Tokiyo Trip 13.2 : Ameyoko, Yanaka Ginza, & Tokyo Skytree

Day 7 : Ueno ( Tuesday ) Part 2

We went out towards Ueno Onshi Park right outside of the zoo. We saw several 7/11 across the road but decided not to cross it because it was quite far to walk pass it and return to the place we were heading to. We walked pass the park and saw Toshogu Shrine, built in 1627. There was lake full lotuses and creepy crawlies. It was beautiful but creepy - because I'm not quite fond of lake and big dark water ponds, no thank you.

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We were both too hungry to do anything so we went to the first mini mart we saw to buy some onigiris. But the thing is, to eat alongside of the road might seem inappropriate and to walk back to the park will take some time. So we just decided to enter the alley : Ameyoko Street. That's when we saw a halal kebab shop ! We haven't eaten any meat for 7 days and I was craving for it, I ordered chicken kebab extra spicy (500yen) and AF ordered beef kebab (500 yen). We sat on the bench outside of the shop and enjoyed our spicy kebab to the final bite - it was really nice T^T

That's was all it for Ameyoko, the greatest spicy kebabs :

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We also visited : Yanaka Ginza, an old downtown with many temples, shrines and beautiful cemetery not so far from the main Ueno station. We went for a little stroll to take a look of what there were in the little towns - because it was mentioned in the guide book as 'to-go' place. We found really old shops, stray cats, nice calm views, slow-paced environment :

All images above taken by Af

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And to make our final day complete, we decided to go to the Tokyo Skytree. We had to stop at the Asakusa Station to change to the private train. We arrived at Tokyo Solamachi around 6-7ish, before sunset. It was a really long tiring day for both of us, but we really wanted to enjoy what's left for us there. We bought another cafe latte and sat beneath the tower, waiting for it to lighten up just after sunset. There were many people around as well, waiting for the tower.

Our final stop at Tokyo Solamachi was the Donguri Kyowakoku, a place that sells all Ghibli merchandizes :D We were greeted by a huge Totoro behind the mirror. I was too excited to take any photos again, I started looking and picking up random beautiful things in the shop. I bought several nice handkerchief, finger-dolls, lapel pin, and postcards. Arrgh, I was I can buy more items here. It would be really nice to splurge money of those little things that I might not really need. Ha :D

Public transport spent : 1,668 yen
Because we went to places quite far from one-another.

Tokiyo Trip 13.1 : Ueno Zoological Garden, Ueno

Day 7 : Ueno ( Tuesday ) Part 1

During our stay in Tokyo, I wanted to spend some money to visit any tourist spots like aquarium or zoo or planetarium - even for once. We missed Inokashira Park Zoo while we were visiting Mitaka because the zoo is closed on every Monday, so we chose to visit Ueno Zoological Garden in Ueno the next day.

Ueno Zoological Garden is the oldest zoo in Japan, opened in 1882. There are around 500 hundreds animals in the zoo. It costs around 600 yen per ticket for adult. 

We took a train ride to Ueno Station and saw the signboard to the zoo rightaway. It wasn't hard to find it. The zoo is located near all the museums ( Tokyo National Museum, Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, National Museum of Western Art, National Museum of Nature and Science, etc ) - if you love museums, this is a must-go place.

We both bought 2 tickets and took a huge nicely illustrated map to guide us. The zoo got 2 sections, connected by a monorail ride (150 yen) - so you can imagine how big the zoo was o-O We used the map to walk around the area, it is much simpler to aim each place and walk towards it right-away than walking blindly to places because we were trying not to spend the whole day at the zoo. Our trip was almost over :(

Our first animal was 2 pandas. And next it was the otters - among the other that were swimming around, there were the ones that slept in the glass tank right outside of the gated area so we can just see it right in front of us, and the birds - the huge eagles, and owls, and we went to see a tiger  - we were just separated by a thick glass next to one another, this was the best view I got so far. I don't have to zoom in anything :

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And the cute gibbons hanging out, and the grumpy gorilla, the bears and elephants, the cranes and ibis, kangaroos, ridiculously cute pack of penguins running around, majestic polar bear, snow owls, bun-bathing seals,  giant antler, storks, okapis and zebras, bug rhino and cute chubby pygmy hippos and giraffes! Also all those super-slimy-creepy-crawly that I love so much - double chin crocodiles, turtles, snakes and frogs and all weird things they could offer.

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I freakin' love the zoo. Everything were so near, so touchable, so right next to the mirror. It's far better than what we have here, far cheaper, far bigger. I just wish there were small mini market that sell foods, other than their main cafeterias. We couldn't find any small stores to buy our onigiris before entering the zoo, so it was a hungry zoo date for both of us.

Do I recommend coming to the zoo? Yes.
If you are a nature lover and not so adventurous, you should visit all the zoos and aquariums and parks and gardens in Japan. Those places are really nice. I would  want to visit other zoos and aquariums next time, that's for sure.