The Jukebox Clan Does Japan

[jukebox333]

Day #1 in Tokyo.

It's a big, big, city, and even a week doesn't do it justice, so I tackled it geographically. Day One is the area North of Tokyo station. That meant revisiting Ueno Park by daylight, the across to Asakusa Temple.

The sakura in Ueno are not quite at peak, and without the crowds we saw at night, the display was nice, but not earth shattering:











It was quite a damp morning, and at 8:30am there were few visitors - I have to admit, the lack of people actually dampened the vibe - it needed a crowd to make it feel special...

After we grabbed a bite to eat at a chain restaurant, we made our way to Asakura, and the Sensōji Temple. I confess this was not high on my list of places to visit - I'd seen it before, I knew the place as a toursit trap, but it's iconic, and with two first time visitors in tow, we had to see it...

The weather improved dramatically, and we saw blue sky for the first time since arrived.

As expected, Sensōji was crazy busy... especially the main alley leading up to it, with shops full of tatt:









In the main area: diabolical



Off to the north there is a small garden - here, the crowd was much more manageable - I guess most people go straight up, and straight back. It was not quite serene, but was much more enjoyable...



We were all feeling a bit frazzled at this point, so opted to head back to the rooms for a bit of a break. Wendy and I stole away to nearby Takishamaya for a coffee and some cheesecake, spotting this place along the way



Rested and regrouped, with the weather holding out, we set out for the afternoon...

 

[rbjhan]

I'd be totally going to that あなご　place!

 

[Pushka]

Following along for a week or so. We will be in Tokyo in about 10 days. It looks beautiful.

 

[jukebox333]

The afternoon was tagged for sakura chasing. We hopped on the subway out to Kudanshita, with the plan to walk around the Imperial Palace.

The blossoms out there were next level. The crowds with thick, but not horrible, and respectfully quiet - not a lot of talking, which felt a bit surreal.

The section from Tayasu-mon Gate around to the Chidorigafuchi Boat Pier was simply amazing - and according the Sakura-Navi app (official app of the Japanese Weather Bureau to advise of bloom status!), these blossoms are still not quite fool bloom.

Enough of me talking about it - here's some photos:





















We walked down past the National Theatre, and out front of it was a stand of trees that had particularly thick blossom



It's a cliche, but photos cant do this justice. And I get why the Japanese revere this time of year so much - to have these trees in and around your daily life, and for a magical two weeks or so each year, they deliver this incredible beauty... that's something to appreciate and celebrate.

We have other locations on our agenda in the next two weeks, but honestly, agreed that even if we never saw another blossom, the display we viewed this afternoon exceeded all expectations.

 

[jukebox333]

Back to the room, an hour or so rest, and regroup with the young 'uns and off to Akihabara.

I was enamoured of this area on my first visit to Japan, a very brief stopover in 1996, and back then it was full of fancy electronics, hi-fi, and gadgets you just were never going to see in Australia.

I'm older now, and the world is smaller, and Akihabara now is Pokemon Cards and Maid Cafes, with a smattering of tech and camera shops.

Wen's phone accepted an eSim, so I am hotspotting off her when not on hotel Wi-Fi, so we decided not to bother with a physical Sim for me. And apparently Polaroid film just isn't available readily in Japan - Fuji Film has won the VHD Vs Beta war on instant cameras... so we were done pretty quick.









The theme of random shopfronts did deliver, however:



We opted for Ramen off a side street, and it was fine - for lack of a better description, the broth was very buttery, and the serve generous. I wore a bib, and by the time I was done, could see that was a smart choice.

With all that sakura walking, we were done after eating, so headed back to the room - the street is in full bloom now, so there's lots of camera toteing locals as well people making their way too and from work. We can watch them from our 9th floor window:



Tomorrow is Shinjuku and Nakano... but it will be raining all day, and the temp is forecast to drop to 5C mid morning. It was in the 20's as we wandered around today, so it'll be interesting to see how our enthusiasm holds up.

 

[Pushka]

Back to the room, an hour or so rest, and regroup with the young 'uns and off to Akihabara.

I was enamoured of this area on my first visit to Japan, a very brief stopover in 1996, and back then it was full of fancy electronics, hi-fi, and gadgets you just were never going to see in Australia.

I'm older now, and the world is smaller, and Akihabara now is Pokemon Cards and Maid Cafes, with a smattering of tech and camera shops.

