Shinagawa!

Before arriving in Japan I really had no idea what it would be like to live here. Quite surprisingly I have adapted to urban living and the changes that Tokyo has thrust upon me! Prior to moving to new living quarters in Motomachi, Yokohama I decided I should share a some details on Shinagawa. Our current address is at Apartments 33, about a 5 minute walk south of the Shinagawa Station. 

Shinagawa is one of Tokyo's 23 wards and is located in the south east section of the city. Not only is Shinagawa Station one of the main stations in Tokyo, it is also Japan's oldest railway station. Like all places in Tokyo, most of the bustle occurs in the areas adjacent to and above the station. It is where you find most supermarkets, restaurants/cafes and department stores.

When travelling on the trains most people use a card, rather than buy a ticket. You have a choice of a Suica or Pasmo card. Steve and I have Suica cards, which we paid a refundable 500 yen deposit on initially. Steve also has a monthly ticket included, so during the week his trips are included in that cost and then on the weekends he uses a separate balance which he charges as necessary. The photo below shows the machines used to top up either card. Fortunately they have an English button to talk you through the process. It is so simple to charge your card. As you go through the turnstiles you swipe the card, see how much the fare was and the balance still available on your card. I leave my card in a little purse with my yen and simply swipe the card whilst in the purse. Too easy!! If you don't have enough credit you simply recharge. The card can also be used in vending machines throughout the city and on buses.

The area around Shinagawa station is one of the fastest growing business districts of Tokyo. It has undergone a complete redevelopment in recent years, so that it now has more high-rise buildings than anywhere else but Shinjuku and Otemachi. Several major Japanese companies have their headquarters or a major branch here; Sony, Canon, Panasonic, Japan Airlines, Mitsubishi, Docomo to name a few.

In the post, 'I saw a fly', I showed a night view of the skyscrapers from our apartment window so I have only included a day shot here. I must add, as Melbourne is in the midst of a very chilly winter, the temperature in Tokyo at the time of this shot was 31 degrees.

The 23 wards of inner Tokyo have a population of 13 million but the total population of Tokyo is a staggering 33 million. Shinagawa covers a fairly large area, 22.7 square kilometres, and has a population of 350,000. It has a population density of 15,800 people per square kilometre or, in terms I can understand, 247 acres. In layman's terms that's 64 head to the acre. That's a lot! Yokohama, which has a similar population to Melbourne, should be far more relaxed!! The population of course will be more concentrated, as Melbourne, with its sprawling suburbs,  covers a far greater area.

Even though the station area is the hub of Shinagawa, it's amazing how far you can cycle and still be in Shinagawa. Unlike Oimachi and Kawasaki to the south and, of course Shibuya and its surrounding wards, Shinagawa does not appear to have any really big retail outlets. Grocery shopping can be completed near the station but prices are high. For speciality shopping it is necessary to catch a train or, of course, if you are a masochist there is always the bike.

Yesterday in the heat and humidity I took off in search of a few items. I returned with a drying rack and plastic dish strapped in Harriet's seat on the back and my front basket had 2 bottles of wine, plastic containers, my umbrella, water bottles and hand bag. Yes, I know..... baskets on bikes are very daggy, but guess what?  In Japan they ride bikes for a purpose not just pleasure. The advantage for me ......... saves wearing out my shoes so quickly and keeps me fit and trim!

My new acquisition, the bike, does not handle quite as well as my normal bike. It's a bit wobbly, feels like it could break if I do anything too radical and has skinny little tyres. I seem to be on the verge of an accident/crash more often than not. In its favour, it does have 3 gears and I do like the easy to use locking device. When out and about you usually just stop wherever, lock the bike and leave it but sometimes it can be a bit tricky. At a supermarket in Oimachi I had to sit and wait for a parking spot. I squeezed in and on my return my poor bike was totally jammed in and trapped by a gazillion other bikes.  I patiently moved bike after bike and finally created enough space to reverse out.  As I moved past all the other bikes I had to be careful not to cause a 'dominoe effect' disaster. Oh the trials!!

It is compulsory to have your bike registered and road worthied twice a year, but not to wear helmets. If you don't register your bike you will find it has been impounded. I have noticed the bike traffic officers are quite vigilant. Once impounded many people just go and get another one, rather than pay the fine which is often more than the bike's value. My 'gem' of a bike, with its above mentioned features, still cost the equivalent of $345 with the baby seat. No cheap K-Mart options that I could source, and to think I sold my old Malvern Star for $10 at our clearance garage sale before leaving.

