This year we heard some great things about the Christmas lights that had been set up around the Roppongi mid town shopping centre. We decide that it would be good to get there early (before it got to cold) and grab something to eat after seeing the lights.
On our way to the area where the lights were set up we passed through the fore court of the shopping centre (one of the photos shows that it wasn’t that late when we got there and the second shows the crowds). When we went inside and saw the queue for getting to the garden where the “good” light show was we decided to give it a miss. The queue was very long and very very slow moving. Note to self, need to get to the Christmas lights earlier next year.
On the way home we went down past the Roppongi Mori tower and looked at their Christmas lights. As with last year they made great use of the water feature in the middle of the park as well as the streetscape.
3:38 PM |
Category:
Christmas
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The Tokyo Sky Tree Tower has recently become the tallest structure in Japan and when completed will be 634 metres tall. On a recent walk through a suburb close to the base of the Tokyo sky tree this shot presented itself. Construction is not expected to be completed until late in 2012 which means I may get a chance to go to the observation deck and look out over Tokyo before I leave to return to Australia.
Winter has just officially started but around Tokyo there are still some amazing autumn colours to be seen. Reds, yellows and oranges all contrasted against the buildings and roads of Tokyo it’s quite an amazing sight.
9:34 AM |
Category:
Living in Japan
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We decided that we should visit Disney again before it got to cold and as it turns out we chose the week before Halloween to visit. We thought that visiting in the middle of the week may be better because there would be less people, we thought wrong.
We arrived just in time to find a spot to sit and watch the Japanese inspired Disney Halloween inspired parade. There are times I feel very much out of place in Japan (believe it or not) and this was one of them. Every person in the crowd knew the music they were playing and they knew the choreographed moves that went along with it. It was a little like being in the middle of a cult (apparently).
While the costumes of the performers were spectacular with skeletons, mad hatter tea parties and ghosts the character that was the most impressive was not in the actual parade but one of the people sitting near us dressed up as a pirate. The pirate was actually a woman, fake beard and all. It wasn’t until we spoke to her that you realized that he was a she.
There was, of course, no expense spared with the decorations around the theme park including lots and lots of fake pumpkins.
Though again the highlight of the day was the way that the Japanese dress up to enjoy a day out. There were probably half the people there dressed up. As an example there was this group of friends dressed as their favorite characters including Snow White and Chip n’ Dale but the group that caught the eye was the dozen or so mother who had bought their children to the park. One of them stood in front of the “Jolly Trolley” and I couldn't miss the opportunity to take the photo.
After eight years of regularly visiting the city of Rome for work my time here has come to an end. On this last visit I re-visited a couple of the sights that I like the most as well as had a clear view of the fountains within the Piazza Navona for the first time in 4 years since the restoration has finally finished (including the removal of scaffolding).
The weather also came to party and the last afternoon turned on some spectacular light for an overview of the city from one of my favourite vantage points, Garibaldi hill.
Night time Piazza
View from Garibaldi hill
One of my favourite streets
Piazza Navona
Intricate church
Spanish steps
St Peters
St Peters forecourt
St Peters forecourt
War memorial at night
10:35 AM |
Category:
Rome
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Located a short train ride in the hills outside of Rome is the ancient hill town of Tivoli. There are several major tourist attractions in the area including Hadrian villa (built around 100AD), Villa d’Este and the Villa Gregoriana.
A Tivoli street
On a recent trip to Rome I took a morning out to visit the area around Tivoli. On this trip I managed to visit the Villa d’Este and the Villa Gregoriana. After leaving the train station and walking down the hill toward town you come across the Villa Gregoriana, an impressive park set in a gorge with a 100m waterfall. The waterfall is as a result of a tunnel dug, on the orders of the Pope of the time, through the hills over 200 years ago to divert a river that repeatedly flooded the town. The waters flow into an old sink hole and the whole area would be spectacular when in flood.
The hundred metre cascade
Tivoli ruin
The sink hole
View across the valley
10:14 AM |
Category:
Rome
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Continuing from the Villa Gregoriana you pass through Tivoli and end up at the gates of the Villa d’Este.
Built in the 1550s for Cardinals from the Catholic Church it was apparently intended for entertaining and the actual villa contains large rooms with views across the valley. While the villas scale is impressive it is the gardens that take your breath away. The entire garden area is terraced and contains a huge array of water features most of which take your breath away from the grand Fountain of the Dragons and Hundred Fountains to a miniature watery reproduction of Rome. The centrepiece, the gigantic Water Organ Fountain, cascades down a huge drop into a series of gentle pools.
Villa d'Este reflections
View over the gardens and back towards Roma
The hundred metre fountain
Organ fountain
Mosaic fountain and villa
The last fountain in the garden
10:10 AM |
Category:
Rome
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In the city of Rome there are some strange things to be seen like in the middle of the night a couple of homeless guys playing chess in the middle of the Piazza Nouvana
Or the woman on crutches hopping on her scooter.
And flying home experiencing snow and the need to de-ice the plane prior to takeoff.
10:00 AM |
Category:
Rome
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On my last trip to Rome I had my first visit to Saint Pauls Basilica which is of a similar scale to Saint Peters (inside) but a little way off the usual tourist routes (it has also just finished being restored and this was the first time in 5 years that I had driven past it without seeing scaffolding).
The basilica was founded in the 370’s and covers the burial place of Saint Paul. There has been almost continual work on the basilica since then including extensive remodeling following a fire in 1823 and an explosion in 1891.
The inside of the basilica is impressive and due to the fact that it is away from the main tourist areas it’s easy to get around and there are no queues.
St Pauls tomb
The apse mosaic was made by Venetian artists. Christ is flanked by the Apostles Peter, Paul, Andrew and Luke.
9:57 AM |
Category:
Rome
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