Live, Terry/Ohio, India to Signapore, Silver Moon Rising, Pix’s!

[jpalbny]

Glad you're enjoying Singapore, Terry. A fun place to soak up the tropical heat! Looks very familiar - thanks for taking me back.

[TLCOhio]

On 3/1/2024 at 7:56 PM, jpalbny said:

Glad you're enjoying Singapore, Terry. A fun place to soak up the tropical heat! Looks very familiar - thanks for taking me back.

 

YES, Singapore is fun and I have many more visuals to share from this "Lion City".  This includes from the Raffles Hotel, plus, plus.  

 

BUT, where are we now?  Do these three visuals give a hint from last night, our first here?

 

 

 

It's Tokyo!!  Arrived late yesterday afternoon after flying from Singapore.  This includes riding their subway and train system with our expert guide, Kimi.   Much more to share from India, the cruise, etc.  But, busy, exploring Tokyo and Japan during the next two days.  First time in Japan.  Fascinating city and areas.  

 

THANKS!  Enjoy!  Terry in Ohio   

 

 

Early 2020, many visuals and details from New Zealand/South Pacific in going from Auckland to French Polynesia.  This includes Bora Bora, Fiji, NZ experiences, etc:  Live/blog:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2735732-live-terryohio-“new”-regatta-south-pacificnz-pix’s/

[TLCOhio]

Just three "quickies" from Japan, yesterday.  Much more later.  Yes, we saw some early Cherry Blossoms!!  Fun and exciting.  

 

 

 

THANKS!  Enjoy!  Terry in Ohio

[irvington]

I love Kamakura!

[TLCOhio]

On 3/4/2024 at 2:47 AM, irvington said:

I love Kamakura!

 

YES, Irvington wins the prize!!  Those Cherry Blossoms, temple, etc., visuals are from super wonderful Kamakura.  We LOVED it, too.  So glad we spent Sunday there, escaped the Tokyo crowds on Marathon day, in the subways and on the trains, etc.  

 

As the photo below shows, we are now at Tokyo's Haneda Airport (HND), south of the main city, in the Japan Airline's Business Lounge awaiting a boarding of our 10:55 am flight to Dallas/Ft. Worth that will arrive in the USA before we depart Japan.  

 

That's thanks to crossing the International Date Line in an eastward direction. We are getting an "extra day" out of our "Around the World in 31 Days" adventure.  

 

Much to share from yesterday in Tokyo, including their incredible market area, temples, gardens, etc.  Took over 500 pictures yesterday, plus many more to share from earlier in Japan.  AND, many more visuals from earlier in India, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Malaysia and Singapore.  Here is one of the last pictures captured last night after dinner in the Ginza District near our Gates by Hulic Hotel in this prime location.  

 

Stay tuned!  It ain't over yet, good or bad.  Don't be shy with any and all questions about the Silver Moon, these various countries, etc.  

 

THANKS!  Enjoy!  Terry in Ohio

 

Canada 2022/2023: Scenic visuals, details from Canada Maritimes (Nova Scotia, New Brunswick, Prince Edward Island, Cape Breton Island).  Plus, new from Aug. 2023, exploring historic/charming Quebec City.    Visual/Info Summaries:

www.flickr.com/photos/196555480@N08/albums

[TLCOhio]

Appreciate the nice follow-ups and ratings shared by many.  Like the likes!!  Will be sharing much more. If you like some additional "eye candy", stay tuned.     

 

Checked on the Silver Moon this am and saw that they are docked south of Ho Chi Minh City on their way to eventually being in Hong Kong and Tokyo.  Good luck to the great staff and passengers on this ship.  

 

We got home late afternoon yesterday.  Nice to sleep in our own beds last night!!  And, my sleep cycle was a fairly-normal, nearly eight-hours.  Amazing given our schedule leaving Tokyo's HND airport late morning yesterday and arriving in Dallas early morning same day, ahead of schedule.  Super enjoyed Japan Airline's Business Class service, food and set-up.  

 

But, was surprised that the DFW airport seems to be showing its age.  At one time DFW was THE airport of the future.  After Singapore's great airport and being in other facilities internationally, the DFW airport need some upgrades and focus on the future.  Fair or unfair?   The flights were full and busy, but major investments are needed to upgrade facilities and catch-up after the challenging Covid period affected the economics and logistics of international travel/standards. 

