Exciting news everyone! I finally got the pictures and videos for Tokyo and Tokyo Disneyland. This is exciting because this was one of the best trips that I’ve ever taken, and I took this trip with my lovely best friend, Christina. The trip started off wonderful as Chris and I left for Kyoto Station at around 9:00am so that we could catch the 9:30am, and I’m not making this name up, Super Rapid Express train. Obviously this is faster than the Rapid Express and the Express trains. This was the beginning of a grueling journey that led to the Mecca of fashion and gizmos, Tokyo. Along the way we transferred trains around six times all the time carrying our bags. It was a long trip that was made long by us being cheap. It was cheap because we only took the local trains the entire time. It could have been a shorter trek if we had taken the Shinkansen. That’s the super fast bullet train that only takes two hours instead of our eight. Still the trip was brilliant and gorgeous.

Still we had an amazing time just getting there. After trekking through all the trains we finally ended up at our hostel that was tiny as all getup. It was a 10ft by 6ft room with tatami mat floors. Tatami mat is a comfy woven traditional grass mat that is in Japan. Still, this thing was tiny beyond belief for a big tall strapping American as myself. We didn’t rest though that night. Instead, we decided to head out to Akihabara. This is a district of Tokyo that is known for its electronics and overall nerd culture. There we saw people dressed up in maid costumes inviting us into appropriately named maid cafes. We also saw many otaku running around. Otaku is a name given to those who are obsessed with any culture but primarily anime and electronics culture. Its even evolved into one specific type of person and dress. They are kind of creepy actually.

This lovely trip into the nerd paradise was made even greater by the discovery of a gyro stand in the heart of Akihabara. One thing that is hard about living here is the lack of meat in the daily diet. Its a luxury that you can’t really afford to eat here on a daily basis. Beef alone is usually twice the cost it is in the United States. Because of this, the gyro I ate in Akihabara is going down as the best one I’ve ever eaten just due to overwhelming hunger and lust for meat. I had a beef gyro with a spicy sauce. Chris had the chicken. After that we decided to check out all the various shops that glowed beneath their incredibly bright neon lights. One thing I should mention, this post isn’t about Tokyo or Disneyland. This is a post about food which you will see played a huge part in this trip.

The next day was dedicated to Chris and I heading to a museum for a movie studio. This might sound like a boring place to go on a trip to Tokyo but hear me out. This studio is responsible for some of the finest quality animation in not just Japan but the world. The studio is called Studio Ghibli. It is responsible for many classic movies in the anime style of animation. The studio is known for its high quality art and stories. Its even won an Oscar or two if I remember correctly. This was an amazing place that was filled with many exhibits on traditional animation and art.  The building itself was quite amazing in its own right. The building was built in the middle of a gorgeous park on the outskirts of Tokyo. Its shaped to look natural in the setting and is just magical to look at. Christina took some wonderful pictures and most are posted here. Sadly you could not take pictures inside of the building but the way they explained it was as such. They wanted you to experience the world through the eyes and keep the memories as something you’ll cherish. I completely agree. Still, they had an amazing garden on the roof you could take pictures of. It also had an amazing statue of a guardian from the movie Castle in the Sky. They also had a special beer that was only sold in the snack area as well as a store that sold exclusive merchandise. Overall this was an great place to go. I bought some fun little things for myself such as a giant dust bunny and a cellphone charm. It was great to see little kids having a wonderful time playing on a giant catbus. There was that and the wonderful ice cream that I had. It was raspberry. Of course, much it was stolen by Chris.

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-Kyle