekends from January through March.  More information: (English)

And with one last moment's rest at Haneda International Airport, it was time for me to bid farewell to Japan once again.  Will I come back here upon my next return?  It's certainly likely, now that even more flights to this airport have been added since the last time I was there, including one from my mainstay Newark.  But that reunion will have to wait.  I still have many adventures planned for Japan, but when I will be able to fully realise them depends on many factors.  How soon I can save enough money is perhaps the biggest one, as well as when their borders will re-open given the current state of affairs.  And that's if my attention isn't stolen by one of the many other countries I've been looking into.  As a matter of fact, I have recently taken another holiday in the United Arab Emirates.  I would like to write about it, but since my past 178 or so articles have been focused entirely upon Japan, I think it would be best if I transitioned into talking about other countries with some high-level articles, talking about the country as a whole and offering some itinerary ideas.  Whatever comes my way, here's to many more posts on Sekai Ichi, and even more experiences of my own in Japan and elsewhere around the world.  *clink*  Kanpai!