Some Randomness in Tokyo

I wasn't sure where to group these photos and video of Tokyo, so I decided pick the most interesting photos and videos.

 Here is the west view of the city from the Tokyo WTC observation deck.

View of the east side from the same building

Here's a quick shot of a busy street when I was going up on an escalator.

 I'm standing just right outside the Imperial Gardens. 

 This train goes through several districts in Tokyo.

 Another video of me riding on the same train, except this one gives a nice view to the bay.

Odaiba Island

Odaiba is an artificial island across from central Tokyo. The train ride to the island had some great views. We didn't realize how large the island was until we crossed the bridge into the area. The views of the sea and buildings in the background were spectacular.

It's Sushi Time!

This was the moment I was waiting for when we visited Japan - amazing sushi. Of course, there were many places where we could eat sushi. We wanted the best sushi that we could find. Eventually, we found the Tsukiji Fish Market, where all of the seafood is freshly caught. Once I took down my first sushi piece, I was hooked. I ended up eating 16 pieces of sushi (Two of each variety). After having the most amazing sushi ever, I don't know if any other place can top this market! I will still eat sushi anywhere as long as it's prepared properly ;) 

Akihibara - Tech & Anime District

For people who really like to shop for the latest technology, Akihibara is the best place to go. There are also hundreds of arcades, video games, and anime stores in here. Since we had so many places to visit in Tokyo, we didn't have much time to check out the area.

This mega retail store has nine floors of any electronic device that you can think of using.

For people who love video games, this building has six floors of arcade machines. Beat that Chuck Cheese!

Several blocks were blocked off to accommodate all of the people shopping in this area. Here is a quick 360 view while of the street that I was walking on.

Asakusa District

One of the best aspects of the Asakusa is the mix of old and new buildings. Most of the districts we visited in Tokyo were very modern. It was nice to see an area that had some traditional elements. A large temple area and street market are the main places of interest. The street market had many interesting things worth buying. I almost bought a hand painting, but since Tokyo is so expensive, I changed my mind. I didn't bring enough money. Hopefully I'll get the chance to come back and buy a painting.

Shibuya Crossing

The Shibuya district in Tokyo is where the largest pedestrian crossing in the world takes place. 
We end up walking across this street after taking pictures. There are also a lot of places to shop in this area.

Time to Puffer Up!

Just when I thought I've tried every Korean cuisine that's delicious, this was definitely one of the best. I went to a fish restaurant with one of the P.E. teachers. What stands out is that there's more fish than the usual mackerel, salmon, or tuna. We ordered the swordfish and puffer fish. At first I was somewhat nervous about the puffers because they are poisonous when alive. Our server assured us that the venom is carefully removed by their well trained chefs. I was pleasantly surprised that such a unique and amazing restaurant was located so close to my place (only a 15 minute walk). The texture and seasonings for all of the dishes were top notch.

 

 

Great Moments at IAAF

Here are some videos of some of the events from the IAAF games. I apologize that some of the videos don't capture as much action of the actual events. It was difficult to watch and film at the same time, but it still gives an idea of the atmosphere during the events.

Opening ceremony: The representatives from each country carried their flags towards the center of the stadium. 

Opening ceremony: A Korean vocalist was accompanied by dancers who performed some colorful & artistic choreography.

Walter Dix won the third heat during the first round of the 100m dash.

Usain Bolt easily wins his heat in the 100m dash. He then has a little bit of fun with the Daegu cameramen.

Usain bolts to the finish line in the 200m final.

IAAF World Championships

The IAAF World Championships is a ten day track & field event that took place in Daegu this year. This event happens every two years and takes place the year before and after the Olympics. It was crazy that I happened to be in Daegu, as it's rare to even get the chance to attend this kind of international athletic event. I was very excited to see some the best athletes in the world in person!

 Everyone scrambling to get into the stadium.

 The opening ceremony looks even better after the sunset.

 A close up of the ceremony.

Usain Bolt getting interviewed after (easily) advancing to the 100m semi-final.

All of the decathlon athletes posing for the media. Team USA, Trey Hardee and Ashton Eaton earned the gold and silver medal. Korea's representative, Kun-Woo Kim, set a national record in this event, to the delight of the crowd.

 Our entire school went to the IAAF games during the week. It was awesome to see most of the stadium packed with students and teachers from other schools.

Posing with our P.E./guidance counselor and two of my students.  

Jungmun Beach

While Jungmun Beach is one of most beautiful beaches in Korea, it takes about 15-20 minutes to get down to the actual beach.  People have to hike down a cliff to access the beach, but all of the paths have a few stairs to make the way down and up a bit easier. The awesome views make this walk worth it!

 View of most of the beach from a cliff on the northwest side

 One of the paths had a place for taking photos.

View of the entire beach from the east

Here's a video I captured once we reached the actual beach.