Around Tokyo I

The first impression

Skyscrapers, subway map that resembles a spider web and multiple levels of overhead bridges….the city is huge, very populated and intimidating to say the least. People are well dressed, fashion conscious, quite good looking and I even noticed a lot of people looking at me. I was quite confused initially but then I found out that it was nothing to be offended because they dont mean any harm when many of them tried to tell me  that they find people with our ‘type’ of features very attractive. Obviously, there were some who noticed me because of my hijab…and then some who thought I was an Arab, married to an Indian guy making them even more curious.

Ginza

Staying 5 minutes away from this shopper’s paradise. Has all the brands and there are so many stores that it is here that I actually found out the meaning of ‘shop till you drop.’ As I said above, people most probably think of me as an Arab and I enjoy the attention by trying on everything that I find interesting. After all, all forms of shopping are great anti-depressants 😛

Bic Camera

If there’s heaven on earth, this must be it. Its an 8-storey electronics shop!!! Just name an electronic item/gadget and you’l find it here and the best thing about it is that its a duty free shop. And if you havent had a workout in days, you can definitely ‘try out’ a few fitness gadgets, once you are tired, you can also try one of the various electronic massage chairs 😉 After all, you are one of the potential buyers! (Well, dont think I was doing that…but was definitely thinking about a free massage 😛 )

Roppongi

Shopping area mainly….again u’l find lots and lots of brands. I try not to buy to much as all the brands are there in Singapore and it seems quite insane to be taking stuff from abroad which I can find easily near home in Singapore. The building, Roppongi Hills, also houses cinemas, art museums and also an observatory on the 52nd floor, not too high but still good enough.

Mosques

Now this was quite a surprise for me that there are more than 20 mosques in Tokyo, a city where Islam is completely unnoticeable on the streets. I ended up going to the Tokyo Mosque which is part of an Islamic Center built and run by Turkish who have lived in Japan since the 1930s. Its a beautiful mosque to say the least inspired by the Ottoman architecture.

Obviously thats just about the first three days here in Tokyo. I’l be doing more posts on this trip, especially one with pictures; I have been taking quite a lot of pictures here.