Garuda Indonesia Colours Magazine February 2020 | Page 61

Travel / Tokyo
3
1. Shinjuku’s busy Yasukuni-
dori Avenue junction (Shinjuku
Nishiguchi) with the colours and
lights of Kabukicho district
beyond.
2–3. On Sundays, Shinjuku-dori
is closed to traffic and becomes
the domain of the shopper.
4. Kabuto is one of many tiny
izakayas (casual cafés) on what is
officially known as ‘Memory
Lane’ (Omoide Yokocho).
4
 e stadium is just a 20-minute walk
Th
from the thumping heart of Shinjuku, and
the most direct route is also the sweetest:
straight through Shinjuku Gyoen.
2
That, by the way, is how many
spectators fill the New National
Stadium, which will host the
Olympic Games' opening and
closing ceremonies, as well as
the track-and-field events. (entrance ¥100, or less than
US$1) is officially the ‘national
garden’, but in many ways – and
in the spirit of the Olympic
Games! – it is wholeheartedly
international with traditional
Japanese, English country-style,
and formal French gardens. Two
quaint teahouses serve green tea
accompanied by a classic
Japanese sweet (¥700, around
$6) and are a charming way to
spend an unhurried half-hour.
The stadium is just a 20-minute
walk from the thumping heart of
Shinjuku, and the most direct
route is also the sweetest:
straight through Shinjuku
Gyoen. This enchanting park To get a sense of the geography
of Shinjuku, and to see how the
park and stadium fit into Tokyo’s
vast ecosystem, head to the top
of the twin-towered Tokyo
Metropolitan Government
The statistics suggest that at
rush hour, when passengers are
squeezed into already jam-packed
trains by white-gloved guards,
68,000 people will probably pass
through in under 15 minutes.
59