It’s not all skyscrapers in Tokyo. Asakusa is a district where most of the old Tokyo lies preserved. Asakusa (浅草, Asakusa) is a district in Taitō Ward, Tokyo, Japan, most famous for the Sensō-ji, a Buddhist temple dedicated to the bodhisattva Kannon. There are several more temples in Asakusa, as well as various festivals.

For most of the twentieth century, Asakusa was the major entertainment district in Tokyo. The golden years of Asakusa are vividly portrayed in Kawabata’s novel The Scarlet Gang of Asakusa. In its role as a pleasure district, it has now been surpassed by Shinjuku and other colorful areas of the city.

With so many religious establishments in the area, there are frequent matsuri (Shinto festivals) in Asakusa, as each temple or shrine hosts at least one matsuri per year, if not per season. The largest and most popular is the Sanja Matsuri in late spring, in which roads are closed from dawn until late in the evening.

In a city where there are very few buildings older than 50 years (owing to wartime bombing), Asakusa has a greater concentration of 1950s-60s buildings than most other areas of Tokyo. There are traditional ryokan (guest-houses), homes, and small-scale apartment buildings dotted throughout the district.

In keeping with a peculiarly Tokyo tradition, Asakusa hosts a major cluster of domestic kitchenware stores on Kappabashi-dori, which is visited by many Tokyoites for essential supplies.

Next to the Sensoji temple grounds is a small carnival complex with rides, booths, and games, called Hanayashiki. The neighborhood theatres specialize in showing classic Japanese films, as many of the tourists are elderly Japanese.

Cruises down the Sumida River depart from a wharf only a five minute walk from the temple.

Because of its colorful location, downtown credentials, and relaxed atmosphere (by Tokyo standards), Asakusa is a popular accommodation choice for budget travellers.

Asakusa is also home to one of the geisha districts in Tokyo.

This is the home of the harajuku girls and Japan’s most extreme teenage sub culture fashion. You can see all sorts of uber fashion here that is unique only to modern Japan. Harajuku is the teenager’s capital of Japan.
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Harajuku (原宿 “meadow lodging”) is the common name for the area around Harajuku Station on the Yamanote Line in the Shibuya ward of Tokyo, Japan. Harajuku is an area between Shinjuku and Shibuya. Local landmarks include the headquarters of NHK, Meiji Shrine, and Yoyogi Park.

The area has two main shopping streets, Omotesandō and Takeshita-dōri. The latter caters to youth fashions and has many small stores selling Gothic Lolita, visual kei, rockabilly, hip-hop, and punk outfits, in addition to fast food outlets and so forth.

In recent years Omotesandō has seen a rise in branches of expensive fashion stores such as Louis Vuitton, Chanel, and Prada. The avenue is sometimes referred to as “Tokyo’s Champs-Élysées”. Until 2004, one side of the avenue was occupied by the Dōjunkai Aoyama apāto, Bauhaus-inspired apartments built in 1927 after the 1923 Kantō earthquake. In 2006 the buildings were controversially destroyed by Mori Building and replaced with the “Omotesando Hills shopping mall, designed by Tadao Ando. The area known as “Ura-Hara” (back streets of Harajuku) is a center of Japanese fashion for younger people — brands such as A Bathing Ape and Undercover have shops in the areaHarajuku street style is promoted in Japanese and international publications such as Fruits.

In the 1980s large numbers of street performers and wildly dressed teens including takenoko-zoku (竹の子族, “bamboo-shoot kids”) gathered on Omotesandō and the street that passes through Yoyogi Park on Sundays when the steets were closed to traffic. The streets were reopened to traffic in the 90s. Small groups of rockabillies and gosurori still gather on Sundays.

Shinjuku (新宿区, Shinjuku-ku?) is one of the 23 special wards, or municipalities that makes up metropolis Tokyo, Japan. It is a major commercial and administrative centre, housing the busiest train station in the world (Shinjuku Station), and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, the administration center for the Tokyo Metropolis. The area around Shinjuku Station is home to a large concentration of department stores, specialist electronic and camera shops, cinemas, restaurants and bars. Many international hotels have a large presence here.

