Due to the debacle in Rome with the stolen passports, we had to re-think our itinerary for Japan. We had planned to sight-see Tokyo the day before and leave for Kyoto early this day, but instead I took Kylie to some of the highlights (well in my view) and agreed we would re-visit Tokyo another time.
We checked out of the hotel, left our luggage and walked towards the train station looking for breakfast. First stop was Starbucks for coffee, followed by a fancy gourmet cafe called “Dean & DeLuca”.
We caught a JR line train from Shinjuku to Kanda Station, then changed to the Ginza Subway Line which took us to Asakusa.
Asakusa is the center of Tokyo’s shitamachi (translates to “low city”), one of Tokyo’s districts, where an atmosphere of the Tokyo of past decades survives.
Asakusa’s main attraction is Sensoji, a very popular Buddhist temple, built in the 7th century. The temple is approached via the Nakamise, a shopping street that has been providing temple visitors with a variety of traditional, local snacks and tourist souvenirs for centuries. I knew Kylie would be excited to have the opportunity to find souvenirs for the family and she gave her wallet a workout.
One of the most popular things to do here is to have your photo taken under the massive lantern at the entrance of the Sensoji Temple, Kaminarimon (or Kaminari Gate). This is no trivial feat as you have to compete with 100’s of other tourists and Japanese for the photo opportunity, but we managed it.
The next ‘must do’ is to negotiate the Nakamise shopping street which stretches over approximately 250 meters from Kaminarimon to the main grounds of Sensoji Temple. It is lined by more than 50 shops, which offer local specialties and the usual array of tourist souvenirs.
After battling through the hoards of people & stalls (stopping for some treats and of course those souvenirs), you emerge in front of Sensoji Temple.
Next to the temple is a small but beautiful garden with various statues, ponds, streams and bridges. Every time I’ve visited I’ve seen newly weds having their photos taken in the gardens (remind me of our wedding).
We walked a few blocks down the road to Kappabashi. Almost one kilometer long, this street is lined by shops catering to restaurant businesses. Why come here? Well if you’ve ever been to a Japanese Restaurant, you may have seen examples of the menu made out of plastic food. This street is lined with shops selling every food imaginable made out of plastic and it looks so real, you want to taste it!
Yes, it does come with fries!
And here is a giant beetle climbing up a building (just what you want on a street dedicated to restaurants and food). Apparently the Japanese rhinoceros beetle is a popular pet in Japan (don’t think they grow this big).
On the way back we saw the Tokyo Tower (we will visit this next time)
It was back on the train to visit Akihabara. This place is where you come for all things electric or electronic as well as rows of high rises fill with floors of anime (YES ANIME, the most popular pass time of Japanese) and it’s mostly for adults, with many floors being restricted to adults only.
After a short stroll through the area to wonder at the shear madness of the shopfronts with their flashing signs, blaring music and wall to wall posters, we headed back to Shinjuku. I grabbed some Okonomiyaki (Japanese pancake prepared on a hot plate at your table) from a little restaurant in the basement of a high rise.
When we came out of the restaurant, we were taken back by a loud noise echoing through the street. OMG, it was Godzilla! Yes, the very same Godzilla on top of our hotel was roaring and spitting fire from his mouth (speakers at street level helped with the effect).
As in all Godzilla movies, it was time to run for our lives. So we quickly collected our luggage and made our way back to the station. We had to catch a local train to another station, then connected to our Shinkansen (bullet train) with not a moment to spare (running late as usual) and sped along at 150km/h toward Kyoto.
While the climate in Tokyo was cool, we couldn’t believe our eyes as we watched out our window the changing scenery. Heading south from Tokyo, we went through Yokohama, then Shizuoka, Hamamatsu and Nagoya. Most of the cities we passed were covered in very deep snow & we were a bit worried about how cold it was going to be in Kyoto.
It was evening when we arrived in Kyoto. We caught a taxi to the old part of town, Gion. Gion is Kyoto’s most famous geisha district and our Ryokan (traditional Japanese Inn) was opposite the Yasaka Shrine. The district is filled with shops, restaurants and ochaya (teahouses), where geiko (Kyoto dialect for geisha) and maiko (geiko apprentices) entertain.
I chose this accommodation for three reasons; one because I wanted to immerse Kylie in traditional Japanese culture and this area & accommodation style is as close as you get, two because I love Onsen (Japanese hot spring) and the Ryokan we were staying at had one and thirdly, because we were in the heart of Kyoto, surrounded by temples and shrines.
On arrival we experienced the traditional Japanese hospitality, incorporating elements such as tatami floors, futon beds and Japanese style baths.
Wait! Watch out for Ninja Pete…
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