Day 14 - Adventure through Japan "Nakano and Akihabara"

Incomplete Entry-

Part I: Nakano and Breakfast

Part II: Akihabara

Part III: Nakano (take II)

Part IV: Fun fun packing

This morning, Donnie, Jason and I tried going to a Kabuki play, but they were sold out for the earlier 11:00 show, and the line was about 2 hrs for standing room only at the 1:30 show. Seems you need someone in Japan to reserve tickets for you as there is no way to do so online or over the phone.

So the day really started at Yasukuni Shrine, which commemorates Japan's war dead. Some controversy surrounds the place, as some guilty of war crimes are enshrined here among the others; other Asian nations voice objections when Japanese prime ministers visit it. The shrine grounds offered some good pictures and just like in Ueno Park there was a festival going on to celebrate the cherry blossoms, so there were pretty big crowds.

After Yasukuni, the the rest of the day was spent shopping for souvenirs. The group met at Akihabara to finish off whatever stores we didn't get to yesterday. We wrapped up the day at the "mall" in Nakano, the place Jacky had shown us a few days ago. This time we were there a little earlier, so some of the 4th floor stores were still open, which was awesome - these stores had older stuff from as far back as the 20's and 30's. It was exactly the type of things you'd find in an American antiques place - old magazines and toys, advertisements, cameras and watches, and the like.

The only thing left to do now is sort everything and pack it away for the long trip home.