It was the most `Japanese` thing we`ve done yet (though the sumo was pretty Japanese). The ornate shrines that are carried through the streets were beautiful. They are carried on the shoulders of dozens of people because they are so heavy. Actually, `carried` may not be the right word because they bounce this huge shrine up and down the entire time as they shout and chant. You could see that many were straining under the weight but were having a great time anyway. There are also smaller versions of the shrines that are carried by children (which were adorable to see of course).
Bagley and I were taking many pictures with the camera raised above our heads in an attempt to see over the crowds. The whole area around the main temple (which was the final destination for the shrines) had tents set up with all kinds of food. I am unfortunately dealing with the consequences of my adventurous eating on day one so I didn`t get a chance to sample anything. Bagley was pissed because he bought food ahead of time thinking that there wouldn`t be much available based on the last time he was here. He did still manage to get a hot dog on a stick (but noted it wasn`t as big as the one he had last time).
After the festival, we headed back to the hotel for a quick nap. Then, as Bagley went to the NIN show, I checked out the Aqua Stadium that is a part of the Shinagawa Prince hotel. It was a pretty nice setup, but a little basic. I`ve been spoiled by Sea World and the Chattanooga and Georgia Aquariums though. The standard aquarium fare were presented in tanks that didn`t really go out of the way to make it seem like a natural environment (hence the plastic circus animals that were placed in some of the small tanks and the big clear plastic pen with nothing else around the sunfish).
The big stadium with the dolphin show was nice. I , of course, was at a loss as to what the performers were getting everyone to yell out loud. They had three different kinds of dolphin (two sets of which were a very bizarre black and white dolphin with a sharp nose... these were impressive animals). I loved the fact that whenever the dolphins splashed anyone in the seats adjacent to the tank, an attendant would run down with a stack of neatly folded white towels and offer them to the spectators. Politeness reigns supreme in Tokyo!
There was also a sea lion show that was pretty straightforward, with a lot of nose-balancing and catching tricks. The dolphin and sea lion shows were only about 20 minutes each. There were a lot of kids and it was interesting to watch them enjoy everything. I had heard that children in this country were kind of coddled and spoiled in order to provide them with the happiest childhood possible, which is highly valued over here. I expected to see them running amock (or is it amuck?) but it was the few western children that were really running around and being crazy. Imagine that...
Well, hoping to hit Shibuya today. It looks like good weather for us this time...
WILL
*edit*
Here's a video
3 comments:
Awesome! Did you see any tattooed Yakusa?
It's really funny seeing the little ones notice blonde hair for the first time too. Of course, y'all don't have that problem. :)
Have a blast in Shibuya! I love that place!
The tattoos stayed well-hidden.
As far as being noticed, since I don`t have the blonde hair, nobody even gives me a second glance. They must be so used to tourists over here. Even when I started to feel like maybe I was crashing their personal, sacred festival, nobody gave me dirty looks or even any attention at all.
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