Isn't it a beauty though??  

I know I will be the envy of everyone with this set of wheels under me!!

For such a high population it is amazing to see how day to day living just ticks along. The streets are clean and tidy, rarely do you hear a car horn tooting, bicycles move smoothly along with cars and pedestrians on roads or footpaths, trains run like clockwork (almost always) and no one ever yells. What's wrong with the place?

 

The scenes below were taken at some of the eating places around the Shinagawa Station. We had a work 'team building' event at TY Harbor Brewery last week. The food was delicious and we ate way too much.

The scenes below were captured as we walked home. At least we got to walk off some of those calories.

The photo above is out the back of the Shinagawa Station. To return to the apartment from TY Harbor Brewery we had to go through the station so as to cross all the tracks, which effectively divide the place in half. There was another way but it was twice the distance.

Steve and I can be seen enjoying a Korean barbeque at another resaurant opposite the station.

The bibs were a good idea!!

Of course if you don't want to eat out and you don't want to cook there is plenty of fresh, pre-packaged food available at quite reasonable prices.

Packaging in all shops is extreme. Every bottle at the supermarket is wrapped in protective wrapping and goods are often double bagged in paper then plastic. I try to remember my own shopping bag and a quick "I-i-e" and hand wave usually avoids another flood of packaging.

Vegetables and fruit are astoundingly fresh but quantities are small and all individually wrapped in cellophane, often with sachets of silica gel enclosed. A packet of beans may contain 12-14 beans and cost about $2-50, carrots come in packets of 2-4, potatoes 4-6 and so on. I do like the way many things seem to be colour co-ordinated, that appeals to someone who likes to hang her washing out with colors together and matching pegs!! All the greens are together, then the reds, yellows etc. It often looks very artistic.

 

I hope you enjoyed this brief outline of Shinagawa, the place where we began our Japanese journey.  Fortunately Steve's train trip to work from Motomachi, Yokohama will be about the same as it is now. He works in Tsurumi which is right on the southern border of Tokyo, in fact I think it is actually in Yokohama. The only noticeable difference will be the crowds on the train because trains heading into and out of the city at peak hours are absolutely packed.

To the Top of Tokyo Tower

One day last week, while the breadwinner was at work, I borrowed a bike from the apartment and went cycling. As a lady of leisure it has become a pastime that I really enjoy. You can cover a lot of territory and certainly see and get the feel of many places. My first port of call was Tokyo Tower. The photo below shows the road I went along to get to the tower.

 At 333 metres Tokyo Tower is 13 metres taller than the Eiffel Tower and is the world's tallest self-supporting steel tower. It was completed in 1958 symbolising Japan's rebirth as a major economic power. It also serves as a television and radio broadcast antenna and tourist attraction. Visitors can ascend to the main observatory at 150 meters and the special observatory at 250 meters to get a bird's eye view of Tokyo.  Under good weather conditions, Mt Fuji can be seen in the distance. An aquarium, wax museum and several more attractions can be found on the ground floors of the tower. Tokyo Tower's current height is not high enough to adequately support complete terrestrial digital broadcasting to the area. A taller digital broadcasting tower known as Tokyo Sky Tree is currently planned to open in 2011.

As the day was sunny and the skies were clear, the views were really excellent and I could just see Mt Fuji in the distance. It really only presented as a lump on the horizon though, nothing to get excited about. The views reinforced once again the extent of the Tokyo sprawl. For a fee of 1420 yen (about $18.50) I gained entrance to both observation decks. It was well worth the money. Our trip to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building and its Observation Deck had been free but I think I got a better view of the waterfront from Tokyo Tower.

It was pretty cool standing on the see through glass deck and also ascending in the elevator to the special observation deck.

After descending the tower I decided I would take a look at the Wax Museum for an extra 500 yen. As the photos show this was a really good exhibition. I was pretty impressed with Yoda and Chewie!

I had a lovely chat with Einstein. I found we had a lot in common, not just our IQ but also our lack of intelligent conversational opportunities throughout the day. We discussed formulas and solutions to issues in the world and, quite importantly, the possible effects of smoking a pipe on his health!

I finished off my day's outing cycling over to the wharf/port area and criss crossing my way through the Shinagawa area. As the railway stations tend to separate areas quite significantly, I found  it a bit tricky navigating my way around the Shinagawa Station to get back to the apartment. After lots of riding up and down I successfully found a way and returned home satisfied with my day's touring.