Meiji Park and Temple

  Tokyo, Japan
Sunday, November 12, 2006

The good luck continued as we left the Park Hyatt. The wind had died down and it had warmed up considerably. So we took a nice stroll in the general direction of our next stop - Meiji Park. Our guide book had pretty pictures but was almost useless when it came to navigating the city. I tried to get directions from an information booth but he insisted that we take the metro. It was only one subway stop away and we didn't want to spend $4 to go where we could walk in 15 minutes. I had a pretty good idea of which way to head (toward the sun, a little to the left) and we were off. The walk was quiet and pretty, down back alleys and through residentail neighborhoods.

01 Family Entering Torii Gate

Soon we looked up and saw a giant wooden torii ahead of us and realized we were at the park entrance. This was no small feat since the area is blocked off and the 175 acre park can only be entered in a few spots. So we felt lucky once more and immersed ourselves in the forest ahead.



The park was quiet and pretty, but nothing spectacular. It's just a large evergreen forest. The real prize is right in the middle - the Meiji Shrine. Actually, the shrine wasn't even the real treat, it was the parade of visitors we found awaiting us inside.

14 Girl Posing

On Thursdays and Sundays parents bring their children here to present them. To whom? No idea. For what reason? I can't say. I can say that they are elaborately and traditionally dressed, and I thought it was all ridiculously cool. There were dozens of cute little kids in kimonos and whatever the boys wear, all prancing around posing for photos, many of the little girls just scraping along in their giant wooden sandals. They were adorable, and I don't even like kids. I decided then and there that if I ever have a baby I hope it turns out Asian.

We were also lucky enough to witness two different wedding processions. Quite a day, huh? The brides were ghostly pale, the husbands pale too but not from make-up. Their outfits were lovely and distinctive. It was quite a show. So we meandered around the temple complex, took an abnormal number of photos, and set off to explore more of Tokyo.

On an entirely differnt note, I've been reading Bill Bryson's book about his final trip around England. And I find some of my writing style has been hijacked. I think I even used the word "lift" earlier. Perhaps I'll talk later about blood pudding and a warm lager. Just for fun, maybe I'll read some Bukowski next so I can talk about all the drinking and fighting I do.

For more on the shrine:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meiji_Shrine