We travelled back to Tokyo on the Shinkansen on 19 April and got a taxi to our hotel where we were staying for the text 3 nights, the Hilton in the Shinjuku district. This is a very lively part of Tokyo, with many restaurants near the hotel and easy access to the Shinjuku station from where you can get the metro to other parts of the city.
The next day we visited the beautiful Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden, which was only a short walk from our hotel. The gardens provide a very tranquil haven in the middle of the bustling metropolis.
There were few birds in the park, but on the lakes we did photograph Little Grebe and Tufted Duck, while in the surrounding trees and on the grass were Asian Tit, Brown-eared Bulbul, White-cheeked Starling and White Wagtail.
On our last day in Tokyo (21 April) we went birding in Ueno Park, which is an attractive public park north of the city centre, which contains grassed areas, woodland and a zoo. The park has a large pond at its centre known as Shinobazu-ike where you can see various common waterbirds, plus the occasional more interesting visitor. When we were there we didn’t see anything very unusual, but did enjoy photographing the Tree Sparrows in the cherry blossom. We also had good views of a Black-crowned Night Heron, Black-tailed Gull, Great Cormorant and Eastern Spot-billed Duck.
