The Tale of Four Cities (Part 4), Tokyo

View of Sky Tree from Tokyo Hutte|Dokumentasi pribadi

After checking in, putting down our bags, and cleaning up ourselves, we wasted no time and headed back out towards the Sky Tree, more specifically towards the Tokyo Solamachi mall complex at the base of the Sky Tree. We enjoyed ourselves on window shopping as well as actual shopping inside the mall, going from floor to floor in an effort to find souvenirs and such. 

Pokemon Center, Tokyo Solamachi|Dokumentasi pribadi

Once we were done with that, we headed towards a halal restaurant we found while exploring the mall called the Amara, which was a restaurant that specialized in serving Indian food. We returned to our accommodations once we were done, the day ahead filled with places to visit and things to do before our flight.

Dinner at Amara|Dokumentasi pribadi

The next day, we checked out of the Tokyo Hutte and took a train to Harajuku Station, where supposedly the latest in Japanese teenage fashion and culture are on full display. We went there to take some pics as well as possibly get some deals. On a particular street, we discovered to our delight, a store that sold halal food products, like instant ramen and snacks. 

Every time we snacked though, we had to store our trash into plastic bags, because finding a trash can in Japan is surprisingly hard. I'm not sure how the general public deal with this absence, but judging from how clean everything looks, I'd like to think they're dealing with it well enough.

Takeshita dori|Dokumentasi pribadi

Truth be told, going to Akihabara has been a secret desire of mine for quite some time, ever since I stumbled into the world of Japanese animation and comics, or "anime" and "manga", respectively. Its presence and reference in the various media I've consumed has given it a certain alluring appeal that I honestly didn't think I could get there until I was at least somewhat financially stable.

Akihabara area|Dokumentasi pribadi

But there I was, on the wide road-turned-shopping-avenue. I was in my element, and I wasted no time at all. I blitzed through the stores, hanging around those that dealt fiction in my most favourite of mediums: books. 

I scrutinized every book I saw, carefully calculating their raw worth to me as both prized possessions and imparter of knowledge and creativity. In the end, I chose two art books as my reward, with one being a thick, encyclopaedic style list of beautiful drawings and scenes, and the other being a small, more traditionally-styled art book.

Art book|Dokumentasi pribadi

And so, that was it. We left for the airport after visiting Akihabara, preparing ourselves for the long, long flight home to our tropical abodes. Each city I visited in Japan left a clear impression on me, and Tokyo did as well, even with my visit being as brief as it was. That impression was that of how helpful the people there were. Even though we didn't speak Japanese and they didn't speak Indonesian, they still tried their very best to help us in their own ways, even while under their own agendas and deadlines. It reminded me that for all of our "differences", in nationality, culture, language, seasons; we're not that different after all..

Sayonara Japan...