Tokyo station is one of the most complex and varied environments I think I've ever been in. When the Shinkansen arrives, you are expected to leave as soon as you can, because it will be departing again in 10 or so minutes; this is great for businessmen, because that means you'll almost never be late for an appointment or your train. The Shinkansen is of course not the only thing that leaves from Tokyo Eki(station): many local trains also have either their terminus or a stop here, some underground, and some right next to the high speed rail.
It took me a good 20 minutes to even find my way out of the station, and when I left, I looked around and said to myself, am I in the right place? I didn't see too many tall buildings, but what tipped me off was the Tokyo Central Post Office, a monstrosity of an office block. I can only imagine the several millions of pieces of post that go through that building each and every day. So, upon further consideration of my surroundings, I went back into the station and bought a ticket to ride the subway to Shinjuku, the location of most of Tokyo's skyscrapers and the governmental buildings.
That ride was one of the few where I did not have to make any transfers. Too many of those, and you're bound to get lost somewhere. Nevertheless, about 10 minutes later, I was in Shinjuku, with my camera at the ready, and taking snapshots of tall buildings, park areas, and whatever else I found to be interesting. The most impressive building I saw was the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, which was once the tallest fully occupied building in Shinjuku, maybe even Tokyo, before it was taken over by the Midland Tower. Not only was it the height of the building, but more importantly the sharp angles and twin tower appearance at the apex that caused for some pretty good photos. But enough of that, I must make better use of my time. Off to Shibuya!
A few more subway stops later, and I was at one of the busiest and (during the workday) one of the most heavily populated areas in even all of Tokyo, let alone the world. The intersection outside of JR Shibuya station is called a "pedestrian scramble", in that you cross in all directions/traffic stops in all directions, and is the most heavily trafficked intersection on earth. There is also a Starbucks coffee shop at the other end of the intersection, which is purportedly one of the world's busiest. I didn't spend a whole lot of time here either, because I really only came to get some pictures of the crossing and Starbucks. Next stop, Akihabara, the electronics and main epilepsy district of Tokyo.
The Akihabara Electric Town exit of the Yamanote line of JR is at a first glance nothing special, just a train station with a large book store. But after you leave the station, you're greeted instantly by one of the largest numbers of gaijin (outsiders, or foreigners) in all of Japan, and thus a fair amount of English. The most unsettling thing is gaijin assuming that you know no Japanese and only speak English. I was somewhat offended by this, especially when I was approached by people asking "Hey, can you take my picture?" I felt like responding in Japanese, or even French to throw them off, but my Americanism got the best of me, and I went along with it. Besides, I even got a free picture taken of myself out of the deal. After that little escapade, I then proceeded to walk around the rest of Akihabara, after of course getting a map to help me get around. I really didn't have to ask for one: I just stood off to the side, looked at a different map, and then this Japanese guy approached me, gave me a map; we conversed in Japanese about finding a capsule hotel for a few minutes, and then I went on my way.
Akihabara is one of those places that you don't want to go to and be carrying large sum of money, because you'll probably spend some of it. I myself had around $650, but didn't spend more than $2 (on DDR, of course). I knew both my limits of what I should have purchased, and what my backpack could hold. So, after following the directions given to me, I got to the capsule hotel, spoke half in English and half in Japanese (because I haven't learned how to ask for hotel rooms yet), paid the rather low sum of 4000 yen (40 USD) for my room, put some stuff away, and after the short rain subsided, went on another expedition, this time to Roppongi, the nightlife center of Tokyo. I didn't go there for that, but was accosted on more than one occasion by English speaking Nigerians who wanted me to come up to their bar and have a drink. I used my increasingly common "sorry, I'm all sweaty from exercise" and "sorry, I don't drink alcohol" excuses, and was soon on my way.
Once in Roppongi, I noticed that I had not actually eaten dinner yet, and as I was all sweaty, what better to do than have McDonald's. Open air McDonald's restaurants are the way to go, especially when they have enclosed upper floors. I ate on the third floor, and as I was enjoying my double cheeseburger and fries, pondered about how I would finish off the night. I no sooner thought about that than I realized that I had not yet seen Roppongi Hills, the shopping area, so I went that way. Atop one of the taller buildings in Roppongi is the Tokyo City View, which I of course wanted to see, so I paid the student fee, rode an elevator up, and then took 40 or so pictures of Tokyo at night, which is about as beautiful of a view as you can possibly get. I bought the general touristy stuff for my family as gifts for when I return home, and then got on my way back to Akihabara for a good night's rest in a capsule hotel.
The room measured about 1x1x2 meters, and was large enough for me to completely stretch out in and still have about an inch or two of room. The controls for the light and television were somewhat confusing, but then again, I was confused as to why there was even a television inside of this room; aren't these things mostly used by businessmen who need a quick rest and don't feel like paying huge sums of money for a night at the top of the line hotel?
Enough of that, I think you now have a pretty good idea about how that first day went. I now present you with three pictures and text, and a good night.
This is the interior of one floor of a capsule hotel. About 30 people can sleep on this floor, with a total floor space no larger than your average classroom. Women sleep on different floors than men. There are only really four power outlets on the floor, and I had to use one of them for my camera battery.
Tokyo at night, from atop Roppongi Hills. I have a strong feeling that I only have less then 5% of the metropolis in this picture (and that's a very good guess), so you can see the sheer size and electricity usage of the region.
The crossing at Shibuya is the busiest in the world, as can clearly be seen in this picture. The Starbucks is in the background. It is of note that this is only about 1/3 of the crossing, mostly because I don't have that great of a camera for taking wide shots.
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