To summarize Shinjuku, geographically, can as follows; Areas of Shinjuku include:

* Ichigaya: A commercial area in eastern Shinjuku, site of the Ministry of Defense.
* Golden Gai: An area of tiny shanty-style bars and clubs known for the artistic quality of its patrons. Musicians, artists, actors and directors are known to gather here, and the ramshackle walls of the bars are literally plastered with movie posters.
* Kabukichō: A district well-known for bars, restaurants and red-light district with street prostitutes, brothels, and other sexual commerce. Located northeast of Shinjuku Station.
* Nishi-shinjuku: Tokyo’s largest skyscraper district. Several of the tallest buildings in Tokyo are located in this area, including the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, KDDI Building and Park Tower. Located west of Shinjuku Station.
* Okubo: Tokyo’s best-known Korean district.
* Shinanomachi: On the southern edge of Shinjuku, close to the National Stadium, also known as Olympic Stadium, Tokyo and Meiji-Jingu Stadium (where the Yakult Swallows baseball team plays).
* Shinjuku Gyoen is a large park, 58.3 hectares, 3.5 km in circumference, blending Japanese traditional, English Landscape and French Formal style gardens.
* Shinjuku ni-chōme: Tokyo’s best-known gay district.
* Waseda: Surrounding Waseda University, one of the most prestigious private universities in Japan. Nearby Takadanobaba is a major student residential and nightlife area.

To summarize Shinjuku in words, this is definitely one of the place you want to be if you are visiting Tokyo. This is where all the fashion, fun and people you hear about are. In other words, this place is rockin’. Walking down the streets of Shinjuku will leave you feeling like you’re going into a different world all together.

Sanja Matsuri is also known as the Festival of Asakusa Shrine. It is the most flamboyant and among the biggest,liveliest festivals in Japan. I would equate the Sanja Matsuri to Mardi Gras because of the similarities – half naked people parades all over the place. It’s really one of the most exciting and mind opening experience to go to a Sanja Matsuri. It is in this festivals that the Geishas and Yakuzas come out to play. It’s a festival dedicated to them almost. You will see men with tattooed bodies parading, geisha’s performing their dances.

The festival pulls over 1.5million people to celebrate together. It is definitely going to be sweaty so you have a lot of reasons to join the crowd to take off your clothes but only if you are a guy of course. I don’t know if girls are allowed to, unlike in Brazil or Costa Rica or …you know, where Mardi Gras is celebrated :P

So the festival starts with a lot of procession, that goes through many districts in Tokyo to the Asakusa Shrine. A little history about it is that 3 fisherman found a statue of a deity, which is now placed in Asakusa shrine, in their fishing nets one day and they have been revered ever since. The festival is an ongoing 3 day celebration too, you can imagine that it is a non-stop entertainment and fun and with all the colorful characters around you’ll be stoke to find that this is certainly a deviation from the normal reserve Japanese culture.

I would SO like to go see it. Anyone wants to buy me a ticket for next year? :P

Kawagoe is known for it fleet of kurazukuri style warehouse buildings on it main street. This historical town is an easy excursion from Tokyo for a day trip or two. It is just half an hour north west from Ikebukuro, Tokyo’s city center.

The city is known locally as “Little Edo”, or Koedo (小江戸), after the old name for Tokyo, “Edo”. Prominent sites in Kawagoe include the bell tower as seen in the picture to the right. The bell tower serves as the symbol for Koedo and rings three times a day. Other sites include the 500 statues of Rakan and Kitain Temple, the gathering-spot for New Year celebrations. As it approaches midnight on December 31, waits of nearly three hours are commonplace at the temple.

Kawagoe is famous for its sweet potatoes, and on the local “Candy Street” one can find such treats as sweet potato chips, sweet potato ice cream, sweet potato coffee, and even sweet potato beer, brewed at the local Koedo Brewery.

Other spots to visit are Kitain Temple, Honmaru Goten (Kawagoe Castle’s only remaining building) and the Kawagoe City Museum.

Source: Wikipedia

Nihon Minka-en (日本民家園, Nihon Minka-en) is a park in the Ikuta Ryokuchi (生田緑地, Ikuta Ryokuchi) Park of Tama-ku, Kawasaki, Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan. On display in the park is a collection of 20 traditional minka (民家, minka) (farm houses) from various parts of Japan, especially thatched-roofed houses from eastern Japan. Of these, nine have received the designation of Important Cultural Assets from the national government. The houses are varied, and include examples from regions of heavy snow, lodgings for travellers, and a theatrical stage. Visitors can see regional variety and differences in construction.

If you’re looking to getaway from the hustle and bustle of Tokyo, Japan this is the place to go. Things like feeling the green grass on your toes, fresh air, historical houses that reminisce of the times before Tokyo was filled with skyscrapers and huge electrical poles are what you can expect at Nihon Minka-en. You can just simply immerse yourself in the life of what once was – simple and beautiful.

The park is operated by the city of Kawasaki. Admission is free to visitors of junior-high-school age and under. The entrance is a fifteen-minute walk from Mukogaoka-Yuen Station on the Odakyu Odawara Line.

