Interesting pictures from Tokyo.

This was taken in Shinjuku at about 11 am. I am still wondering what these ladies were queuing up for.



Like Singapore, Japan is taking active steps to cut down smoking among the population. They are not allowed to smoke on certain streets, so they have public areas where people stand around to smoke.

The banner in the next picture says tobacco is forbidden while walking on this street - meaning no smoking.

Glad that the Japanese know about AVA too.

The poster in the next picture is self-explanatory even if you don't understand Japanese. Enough said.



I saw this guy in Shinjuku (the one in red), all dressed against the cold, distributing flyers. He was very active, running after people to give them the flyers. This is so unlike those we see in Singapore - they stay glued to one place, with nary a smile on their faces.

This is one example of the many homeless in Tokyo. At night, they lay out their thin mattresses and sleep along the sidewalks or in the train stations. With their thin blankets, wonder how they can stand the cold.

MacDonald's in Tokyo. A burger meal normally costs about S$7.40, but it is only S$5.00 while on promotion.

The MacShake is only less than S$1.30. I had one. Look at the size. Wonder if the burgers are similarly as small.

I think not many of you know what is this thing in the next picture. It is called a turn-table. It plays records (that produces music) - the predecessor of the CDs. I saw this shop in Shibuya that sells only vinyl records - whole shop is full of them, but only dance music.

Took the next picture in Odaiba. The sky is not real. It is a facade.

The next picture was also taken in Odaiba. At first I thought the flowers looked nice. Then I realised it looked like a big wreath.

So, Mr Chin has been singing praises about Tokyo. Even the moon seems bigger here.

One other interesting story. In this hotel where I am staying, whenever I ask for my room key, one of the hotel staff will run to press the lift button. Then he/she will brow more than 90 degrees, all the time saying something in Japanese (probably thank you or good night). He/she stays in this position until I get into the lift and the door closes. I still haven't figured out how to respond - whether I should bow back in return.

Posted by Mr Chin on Tuesday 20 Nov 2007, 11:58 pm Tokyo time