It took us a while to get up and moving, and it was nearly 9.30am before we had breakfast. I went to the golden arches and then joined Helen in a nearby coffee shop.

We caught the train to Harajuku, and met Jane Thompson, Jul and Gemma at the Meiji shrine. Jane is expecting their second child in January. We had a look around the shrine, which is lovely. There was a wedding on, and lots of families had their young children in kimonos, and quite a few women wore them as well.

Back at the railway bridge, there were a few young girls posing in their way out clothing, but not as many as I would have expected.

Jane and Jul took us to a coffee shop for lunch, patronised by expats. The food was amazing. Two blokes beside us had plates piled with enough eggs, bacon, fried potato and panckes to feed Helen and I for a week. Being soon after breakfast, we decided on choclate waffles, and I couldn’t eat them all.

We caught the train back toi Ueno, and had a wander around the park. I bought an umbrella, and it began raining during our walk, but not enough to deter us.

After a rest in our small hotel room, we headed out into the evening (and rain) for dinner. We walked to Asakusa, and eventually ended up in a traditional yakitori place, which had affordable drinks. We wlked back to Ueno a diffent way, and stopped at a coffee shop for dessert. I had a cup of coffee, and, as a result, tossed and turned all night.

 

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