Tokyo Finale
My last full day was a beautiful sunny fall day. I explored Ueno Park a little bit before heading to the nearby Ameyoko shopping district.
I could see planning a visit to Tokyo that solely focused on art and museums. Ueno Park has a few really large museums, none of which I had time to visit. I did spend some time admiring their collection of Rodin sculptures.
No disrespect to the selfie-taker. It’s just such a perfect capture of the life of a solo traveler in today’s world.
Ameyoko was predictably hectic. I felt like I was burning out on Tokyo shopping pretty fast, despite also thinking about all the gifts I wanted to lug home with me.
I ended up wandering through much quieter neighborhoods, in search of specific shops, like stationary stores. It was nice to explore more of the everyday.
For a place with so much traffic, (and such long lights 🤪), Tokyo is amazingly bike-friendly.
I kept going, eventually ending up at the Senso-ji temple in Asakusa. So crowded. On this, my last full day, I felt a little done.
I had booked a ticket to the Tokyo Tarot Museum, which coincided nicely with a walk along the Sumida River.
I had walked 10 miles the day before, and was well on my way to another 10 (it ended up being 11 1/2.) It felt good to relax in this small museum. They display some interesting decks from the early days of Tarot (17th century) and have hundreds of open deck samples you can look at. No photos!
I found myself near Ginza, so went to the Nihombashi Matsukiya department store, the oldest one in Tokyo. It features luxe brands I’m not really shopping for, but I loved this giant “Statue of Magokoro”
I did eventually find my stationary store - 10 floors to explore!
And so, this morning I reached the end of this incredible trip, complete with a piano serenade at the train station.
I am so glad I came here. What a discovery! Even having heard so much about it before, every day Japan pretty much blew me away. I may have more thoughts after I get home, but for now, I’m leaving feeling very full from the experience. I thought I would be lonely traveling by myself, but it was perfect. I’m so grateful to all the kind strangers and new friends I met along the way.
