Thursday, February 17, 2011

Amber's Bday Trip to Tokyo

For my birthday this year, Tim surprised me with a trip to Tokyo to see Taylor Swift!!! I went with one of his Japanese interns, Kana Nosshi. She was a blast and so was this trip!!

My ticket to the concert:-)

Silhouette pic!

Outside of the Budokan Concert Arena


#1 T-Swizzle fan??



"Dear John"


She came through the crowd to a second stage and played more songs there.


She played a total of "13" songs.

Taylor Swift and her band...lol!!

Oldest bar in Tokyo-built in 1880, it survived WWII.

Eating lunch with Kana's family. Her grandma gave me the best cookies!! Supposedly they are so famous in Tokyo, you have to stand in a LONG line to get them:-)

One afternoon Kana took me to a place where she used to hang out after school. It was a neat, small amusement park/shopping/eating district. We ate at Bubba Gump:-)

Taking a pic at a random intersection. Reminded me of NYC. 

We went to the City Hall, where the 45th floor is dedicated to viewing Tokyo from above.


We got there at the perfect time. Enough time to see the city in the light, and then with a beautiful sunset. You can see Mt. Fuji to the left of the sun. 

The city at night...full of neon lights!!

Kana, her sister, and her niece:-)

Hahaha-posing with some high schoolers!


Typical touristy stuff:-)

What else would I do with it but flush it? Well after traveling Asia I discovered in many places people dispose of the toilet paper in the trash vs flushing it...ewwww!

Kana and I in front of Senso-ji...it is one of the oldest temples in Tokyo, and one of the most significant.


One of the best ways to travel through Tokyo: by rickshaw!! The other 2: by train and bicycle!!

A quick stop on our rickshaw ride for a picture. In the background is the Sky tree on the left. It was still under construction and due to open that spring. When completed, the Tokyo Sky Tree will be the tallest tower in the world beating Canton Tower (600m/1969ft). It's full height will be 634 meters (2080feet). On the right side is the Asahi Beer Hall. It is supposed to resemble a mug of beer-foam on top. Then the Asahi flame is next to that, representing both the burning heart of the Ashahi beer and a frothy head. 

Us and our Rickshaw driver (runner). I'm not sure why our arms are like this. I did it because she did. She did it because he did. We're not sure why he did it! 

Besides seeing Taylor Swift, this was one of the best experiences I've ever had. To spend the weekend with a native Japanese family and completely immerse myself in their culture was unbelievable. Kana's family was amazingly gracious and welcoming. I learned so much and had the most amazing time I'll never forget...from watching Japanese TV while eating dinner with her family to bicycling through one of the busiest cities in the world to learning how to take a proper bath...lol!! 

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