Full of contradictions, Tokyo overwhelms with its herded crowds, retina searing, hypeactive neon, incessant noise and unusual scents. In Tokyo things are either rooted permanently into the culture or exist for a fleeting moment: pop groups have a shelf life of a fortnight while sumo traditions are conducted in the same place and way as they have been for centuries. Tokyo has the newest trends in everything, fashion, clubs, food - you can buy almost anything from 24 hour vending machines (which never seem to be out of order) and take naps any time of the day in your own capsule when you’re overwhelmed by all the karaoke, kabuki, temple visiting and space age shopping.

TWELVE MILLION people live in this city, packed tightly into miniature apartments in the centre but in the suburbs there are still wooden houses along narrow streets ending at shrines or temples set in bonsai perfect gardens. All this and the trains run on time.