Day 15 Tokyo with the Group

Day 15 Tokyo with the Group

by Donna Charles on Monday, March 15, 2010 at 10:28am

We all met in the lobby of the hotel around 7:15 am to head to Tokyo which is about 2 hours on train from Utsunomiya. After looking around we noticed that Tony G was not in the lobby and he had wanted to go. Marlon called his room and the phone call had woke him up, he said he wasn't going because he had overslept. He had made hotel reservations so i hope he cancels them......

Made our way to Ikebukuro to check out the Richmond where we have reservations for the night while we tour Tokyo today. : -) We all went in and signed in saying we would be back to check in later. Left our bags there so we didn't have to carry them around all day with us.

The day is wonderful 65 and sunny yippee what a beautiful day. After dropping off our things it was back to the train station to buy us a ticket to Asakusa where the outdoor mall is. This shopping area is bigger than anyplace I have been to with hundreds of little shops. Upon our arrival to the mall we all agreed to stay here one hour and 1/2 so we would have time for the other places we were going. Not much time when there are so many shops but oh well make due and hopefully you find what you are looking for. I did find me a pair of Japanese sandals that they wear with their kimono's. They fit perfectly, now from the picture the lady showed me of how they should fit is not the way i would want to buy them. They show your heel should hang off the back some and most of them are very narrow and if your feet hang over the edges that's OK too. I have seen many school girls with penny loafers on and thy looked to small and were walking on the backs of their shoes. If i would have done that to my school shoes my Mom would have spanked me hard..............guess its OK in Japan since that is how they believe they should fit. Now that I'm talking about school clothes I can't believe how short the girls roll their skirts up the minute they get away from home. I'm talking very very short, there is no way they could bend over without showing everything they have.

After shopping for our designated time we all met back at the beginning of the shops. Now we are going to Ueno where we will catch a bus to Tokyo. Arrival in Tokyo is crazy there are tons of people and its elbow to elbow. Find our way out of the train station and are making our way to Shibuya where they say when the people all cross the street its like being in New York's Time Square. I was scared that I would lose the group I came with so I held tight to my hubby's arm because like I said the people are crowding each other trying to get across the street. Once we made it to the other side we found a spot where we could stand upon this cement wall and take pictures or video this amazing sight. I can honestly say I have never ever seen so many people at one time all trying to cross the street. LOL
We walked around town and I found lots of shoes that made my mouth drop open. I looked at them and thought to myself how can anybody even stand up on those things, let alone pay $400 for a pair of shoes. NO way would I pay that amount of money for shoes that I could not even wear.

Now we all know what Krispy Kreme is around here doughnuts right? Well I have been to a lot of towns around this central area and have not seen one Krispy Kreme till I arrived in Tokyo. Down the street was a sign I noticed right away because it said HOT NOW in big red letters and of course the big green sign was lit up that said Krispy Kreme. We thought wow lets go have a hot now doughnut and headed that way towards the big red HOT NOW sign. Once we got there there was a line inside the store and the doors were guarded by a man. When the line inside would go down then they would let more people inside to order.. We laughed and decided we didn't need a doughnut that bad. LOL


Walked around town and went into some pretty bizarre shops one being a condom shop LOL The guys went in but you really didn't have to go in to see what was inside. I took some pictures and that was enough for me. We also went into this SM shop that was located in the basement of this building. It was uncomfortable just walking down these narrow steps to go into the basement. The place was a very dimly lit room with all kinds of bondage type type items, need I say more. I looked around and found my way out of their quickly. This shop is scary..........

Time to head back to the hotel where Belinda and Rick can start to make their way back to Utsunomiya. They stayed on the train and the rest of us got off to find our way back to the hotel. We all got checked in and decided to meet at 7pm to go to "The Hub" and have beer and fish and chips. the front desk lady came over and asked me where Tony Gradison was? Marlon told her that he did not come he was at the Richmond back in Utsunomiya. The Japanese guy that made our reservations was not happy that Tony did not call to cancel if he was not going. He should have been more responsible than this. At first we were told we had to pay for his room then no more was said except that Tony was at the other Richmond. We thought they were just going to charge him back there. We were all not happy with the situation and decided to take off towards the hub. It was 7pm and time to get out of there. Took the train up to the next station and got off and Katie speaks up and says wheres Kirby. We all look around and oh no we left him at the hotel. We all stopped and there was a phone booth, so Josh tried to contact the hotel while we all watched for him to come up by the hub. One good thing he said he knew where the hub was so we were just hoping he would come by himself and find us. Before Josh could get a phone number of the hotel here comes Kirby and we all start yelling at him so he would see us. Wow

We all are together now and are at the hub. The place was packed and no room for all of us, so no problem Troy said there are 4 Hubs right here in this area. Went to the 2nd one and found seats only to find out they were only going to be open for 40 minutes because the place had been rented out. We all went in and ordered our fish and chips basket. The fish was great just like home yum yum.....Marlon and I ate and when we done we left they had turned the lights on indicating we had to leave anyway. Marlon and I are getting back on the train and heading back to the hotel. The rest of the guys were going to stay out all night and drink.

We got back to the hotel and got ready for bed, I'm totally exhausted from all the walking around. Marlon is sound a sleep and I'm up downloading pictures taken from today. I am sitting in the chair at the desk and I feel the room shaking and the hotel seems to be moving I'm up on the 8th floor. Marlon sits up and says we are having an earthquake and don't worry they haven't announced anything. After one minute or minute and 1/2 the room finally stops shaking. I pray this is my first and last time i ever have be in a location where an earthquake is happening. Thank you God for taking care of us. : -)