Odaiba is an island in Tokyo Bay that was made artificially in the 1850s and has been developed as a major commercial area (you can read that on the Wikipedia). I went there a couple weeks ago just to check it out, and meet up with my friend who works there. It was pretty cold, but the island is still very board-walk like, and I think it would be best in the summer. I think it is best known for having the giant gundam robot, which I only caught a glimpse of. The area I went to was mostly huge malls, but I didn’t shop. After getting some coffee, we just walked around by the water and looked at the lights across the bay for a long time. I went around dusk so everything was turning on, and it was really beautiful, especially with the reflections sparkling in the water. It’s kind of a long train ride there, but it’s worth it for the scenery. And, if you go there, I highly recommend taking the Yurikamome monorail to get there. The first time I went on it, I was really confused, because I thought I would just be transferring to another subway or regular railway. But, when I stepped into the car, I saw the seats were like a real train, like two rows of two seats on either side. I thought I would have to have a ticket to get in, but you just board like a normal subway. The whole thing is above ground, and it takes you in a big circle around downtown Tokyo, where you can see the bay, Tokyo Tower, and SkyTree, as well as a huge ferris wheel and some really cool buildings. It goes in a big circle, so I guess you can just keep going around if you want to (I really wanted to). I love the ride and the scenery, it’s so relaxing, and a cool way to see Tokyo. Actually one of the reasons I went back to Odaiba was just to ride that train again! Anyway, to get to Odaiba, you have to go across the Rainbow Bridge. Sounds awesome right? It’s really cool. Not quite as cool as the rainbow bridge course in Mario Cart, but still really beautiful. While we were walking around Odaiba, we saw a lot of couples. It’s a really couple-y place, I later learned, especially around Christmas. The Christmas season is for couples in Tokyo. So beware if you are single! On the boardwalk, there was a big gazebo type of thing with Christmas lights wrapped all around it. You could stand in it with your partner, and you had to face each other and look into each others eyes, and a Christmas song would start playing. It was so horribly cheesy! But my friend really wanted to stand in it together, so we did. When we were stepping out, we realized there had been a group of slightly to fully drunk Japanese business men watching us and giggling. When we finished, they said, “Will you take a picture of us?!” and all piled into the gazebo together to pose. It was hilarious!