 

THANKS!  Enjoy!  Terry in Ohio   

 

Barcelona/Med: June 2011, with stops in Villefranche, ports near Pisa and Rome, Naples, Kotor, Venice and Dubrovnik. Great visuals with key highlights, tips, etc. Live/blog now at 258,103 views.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/1362155-solstice-livefirst-timer-reportspix’s-italycroatian-june-7-19/

[TLCOhio]

Before completing the updates, details and visuals from Tokyo/Japan, India, etc., I wanted to give a major shout-out and sharing for the famed Raffles Hotel in Singapore.  

 

History and class?  Both are there in style and standards at the Raffles.  It is right across the street from the JW Marriott South Beach where we stayed for two nights after the end of our Silver Moon cruise from Mumbai.  

 

With all of the trees, greenery, etc., in Singapore and among a see of dramatic high-rises, you almost miss noticing the Raffles.  BUT, when you walk by and see the perfectly-maintained white stone walls, structures and surroundings, it stands out with its traditional, classic-styling and design.  PLUS, everything has been perfectly maintained at the highest, best levels.  "Amazing" is one wonder to describe the Raffles from walking around, seeing its various high-end shops, sampling its perfectly maintain grounds and structures, etc.  

 

Need proof, evidence and visual samples?  See below.  

 

Here's a little history on the Raffles.  This British Colonial-style hotel in Singapore was first established by two Armenian brothers in 1887.  It was named after the British founder of modern Singapore, Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles.  It is now owned by a Qatar-based, government-owned hospitality company that has the "deep-pockets" to have upgraded and maintained such a lavish, historic property.  Raffles Hotel Singapore started as a privately-owned beach house built in the early 1830's when Beach Road was located along the waterside before this area started doing all of its landfill to create added building areas. It started as a ten-room hotel, with added wings being built.  And, more!!  The Raffles was a favorite spot of celebrities such as author Somerset Maugham.  The Long Bar is notable for being where the national cocktail, the Singapore Sling, was invented,  Our skilled guide, Danny, shared with us the details for how and why this drink was created.  Great, fun story/background!!

 

Would we stay here?  Much would depend on cost.  Plus, this hotel not being a high-rise, is fairly sprawled and spread out.  Also, much of the charm of the Raffles are its attractive grounds and landscaping.  BUT, given Singapore's heat and humidity, can those be enjoyed as fully when the weather can be so challenging?  Glad we got to walk around and sample this "LEGEND".  We considered having dinner outside here, but it was a little too hot that day. Hope these pictures give a decent taste for the CLASS that is present at the Raffles.  

 

For those who have visited the Raffles, does this bring back memories?  Any other Raffles stories, details to share?

 

THANKS!  Enjoy!  Terry in Ohio 

 

Norway Coast/Fjords/Arctic Circle cruise from Copenhagen, July 2010, to the top of Europe. Scenic visuals with key tips. Live/blog at 250,799 views.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/1172051-livesilver-cloud-norway-coastfjords-july-1-16-reports/

 

Here is a view of the front part of the Raffles, plus the second visual shows the wonderfully charming uniform and warm greeting provided when pulling up to this historic hotel.:

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These next Raffles visuals provide a sampling of the ground, greenery, design details, etc.  In the first picture at the top right, you can see part of the JW Marriott South Beach that towers over the Raffles.  As shown, this hotel is only, at its tallest, three-stories high.  Kind of "short" compared to the Marina Bay Sands and the many other luxury brands in Singapore?:

 

 

 

 

Here is another, closer look at the front of the Raffles with its traditional, British Colonial architecture and design.:

[Lois R]

Hi Terry, beautiful pictures and that hotel looks simply amazing!

[Tothesunset]

We had an odd experience at Raffles in 2005. 

 

We went to have a look round and found they were serving afternoon tea. Well, that's got to be worth an hour or two of our time. Anyway, we asked the person allocating seats if we could have afternoon tea, that we hadn't booked and they seemed only half full.  There was no further conversation. 

 

The guy called security and we were encouraged to leave the premises. No explanation. Really, really odd. 

