Glad you made it back safely and had a good time. Japan is a fun place to visit. I've been there 5 times in the last 10 years. The first time to Tokyo for Macworld in 2000. Then after getting married, we have been to the Osaka area 4 times since 2003 -- the last in 2009 -- to visit my wife's family. (We did go to Tokyo to go to Disney this last Sept 09 but really only were in the Chiba area where our hotel was and at Disney, with a train change at Tokyo station so that does not count as a visit to Tokyo)
Being cheap, I always look for the best way of doing things. I won't claim to be any sort of expert, but I have figured out a thing or two 
My first time in Tokyo in 2000, I spent one Sunday afternoon (having arrived Saturday evening) walking from the Imperial Palace (which was closed) all the way to Shibuya or thereabouts (I think that was where those big building mounted screens (displays) are etc. Also where that dog statue is. I have vague memories of walking around Shinjuku as well. I walked for hours without really knowing what I was doing. Finally I decided to go back to Makuhari (Chiba) where I was staying and found a station and got back. I probably got to the Imperial Palace around 3 or 4 in the afternoon, and then started walking trying to find something interesting to see or do based on a map in a brochure I had, and I did not stop walking, except for my quick dinner described below, a few snacks at convenience stores, and a few minutes in a book store, until around midnight or a little bit thereafter, if I remember correctly. It was very very late by the time I decided I needed to figure out how to get back.
But along the way I got hungry and found a small restaurant. I looked at the pictures and chose something, and when I went to pay, it was only like 850 yen or something, and I realized that if you go to the small local restaurants off the beaten path it is not too expensive. Then I discovered grocery stores and bakeries near my hotel and that that was cheaper than eating out. One discovery led to another.
I won't get into the hours I spent wandering around certain sections looking for a specific store and never finding it or not finding it for literally 3 or 4 hours. A few acquaintances had asked me to bring back certain items (mostly manga related) and I had spent a few hours before I left looking up stores that had that sort of thing. So I had a list of addresses to find. Little did I know that addresses in Japan make no sense in any sort of physical way -- not like a street and a number on a street. Some sort of area and a bunch of numbers that no one understands except maybe the post man. At least once I was in the area and asked a police man where a certain address was. He had no clue and had to get out his map that had the areas and numbers in a grid on it and I was only a couple blocks from where it was.
Even in Tokyo station I got lost for like 2 hours trying to find Kinkos. I had the address and no one could tell me where it was. I had no idea if it was in the station, or on a street across from the station, etc. It turns out it was in one of the many parts of the station that had some stores in it. Tokyo Station is humongous.
We (me and 2 guys from Belkin, the computer cable guys, who had had a booth next to mine at the show) also spent a bunch of time trying to find the Godzilla statue. I will tell you -- that was a let down. You expect this really tall statue. I mean, it is Godzilla. We did not find it and the Belkin guys had to run to the airport to catch their flight home (mine was the next day). So I continued to look for it. I finally found it (after eating Sushi at a cheap Sushi place -- was only like $10-12 for the plates I ate -- I was basically out of cash and they were one of the few restaurants that had a Visa logo on the door/window).
These pictures are not mine -- they are just ones I found using Google...
taken from:
http://blogs.bootsnall.com/theglobal...s/004769.shtml
but in reality
taken from:
http://shibuya1oh9.blogspot.com/2007...la-statue.html
Anyway, it is a fun place and I am glad you had a good time and made it back safely. If you have pics, please post them.
Last edited by chadbag; 03-27-10 at 01:14.
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Originally Posted by Safetyhit
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