Nihon - Day 16

Day 16 - Ryogoku

Today started in a bit of a mess. I boarded the subway with the intention of heading to Ebisu but then once on the train I decided to head to Roppongi instead. When we all had to disembark from the train and wait for another one I changed my mind again and headed back to the hotel.

I ate lunch at a little quaint resturant place near my station, serving proper Japanese style meals. I ordered a beef dish and it came with rice in the bowl and pasta salad in another bowl and some pickled veg in another, soup in yet another and a bit of orange jelly on a small plate. It tasted nice and was filling despite it being mostley fat. It was however a smoking venue and after the man sitting next to me lit up I decided it was time to leave.

Headed back to the subway the plan was to visit the Edo-Tokyo Museum in Ryogoku and then onto Ueno Park.
Two stops before Ryogoku an actual Sumo Wrestler got on the train.

After climbing the stairs to level 3 of the museum I purchased my ticket then headed up some more esculators for level 6 of the museum building. All displays were on level 5 and 6 but the entrance is on level 6 the exit level 5.

There were a few exibits that you could take photos of and even some you could get into.
English guides are available at the entrance desk, they will walk around with you and explain the displays in English for you. It is free but I opted not to anyway.

There were displays of old Edo houses and bulidings, little moldels of whole townships. If you are in the right aread at the right time some of the displays change and move. A museum staff member stands there are explains what is going on in Japanese. There is a giant replica of a Edo bridge, and a theatre hall. There is life size maniquinnes of an Emperor and his Queen in traditional dress. There is a rickshaw you can actually sit in, and an old style bike. There are restored cars and a Edo house you can walk around inside of. There is even a replica box of gold you can lift up and see how heavy it is. Many of the displays are interactive and the displays you can photograph are clearly marked by a picture of a camera and it says in English Flash Photography is ok. Most of the museum is pretty dark in an atempt to keep the old stuff in good condition.

I didn't go onto Ueno Park again, after the museum I just headed back to the hotel.