[jpalbny]

20 minutes ago, Tothesunset said:

We had an odd experience at Raffles in 2005. 

 

We went to have a look round and found they were serving afternoon tea. Well, that's got to be worth an hour or two of our time. Anyway, we asked the person allocating seats if we could have afternoon tea, that we hadn't booked and they seemed only half full.  There was no further conversation. 

 

The guy called security and we were encouraged to leave the premises. No explanation. Really, really odd. 

 

Your reputation precedes you, I see! Was.the maitre d' a frequent reader of Cruise Critic, perhaps? 

[Tothesunset]

19 minutes ago, jpalbny said:

 

Your reputation precedes you, I see! Was.the maitre d' a frequent reader of Cruise Critic, perhaps? 

I suppose he couldn't have known that the gun wasn't loaded. 

[MrsWaldo]

13 hours ago, Tothesunset said:

We had an odd experience at Raffles in 2005. 

 

We went to have a look round and found they were serving afternoon tea. Well, that's got to be worth an hour or two of our time. Anyway, we asked the person allocating seats if we could have afternoon tea, that we hadn't booked and they seemed only half full.  There was no further conversation. 

 

The guy called security and we were encouraged to leave the premises. No explanation. Really, really odd. 

IME 

 

not an unusual attitude for the hotel 

 

Slightly earlier than 05 we were in house guests with a 7 and 11yo.  Had exited via lobby into a limo to meet with a local friend/dig (Mr W was in long pants ). When we returned by taxi as it was during swine flu and the driver had taken I’ll, we were told no tourists at TeaTime without a booking. Upon production of our key, we were told, normally kids don’t stay here.  No apology, just a shrug.

 

Stayed a bit later as a solo female and was asked to leave long bar…..not going to say that assumption was wrong but let’s just say  they decided to ESCORT me out 

 

2015 we debarked and went to airport.  Another guest on same cruise had identical luggage and we were almost last off.  Picked up what we thought were our bags ( not many to choose from) and headed to airport. 
 

Realised at check in the bags were not ours ( so 20 mins later).  Raffles insisted we needed to drive them back because their driver would not have made a mistake …. Thankfully Silversea land sorted it and got our bags to our flight and the others back to Raffles.

 

In Sing in a few weeks and only one hotel didn’t figure….service history and $3000Aud per night.  Nope 

 

 

 

[drron29]

And you get a very much better Singapore Sling at any other Raffles Bar than the Long Bar. Strictly Tourists only.

[agape01]

@TLCOhio

Great to know that you had a wonderful time in the Lion City. 

Hope that the pre cruise research helped. 👍

[les37b]

Hey there Terry. Not sure how, but completely missed your Live thread until today. (I think I must have glanced over thinking it was your finance thread!) 😵‍💫  Anyhoo.......

 

Just had a quick glance for now. We are off to Bali and a cruise to Bangkok in a few days and looking forward to a Singapore revisit. Annoyingly we depart at 5pm - and have an overnight in the container port in Jakarta instead! So will remain in the Marina Bay area only - but may venture to Raffles again and this time have an OTT priced Sling this time! Went to Japan last year and fully intend to do an overland Shinkansen tour. Missed the blossom in the south (too late) and in the Hakaido (too early!) Maybe next time.

 

Will have a read through and further comment in a bit. 🖕

[les37b]

On 2/16/2024 at 1:40 PM, DavyWavey70 said:

Jeffrey is just the best. Is he still doing the Copacabana? 

 

Jeffrey fell off the stage on our Japan Muse cruse during the crew talent show. He really took the "break a leg" thing too far. He was an OTT "Tina Turner" - and was miming "Simply the best". He attempted to jump off the stage and do the splits, but twisted his ankle on landing. It was a show stopper and eventually stretchered away. Luckily no serious injury and he was back in Dolce Vita 2 days after.

 

Ok, have caught up Terry. A belated thanks for your usual great sharing Terry. Great narrative and photos i think we all come to expect!

