Tokyo City Guide
January 29, 2019
Tokyo is the capital city of Japan hence the city is densely populated. It is one of the top tourist destination in the world with about 5 million tourists every year. Towering buildings, busy streets, tourists are flocking everywhere yet there are still pockets of places where you can relax and hear swishing of trees and chirping of birds. A perfect Yin-yang - a balance of nature and a modern city.
If you like to have a good view of Shibuya Crossing, the best location is the Starbucks Tsutaya Shop. If you can find a seat near a window that would be your lucky day! Finding a place to eat in Shibuya is not difficult since you can find plenty of restaurants. Shops are everywhere and we bought souvenirs here. Kharen bought lots of Japanese snacks so much that we bought a bag just for it. Probably, I would say you can find everything here.
Aside from the busy crossing, we found the famous Hachiko Statue just outside the station. Just a tip – try to visit in the morning since it is really crowded in the afternoon till evening.
If you happen to be following this blog, you probably
know that we’ve been to Kyoto and Osaka and Tokyo was our last city to visit.
This, by far, is the longest vacation we had. Though we wanted to see more of
Japan, we started to get weary. There were only few places we visited in Tokyo
for 5 days. Still, this is worth a share especially if you have plans to visit
Tokyo. Places are sorted by nearest train station so it will be easy to locate.
Here are the places we’ve been to.
Harajuku Station
From Harajuku Station you can find Meiji Jingu Shrine. This shrine is
popular for offering prayers and also traditional Shinto weddings which we
luckily witnessed. It is located in the middle of a forest where it felt
surreal walking through it. Though the place was crowded, its immensity consumed
everything and all we heard was rustling of the leaves and cold breeze.
After a walk in Meiji Shrine, we went back to the train
station and headed to the opposite side which is the area named after the
station - Harakuju. Yes, the place
where you can find fashionable teens passing by; some were even in Cosplay
costumes. We passed by Takeshita Street
which is a popular place to buy souvenirs and eat street foods. Along the area we
passed by popular cafés like Owl Village, Hedgehog, Cat and other pets where
you can pet them and have snacks too. Getting weird right? Yet, this is gaining
popularity among tourists. We did not try this since it was expensive rather we
headed to Tokyu Plaza which is just
a block away. A famous Starbucks store is located at the top of the building
where we sipped our coffee while enjoying the view of the rooftop garden.
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| Takeshita Street |
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| Tokyu Plaza |
Shibuya Station
When we exited Shibuya Station we encountered a large
crowd since it is here where the famous Shibuya
Crossing is. It is estimated as many as 2,500 people cross the street every
time the light changes. That is insane! We did a selfie here as it is becoming obligatory
for tourists.
If you like to have a good view of Shibuya Crossing, the best location is the Starbucks Tsutaya Shop. If you can find a seat near a window that would be your lucky day! Finding a place to eat in Shibuya is not difficult since you can find plenty of restaurants. Shops are everywhere and we bought souvenirs here. Kharen bought lots of Japanese snacks so much that we bought a bag just for it. Probably, I would say you can find everything here.
Aside from the busy crossing, we found the famous Hachiko Statue just outside the station. Just a tip – try to visit in the morning since it is really crowded in the afternoon till evening.
Hamamatsucho Station
One of our goal was to photograph Tokyo Tower. We have
searched locations for a good perspective of the tower and found out about Zojoji Temple in which the Tokyo Tower
is visible on the background. It was like a hitting 2 birds in 1 stone. From
Hamamatsucho Station we walked few blocks and we located the temple. The temple
was less crowded and we enjoyed the serenity of the place.
We visited another location to photograph the tower
just a few blocks away from Zojoji Temple, the World Trade Center. The building is 163 meters tall and the
observatory deck is on the 40th floor. The observatory deck
has a 360 degree view of the vast metropolis. Admission is 620 yen. It was frustrating
for me as I was planning to take photographs of the city on a blue hour but tripod
was not allowed according to the staff. Surprisingly when we reached the
observatory deck there were photographers setting up in their tripods - sigh.
Hence, I have no decent blue hour shot since I left my tripod back in the hostel.
Nevertheless, the view was breathtaking.
Ueno Station
Next, we headed to one of the most popular park of
Japan – Ueno Park. It is popular because
of its long stretch of Sakura trees. Though we were there in autumn and no Sakura
in bloom it was still equally beautiful. The vast park has gardens too with
blooming flowers. For us, this is one of the best place to enjoy the colorful autumn
leaves.
Aside from the Sakura trees, Ueno is well known for
the Pandas in Ueno Zoo. We went to
the zoo after a long walk in the park which is just within the vicinity. Kids
were lining up in the entrance and we felt like we were kids again. There was a
certain joy seeing Pandas for the first time. They were cute and fluffy yet it was sad
as well. Aside from the Pandas, the zoo has lots of animals too. For those who will
be travelling with kids and kids at heart, this is place is a must. Admission is 600 yen.
Asakusa Station
Sensonji Temple was on our list to photograph on a blue hour. The temple was just a
few walks away from Asakusa Station. Before we entered the temple we passed by
a busy street filled with stores selling souvenir items and street foods. The
main temple was well decorated as well as the five storied pagoda. It was well
lit and the red colored temple became more attractive as the night sky turned
blue.
Akihabara Station
Next was Akihabara,
known as the electric district of Tokyo. It is the home of electronics, games,
anime and gadgets. We went there night time and the streets were filled with
neon lights. If you are into gadgets and cameras this place is perfect for you.
You can find brand new and second hand items here. Old cameras and collectibles
are here to steal your wallet. We entered a building full of games and anime
collectibles. It was crazy full of anime stuff. A heaven to those into this
type of amusement.
Tokyo Station
We were supposed to visit Imperial Palace East Garden which is just a few blocks away from
Tokyo Station but unfortunately the garden was close. The place is regularly
close on Mondays and Fridays and holidays for maintenance. If you are planning
to visit this place better check the schedule first. Nevertheless, walking
around the area was worth it.
Shinjuku Station
The last place we visited was Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building. The observation deck is
free of admission. The skyscraper is 243 m. tall and has a twin observation
deck at 45th floor. We saw the vastness of the metropolis from this
location. Both Tokyo Tower and Tokyo Tree were visible from here and they say
in a good weather you can see Mt. Fuji. We recommend to visit this place in the
afternoon and of a good weather. We came by around noon time and it was hazy –
not a good time to take photograph but less crowd.
When we traveled from Osaka to Tokyo we had a glimpse
of the elusive Mt. Fuji. We were lucky to photograph it while inside the bullet
train. It was breathtaking!
There were still top Tokyo destination that we haven’t
been to but we cannot visit them all. Yet for the past 5 days we were totally
happy to experience Tokyo. The weather, food and especially the people made it memorable
for us. No wonder why the city is well visited. For us, maybe there is a reason
why we missed some top destinations - to come back again.
Until next time Tokyo. Until Next time Japan!
Arigato gozaimasu!
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