How packed Meiji Shrine was and Shibuya wasn't

Harajuku station

My relatives invited me to visit Meiji Shrine together. Basically I spend idly during the New Year holidays. Especially I don't wanna do anything on New Year's Day, except visiting a neighboring shrine to pray for safety throughout the year. After all, Meiji Shrine is too far. Too big.
At first I was going to turn down their offer, but I changed my mind. I've lived in Tokyo for nearly twenty years, and I think I've visited Meiji Shrine more than twenty times but I haven't visited there on New Year's Day. Not a single time.

As I/we expected, Meiji Shrine was so packed. There was a long line of people waiting in front of the main gate, so we had to wait patiently. It took thirty minutes or so until we reached Honden (The main building of a shrine).

They sell Omikuji, or poem drawing, shrine lot

 We had finished praying, but there was an another line of people who want to buy good-luck charm, evil-destroying arrow (it's called "Hamaya") or stuff like that. Some of us bought something, but I didn't. I had to save my money, because I intended to visit Akihabara next day. So-called Hatsuuri (the first sales of the year). So I had to avoid wasting my money, or I was necessarily going to face my own fiscal cliff.

After visiting a shrine, we said good-bye and I went to Shibuya alone. Less crowded than usual. I just strolled, and it's a weird experience to me.

Shibuya 109

I got a little tired, so got on the train to go home, and I witnessed weird scene again. I couldn't believe I was in Shibuya.

OMG, there was nobody on the train. I've never seen like this, at least at Shibuya station. Don't know why but I thought I was lucky.