Having been for an excellent English-style meal on Saturday evening after our marathon, I came home very late and crashed straight into bed, without stretching or exercising properly. This meant that on Sunday morning, every time I moved my legs, a jolt of pain would run up and down them. That's why it would have been pretty stupid of me to accept our friend's offer of taking us to Yokohama, Tokyo's neighboring city, for Chinese New Year. Only a fool would take up that offer.
So we set off to Yokohama at around 2.30 from our local station (which goes straight there!) and sat on the train for about 40 minutes, dealing with stares from Japanese people and complaints from my thighs.
When we arrived, we were met by another friend and taken around some of the large shopping malls and walkways of Yokohama. The city itself is tiny in comparison to Tokyo, but it still has a sizable population. The important differnece is that Yokohama is nicely spaced out and nice to live in, whereas Tokyo is a case of an angry toddler on a rollercoaster planning a city. Have a look at an overhead map of Shibuya or Shinjuku and try to work out some logic to it.
As you can see, the skyscrapers were still huge, just like Tokyo. However, unlike our lovely city, you can take a photo of just one skyscraper. That's impossible in Tokyo, because the chances are whilst you're lining up the shot, another three buildings will be built right next door. The second photo is a pretty funky statue that we walked under. I don't know what it is, why it's there or what it means but it was very pretty. Finally, the big wheel of Yokohama. Not as big as the London Eye, but bigger than the one in Odaiba I think. (Remember?)
Notice that the sky is very blue in these photos. That is because it was a lovely day. A little cold, perhaps, but a nice clear sky. It's kind of strange that after exploring a few shops and stopping at a cafe, the sky was basically black. My theory is witch magic.
The shopping malls offered similar wares to Tokyo's, but at a much better price. I know I'm coming here next time I need to buy lots of clothes or something. Yokohama also had a Snoopy Town, just like Harajuku!
The next time we stepped outside, however, it was a different story. Night had descended on Yokohama. Or rather, it had tripped and fallen on it. It became bitterly cold, and everyone agreed it was time to head to Chinatown, safe in the knowledge that lots of other people would be there, and it might be warm. But first, we had to take a standard "Look at us! We're at the sea!" photo.
…well, that photo came out badly. Notice the pretty wheel in the background. They light it up at night so people don't walk into it. Or something.
Tune in for part two, when I take lots of pretty pictures of a country I'm not in!
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Ah, that’s a really nice picture, the second one. I hope I get to go visit it someday!