This article is one of our DS Does Japan series from our recent trip to the land of the rising sun, courtesy of Toyota Australia. Click here for the whole set!
A few days into our trip we opted to go for a stroll through the famous Harajuku district for a bit of culture and sightseeing, as well as neighbouring Aoyama for car spotting.
As we headed down once again to Shibuya Train Station, I spotted this statue of a dog, and asked Steve from Toyota what it was. He explained that it was in remembrance of a dog that would meet it’s owner every day after work at the train station. However, tragically the owner passed away at work on day. The dog returned to the station every day for nearly another decade.
From Wikipedia: “In 1924, Hidesaburō Ueno, a professor in the agriculture department at the University of Tokyo, took in Hachikō, a golden brown Akita, as a pet. During his owner’s life, Hachikō greeted him at the end of each day at the nearby Shibuya Station. The pair continued their daily routine until May 1925, when Professor Ueno did not return. The professor had suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and died, never returning to the train station where Hachikō was waiting. Each day for the next nine years, nine months and fifteen days, Hachikō awaited Ueno’s return, appearing precisely when the train was due at the station. Hachikō died on March 8, 1935, and was found on a street in Shibuya.”
Downshift amongst the hustle and bustle of Japan.
But first, brekky in Shibuya!
Even here there were interesting characters to see.
And then we were in Harajuku. While I don’t like the car or the style of modification, check out the sticker down the side. Not such a strange concept, right?
This Regal was cool as heck.
Bit of FD love.
Toyota Crown Athlete with TRD bits.
There are just so many cool cars in Japan. Like this little Citreon.
This is the main walking street in Harajuku, packed with funky shops, things and people.
I love the colours!
But I want to know how far away Mt. Everest is in steps!
The place has so much character, I instantly fell in love.
This LS500h is bagged and supercharged with a HKS GT kit. It’s also got an AIMGAIN kit and Lorinser RS8 wheels. More pics of it on RA64FREDDY!
Eventually we strolled into exclusive Aoyama, which was just as gorgeous, to be greeted by some high-end cars. Sweet S class also on Lorinsers.
And then I lost my mind. This Hako cruised past in traffic, but was past us by the time we spotted it. I literally dropped everything and jumped across traffic and sprinted after it down the middle of the street, luckily with a long lens attached. It was impossibly cool with bolt on flares, RS Watanabes and headlight covers. Check out that sticker on the rear. The want is strong.
Right across the road was a really cool concept store by Lexus, called Intersect. It’s a kind of cross between a cafe, accessory store and a car showroom.
It housed a lone RC F coupe in orange, with the optional carbon package.
This was the wall on the way upstairs. Can you pick all the parts?
And the ceiling was made of model cars.
We also dropped in a freestanding building made of what looked like matchsticks. Sunny Hills sells one thing and one thing only: boiled pineapple pastries. What really blew my mind though, was the architecture. The building itself was constructed from cedar matchsticks fitted together, with the occasional glass panel.
Inside, we also found this incredibly cool vintage bike.
After stopping for a pineapple pastry and green tea, we headed out to Odaiba for the Bayside Meeting and Tatsumi PA!