As much as it pains me to say it, all of the touristy type things I've seen in Tokyo so far have not quite lived up to my expectations. Don't get me wrong, I still love the country. It may sound like an innuendo or cliche, but everything is just so SMALL and disappointing...maybe bigger is always better?
Let's start with portion sizes. Obviously, I realize North American portion sizes are ridiculously huge and likely a reason the majority of us (myself included!) are considered overweight. But we are genetically bigger people and therefore need more sustenance, no? When I pay the equivalent of roughly $11 Canadian dollars in a pub for a burger and beer with fries, I'm expecting to go home slightly buzzed and full for the night. But in Tokyo you get a tiny 1.5 ounce patty on a bun with some lettuce, half a bottle of beer, and a Japanese size handful of dried out fries. I guess that's why you should stick to the local food or make your own with goods from the 100 Yen shop!
Next disappointment: the Imperial Palace and its Gardens. First of all we got to the gardens at about 3:30 in the afternoon to be told it closes at 4:00...when does anything close at 4:00pm??? I thought this was the city that never sleeps! So we raced around the gardens trying to see as much of the dead grass and non-blooming flowers as we could. It is the dead of winter I suppose. After being kicked out, we continued to walk around the outskirts of the gardens for about 4 km., hoping to catch a glimpse of the Palace through the trees and walls. No such luck. What kind of Palace is only open to its people two days of the year (December 23, for the Emperor's birthday and for New Year)?? Buckingham Palace is smack dab in the middle of London for all the world to see whenever they want to.
Next: Tokyo Tower. OK, this doesn't really fit in with the whole theme of being small, because it is actually 9 metres taller than the Eiffel Tower, which is already pretty impressive. It wasn't even on the itinerary for the day, I just happened to glimpse an ugly version of the Eiffel Tower through some skyscrapers on the way to Ginza and it looked closer than it actually was. Problem here being, I've seen the Eiffel Tower in all its glory, and the Tokyo Tower is
just an ugly, slightly-larger-but-I-can't-really-tell-anyways-pretty-much-exact-replica version. Plus its painted in ugly 'international orange' and white stripes and plunked down in a random place in Tokyo whereas the Eiffel Tower has lovely gardens and shit leading up to it.
Then was Harajuku. I know it was quite cold the Sunday I went, there were even a few flakes falling as I walked out of the Yebisu Beer Museum (also disappointing, so much that this is the only mention it's getting in fact), but surely there would be some hardcore Harajuku girls out? We did manage to see a few, even got a picture of some Little Bo Peep types in a store, as well as the full Power Rangers clan and a creepy man dressed head to toe in Hello Kitty gear. I will definitely be back on Takeshita Dori the next time I'm in Tokyo, for the shopping and some more people watching. But alas, it was also disappointing. The only good thing about it was I found a piercing store and managed to find a ball to fit my lip stud I lost a few weeks back (see previous blog for full explanation).
I can't really say all of Tokyo is disappointing, it's often like that anywhere you go that's been hyped up for years. Nothing ever lives up to our expectations in this day and age. But if everyone's first impressions of Tokyo are similar to these, is it really any wonder Japanese men get such a bad rap in the size department? Stay tuned...;)
Let's start with portion sizes. Obviously, I realize North American portion sizes are ridiculously huge and likely a reason the majority of us (myself included!) are considered overweight. But we are genetically bigger people and therefore need more sustenance, no? When I pay the equivalent of roughly $11 Canadian dollars in a pub for a burger and beer with fries, I'm expecting to go home slightly buzzed and full for the night. But in Tokyo you get a tiny 1.5 ounce patty on a bun with some lettuce, half a bottle of beer, and a Japanese size handful of dried out fries. I guess that's why you should stick to the local food or make your own with goods from the 100 Yen shop!
Next disappointment: the Imperial Palace and its Gardens. First of all we got to the gardens at about 3:30 in the afternoon to be told it closes at 4:00...when does anything close at 4:00pm??? I thought this was the city that never sleeps! So we raced around the gardens trying to see as much of the dead grass and non-blooming flowers as we could. It is the dead of winter I suppose. After being kicked out, we continued to walk around the outskirts of the gardens for about 4 km., hoping to catch a glimpse of the Palace through the trees and walls. No such luck. What kind of Palace is only open to its people two days of the year (December 23, for the Emperor's birthday and for New Year)?? Buckingham Palace is smack dab in the middle of London for all the world to see whenever they want to.
Next: Tokyo Tower. OK, this doesn't really fit in with the whole theme of being small, because it is actually 9 metres taller than the Eiffel Tower, which is already pretty impressive. It wasn't even on the itinerary for the day, I just happened to glimpse an ugly version of the Eiffel Tower through some skyscrapers on the way to Ginza and it looked closer than it actually was. Problem here being, I've seen the Eiffel Tower in all its glory, and the Tokyo Tower is
just an ugly, slightly-larger-but-I-can't-really-tell-anyways-pretty-much-exact-replica version. Plus its painted in ugly 'international orange' and white stripes and plunked down in a random place in Tokyo whereas the Eiffel Tower has lovely gardens and shit leading up to it.Then was Harajuku. I know it was quite cold the Sunday I went, there were even a few flakes falling as I walked out of the Yebisu Beer Museum (also disappointing, so much that this is the only mention it's getting in fact), but surely there would be some hardcore Harajuku girls out? We did manage to see a few, even got a picture of some Little Bo Peep types in a store, as well as the full Power Rangers clan and a creepy man dressed head to toe in Hello Kitty gear. I will definitely be back on Takeshita Dori the next time I'm in Tokyo, for the shopping and some more people watching. But alas, it was also disappointing. The only good thing about it was I found a piercing store and managed to find a ball to fit my lip stud I lost a few weeks back (see previous blog for full explanation).
I can't really say all of Tokyo is disappointing, it's often like that anywhere you go that's been hyped up for years. Nothing ever lives up to our expectations in this day and age. But if everyone's first impressions of Tokyo are similar to these, is it really any wonder Japanese men get such a bad rap in the size department? Stay tuned...;)
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