To follow-up on my recent blog on tips for your visit to Tokyo let me tell you about my experience in the city. I was in Tokyo on two legs of my trip, one at the very start and then after exploring Japan at the end my trip. This enabled us to pack our shopping for heavy duty goods into the back of our trip letting us pack light for the majority while taking in the city.
We flew ANA or All Nippon Airways which was a really comfortable flight with some great inflight service where we tried Teriyaki Chicken and traditional Japanese omelettes both of which were delicious but we were going to try far tastier things in the days to come. After we landed in Narita Airport, we took the Skyliner to Ueno Station from where we took a cab to our first hotel. The hotel of choice was located in Ginza which is a nice hub location to travel to various interesting places in the city.

We first visited the nearby Tsukiji Market which is famous for its street foods and fresh produce shops. While exploring the market we had lunch which comprised of some sushi, dumplings and pickled octopus (good, good, okay). For dessert we tried the Instagram famous Strawberry Mochi which lived up to its reputation, melting delectably in our mouths.

Then we took a subway to the Senso-Ji shrine using our 24-hour subway pass. The Senso-ji is a historic and vibrant shrine smack dab in the middle of the Asakusa district of Tokyo, the path to the shrine was lined with stalls, selling things both to tourists and earnest worshippers. We realized that in Japanese culture there is a lot of belief in omens and offerings to improve fortunes in life’s many endeavours. Everything from origami cranes to handcrafted tablets are given to win favour with the divine. The entire place is a work of art – from the gate named for the Shinto Gods Raijin and Fujin, to the gigantic hanging lantern replaced by artisans every decade, to the intricate statue at the sanctum sanctorum. The Buddha statue in Senso-ji is Asakusa Kanon and is a revered symbol of compassion and mercy in Japanese Buddhism.

After the shrine our next stop was the nearby Samurai Museum, and this is an experience I highly recommend. I went in expecting it to be a bit touristy and tacky, but it was an actual interesting and informative place with appropriate bursts of fun throughout. The best parts were obviously the ninja star throwing and quick katana lesson but even examining the samurai outfits in the museum and learning about the Japanese history in the time of the samurai was really enjoyable.
Japan is also famous for its intricately crafted steels knives all used for various bespoke purposes and the best place to peruse them is Kappabashi Street in Tokyo. The shops area overwhelming to starts with knives plastered on every wall. In one of the shops, we met a helpful shopkeeper who went over the steels, usage and methods of upkeep for these knives to help us make the choice. The place sells everything kitchen related from knives, to plates, to decorative fake food (don’t ask me).
After this we headed back to Ginza where we did some shopping in branded stores like Uniqlo, ABC Shoes, etc before grabbing food from a convenience store and heading home. That was our first day in Tokyo, it was a packed but a really enjoyable one which set the tone for the rest of our trip.

The next morning, we set off for TeamLabs Borderless, this is easily one of the best places to visit in Tokyo and we loved it. The building was a little difficult to find as the location on Google maps because there are multiple intersections at the street level. After we arrived, we realized there was a path to it from within the nearby subway station. TeamLabs is a Japanese art collective whose art can be viewed in their two digital art museums in Tokyo. TeamLabs Borderless features a fluid light-based collection of rooms designed to be explored without a map,

Almost every inch of wall space was displaying a beautiful animated digital art concept, each telling a story. One of my favourite rooms had illuminated bars running from ceiling to floor which were in turn mirrors which made it feel like the room was extended to infinity both above and below. The central hall which featured everything from waterfalls to blooming sunflowers was where we spent the most time, one other room was designed like a light tunnel which visually felt like we were racing at immense speed. Another room was filled floor to ceiling with hanging reflective spheres and a third had a padded floor and walls covered with dots of light. The time spent at TeamLabs Borderless is definitely my favourite experience of the Japan trip right up there with the Mt Fuji trek.

After all this exploration we were hungry and were ready to experience Japanese Wagyu steaks at Ginza steak where we had a lunch reservation for an amazing teppanyaki experience alongside a delicious meal. The course we got included, Salmon Confit with Avocado Sauce, Edamame Soup, Marble-Cut Wagyu (rich fatty meat) and then all you can eat Lean Wagyu meat with Garlic Rice and miso soup all topped off with a delectable mango sorbet.
Post Lunch we went shopping where we purchased a whole host of things that we would use of over the course of the trip including shoes, watches and some clothes. During our shopping we explored Ginza and then headed to Asakusa where we bought some tech items and checked out some of the famous Tokyo gaming arcades in the area. As a family we don’t play a lot of video games but it was still a great time for all of us.
The next day we were off to Hiroshima for which I will have a blog out soon. But this wasn’t the end of our time in Tokyo, after exploring other parts of Japan we returned to Tokyo for the last 2 days of the trip. During this leg of the trip, we were staying in Hotel MyStays Premier Hamamatsucho which is in a more commercial part of town but also has great access to most of Tokyo. We had shipped of our luggage from Kyoto before climbing Mt. Fuji so it was waiting there when we got there. Luggage shipping is a very efficient and reliable service in Japan and helps you travel light.

On our first evening back in Tokyo we found a good Indian restaurant known as Chandrama who served some amazing Indian food including some of the best Chicken Butter Masala we have tried outside India. Post dinner We hooped onto the Subway and decided to visit Tokyo Tower in Minato City. It is a 300+ meter tall communications tower with an observation deck and while we didn’t ride to the top, we could find the spot by the parking lot and got some amazing pictures of us with the tower, a staple of trips to the Tokyo Tower.
The next day would be our last and it was here that we wanted to explore the city to the fullest. The exploration started with Sekaido, with five-floors of stationery and art material. You may think it’s just a stationary store but believe me it is a place you should visit if you want to experience precision and elegance and orderliness all under one roof. We bought some patterned washi tape, a few coloured mechanical pencils which I didn’t know even existed and a little pagoda model which I am looking forward to build.

Next, we visited the Meiji Jingu, this is an ancient Shinto city in the middle of Tokyo. It has a sprawling campus with several structures including the main shrine all built for Emperor Meiji who ushered in a lot of the modernization of Japan. The shrine also features one of if not the largest collection of Sake Barrells donated to the shrine by various brewers.

To end our time to Tokyo I devolved into guitar madness going to the Fender store, and to the Ishibashi music store, you can read all about that here. But Tokyo really is a dream for musicians looking for gear. We also visited a Mega Don Quijote in the Shibuya area of Tokyo where we loaded up on flavoured Kit-Kats.

We also visited the statue of Hachiko, the faithful Akita dog. Hachiko is celebrated for his unwavering loyalty to his master, the dog used to walk with his master to the Shibuya station every morning and wait for him at the evening for his return. He continued to make the walk every day, waiting daily even after his master passed away. The statue commemorates his legacy.
I loved visiting Tokyo and would love to go again, also if you want any help with ideas for planning your trip check out this blog here.
Great blog … loved the pictures