Akihabara Washington Hotel Tokyo

... district (on the west) and the raucous nightlife district of Kabukicho (on the east).<br><br>I'm sure everyone has heard of Harajuku, the supposed 'home of fashion' in Tokyo. The area is filled from street to street with anything your heart desires, some of which is actually quite nice. But I wont give Japanese teenagers credit for their fashion choices. 'Emo' or whatever it is has taken this place by storm and a lot of the people hanging around look exactly like the kids you'd ...

... area whose main street is lined from end to end with ice sculptures depicting everything from Shinto Gods to Commercial products. There was even sculpture that had fish in it. Amazing.<br><br>And finally;<br><br>SATO-RANDO!<br><br>Or rather, Sato-Land. A snow extravaganza which featured knee deep snow as far as the eye could see, ice mazes, slides, snowmen contests... everything. However, it was the knee deep snow we where interested in. We spent most of our time in Sapporo ...

... and harmless enough. Then you turn the corner and that's when you're hit full force with a wall plastered full of women in mighty gratuitous, if not uncomfortable, full frontal nudity shots. One quick bewildered glance around the room and that's when you know you've stumbled upon some sort of underground porn rig operation. We managed to make it out with but a shred of dignity left, thoroughly embarrassed.<br><br>However, lets take a few steps back here. Cause it's been ...

... the variety of sweets, merchandise and goods on offer - not to mention trying a few - we headed on in to the temple structure, which is lavishly decorated by candles, flower arrangements and gold, with large steaming vents to throw a few yen into before praying for good health and happiness. Outside the complex is a large cauldron-esque pot filled with incense, the smoke of which, when breathed and rubbed against your body is said to bring good health. Similarly ...

... so we did just th*t *nd got completely sm*shed! A few of us were big Weezer f*ns *nd so we worked our w*y through their b*ck c*t*logue, but there w*s * definite deterior*tion in qu*lity *s the night progressed, *s is often the c*se! One of the guys went str*ight from the k*r*oke pl*ce to the *irport *s he w*s flying home *t 9*m th*t morning - I wouldn't h*ve w*nted to sit next to him on the pl*ne, th*t's for sure! The bubbly Irish ...

... made for a nice blend of Shinto and Buddhism. Once we had seen the temple, we got on the bus for one last sight. On the way to the waterfall, Stapp broke out the microphones. To the delight of some people and the regret of others, our bus was a karaoke bus. We went through such hits as "Yesterday," "Jumpin Jack Flash," "I saw Momma Kissing Santa Claus," and Watanabe-san did his rendition of John Denver's "Country Road." Once we got off the bus we found ...

... Roppongi for some sensual massages after a tiring day walking around (just kidding Mom, no massages, but Jeff did rub up on E.J. on the subway) and closed the night at the Tokyo Tower. Yesterday we woke up pretty late. We visited a market and Buddist temple in Asakusa by our hostel. It was great! People throwing money into boxes, rubbing themselves in incense smoke, and drinking from a communal fountain. I wish I knew the meaning behind it all. Afterwards ...

... spoke English. I'm pretty sure that we were the only non-locals in the whole place. On top of that, the second floor is eerily reminiscent of DNA Lounge. So-so night. Sunday afternoon we headed out to Meiji Shrine and saw some of the Harajuku area. The Harajuku girls (and guys) were fun to watch, but I couldn't help but feel disappointed. The outfits/costumes were kinda crazy, but I felt like there were more tourists taking pictures there than actual people ...

... thought I was an exchange student. The Vice-Principal thought I was a visitor from behind when I was talking to Matt, but I turned around and we was very surprised. A few of the students that I hadn't met thought I was an exchange student and asked how old I was and when I said 24, they were a bit confused. My students loved it though. I rolled my skirt a bit to shorten it, but it ...