New Year's Day At Ginza

Do you go out on New Year's Day?

New Year's Day at Ginza

In my hometown, going out on New Year's isn't really the usual - or at least in the household where I grew up. It's said that if you spend on January 1, you're more likely to spend for the rest of the year. So before the New Year, we usually stack on some things, including food, so we don't need to go out and spend.

I'm now living away from my hometown, and while I still believe in superstitions, I don't really practice this stay-at-home in the New Year. Most especially on that fine day because my partner started a new job in Ginza.

Let me take you back to January 1, 2024, New Year's day and how I spent my day in Ginza.

Contrary to what I posted in 2022, New Year's day at Ginza is so different.

IMG_6880.jpg

IMG_6881.jpg

IMG_6888.jpg

It's cold because it's winter, not snowing though. It's a normal day, the sun's brightly shining, the trains are working, and the roads and sidewalks are empty.. wait? Empty?

Yes, they're empty. Or almost.

IMG_1481.jpeg

It's interesting to see Ginza like this. Usually, it's full of people, shoppers, passers-by and tourists. On this day though, there weren't a lot of shoppers because most of the shops here, luxury brands like Gucci, Dior, etc, are closed. My partner's amazed that they're closed today. Between the two of us, he's more informative of these fashion brands.

Some stores are open though, like Zara where we did a quick shopping so my partner could wear it on his first day at work. Other brands, including Uniqlo, are closed.

IMG_6882.jpeg

IMG_6883.jpeg

Few restaurants are open to feed the hungry like me. In one restaurant, more like a big pub, a guy was giving some food to the crowd outside. It wasn't a big crowd though, unlike on regular days. I ate at Fujiya.

Fujiya

Before going home, I thought of getting takeout from Tim Ho Wan and it's on the other side of Ginza. While walking there, I marveled at the sights that I don't usually look at when I pass by.

A bullet train just passed!

This side of Ginza is where I go when friends invite me to movies but I don't usually look around - I just walk fast and focus to get to my destination. So this time, I'm taking my time.

I didn't even know there's a park here with a statue like the one I saw in Osaka. I'll probably write a post about that in the future.

Small park

The clock tower with the structure similar to the one in Osaka

This is just a small park with a big tree. I think this is a cherry blossoms tree, but I'm not so familiar with trees, so if ever it's Spring and I'll be around here, I'll check it out if my guess is right.

Intriguing tree

Instead of using the sidewalk on the main road, I opt for another route. The bright lanterns from this alley make me want to pass here. I've always been curious about this route but yikes, it's a bit creepy walking here on my own today. It seems like any time I could get kidnapped here but nothing of that sort happened. If I'm not in Japan, probably I won't feel safe.

route1.jpeg

route2.jpeg

This place is usually bustling as there are a lot of izakayas (Japanese pubs) here but I guess they decided to take a day off today.

route3.jpeg

route4.jpeg

I reached my destination, ordered and now I'm waiting. While there's a big Godzilla in the Toho Cinemas building in Kabukicho, Shinjuku, here, there's a small version of it. And guess what, there's a Toho Cinemas nearby. This is where I usually watch movies with friends because it feels nice and comfortable.

Can you see Godzilla?

My day in Ginza ended here. I went back home taking the train. I realized I wasn't in the mood for more explorations today because it's cold and my foot pain wasn't fully healed yet. What a lame reason. I'm hoping to do more walks soon though. 🙂

In the train station


Don't forget to checkout the #WednesdayWalk initiative by @tattoodjay.


Thanks for reading!
See you around! じゃあ、またね!


All photos are taken using my phone unless stated otherwise.

Sort:  

Congratulations, your post has been added to Pinmapple! 🎉🥳🍍

Did you know you have your own profile map?
And every post has their own map too!

Want to have your post on the map too?

  • Go to Pinmapple
  • Click the get code button
  • Click on the map where your post should be (zoom in if needed)
  • Copy and paste the generated code in your post (Hive only)
  • Congrats, your post is now on the map!

WOW!

Ahihi napa wow ka ba? hehe

Yes po hehhe

my days of going out for New years are well past we just treat it like any other night these days

Thanks for joining the Wednesday Walk :)
Have a great day :)

Actually, it's just really a regular night, right? 😅
Just that it's the first day so people kinda made it something special.
Have a great day too!

yeah true when I was younger i would party inthe New Year, now I sleep it in LOL

Interesting solar street lighting.

Thanks! I'm playing around with my phone and got it nice I think

It's said that if you spend on January 1, you're more likely to spend for the rest of the year.

We also believe in this but I don't follow this saying blindly. I normally don't like to work on January 1 and try to relax completely. Here, in the Netherlands, January 1 is an official holiday so everything stays closed including supermarkets. Even restaurants stay closed as well. I can assume how busy this city is during weekdays by seeing the streets and buildings. Must be nice to see such a busy city so calm and lonely.

In here too, it's an official holiday. But some still have work to do, especially hotels, convenience stores, etc.
I was actually surprised the stores were closed on January 1st, I figured they must have a sale going on. Lucky bags are popular in Japan, it's a discounted bag with lots of goodies in it and it's being sold in stores. It's usually sold around New Years, so I thought shops are open to sell these.

Congratulations @wittyzell! You received a personal badge!

You raised your Hive Power every day of the month! Enjoy better curation reward and more to say in governance.
Participate in the next Power Up month to get another one!

You can view your badges on your board and compare yourself to others in the Ranking

Check out our last posts:

Be ready for the February edition of the Hive Power Up Month!
Hive Power Up Day - February 1st 2024

Congratulations @wittyzell! You have completed the following achievement on the Hive blockchain And have been rewarded with New badge(s)

You received more than 75000 upvotes.
Your next target is to reach 80000 upvotes.

You can view your badges on your board and compare yourself to others in the Ranking
If you no longer want to receive notifications, reply to this comment with the word STOP

Check out our last posts:

Be ready for the February edition of the Hive Power Up Month!
Hive Power Up Day - February 1st 2024

We're learning places in Japan through your posts hehe..
!LADY

View or trade LOH tokens.


@jane1289, you successfully shared 0.1000 LOH with @wittyzell and you earned 0.1000 LOH as tips. (3/10 calls)

Use !LADY command to share LOH! More details available in this post.

I'm also learning 😅

walang tao e. kala mo kakatapos lng ng zombie apocalypse e. new years day nga pala, siguro mga naputukan~ 😆

get well soon witty!

HAHAHA wag naman ung zombie apocalypse grabe shuh oh

hala ka nicest tan.awn walay mga fersons

Yes ambot asa sila~ ang uban nag HIS tour HAHHAA

huuuuy hahaha tara his tour 😆

Hiya, @ybanezkim26 here, just swinging by to let you know that this post made it into our Honorable Mentions in Travel Digest #2136.

Your post has been manually curated by the @pinmapple team. If you like what we're doing, please drop by to check out all the rest of today's great posts and consider supporting other authors like yourself and us so we can keep the project going!

Become part of our travel community:

wow i love the way you handle light, awesome.

I really wanted to visit Japan this year, I hope. Nakaka motivate yung pictures hehe. Thank you for this!😇