Let's Talk Sensoji

When staying in Asakusa near our hostel was one of the most famous temples called Sensoji. It is the temple that attracts most of the tourists that visit Tokyo. The Sensoji temple is one of the oldest and most significant temples. There and also the other shrines you walk up into the shrine and there is a "prayer well," as what I like to call it, that you say a prayer and throw a yen in. The reason why these temples are so special are because the spirits of ancestors are said to live in there and clear out all the bad in ones life.

Also outside of the temple is a fourtune slip where you put a coin and shake a number out of a cylinder. After you find your number on one of the drawers and pull out your fourtune. If you like your forutune keep it! If not then tie it on a tree or a board which is suppost to bring you better luck.

Always remember tho the first thing you do when you go to a temple is make sure to purify yourself with the water! For all my fellow travelers who went with me to Tokyo...lets not pull a Mary Alice and drink from the purification!

Our group in front of the temple!

The City of Shibuya

If you enjoy a city like New York than I 100% recommend you see Shibuya. Right when you get off the subway and enter the city it looks like a replication of Times Square. Billboards, thousands of people, and the countless amounts of stores made me feel a little overwelmed at first but once I started walking  and picked where I wanted to start I didn't want to stop!

Ladies if you love to shop I suggest you head to 109. It is nine floors of endless clothing, shoes, and accessories. Each floor is catered to a certain type of style and let me tell you just about EVERY style is displayed. A few blocks from that is a huge Forever 21, H&M, and if you're feeling like you want to shell out some money you can hit up Burberry. Majority of the women in Shibuya wore knee high heeled boots with a short skirt, a cute top, and their hair was always done up. Men tend to wear nice slacks, collared shirt, and a man purse is a common trend.

If you're hungry you'll have no problem finding food. There is every resturant from Japanese to Italian to French to Irish pubs. And let me tell you, the food in Shibuya is excellent quality.

If you're wanting to head further from the main area of Shibuya there is a more upscale area that also replicates a little bit of New York City on fifth ave except this area goes for miles. The street is light up beautifully and the only types of cars you'll see cruising through these avenues are Range Rovers, BMW's, and Mercades. The streets are lined up with designer stores from Ralph Lauren to Fendi. But turn down one of these streets and you'll get into an area filled with expensive little boutiques and cafe's.  Even if you're not planning on making any crazy purchases it is worth checking out and taking some pictures of.

There's so much I could say about this city. This is a city that I think everyone needs to visit and it is good for all ages!

Tipping : You do not need to tip anyone at a Japanese resturant. The fee is included into your bill so enjoy the food!

Vocabulary:

Good Afternoon: konnichiwa

Destruction in Japan

I would just like to take the time to say how saddened I am by this tragedy that has struck Japan. I encourage everyone to help out by donating money, food, supplies, anything they can in order to help the individuals who are suffering at this time. I'm sure everyone knows by now that Japan was hit with an earthquake with a magnitude of 8.9 followed by a deathly tusnami. This is Japan's worst disaster since 1923 and now the devesation and death toll are being compared to WWII. The tusnami itself has taken out towns and villiages and it looks as if nothing had ever existed. The death toll is now over 3,000 and is estimated to reach a shocking 10,000. The destruction wasn't as bad in Tokyo compared to the rest of northern Japan however, it still did damage. Many civilians now fear the high amount of radiation and are worried about how stable the nuclear power plants are. After shocks are still being reported and are being rated higher than a magnitude of 6 which is still considered a big earthquake.

While I was in Tokyo my hostel was down the street from a little local bar called Longchamp II. A young beautiful Japanese woman named Yuko owned it. It was her opening night when we first arrived our group had been her first customers. We had made such good friends with her and most of us kept in contact with Yuko after we left, including myself. When I first heard about the earthquake and tusnami I immediately thought of her and if she was okay. The amazing things about social networks is how quickly messages get through to others even from a whole other part of the world. Yuko and I are facebook friends and after the news of what was going on in Japan I went on her page to see if she had updated any status's. To my suprise she had told everyone she was ok however she was still feeling a lot of the after shock. I had told her I was glad to know she was safe. Her concern was she had no idea if some of her friends or family members were safe which I'm sure was the concern of many.

What happened in Japan is beyond horrifying. You would have never thought such a disaster could actually happen. Many lives have been lost, people have been injured, villages have vanished, and now rescuers are still looking for any surviors. Again, any help to these people would be more than greatly appreciated. If you're intrested in doing so American Red Cross is always taking donations.

Time to Pack!

I bet one of the biggest frustrations for some of you is what to pack for your trip, or maybe it is more so the women. However, you can never be too prepared! What I will try to do is hopefully narrow down your huge list or for those who have no idea where to begin, give you a starting point.