 

During my YT research for my trip next week, For a future trip we had pencilled in flights to KL, then on to Langkowi, Phucket and Phi Phi for a return trip next year. KL especially has so much to offer and I know we'll get the frustration you had from Port Klang when our ship arrives. I think we've decided not to take the included KL highlights tour and just get a taxi, then using taxis to get around for the short time there. Funnily I was there in 1984 - and hated it. The sky line wasn't there then and the thing I remembered was the sewage stench everywhere - which I learned later was Durian fruit! I remember very well the the cricket pitch and railway station. (I back packed from Singapore to Chang Mai, stopping in numerous places inc Penang and Koh Samui (No airport then - and braved the night ferry and risk of pirates!)

 

Has it whetted your appetite to return and explore a bit more? I've 2 in the planning pipeline land trips for Malaysia and Japan. 

 

 

Edited March 8 by les37b

[MrsWaldo]

10 hours ago, drron29 said:

And you get a very much better Singapore Sling at any other Raffles Bar than the Long Bar. Strictly Tourists only.

I was waiting for a female friend who lived in Sing to arrive and I hadn't ordered a drink.  We were meeting there purely because coming into the hotel as a non guest it is the easiest place to meet. 

 

I had 2 nights of in-house dining, both of which I cancelled.  Singapore is a foodie delight, and I was away for the first time newly widowed, so was just testing the eating  out alone and thought the hotel would be a good start.  The bar experience really highlighted biased as there were plenty of solo men around..... 

[les37b]

13 hours ago, les37b said:

 

Jeffrey fell off the stage on our Japan Muse cruse during the crew talent show. He really took the "break a leg" thing too far. He was an OTT "Tina Turner" - and was miming "Simply the best". He attempted to jump off the stage and do the splits, but twisted his ankle on landing. It was a show stopper and eventually stretchered away. Luckily no serious injury and he was back in Dolce Vita 2 days after.

I got the song wrong… but found a short video I took and uploaded to YT

 

 

[TLCOhio]

On 3/7/2024 at 2:27 PM, Tothesunset said:

We had an odd experience at Raffles in 2005. We went to have a look round and found they were serving afternoon tea. Well, that's got to be worth an hour or two of our time. Anyway, we asked the person allocating seats if we could have afternoon tea, that we hadn't booked and they seemed only half full.  There was no further conversation. The guy called security and we were encouraged to leave the premises. No explanation. Really, really odd. 

 

Appreciate these great comments and follow-ups from our UK friend, Mrs. Waldo, Les, JP, etc.  YES, the Raffles is a unique experience, but much has changed with that hotel since 2005.  Different owners now, intense competition in Singapore for the high-end, luxury customers, etc.  Practically every "Big Name" hotel is there with offerings that are amazing and facilities to boggle the mind (and wallet). 

 

Part of our challenge last week was that the Raffles hotel is so super upscale and classy that my wife did not believe we were "dressed up" enough to do that much on the inside.  We are told that the Afternoon Tea is wonderful there.  Though their windows, we could see it being offered, but we did not seek to try that experience.  Given the heat and humidity in Singapore, getting too dressed up in long pants, nicer shirts, etc., can be challenging.  We found Singapore to be an awesome and unique mix of "old" and the NEW!! 

 

Am getting somewhat caught up and hope this weekend and early next week to continue updating more from our adventures, visuals in Japan, India, on the Silver Moon, etc.  Your patience and interest has been great.  

 

Keep it coming with any and all questions, comments and sharing.  

 

THANKS!  Enjoy!  Terry in Ohio

 

[les37b]

12 hours ago, TLCOhio said:

 

my wife did not believe we were "dressed up" enough to do that much on the inside.  We are told that the Afternoon Tea is wonderful there.  Though their windows, we could see it being offered, but we did not seek to try that experience.  Given the heat and humidity in Singapore, getting too dressed up in long pants, nicer shirts, etc., can be challenging.  

 

Have to admit, that was something I was wondering about. Obviously SS dress code is something that’s never ending on here, but during the day, shorts and Polo shirt is pretty standard. Not sure why during the day, Raffles should be anything different.
 

I’m certainly not going to carry with me a change of clothes to go in and as it was a “time permitting” visit, maybe I’ll just have that sling from the rooftop bar in Level33 and enjoy the views of the Marina Bay Area. 

 

 

[TLCOhio]

On 3/8/2024 at 3:37 PM, MrsWaldo said:

Singapore is a foodie delight.

