Aimlessly in a crowd

The city of Tokyo is probaby without a parallel in the world. It has a unique mixture of typical western development and yet a strong foundation of the traditional. I always wondered how societies evolve to keep themselves rooted in the old while keeping up with the advancing world outside their narrow domain. 

Yet, it's a challenge being there as a vegetarian. My hosts are kind to get me all sorts of Udan and tempura but this desi apetite is not sated easily. My colleagues are great and we end up taking the midnight train to see the "crazily dressed" people (the fashion challenged in me could not see issues with yellow boots and black dress but a female colleague picked it up in utter shock) and weird hari-dos. 

It's been 8 trips in 3 years and yet, everytime I feel like I am visiting the city anew.