Thu, Jul 12: Tokyo

First day out sightseeing in Tokyo.  Went to the fish market - you could smell it in the subway as soon as we got off the train. It's huge, lots off activity even though we were fairly late.  

Every type of seafood imaginable seemed to be available.

 Including very very small shrimp.

The big fish being filleted is a tuna.

And you had to avoid being run over by the little carts that were running around.  

But they did have traffic control, which helped a bit. 

Click to see more photos from the fish market.


Then it was off to see Hama-rikyu Gardens.

 A street near the park. 

the Tokyo National Museum,

Ueno park, and   

Toshogu Shrine.  The shrine is the final resting place of Tokugawa Ieyasu, founder of the Tokugawa shogunate that ruled Japan for 250 years until 1868.

The copper lanterns are for the Toshogu Shrine.  They are not used for illumination, but for purification and sacred fires during religious ceremonies.

The head of the great Buddha fell off during 1923 earthquake.  The body was melted down during WWII.