A few weekends ago, I was invited to Yokohama to celebrate a friend’s birthday. Here are some quick facts about this huge city:

• It’s the largest city in Japan by population. Yes, you read that correctly. While Tokyo is called a city in English, in Japanese it is a metropolis, the only one in the country, and therefore something completely different. If you are curious about the difference in population between Yokohama and the Tokyo area as a whole though…
  Yokohama: 3,697,894 people       vs.       Tokyo: 8,637,098 people!
• It is 30 minutes south of Tokyo by train
• It’s a major port city
• It is home to the largest Chinatown in Japan

The Chinatown was amazing! I walked under the gate and instantly everything was different.

There were so many different smells, shops lined the street, and even the architecture was different.

On the left is Peking Duck. A whole one will set you back 8100 yen, while a half is only 4600. On the right is a spiny lobster for 5000 yen.

These dumplings were amazing; the white ones were filled with pork and the green ones with shrimp. Super hot though!

There were also some things I was shocked by, like this display of ducks. Their heads are still attached; it took me a second to see them.

I also saw a beautiful temple!

It was rainy most of the time I was there, but the sun came out near the end.

Can’t wait until the next time I’m able to explore Yokohama!