Welcome to part 2, I hope you enjoyed some of our expeditions in the first couple of days in Tokyo!

I was glad to have plenty of destinations available to us during our stay and it was great to see the variety of sights in each one. Although the city is very similar throughout and does not boast the distinct landmarks that help you navigate like New York, it still holds a great touch of culture and really makes you feel part of it's everyday life. On the Sunday we took our first metro trip out to a couple of the further places from our residence, Shibuya, Harajuku and Shinjuku. Known for their outrageous shops, infamously hectic intersections and vibrant nightlife we wanted to see if they lived up to the high expectation. And by god they didn't disappoint! After taking in some breathtaking ariel views of the city from the government buildings 45th floor observatory we walked down into the area of Harajuku through the Yoyogi park which held the Meiji Jungu shrine. Built in 1920 it had 100,000 trees donated which now surround the building in a majestic forest. We timed our arrival really well too as we caught what appeared to be a wedding ceremony. The women and children were all dressed in the traditional gowns and looked really picturesque. We then entered the area of Harajuku which was noticeably a fashion district with the streets lined with designer labels and crowds of extrovert Japanese teens. The biggest shock awaited us however when we reached the intersection of Shibuya outside the SHIBUYA 109 building. Hordes of people crowded the pavements gazing at the luminous billboards, huge buildings and at one another. It's ironic that the intersection was a vicious circle of tourism - the more people, the more shockingly amazing it became! We sampled some of the local bars and finished the day with a meal before catching the late train back. Finally it seemed Tokyo had really came to life!

We waited a day out as the weather hit a cold spot before making our next excursion. With so much of the city already seen it was hard to believe that there were areas we'd left untouched. Especially when certain areas contained iconic buildings as the Tokyo Tower and World Trade Towers which both offered glorious views of the southern city. We climbed the Tokyo Tower to it's 150m high observatory where we got majestic overviews of the region including sight of the rainbow bridge and even the distant figure of Mt.Fiji! The only downer on the day was an unfortunate accident that brought the end to Sammy the Samsung camera... 6 months she lasted being bashed about, now gone forever *sniff*

However, that was all forgotten the very next day as three of us headed out to Disneyland Tokyo! We actually went to the DisneySea resort which is unique to the Japanese resort and it was an absolute blast. Walking through the park I really felt the attention for detail seeing the effort put into such classics as Indiana Jones and the Haunted House. My favourite ride was Raging Spirits, a roller coaster that sped you through an Aztec landscape looping you 360 degrees at a pretty decent speed - no better way to get the adrenaline pumping! I can't fault the animatronics and design of the rides in any way - it was if you were living out the Disney films! The only negative I can think of is that a number of the 3D/theatrical rides were in Japanese which made some of them less enjoyable. However I would certainly recommend a visit to anyone in Tokyo, especially if it's near Christmas. I say that because at night the park transformed itself into a bulb of holiday spirit throwing shows and fireworks all around. What was incredible was that the park was open from 8 in the mooring till 10 at night. It gave us plenty of time to ride the amusements we loved and really capture the kid inside, even if we stood out like a sore thumb amongst hundreds of Asian tourists!

With a number of great excursions out of the way the next couple of days were spent relaxing during the day, sampling yet more amazing local food, seeing the new Harry Potter movies and hitting the Tokyo nightlife! We went to the district of Roppongi on Thursday night and got a great view of the city from the observatory before going to a few bars. Then we revisited the infectious area of Shibuya that offered more than it's fair share of entertainment for the night. However, nights out in Japan are hard notoriously hard work with a the prices comparing to London, bars hidden away on the 2nd, 3rd and above floors and people generally not knowing a great deal of English. Still, we gave it a good shot!

Our final excursion of the stay was not one to be overlooked. We didn't purposefully save it for the end but it was definitely on my agenda as soon as we arrived... The imperial palace! Upon taking the train to Tokyo station we could instantly see the open parkland that was surrounded by high rise buildings - typical of so many of the places we've seen before. The palace itself is not open to the public which is a shame but the grounds give glimpses of the cultured architecture and it holds a similar charm to that of Buckingham Palace, royal guards and all.

Tokyo has been a great stop on our world tour and although it hasn't been as touristy and welcoming as some of the other places we've visited it has certainly been an eye opener to yet another culture. The Japanese are eccentric, fun loving yet also appear very spiritual and traditional. It has been really interesting to see how westernisation has affected things here and I love how switched on the country is - heated toilets, scan card payment systems... Everything is just done logically and professionally. However, it still holds it's past through magnificent temples and shrines celebrating their beliefs and customs.