Since the weather today was much cooler (only 28°!) we set out to see Tokyo’s outdoor attractions. Since there’s still an Emperor, you’re only allowed look at his front garden – though it does boast a water garden with a great set of fountains, and loads of cypress trees that sort of look like giant bonsai trees if you know what I mean! We looked at a famous bridge – though we never found out what it’s famous for 🙂
Next was the Sensoji Temple in Asakusa. This temple is approached via a 250m corridor of shops and stalls – not particularly spiritual, but then some of them have been there centuries, so maybe it’s just our western background that made them feel out of place. Mind you, it didn’t stop us buying a couple of souvenirs 🙂
The temple entrance gates hold huge lanterns taller than a man, that you walk beneath as you enter. People crowded around a large vessel filled with burning incense, drawing the smoke over their heads – presumably for luck. Inside the temple itself was a kind of altar, before which was a container where people threw coins and prayed. There were cabinets of small drawers with metal tumblers you shake till you get a rod to come out. The number on the rod corresponds to a drawer, each one containing a piece of