Ticket boxes at Shibuya train station. In order to minimize distances between platforms, junctions are located on multiple levels, underground. Trains usually travel on the surface though.

Green circle with red marked Shibuya station is JR Yamanote Line.

Ticket sales system is surprisingly comfortable and smart. The prices are marked on the board next to each station's name. They depend on distance to make.

You clip your ticket on exit gate when leaving station.

If we change our mind and intend to travel further - no problem. Next to each exit gate there is a ticket exchange machine located. It only takes to insert the ticket, pay extra money and then withdraw another, extended one.

Shinjuku, the business ward. Many electronics shops are located here. This is where I ended up looking for camera during my first visit to Japan.

It is a great place if it comes to camera gear shopping. The prices are around 65-70% the value of European ones.

Shinjuku train station is so huge one can land in totally different part of town when using different exits.

Here is an entertainment area for ladies. Effeminate men show their ladylike looks. Beautiful and fashionable in Japanese style.

On the other side an impressive shinto temple. Shinto is a dominating religion system in Japan.

Sangenjaya - this is where we lived.

The station is labeled in three alphabets: top - hiragana (sa-n-ge-n-ji'ya-ya), middle - kanji, the Chinese character system and romaji, well known for Europeans.

Apart from mentioned, Japanese use another alphabet - katakana. It is being used for words originated from foreign languages (mainly English).

Japanese people live their lives following the simple rules of honesty, order and diligence. Here's an example - a train station cleaning brigade right before starting work. "Tidiness" and "cleanness" slogans are visible on their sashes.

I was lucky to be in Tokio when Ceatec 2006 (IT and electronics exhibition) took place. An engineer mustn't ignore such opportunity.

Especially for the sake of the first ever show of Seisaku-kun (also known as Murata Boy).

Seisaku-kun presented amazing biking skills. For a robot of course.

Is there anything extraordinary about it? Everyone knows Japanese build humanoid robots for years.

Well... there is something new about Seisaku-kun. He not only can ride the bike, forwards, backwards and up or down the slope, but also stop without loosing his balance. All thanks to a very complicated gyroscopic system.

You can see Seisaku-kun in action along with other Ceatec curiosities here.

Mobile phone with high quality television? Inevitable.

Plasma screens are nothing extraordinary today. Also HDTV technology is not that hot anymore. Even though looking at screens two meters high presenting picture quality and resolution of computer monitor certainly was impressive (not seen on the picture).

Not the car nor the hostess were the main attraction here but the navigation system.

Someday, when people get rid of all animals and stay alone on Earth, robot companions will take over the house pet business.

This little guy memorizes up to 12 faces, welcomes his master home, asks about his day at work, etc...
And never pisses on the carpet!

And this one could work as a waiter. Is it able to nudge it's client for a tip though?

Heavy smokers fulfill their urges in specially designed smoking rooms.

If you go to a platform and look down, you will see two white lines every several meters, painted square to tracks.
Driver stops train the way car doors end up located exactly between each pair of white lines.

Passengers nicely line up and wait for everyone who wants to leave the car.
People waiting for next train form parallel queue and take position of ones who just got in.

All except for rush hour on main stations like Shinjuku, where hustle is unimaginable. If not for pushers (oshiya) who push people in the cars like they were sardines, most of passengers would never get in.

Oshiya have to be predestined for this work. Probably that's why most of them recruit from ex sumo wrestlers.

Another thing - taking train without a ticket is something unimaginable for Japanese. Masami was very surprised tickets are being checked in Poland.
"Why??? He doesn't believe I've got one?"

The other day I had visited small underground cinema. The movie screening that day was Meatball Machine - gore stylized on Tetsuo the Iron Man by Shinya Tsukamoto. There were only four Japanese and myself in the cinema. Even though I didn't understand much, we all had lots of fun.

Oddly enough an extreme amount of violence in certain part of Japanese movies doesn't correspondent with real life crime level.

Hatashite wakki-no ippatu-gei wa ukerunoka? -
Do you think anyone likes this show?

Popular television stations are full of strange shows that seem... lunatic. Or maybe I just don't understand it at all.