First off, I am sure if you are visiting such a big city as Tokyo you are most definitely going to be doing a lot of walking. Walking and subways are the most common transportation. (Tip: Taxicabs are very expensive so if you are not looking to splurge then stay away!) You are certainly going to want a little backpack or larger size purse to keep all of your belonging in such as a camera, water, money, maps, etc. Another thing you are going to want is a nice pair of walking shoes. If you are planning to visit many temples and go inside then wear shoes and socks because you will be required to take them off.

As for clothes, the weather over in Tokyo right now is not much off from here in the United States. Around this time of the year the weather is in the high 50's to somewhere in the 60's. So jeans, t-shirts, long sleeved shirts, sweaters, raincoats, and maybe a thicker jacket or sweater incase there is a day where it is a bit cooler. Keep in mind though that fashion in Japan is something that is very important. Everyone presents themselves in different ways but always keep it somewhat classy casual. So if you are bringing long and short-sleeved shirts make sure they are not ripped up nor have stains on them.

I know one thing I was nervous about was adaptors. Honestly, I never used one once. Our two prong plugs fit into the walls of the Hostel I stayed at just fine and if I did need something with a three-prong plug there were extension cords available. With that being said, I still think it would not be too bad of an idea to bring one. They are tiny and will not take up any room at all. Better safe than sorry!

Do not forget you are toiletries! Some things are not very easy to get over there. Deodorant is one of them. They are becoming more common to find however, they just do not work as well. So if you do not want to feel like you are sweating and smelly all day I advise you to bring you are own. In addition, medicine is different in Tokyo so make sure you pack you are own from home incase you feel you are coming down with something.

Snacks! I'll admit it may take a while to become accustomed to the Japanese food so if you're a meticulous eater it's a good idea if you bring along some of you're favorite snacks so you don't go hungry.

Last but not least, please whatever you do MAKE SURE you do not lose you're passport. One of my good friends lost her entire purse, which contained her passport, while she was over their at a club that was forty-five minutes away from our hostel. Lucky for her Tokyo is one of the safest cities in world and the owner returned it to her when she went back. Everything was still in place. This happened another time as well to her, again she got it back. This should not only tell you that Tokyo is that safe but also make sure not to be careless!


I bet one of the biggest frustrations for some of you is what to pack for your trip, or maybe it is more so the women. However, you can never be too prepared! What I will try to do is hopefully narrow down your huge list or for those who have no idea where to begin, give you a starting point.

First off, I am sure if you are visiting such a big city as Tokyo you are most definitely going to be doing a lot of walking. Walking and subways are the most common transportation. (Tip: Taxicabs are very expensive so if you are not looking to splurge then stay away!) You are certainly going to want a little backpack or larger size purse to keep all of your belonging in such as a camera, water, money, maps, etc. Another thing you are going to want is a nice pair of walking shoes. If you are planning to visit many temples and go inside then wear shoes and socks because you will be required to take them off.

As for clothes, the weather over in Tokyo right now is not much off from here in the United States. Around this time of the year the weather is in the high 50's to somewhere in the 60's. So jeans, t-shirts, long sleeved shirts, sweaters, raincoats, and maybe a thicker jacket or sweater incase there is a day where it is a bit cooler. Keep in mind though that fashion in Japan is something that is very important. Everyone presents themselves in different ways but always keep it somewhat classy casual. So if you are bringing long and short-sleeved shirts make sure they are not ripped up nor have stains on them.

I know one thing I was nervous about was adaptors. Honestly, I never used one once. Our two prong plugs fit into the walls of the Hostel I stayed at just fine and if I did need something with a three-prong plug there were extension cords available. With that being said, I still think it would not be too bad of an idea to bring one. They are tiny and will not take up any room at all. Better safe than sorry!

Do not forget you are toiletries! Some things are not very easy to get over there. Deodorant is one of them. They are becoming more common to find however, they just do not work as well. So if you do not want to feel like you are sweating and smelly all day I advise you to bring you are own. In addition, medicine is different in Tokyo so make sure you pack you are own from home incase you feel you are coming down with something.

Snacks! I'll admit it may take a while to become accustomed to the Japanese food so if you're a meticulous eater it's a good idea if you bring along some of you're favorite snacks so you don't go hungry.

Last but not least, please whatever you do MAKE SURE you do not lose you're passport. One of my good friends lost her entire purse, which contained her passport, while she was over their at a club that was forty-five minutes away from our hostel. Lucky for her Tokyo is one of the safest cities in world and the owner returned it to her when she went back. Everything was still in place. This happened another time as well to her, again she got it back. This should not only tell you that Tokyo is that safe but also make sure not to be careless!