{"id":8715,"date":"2025-05-21T19:12:46","date_gmt":"2025-05-21T19:12:46","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/traveltales.ahot.online\/?p=8715"},"modified":"2025-05-25T20:03:12","modified_gmt":"2025-05-25T20:03:12","slug":"sea-tokyo-en","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/traveltales.ahot.online\/index.php\/2025\/05\/21\/sea-tokyo-en\/","title":{"rendered":"Tokyo, Japan"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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18.4.-24.4.2023<\/p>

Our flight from Nadi to Tokyo left a little late, like things in Fiji tend to do. However, the flight was nowhere near full, so we each had plenty of room for the entire nine hour flight. When we arrived in Japan, \u201cFiji time\u201d was gone as everything seemed to happen on time. In addition, everything was organised and thought out to the last detail. I guess you have to be organised and precise when you have to move millions of people around Tokyo every day.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Bus tickets to central Tokyo, as well as receipts for the luggage stored in the luggage compartment of the bus.<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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Tired travelers on the bus<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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We had booked an Airbnb apartment in the Nishi-Kasai district for six nights. To get there, we first had to take an hour-long bus ride from the airport to the city centre, from where we took the subway directly to our apartment. The owner of the apartment had sent Marko not only the address but also several photos of how we would find our way to the apartment once we got to the station. After a short photo navigation session, we found the apartment and went to bed. Since the time difference is three hours, we were all more than ready to sleep when we finally hit the pillow at 11:30pm.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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Our compact studio apartment in Tokyo<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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We woke up relatively early the next day, so we had plenty of time to explore Tokyo. Our first destination was the local medical centre, as Jaana\u2019s leg still wasn\u2019t quite ok. Fortunately all street names and metro stations here are also marked in Western letters, so it was really easy to find our way. There was hardly a queue at the doctor\u2019s, so Jaana got in quickly.<\/p>

Jaana had used Google translator to translate a few phrases into Japanese, just in case the doctor didn\u2019t speak English like the most of the locals here. It was a positive surprise that the doctor spoke reasonably good English. He checked the leg with an ultrasound. There was no muscle tissue damage. The big lump on the left thigh was just a large haematoma which would eventually melt away.<\/p>

Jaana was given some kind of anti-inflammatory plasters to be used on her thigh if needed. In addition, a support bandage was fitted to her thigh because we walk a lot every day. We had a hilarious conversation while adjusting the bandage:<\/p>

The doctor (looking at the bandage on Jaana\u2019s leg): Oh, you\u2019re too big.<\/p>

Me: Excuse me?<\/p>

The doctor: No, no, no\u2026 Sorry, sorry, sorry\u2026 You\u2019re not fat. You Western people are much bigger. Big people. Asians are much smaller.<\/p>

Well, from their secret stashes, they got the next size up. It fit even to this western thigh, and we were off to explore Tokyo. The cost of the doctor\u2019s visit, including medicine and bandages, was around 85 euros. This was a positive surprise, as there had been stories on the internet about how tourists have to pay much more for their medical appointments here than locals. It is probably true that tourists have to pay more, but for the locals the medical services must then be really cheap.<\/p>

From the doctor\u2019s we took the subway to Otemachi station, from where was only a short walk to Tokyo\u2019s Imperial Palace. We didn\u2019t see the palace though, we just walked around the eastern gardens of the area. The Emperor of Japan lives in the area, but the public cannot enter the enclosed area except for guided tours. The gates are also opened on the Emperor\u2019s birthday and New Year\u2019s Day to allow the public to present their New Year\u2019s wishes to the Emperor.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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The splendor of flowers in the Imperial Garden<\/figcaption>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/figure>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
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From the palace grounds, we continued on to the Shibuya district, as we wanted to see what the world\u2019s busiest pedestrian crossing looks like. At the intersection, red lights come on for all cars at the same time, so people crossing the intersection all start moving at the same time. We were there at an off-peak time, so there wasn\u2019t a huge rush at the intersection at the time. However, it is estimated that at the busiest times, up to 3,000 pedestrians cross the junction at the same time as the green lights are on. This takes 46 seconds.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

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