 

YES, Mrs. Waldo summarizes correctly that Singapore is a "foodie delight".  Many, many options for ALL types of dining.  Many are very "high-end".  BUT, however, some of those top dining places can run $200 to $400 per person.  Rather high in price.  That's part of the challenge with Singapore.  The "bargains" are not as easy to find for hotels, food, etc.  

 

More visuals samples below from Singapore.  More to come, plus catching up for man of our enjoyable moments from Japan, India, etc.  

 

THANKS!  Enjoy!  Terry in Ohio   

 

Sydney to NZ/Auckland Adventure, live/blog 2014 sampling/details with many exciting visuals and key highlights.  On page 23, post #571, see a complete index for all of the pictures, postings.  Now at 249,338 views.

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/1896175-solstice-live-australianzhawaii-many-pix’s-jan-20-feb-3/

 

Many architectural and design elements are still there in Singapore going back to their British Colonial days, plus we are pictured in the middle of townhouses in the Chinatown area.:

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Chinatown in Singapore offers a wide variety of architecture and history going back to the "old days" in this City-State.  The fourth picture below show a model as to how Chinatown looked in the earlier days when this temple visited was located right on the waterfront where ships were unloaded, etc.:

 

 

 

 

 

The Marina Bay Sands and its nearby buildings and museum offerings illustrate a fast-changing skyline.  To the right above my shoulder you can see a round, black ball.  Understand that is an Apple store.  Clearly, Signapore has it "all"!:

[TLCOhio]

On 3/8/2024 at 5:39 AM, agape01 said:

Great to know that you had a wonderful time in the Lion City.   Hope that the pre cruise research helped. 👍

 

Agreed with above that doing pre-cruise research and planning for Singapore is vital.  Why?  There are so many different options to consider in Singapore that you cannot just go off of our ship, walk around, sample and understand it "ALL" that is there and available.  

 

Shopping is big, BIG in Singapore.  We did not do much of that as we do not need to stuff more in our overloaded suit cases.  Plus, we personally already have lots of "stuff" and we are trying to do some "down-sizing".  As you go around in Singapore, you will see the big, expected names for the various luxury brands . . . and more!!  Our skilled guide, Danny L., told us many of those shopping in these various stores are flying in from China where such "name" goods are highly valued and desired.  

 

THANKS!  Enjoy!  Terry in Ohio 

 

Venice: Loving It & Why??!!  Is one of your future desires or past favorites? See these many visual samples for its great history and architecture.  This posting is now at 111,649 views.

 

From Singapore's Chinatown, here are some more visuals from the temple we visited.  Second is a picture of my wife with guide Danny L. who explained how a door was painted with military general to scare off the "evil spirits" and protect this place of worship.:

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On the outside of this Chinatown temple, one wall was decorated with a graphic to show how this area looked before landfill expanded Singapore.  As noted, this part of Chinatown used to be right along the waterfront where ship were unloaded.:

[TLCOhio]

 

From the Wall Street Journal yesterday, they had this headline: “Can a Boring City Become Cool—With a Little Help From Taylor Swift?" with this sub-headline: "Singapore is trying to shake off its reputation for being dull and uptight.”

 

Here are a few of their reporting highlights: “When it comes to fun, Singapore’s government is super serious.  For decades, the manufacturing and trading hub had been known for being a city that was all work and no play. One quip went that Singapore was 'the world’s only shopping mall with a seat at the United Nations.'  Now Singapore is trying to shake off its staid reputation by positioning itself as a cultural hub and using a favored tool: pop concerts.”

 

While in Singapore Feb. 28-March 2, we caught a little of the "Taylor Swift excitement".  While doing the evening light show on Feb. 28, the sound track was her songs and she supposedly was doing that "live" as a warm-up for her six, sold-out concerts that happened in early March.  

 

Here are more details from this WSJ news profile: "Singapore’s pop-star push is the latest in a long-term effort to make a city known for its efficiency, cleanliness and low income taxes a little more lively. For decades, Singapore has said that to attract global talent and forestall emigration, it had to emulate cities like Barcelona and become known as a rich cultural destination."

