東京 [DAY 2] (❁´◡`❁)*✲ﾟ*
9/08: Rui's flight was today, so we only had the morning together. Had breakfast at Lotteria, bought my ticket to see the GazettE live in Aomori in November (!!!!!), and then took purikura! Thank you for spending your last day in Tokyo dragging me around and feeding me and I'm really glad to have gone and to finally meet you♥♥♥ We'll live vicariously through our muses' food adventures, ok~ while I'll wait for you in the Philippines o(≧▽≦)o So until then, stay healthy and adorable (even if you deny the latter)!! ;www;/
It was a lonely train ride back, but I went to Asakusa (浅草) by myself afterwards, to see the Sensou-ji, Tokyo's oldest Buddhist temple, and one dedicated to the bodhisattva Kannon. It was a ridiculously hot day, but I managed! The whole town district (well, from what I saw when I got out of the station) had a very old time-y feel, which may surprise you when you remember you're actually still in Tokyo. I saw the Kaminarimon (雷門) and the Hōzōmon (宝蔵門) gates as I walked along the Namikase-Dori, a street of shops and souvenirs for the area.
Kaminarimon | Hōzōmon and 5-story pagoda
Namikase-Dori | Stairs to Sensou-ji
The temple itself was really pretty; there was an Inari Shrine inside that was blocked out to visitors, but we could still take pictures. A monk was inside doing something, too! When I got out, I saw the Sky Tree from a distance. I wasn't so sure it was the Sky Tree, since I was told it was a 20-minute walk away from Asakusa, and so should appear a lot farther than it did. Guess that's just how big the tower really is!
The Inari shrine in Sensou-ji | Sky Tree in the distance! | Gate to Asakusa temple
Seeing all I wanted to see, I then made my way back to Ueno (since there wasn't a JR line to Asakusa, I had to go to Ueno and transfer to the Ginza Line), and went to the park! It was super huge. By then, my feet were already hurting so I sat around a few times, just people watching. It was a nice place with lots to see in itself; I even found a bunch of torii gates in a row, and followed it, but I'm not sure where I ended up. Regardless, it must've been a temple or some small shrines.
Torii | Ueno Park | Tarp'd entrance of the under-construction Toshogu Shrine
After a while of looking for the entrance, I also went to Ueno Zoo and saw pandas for the first time irl! So cute D: Unfortunately, there weren't a lot of animals out...probably because it was too hot/nap time. I couldn't see any polar bears, penguins, and llamas. The gorillas took a while to come out, too. But it was fun. I love animals!
Lili, the male Giant Panda | The sea lions were most entertaining | Chill Gorilla
Birdie! | Tiger! | Derp birdie!
After a long day out and with other places starting to close (which is why I couldn't go to any museums), it was back to Ikebukuro and my hotel.
Waiting for the train back to Ikebukuro | Random sign | Sakura Hotel Ikebukuro Cafe