Parcly Taxel: Tokyo apartments, like the accommodation I was staying in, are typically very small. The reasons are pragmatic: chronic shortage of land space forces engineers to build upwards, while living in a small space tolerates other ponies who would like to live beside. For me, a genie in a bottle, this is no problem, but I’ve seen other tourists complain about it for days on end, perceiving themselves as dignitaries.

Spindle: Many Japanese television channels will also display a time bug in the top-left corner for much of the morning and evening peak hour periods, perhaps to assist commuters in keeping tabs on their journeys to work and back. We took a little extra time to rest and plan after a long, hectic day of moving across Honshu; cereal packs we had bought in Fujiyoshida and Niigata sustained our breakfast.

Nishi-kasai (Tōzai) Nihombashi 日本橋 (Ginza 銀座) Shimbashi 新橋 (Yurikamome) Aomi 青海

Spindle: The Tokyo Metro and Toei Subway are the two main rapid transit systems in Tokyo. Although they have a common tourist’s pass and (to an extent) fare structure, they remain distinct networks and lines of the other network may appear thinned out. Letters used by the Tokyo Metro are GMHTCYZNF, while those used by the Toei Subway are AISE.

There is a short walk required to reach the Yurikamome platforms at Shimbashi, which is not covered by the Tokyo/Toei tourist’s pass. I glimpsed a film crew trying to shoot something among the criss-crossing crowds, a difficult proposition given the inherent unpredictability of said crowds. Some stations have platform screen doors to guard against falling objects (and ponies), but many do not.

Parcly: Tokyo is the only first-level subdivision of Japan deemed a “metropolis” (都), with certain features of city governments weaved into its administrative structure. Its 23 special wards are technically cities themselves, approximating that model well in practice with no obvious boundaries between them. To their west lie standard towns and villages comprising the remainder of this subdivision.

Aomi lies in Odaiba (お台場) and the Tokyo Bay area, whose port and sweeping constructions give a break from the continuous field of thick and stiff poles jostling for vertical space further inland.

Spindle: Tokyo Big Sight, a convention centre much associated with anime, is nearby, as is “Palette Town” (no, this isn’t where you get a Charmander). To the right of Palette Town lies the intensely popular teamLab Borderless, a museum of several art installations using projected light.

Shining through my body were colourful, detailed bursts mostly depicting flowers, animals and natural scenery, from crashing waves to streams, bamboo forests to meadows. I only cast a light shadow on the walls – light-coloured clothing is recommended for those ponies with dark coats, so that the patterns can project clearly. A good deal of the displays are interactive, exemplified by Parcly jumping on a trampoline (Multi Jumping Universe) and thus making a black hole.

Parcly: Crystal World is a 3D pixel display, reminding me much of cellular automata and the high complexity they can generate. Light Sculpture uses several spotlights and a mirror floor to run flashes of pictures faster than the eye can comprehend. Forest of Resonating Lamps had a long queue stretching down an escalator, but visuals reminiscent of firefly abodes. Playing around with the visuals is encouraged, with the intention of immersing and soaking up the environment, and I left feeling slightly dizzy yet greatly awestruck.

In a twist of irony (with relations to what I had just visited), I had a burger at the adjacent Wendy’s restaurant for lunch.

Spindle: When Borderless opened six months before we came, it swallowed up much of the visitors to Odaiba, both Japanese and foreigners alike. Despite this, the feeling of novelty wears off fast as compared to more traditional means of enjoyment, like the nearby shopping centres of Venus Fort and DiverCity which we slowly swept, floor by floor.