Depending on how adventurous you are you'll probably want to set out at 5 or 6 am on the second day of your arrival in Japan (Tokyo). This day is one of the longest, but one of the most rewarding as you get ot experience a variety of sights, sounds, and tastes. This is perhaps the most tested day of them all. I took both my friend Eric and parents on the death march after experiencing a shorter version with a friend of mine at Waseda. They were tired, but they saw much of the east side of Tokyo that day. This goes for all Tokyo trips, but since I was a Waseda student I start all my trips from Takadanobaba station. Figures.
This trip required one transfer with my parents and no transfer with Eric because he stayed
on the Hibiya line. From Takadanobaba, take the Tozai line to
Kayabacho. Then transfer to the Hibiya line for 2 stops. Exit at the backside of
the station.
Now you're going to have to walk past all the nice restaurants to get to the smelly fish market. But don't worry. It's awesome. Follow the red path as shown once you follow the subway exits for Tsukiji. The tuna auction starts at 5am, but you'll probably get there around 6am. That's fine. The auction is no big deal, and breakfast is still around til 9am or so. Still, it's amazing to watch lots of tuna being cut and shipped. Walk through the stalls back out into the shops and restaurants that you passed before. One word of advice: be polite. You'll probably get into EVERYONE's way so try to press up against the narrow corridors of fish boxes to let others pass. Now settle down and have some chirashi or maguro-don for breakfast at around 7am.
After breakfast comes one of the downtimes of the whole day. From about 7:30am or 8am you'll have to wait til 9am for the Hama Rikyu Garden to open up. So take your time to walk following the red line as shown. This should lead you through a rather boring auto-filled roadway interchange. Heading back east takes you into the Port district towards the ministry buildings. Don't stray too far but enter the park when it opens. This is one of the most beautiful gardens despite seasonal changes. You can watch the cherry and plum blossoms here. Take your time to walk around all the park as it offers a serene view inside the Tokyo megalopolis.
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When you're finished with the park it's time to head over to the dock area there. Wonderfully, or conveniently, there is a ferry that makes its stop here on its loop of the Sumida river. This is the Sumida river tour, which takes you under all the Sumida bridges until Asakusa. It is another pleasent way to get where you want to go, and it helps your victims recuperate from their death marching. If you have been doing the death march properly you will have seen all this before noon! That means you will reach the big Asahi "shit" at that time, and be free to make your way to the Asakusa Kannon Temple. If you're running a little late, then now would be a great time to stop in to one of the many restaurants a round this area. To get to the temple from the river just walk parallel to the bridge you arrive at AWAY from the Asahi "shit". You'll know you're heading in the right direction by the amount of foreigners you will see, and the rickshaw drivers will try to speak English to take your money. This big congregation place is called Kaminarimon or Thunder God Gate. Take some pictures. It's best to ignore the latter and follow the former down the promenade of tourist shops towards the actual temple. Asakusa is one of those wonderful tourist areas where you see foreigers and schoolchildren alike. Remember to pay your respects at the temple as it is still used by Japanese for Buddhist ritual. To the east of the promenade is another arcade full of shops. To the west is slightly upscale, and there are small shops that sell exquisite goods instead of the touristy stuff on the promenade. There is also a really nice soba shop somewhere to the west (can't remember). Okay, on to the next destination! |
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Head towards the Asakusa station of the Ginza Line. This should be right outside the kaminarimon entrance. Take the train west from Asakusa three stops to Ueno. Don't worry about which side to get on at Asakusa because it's the end of the line anyway. |
| Welcome to Ueno! It's the northern hub for travel to the Tohoku region of Japan! It is also full of small, cheap shops that sell Western hats to fish. It should now be early afternoon and the perfect time to continue our little death march out into Ueno park. So exit from the north side of the station past all the museums. We won't stop at the museums today because they deserve a whole day to themselves. Instead, just take in the sights at Ueno making a full circle of the park until you're facing south again. The red line should be your guide on the following map: |  |
Now it's time to browse those shops. Just south of Ueno station is a small alley. It's usually packed on the weekends. Amble your way south until the shops disappear, and then turn right for a block to get back onto the main road. This next road is NOT so exciting, but it's part of the death march towards Akihabara. For me just walking around any place is important to get a feel of the atmosphere of a certain area in Japan. I have done this quite often in Tokyo and Osaka in areas that aren't in the guide books.
You know you're in Akihabara when all of the sudden the lights and the sounds start interesting you in the electronics around you. This is the famous "electric town". In 1999 when I first visited I was amazed and found many new things that the United States did not have. Since then however, I have noticed that there are only a few things that Japan is "better" at in the 21st century. You should look for yourself though. Cd Players, MD players, cellphones (Japan-only), video recorders, digital cameras, digital video recorders, etc etc ... So much cool stuff. It should be around 4pm when you start browsing. If you're really interested then you may not leave til 6 or 7pm. Check out the alleyways near Akihabara station for a glimpse at the variety of hardware being sold. I bought the cheapest electronic dictionary that allows writing input at 10,000 yen (an old PDA, but still cool).
Congratulations! You have completed a tour of nearly all of the Northeast side of Tokyo in one day! Except for some museums there is nothing much to go to in this sector! It's time for dinner. Tired? Maybe you ought to head back? If you're particularly hungry why not stop in at my favorite restaurant: Mo Mo Paradise. This is a tabehodai or "all-you-can-eat" sukiyaki or shabu shabu restaurant. 1500 yen for 90 minutes of pure deliciousness. There are three locations, two of which I know. The Takadanobaba location is two blocks in back of Big Box (the windowless building infront of the station) on a right-hand street. The other location is in Ikebukuro, which is a bit harder to get to. Enjoy! :d