By John

Day 37. Today was our travel day to Cairns, Australia. Our flight didn’t leave until 8:30 pm, so we pack up our backs, check out of our place and explore the city. I decide that we should check out some more interesting things in Tokyo, rather than sit in an airport.

We find a place to leave our bags in the Tokyo metro station, and book tickets on the express bullet train to the airport, very fancy. Once again, I guide the group through the hectic Tokyo subway station and at our first of two destinations Shibuya crossing.

Imagine a really crowded place, a gym in January 2nd, or opening night of the newest Star Wars movie, now times that by 5 and you have Shibuya crossing every five minutes. It is the worlds buisest intersection, with over three thousand people passing every ten minutes going it 6 different directions.

Off course what is a busy intersection without some branded American fast food chains, we watch the “scramble” from Starbucks at an elevated view, it is even more impressive from above. We get a quick bite at McDonald’s (Am I crazy or am I starting to see a pattern here).

We head off to the Tokyo metropolitan government building with the intent of going up to the observatory. Unbeknownst to us, that there is a thirty minute wait to go up and subsequently down. It is still a really impressive, tall, clean but old skyscraper and we all enjoy viewing it from the ground.

Then we are off to the Tokyo station and our Bullet train to the Narita international airport. Our flight is the largest emptiest international flight I’ve seen, I guess Cairns isn’t Tokyo’s number one vacation spot.  We doze off on our ghost flight and wake up in the land Down under.