TOKYO, JAPAN DAY TWO!
Today was the day for our “Tours With Locals” look around Tokyo! It was a seven hour tour, using public transportation to get around the city. We met up with our (delightfully sweet) tour guide, Akio, who guided us on what day pass to purchase for the subway. (It sure helped having help!) Michelle wanted to “act like a local” while touring with a local! (She succeeded!) I was excited to be riding the subway with the locals and not on another tour bus! Our first subway stop was in Ueno where we walked around the Ueno Park. The Cherry Blossom Festival had just begun! This was the oldest Buddhist Temple in the park (sorry, I forgot the name), with a cool tree whose circular branch was commonly used to frame another temple in the distance. John almost rang the temple bell until he read the sign “Don’t Ring The Bell!” (Just in the nic of time!) This was a Hindu-style pagoda that was also in the park. We entered the grounds of the Ueno Toshogu Shinto Shrine. ...