This trip, unlike most high school trips, is more of an adventure and less of a tour. In fact, my whole goal for this trip is to avoid the “T” word entirely and give students the power to explore the world. So, beginning with our walks through Asakasa and Ueno, we found ourselves wandering past shops, homes, temples, and shrines. One of the things I love to do with students is to walk through neighborhoods in the city. On this day, people were biking to work, walking their children to school, buying groceries, and doing the parts of daily living that make life manageable and sometimes wonderful.
We began our morning in the shadow of the Skytree Tower, then walking the 1.6KM to Asakusa and Senso-ji. I send students on a scavanger hunt to find the kitsune on the temple/shrine grounds. From there we walked to Ueno, passing through Kappabashi and the many shops with knives, kitchwarre for restaurants, and ceramic shops.
From there we made our way into Ueno Park and headed to the Tokyo Museum of Western Art. After a couple fo hours of visiting the museum, we spread out across the area. Some went into the markets below the bridges filled with speeding cars. Some ventured further afield into other parts of the city, and some of us made the long walk back to the Sumida River to walk the trails that line the waterway.
Through it all, this early interduction to Tokyo and Japan gave students some confidence in navigating the city on their own.
Today, we had a late start, and then grabbed a train to Shibuya. We put a student in charge of navigating the train system, and off we go! We hit Shibuya Crossing, then split up for lunch, finding Omoirice, Korena BBQ, and everything in between. Tower Records was a huge hit, and after lunch, we walked through the Meiji Shrine.
After those antics, I unleashed the students on Takeshita Street in the heart of Harajuku. The crowds were not at all what I;’ve seen in the past, and they dropped into places along this small avenue.
From there we split up; one group stayed in the Shibuya area, another went to the Nintendo Store, and a third traveled to Iyota the Stationary Store mecca in Ginza.
After dinner, we againh fanned out and finally, around 10:00PM made our various paths back to the hotel.
I don’t want to jinx it, and, right now, this trip is humming along nicely. Tomorrow we travel to Kamakura and Enoshima. Can’t wait for the group to see the Daibatsu, Hasedera Temple and climb the stairs at Enoshima. If you’re eondering. our mileage is starting to add up, as most of us are hitting 15 – 20 miles of walking each day. Like I said, Tokyo is a walking city, and sometimes the BEST way to see the world is on our feet!
May you be happy, may you be well.
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