Ueno

One of the places I spent a very short time in was Ueno. I was on my way somewhere and had some time to kill so I took a detour into Ueno 'for a quick visit'. I was recommended the massive public Ueno Park, which famously contains:

- Tokyo National Museum,
- Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum,
- National Science Museum,
- National Museum for Western Art
- Ueno Zoo,
- Saigo Takamori statue,
- a few temples and shrines,
- and a huge pond.

Perhaps it was the lack of time or the hot summer sun or the fact that it's more of a place to be enjoyed in a group than on your own, I didn't stay long. I might return for a re-visit with friends sometime in a future trip. That said, however, I did come across a few interesting things and manage to take a handful of photos:

A large panda exhibit sat upright within its glass cage just outside Ueno Station.

The concrete jungle that is Ueno dictrict centre.

 The walkway leading from Ueno Station into Ueno Park. You can see part of the Western Art Museum to the middle right of the photo.

And an interesting hotel sign advertising a unique Japanese travel invention: the capsule hotel.