Japan is known as the land of the rising sun and daybreak was at about 5am while we were there. The weather was 15 degrees and so so cold. And yet icecream was being sold at almost all the tourist spots that we visited, green tea icecream was the favourite. The locals that I saw at Tokyo, were so so stylish and fit. Perhaps it has to do with their marine diet.
Just as in France, here too there is no honking. Cycling is promoted and is very popular. The cyclists can cycle on the footpath and they do so in all shapes, sizes, ages and styles. Cycles for the older age groups were shorter and sturdier with broader tyres, the young mothers had special cycles, fitted with baby seats in the front and back, and for the younger generation, the cycles were trendier with gears and dynamo lights.
Traffic lights are followed very diligently. Pedestrians wait at the kerb near a zebra, and then the traffic waits for the pedestrians way behind the zebra. It was a treat to watch the busy roads come to a stop when it was the turn of the public to walk. No one was breaking the rules, not even when it was rush hour and people were jogging to reach the metro. And the roads are clean. Trash is left outside shops, neatly packaged into large plastic bags.
The girls are so pretty and so well dressed. They walk fast and that too with high heels. I just watched their shoes, as they walked past us. What style! And many of them were holding the cutest babies I have ever seen. Even in Paris we did not see so many well heeled ladies. And the men look fit, without protruding paunches. While the females flaunt their legs and stilleto shoes, the males flaunt their hair styles, with lots of coloured hair, streaks of white being the most favourite.
Here and there, traditionally dressed Japanese girls, in kimonoes were also walking around.
But what made me sad was that so many of the smartly dressed girls and boys, were wearing cloth masks over their mouth and nose. It seems that many of them are allergic to the pollen in the air. But it marred the general feel of the well heeled youth and gave it an eerie feeling. There were a few homeless persons too, sleeping in the shade of the metro building, on the outskirts, with large cardboard boxes as protection from the chilly wind. But no one was begging.
What made me happy was that everytime we entered a restaurant, or a shop, or just looked at anyone eye to eye, they would bow deeply and greet us very swiftly in Japanese. It was very touching to experience this courtesy so often.
Every eating place had a bowl of chopsticks as cutlery. And a bowl of green tea as starters. And a deep bow and a verbal greeting.
Just as in France, here too there is no honking. Cycling is promoted and is very popular. The cyclists can cycle on the footpath and they do so in all shapes, sizes, ages and styles. Cycles for the older age groups were shorter and sturdier with broader tyres, the young mothers had special cycles, fitted with baby seats in the front and back, and for the younger generation, the cycles were trendier with gears and dynamo lights.
Traffic lights are followed very diligently. Pedestrians wait at the kerb near a zebra, and then the traffic waits for the pedestrians way behind the zebra. It was a treat to watch the busy roads come to a stop when it was the turn of the public to walk. No one was breaking the rules, not even when it was rush hour and people were jogging to reach the metro. And the roads are clean. Trash is left outside shops, neatly packaged into large plastic bags.
The girls are so pretty and so well dressed. They walk fast and that too with high heels. I just watched their shoes, as they walked past us. What style! And many of them were holding the cutest babies I have ever seen. Even in Paris we did not see so many well heeled ladies. And the men look fit, without protruding paunches. While the females flaunt their legs and stilleto shoes, the males flaunt their hair styles, with lots of coloured hair, streaks of white being the most favourite.
Here and there, traditionally dressed Japanese girls, in kimonoes were also walking around.
But what made me sad was that so many of the smartly dressed girls and boys, were wearing cloth masks over their mouth and nose. It seems that many of them are allergic to the pollen in the air. But it marred the general feel of the well heeled youth and gave it an eerie feeling. There were a few homeless persons too, sleeping in the shade of the metro building, on the outskirts, with large cardboard boxes as protection from the chilly wind. But no one was begging.
What made me happy was that everytime we entered a restaurant, or a shop, or just looked at anyone eye to eye, they would bow deeply and greet us very swiftly in Japanese. It was very touching to experience this courtesy so often.
Every eating place had a bowl of chopsticks as cutlery. And a bowl of green tea as starters. And a deep bow and a verbal greeting.
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