For more information visit their WEBSITE: Nihon Minka-en

Source: Wikipedia

When you go to Japan, you must attend a Sumo match because it’s a traditional japanese sport. Baseball may be big in Japan but Sumo Wrestlers are bigger, literally and figuratively. :)
The sport is surrounded by ceremony and ritual. The Japanese consider Sumo a gendai budō: a modern Japanese martial art, even though the sport has a history spanning many centuries.

The Sumo tradition is very ancient, and even today the sport includes many ritual elements, such as the use of salt for purification, from the days Sumo was used in the Shinto religion.

The basic rule of Sumo is very simple; the first sumo that touches the floor with something else apart from his sole or leaves the ring before his opponent, loses. The fights usually last about a few seconds and its very rare for it to last for up to 1 min or longer.

Six tournaments are held each year and each tournament lasts 15 days. I don’t know how many fights go on in one day with each fight lasting a few seconds. I think they must be many fights but there are also the traditional rituals held before and after a match as well. It’s definitely something that’s worth experiencing.

Three of the 15 tournaments is held in Tokyo (Jan, May, Sept), and one each in Osaka (March), Nagoya (July) and Fukuoka (November).

To know more about Sumo, go to Nihon Sumo Kyokai

Source: Wikipedia ; Japan Guide

Tokyo Disneyland is the first Disneyland built outside of the US on the April 15, 1983, located in Urayasu, Chiba, Japan. The park was constructed by Walt Disney Imagineering in the same style as Disneyland in California and the Magic Kingdom in Florida. It is owned by The Oriental Land Company, which licenses the theme from The Walt Disney Company. It, along with its companion park, Tokyo DisneySea, are the only Disney parks not owned by The Walt Disney Company.

There are seven themed areas, each complementing each other yet unique in their style. Made up of the World Bazaar, the four classic Disney lands: Adventureland, Westernland, Fantasyland and Tomorrowland, and two mini lands, Critter Country and Mickey’s Toontown, the park is noted for its huge open spaces to accommodate the massive crowds the park receives on even moderate attendance days – Tokyo Disneyland was, up until three years ago, the single most visited theme park in the world, and its sister Tokyo DisneySea was the second.

Tokyo Disneyland will be celebrating its 25th Anniversary on the year 2008! Be sure to try to get there and as a Disney traditions would have it, it’s going to be real spectacular. It is my dream to visit Disneyland really and I am not a kid anymore :( Oh well…who says, Disneyland is for kids only? :)

Tokyo Disneyland is accessible by car or JR Keiyo Line, Maihama Station. Entry is 5800 Yen (on Oct., 2006) for one park and 10000 Yen for 2 days (2 parks).

Here’s a little video clip on Disney Sea :)

Source: Wikipedia

The Yasukuni Shrine is most famous for it’s controversy. It’s not a particularly striking or beautiful shrine otherwise – the Meiji Shrine or Senso-ji in Asakusa are much more famous and popular.

It is a Shinto Shrine originally built by the Emperor Meiji in 1869 to commemorate the soldiers who died in the Boshin War. Since then, it’s dedication has grown to include all those who died fighting for the Emperor.

That includes about 1,000 people who were convicted of war crimes after World War II, 14 of which were Class A criminals. This is the controversial bit. Former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi and a few other high level politicians visited the shrine on a few occassions to pay their respects to the war dead and both China and South Korea protested this, because it seems to show that Japan is proud of it’s militaristic and right-wing nationalistic past.

Both Emperors Hirohito and Akihito did not visit the shrine after it was revealed that the 14 Class A war criminals were interred there, which is ironic, given that the soldiers were fighting for the Emperor. Perhaps not as ironic as the meaning of the name Yasukuni though: Peaceful Nation.

It isn’t too far from the Imperial Palace and the historic Tokyo train station, so if you stop to see either, consider adding Yasukuni Shrine to your trip.

Link:
Wikipedia’s article on Yasukuni Shrine

The Imperial Palace in Tokyo is an oasis of calm and greenery in the middle of skyscrapers and business districts. Known as Kokyo, the area was apparently worth as much as the entire state of California during the bubble economy years.

It was originally Edo Castle, the home of the Tokugawa Shogunate but was taken over by the emperor when the Restoration happened in the late 1800s. Ever since, it has been the home to the Emperor and his family.

As such, it is mostly out of bounds, but people can walk around the Eastern gardens and people are permitted to enter the palace during the New Year (January 2nd) and on the Emperor’s birthday (December 23rd).

The palace, like many buildings in Japan, was destroyed by bombing in World War II. What stands today is a faithful recreation completed in the 60’s.

It’s a short walk from the historic Tokyo train station, so it’s worth visiting the area for all the historical buildings (including the controversial Yasukuni Shrine, which I’ll cover in the next post).

Link:
Wikipedia article on the Kokyo