 

Full story at:

https://www.wsj.com/arts-culture/books/can-a-boring-city-become-coolwith-a-little-help-from-taylor-swift-2de2628c?mod=arts-culture_lead_pos3

 

THANKS!  Enjoy!  Terry in Ohio

 

Amazon River-Caribbean 2015 adventure live/blog starting in Barbados on the Silver Cloud for 26 days. Many visuals from this amazing river and Caribbean Islands (Dutch ABC's, St. Barts, Dominica, Grenada, San Juan, etc.).  Now at 74,510 views:

https://boards.cruisecritic.com/topic/2076101-live-amazon-river-caribbean-many-pix’s-terryohio/

 

Here are a few more visuals from our evening at the Gardens by the Bay and their famed night light show, the nearby Marina Bay Sands hotel, etc..:

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At night on Marina Bay, here are some added views of the Fullerton Hotel, the Singapore Lion, etc.:

 

 

From the 18th floor pool level of our JW Marriott South Beach hotel, here are a couple of varied views of Singapore's amazing and soaring architecture.:

 

[TLCOhio]

Working this weekend to finish up a few more visuals from amazing Singapore and then to wrap up more from Japan.  Appreciate your patience and interest.  

 

This live/blog is now over 10,000 views.  Appreciate all who have dropped by, made comments, asked questions, etc.  Keep it coming!!  Love sharing more.  

 

THANKS!  Enjoy!  Terry in Ohio

 

Athens & Greece: Visuals, details from two visits in a city and nearby with great history, culture and architecture.  Now at 63,929 views.

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1101008

 

Food and dining delights are big part of the appeal for Singapore.  As a part of our JW Mariott hotel complex, they had a dining option called the Beach Road Kitchen.  Here was one of many, many seafood offering for this huge, massive buffet with such an amazing variety of options.  Lots of excellent dining treats to enjoy on this evening!!  See more details at: https://www.beachroadkitchen.sg.  :

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Nearby to our hotel were some various historic, smaller-scale streets that have preserved much of the charm and character from Singapore's Colonial days.  This first visual gives a sampling.  Fun to walk along and explore here.  We dined for lunch at a wonderful Italian place called Garibaldi.  Very classy and good.  Below is my tasty seafood dish that I enjoyed.:

 

 

 

We were in Singapore a little after the Chinese New Year celebration.  BUT, a few colorful decorations were still up.  Fun!!:

 

Here is a short video sampling for the lights, music and "show" while our boat was on Marina Bay in front of the Sands Hotel/Casino.:

 

[TLCOhio]

Now, I am shifting gears to provide more details as to what we saw and did during our two and a half days in Japan.  In using American Airlines Frequent Flyer miles, our best option for returning home was flying back through Tokyo.  And, I was able to set it up to do the added time in Japan.  Like for India, Sri Lanka, Malaysia and Singapore, this was our first-time visiting for all of these areas.  

 

We had excellent private guides for these 2.5 days in Japan and that made a huge, positive difference.  Navigating Tokyo's complex subway, train, etc., infrastructure can be challenging.  Glad we did not have to figure out for all of these "ins-and-out" for these transportation systems.  

 

THANKS!  Enjoy!  Terry in Ohio

 

AFRICA?!!?: Fun, interesting visuals, plus travel details from this early 2016 live/blog. At 55,884 views. Featuring Cape Town, South Africa’s coast, Mozambique, Victoria Falls/Zambia and Botswana's famed Okavango Delta.

www.boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=2310337

 

As one last posting from Singapore, here is an exterior view of our JW Marriott South Beach hotel.  Great location and this luxury hotel was nicely connected at its lower levels to the subway system, shopping, dining, etc.  This hotel design is unique, but as you can see below, they preserved and utilized some older building in front of the hotel to connect back to and tie-in with the earlier Colonial periods of Singapore.:

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As captured by our excellent guide, Kumi, my wife and I are pictured in front of the massive Tokyo Station during our first evening in Japan.  Second is a visual showing the massive size of this rail/subway location that is the busiest station in Japan for scheduled trains.  More than 4,000 trains are arriving and departing daily.  This station first opened in 1914.:

 

 

For dinner on our first Tokyo night, we went to a hip, youth-focused area with a wide variety of shopping and dining options.  For variety and a change-up, we had Vietnam food in Tokyo.  Fun, interesting and tasty as shown below, including a beer from Japan.: