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[My Trip to Japan – 日本への私の旅 – رحلتي إلى اليابان] – Part II

Finally, it’s my “Part II” post  about my latest trip to Japan!

Here I’m talking about Tokyo Sky Tree Tower “東京スカイツリ”! In my earlier entries I’ve already posted something about Tokyo Sky Tree Tower and about its establishment & the overall construction, but this time it’s different! I’ve experienced seeing  Tokyo Sky Tree Tower in real! YES I DID!! It’s off the Sumida river. Sumida river has always meant something special to me. Back in 2007 I had the chance to see Sakura in full bloom off the Sumida river and it has left an exceptional memory for me. This year, when I knew that Tokyo Sky Tree Tower can be seen right off the Sumida river, I’ve decided to see it right from the same spot where I’ve walked by back in 2007. I did, and it was just a amazing view of the Tower! I was totally speechless!! All what I did was taking pictures and staring at its beauty!

P.S.: For me, Tokyo Tower will always be the only national Tower of Japan.

[My Trip to Japan – 日本への私の旅 – رحلتي إلى اليابان] – Part I

I’ve stayed in Japan for 17 days visiting some of the major cities in Honshu (Tokyo, Shizuoka, Yokohama, Nagoya, Osaka, Kobe and Awaji Island). It was my first time visiting Nagoya, Kobe and Awaji Island. Shinkansen was really helpful in making me reaching these cities conveniently. I rode the Shinkansen: Tokyo <–> Shizuoka; Shin-Yokohama  –> Nagoya; Nagoya –> Osaka. Kobe and Awaji Island were visited by car. InshaAllah I’ll update with more posts and pictures about my trip but I’ve decided not to make it very personal though. Therefore, I’ll try to summarize the main activities/events that I did there, ja ne!

My Trip to Japan – 日本への私の旅 – رحلتي إلى اليابان

          This is my first entry being posted from Japan! Not a first visit though. I’m in TOKYO now, my plan is to discover Japan beyond what’s mentioned on travel guidebooks/websites. I shall add new posts in the future insha’Allah about this trip, stay tuned!

A Random Picture from Japan – 日本での色々な写真 – صورة من اليابان

I’ll start posting, or in other words, sharing some random pictures of Japan. Those that I find them to be beautiful and special. I will limit my comments so you find the beauties in those pictures your self and with your own eyes! Enjoy~

Here, in this pitcutre, I liked the harmony between nature and concrete! The orange horizon has made the picture even more special. (Yokohama, Japan)

Japan – 日本 – اليابان


Ikebukuro – 池袋 – إيكيبوكورو

” Ikebukuro (池袋), the largest city located in Toshima ward, is a commercial and entertainment district of Tokyo, Japan. Toshima ward offices, Ikebukuro station, and several shops, restaurants, and enormous department stores are located within city limits.

At the center of Ikebukuro is the train and subway station, a huge urban gathering shared by the JR East lines, the Seibu Ikebukuro Line and the Tōbu Tōjō Line. It is one of the main commuter hubs in the western Yamanote area of Tokyo. Ikebukuro Station is the second busiest station in Japan, second only to Shinjuku Station.Around the station are the Seibu and Tōbu department stores. Seibu, written with the characters for “West” and “Musashi (province)” 西武, is on the east end of the station and Tōbu, written with the characters for “East” and “Musashi” 東武, is on the west end. East of the station, on the site of Sugamo Prison, stands Sunshine 60, which was Tokyo’s tallest building at the time of its construction. Otome Road, a leading shopping area for otaku products aimed at women, is located nearby. Marui and Don Quijote also have department stores in the area. The principal electronics retailer in Ikebukuro is Bic Camera. There is a small pleasure district similar to Shinjuku’s Kabukichō, but less lively and less attractive for tourists.” (Wikipedia, accessed July 17, ’10).

