I’m a shrine-lover, Rachel will report this time.
I took a half day trip with a family from Malaysia. It was the first visit to Japan for them. The father cannot walk, so he rented a “luggie” which is an electronic wheelchair in Japan. The mother can walk slowly with a stick.
I had never seen the “Boogie-Woogie Luggie” before. I felt it was compact, but powerful and it looked cool.
The course of this trip was
Their hotel in Shinjuku Shinjuku Station Harajuku Station → Meiji Shrine (Meiji Jingu) Takeshita Street.
From Shinjuku to Harajuku
We entered the Shinjuku Station from the South Exit and asked a station staff for assistance. The station was so busy because of it was Sunday, so we waited for about 20 minutes until a station staff was available.
There was an elevator just after going through a ticket gate and we used it to head for the platform of the Yamanote Line.
A station staff used a step eliminating slope to help the father on a “luggie” board the Yamanote Line train at the platform.
Another station staff waited for us at Harajuku Station and he prepared the slope for the father.
We used an elevator to come out of the Omote-sando Exit of Harajuku Station.
Meiji Shrine
You can see “Jingu Bridge” (Jingu-Bashi) with an eye-catching stone monument just after coming out of the ticket gate.
We walked on a graveled path for 30 minutes after crossing the bridge and passing through a Torii(the main gate of the shrine) and finally reached the main building of the shrine. It takes only 15 minutes for young and fit people, though. This year is the 96th anniversary year for the Meiji Shrine. It enshrines the Meiji Emperor and Empress Shoken. The gravels are relatively small, so there is no problem for electric wheelchair users. However, a little strength may be required for manual wheelchair users.
Takeshita Street
After visiting the Meiji Shrine, we went to “Takeshita Street” which is where young people go.
The street was so crowded with people. We tried to force our way through the street, but we ended up turning aside from the street after proceeding about 50 meters.
I said good-bye to the family there.
It was about a 2 hour-trip after leaving their hotel.
I really enjoyed the time with them in the fine weather.
Please refer to the pages below to get more information about the Meiji Shrine and Takeshita Street.