Ikebukuro is one of my favorite areas in Tokyo mainly ‘cos of two reasons. First, Ikebukuro is where I’ve stayed during my ”FIRST” visit to Tokyo. Second, it’s fun and busy all day. Ikebukuro is not usually included in tourits’ must-see places/locations as Shinjuku, Shibuya and Ginza may attract typical tourists more, besides their more convenient locations compared to Ikebukuro.

Sumida River – 隅田川 – Sumida-gawa – نهر سوميدا

” The Sumida River (隅田川, Sumida-gawa) is a river which flows through Tokyo, Japan. It branches from the Arakawa River at Iwabuchi and flows into Tokyo Bay. Its tributaries include the Kanda and Shakujii rivers. What is now known as the “Sumida River” was previously the path of the Arakawa, however towards the end of the Meiji era work was carried out to divert the main flow of the Arakawa to prevent flooding. It passes through Kita, Adachi, Arakawa, Sumida, Taito, Koto and Chuo” (Wikipedia).

When some friends of mine and I first visited Tokyo in 2003,  I’ve tried to convince them to visit the Sumida River as it’s one of the land marks in Tokyo, they were partially convinced about it. Then, the next day, we’ve arrived in Asakusa train station which is just next to Sumida River, I didn’t know how far it’s located away from the train station, so once we went out the station we kept walking ‘n’ walking for ages! Nothing appeared on the horizon yet, as I’ve mentioned earlier, they were just partially convinced about visiting it, so suddenly we’ve they’ve decided to forget about it and go back to whatever is left to visit/see in Tokyo. FOUR years later, in 2007, a friend of mine and I, have made it at the Sumida River at the right time and the right place, the station this time was just a couple of minutes away from the river, and the timing was just perfect for it, it was late March, you know what I mean! Cherry blossom, Sakura trees, were covering the streets of Sumida. It was crowded with public enjoying the weather, the scenery and the river at that delightful moment. What’s so special about Sumida River in addition to the Sakura trees, the bridges, it has many bridges passing over it and some are dedicated for trains, it’s wide and relaxing for sight. I remember how people there were so happy and joyful! Sumia River now means a beautiful moment for me!

TOSHIBA Cell Chip TV

                  After four years of researches and studies, the leading electronics company TOSHIBA has announced of marketing  the first TV based on the Cell multimedia processor soon, this Cell Chip was also developed by IBM and SONY besides TOSHIBA, it’s basically the same Cell Chip used in Playstation3. However, TOSHIBA is the only electronics co. that has announced about releasing the Cell Chip Television. In addition to its advanced Video/Audio features, the Cell Chip TV has the feature of simultaneously record eight HD channels! It will be available in market sometimes around late December in Japan and early 2010 in the USA. It will roughly cost  US$11k for the 55-inch TV!

Odaiba – お台場 – أودايبا

 

“Odaiba is a large artificial island in Tokyo Bay, Japan, across the Rainbow Bridge from central Tokyo. It was initially built for defensive purposes in the 1850′s, dramatically expanded during the late 20th century as a seaport district, and has developed since the 1990′s as a major commercial, residential and leisure area.

Two Shuto Expressway lines access Odaiba: Route 11 enters from central Tokyo crossing the Rainbow Bridge, while the Wangan route enters from Shinagawa Ward through the Tokyo Port Tunnel and from the bayfront areas of Tokyo and Chiba perfecture to the east.”

I’ve been to Odaiba once and I really liked it from the first visit. The scenery there was amazing especially at night. I had the chance to ride on the Rainbow Bridge by car, I wasn’t driving but at least I was on the front seat hehehe!! Insha’Allah next time I’ll visit Odaiba riding the  automated Yurikamome transit system from Shimbashi or Toyosu!

Blue Seed – ブルー シード

I love this SegaSaturn game/manga/anime. I’ve first played it as a videogame then got to watch it as an anime. It’s an RPG game, I liked how it was enabling me to walk and site-see Japan virtually!! buildings interiors were just similar to the real ones in Japan. I was like let’s play and take a walk in Japan :D

SegaSaturn had its good unique games that were never released on any other console, I miss SEGA consoles!!

(Let the video play ’til the end to see how the game looks like!).

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