Wen's phone accepted an eSim, so I am hotspotting off her when not on hotel Wi-Fi, so we decided not to bother with a physical Sim for me. And apparently Polaroid film just isn't available readily in Japan - Fuji Film has won the VHD Vs Beta war on instant cameras... so we were done pretty quick.

View attachment 437458


View attachment 437457


View attachment 437456

The theme of random shopfronts did deliver, however:

View attachment 437455

We opted for Ramen off a side street, and it was fine - for lack of a better description, the broth was very buttery, and the serve generous. I wore a bib, and by the time I was done, could see that was a smart choice.

With all that sakura walking, we were done after eating, so headed back to the room - the street is in full bloom now, so there's lots of camera toteing locals as well people making their way too and from work. We can watch them from our 9th floor window:

View attachment 437459

Tomorrow is Shinjuku and Nakano... but it will be raining all day, and the temp is forecast to drop to 5C mid morning. It was in the 20's as we wandered around today, so it'll be interesting to see how our enthusiasm holds up.

These temperatures present a real challenge for packing. It was 27c the other day in Kyoto

 

[rbjhan]

Chidorigafuchi, sigh, last time I went it was raining and no way near this pretty

 

[jukebox333]

Yesterday’s plan was West Tokyo – Shinjuku and Nakano areas. Unfortunately, the two girls both come down with lurgi. Wendy has laryngitis/sore throat, Lily, my youngest son’s partner felt a lot worse, with a pretty heavy chest cough. Wen decided she could soldier on, but Lily needed some bed rest, and so Oliver stayed back with her to keep her company, with a promise to meet up with us if she improved.

The weather certainly didn’t. The day started at 7C and well and truly dropped to 5C by late morning. The rain did not let up – showers constantly, with drizzle in between. When the wind blew in exposed locations it was pretty miserable.

First order of the day was a visit to the GPO, on the Marunouchi side of Tokyo station to buy some stamps. Our Mums are mid-eighties and nineties, and nothing makes the oldies happier than getting mail, so we will spam them with postcards at every opportunity. I had checked out the stamps online, and wanted some specific sets that featured Japanese food, so wrote it all out, cutting and pasting from the web page, which amused and bemused the clerk behind the counter – but it worked!



Next up: Shinjuku Gyoen National Gardens, another five star Sakura spot. It did not disappoint. Even in the gloom of the day we had, it was an amazing sight.





The park was set up for locals to come and have Hanami parties… but was almost empty around 9am when we got there. We spent a solid two hours slowly making our way around the groves of trees, taking it all in.





I figured out that the special trees we saw near the National Theatre are double blossom variety – it makes the bloom much fuller. There were some amazingly mature trees in Gyoen – seeing the blooms sprout high up in the air, even from the trunks… but also having branches way down low so you could look close up. Just brilliant. Under sunny blue skies, it must be an incredible experience.








We had traversed the park East to West, and now headed for Shinjuku…

 

[Dmac59]

Hoping those ailments are short-lived @jukebox333
And maybe an improvement in the weather.

 

[jukebox333]

We texted Oliver and arranged to meet up at Shinjuku for lunch. The wheels fell of a bit here. I was feeling fine, but not hungry; Oliver was fine, and hungry as he’d been minding Lily and didn’t get breakfast, Levon was starving but his feet were killing him, and Wendy’s lurgi had really dig in – she was breathless and not all well. We attempted to find a place to eat for about 30 mins, but Shinjuku was crazy busy, and lines at every single venue were insane. Wendy called it at that point, and decided she needed to rest, so opted out and headed back to the hotel. We persevered for another 45 minutes but it was wet, and freezing cold, and ended up back at precisely the same spot we’d met Oliver over an hour before. Tempers wee stretched, and there wasn’t an obviously solution. We had stuff to see in Shinjuku – Tower Records, the 3d Cat Billboard, Godzilla, Golden Gai… but I said to the boys, let’s jettison that stuff, and move around to Nakano; less people, better chance of place to sit down and eat, and we could be productive ticking stuff off the “to do” list.

It proved a smart move, and 5 mins after the train pulled in, we’d found somewhere to eat off Nakano Broadway.



Feet rested, we explored the anime and manga shops, the model train stores, and the retro toys. Happy father and sons time. Levon’s feet were flagging, so he opted for a break and a coffee in Macca’s, while Oliver and I went around the back alleys of Nakano taking photos.










The rain was a plus for this, and we enjoyed ourselves for another hour or so. Another wining random street front:









Bonus unplanned sakura:



Oliver wanted to grab some merch in Shinjuku, and I wanted to at least get to Tower records, so we split up, with Levon joining me.

Wendy was still needing rest, so opted out of the evening session, while Oliver and Lily did an escorted evening visit to the Daikoku car meet – a weekend mecca for exotic car lovers. They got picked up from the hotel, and absolutely loved it – he’d been dreaming of going there for ages, and the service from the driver was brilliant.

With the promise of not a lot of walking, I convinced Levon to come back out with me, and go do some night photography in Shinnamachi…

 

[jukebox333]

I'd seen a facebook post of a place in Shinnamachi that looked like AI, so when I checked it out, and found it's an Instagram mecca apparently, I was suckered in to going there, too!

Part of the attraction was it would be everything Shibuya isn't; off the beaten track, low chance of seeing other tourists, and the curiosity of venues not normally dealing with foreign tourists. Levon was up for it, after I offered him control over the dinner options, so with him reasonably rested, we headed out.

First stop was the insta shop. Ah, it wasn't open, so didn't quite have the mystique, but I still loved it and thought it was worth the effort:



The back alleys were dark and moody, and just locals coming home from work as each train arrived. It's just me, but I enjoyed that so much more than the mayhem of Shinjuku.

A small shrine;



Walking home from work;



A train passing by;



Levon told me this was a "Horse Meat" restaurant. I'm saving that delicacy for when we reach Nagano...



A gyoza vending machine? Because of course you can;




Dinner was at a small Tonkatsu restaurant. It was after closing time, but the owner and her small daughter welcomed us in. It turned out she did not speak a word of English, and the handwritten menu defied the best efforts of Google translate. But through some sleuthing of gestures, and individul symbols, we were able to get two very nice pork cutlet meals in front of us. The little girl, maybe 4? years old was most curiosu about these late visitors, and at the end, the owner asked if we were American - and seemed genuninly surprised to find out we came from Australia (although writing that now, it may not seem like a compliment!). The meal was the sort of interaction I love - no words, but a great time, and hopefully another local left with an impression that not all tourists are more trouble than what they are worth.

Ridning back to the hotel on the subway, it felt like a really good recovery after blowing some time in the middle of the day.

But also a lesson learned, and one we will need to be wary of in Kyoto, where the crowds will no doubt be out in full force.

 

[Seat0B]

I’m loving your photos @jukebox333.

 

[jukebox333]

These temperatures present a real challenge for packing. It was 27c the other day in Kyoto

It's 7C right now, and Levon and I are out and about in Shibuya. The wind is icy. Earlier this afternoon we did laundry, it was blue sky and high teens. Fickle stuff...

 

[jukebox333]

Hoping those ailments are short-lived @jukebox333
And maybe an improvement in the weather.

Thanks, Dmac

Sadly, I'm now feeling the sore throat, Wendy's been down for the count this afternoon and evening, buy Lily has improved.

But we're troopers.

 

[jukebox333]

I’m loving your photos @jukebox333.

Thanks! I am loving the opportunities. I did mull bringing the DSLR but decided that the inconvenience wasn't worth it, so I'm running a Canon PowerShot that I really enjoy using.

 

[drron]

The meal was the sort of interaction I love - no words, but a great time, and hopefully another local left with an impression that not all tourists are more trouble than what they are worth.

Exactly. I can still remember the time I decided I needed to learn Japanese.
It was on our first trip to Japan in 1984. We were in hakone and mrsdrron and her mother came down with the lurgi. the weather was miserable. So I took my 9 year old son on the local train to the end of the line in the mountains. there was definitely no english spoken or written back then in the village. And no google translate!.
however we were able to make ourselves understood at times with sign language and a little guide book with some useful words. Ended up having lunch with an elderly couple in their house. Just beautiful.

 

[jukebox333]

Chidorigafuchi, sigh, last time I went it was raining and no way near this pretty

It's not even 100%, so it's truly amazing how beautiful it is now. I'm so lucky that I didn't specifically plan to catch the blooms - a year out when I booked flights, it was just a guess, and a preference to be in HKG earlier. The first draft was timed for us to arrive immediately after Golden Week. This one has us leaving the weekend it starts.

 

[rbjhan]

I'm saving that delicacy for when we reach Nagano...

Ha ha be careful about Basashi 馬刺し..... it's not everyone's cup of tea, certainly not mine
*And you know I eat almost everything!

 

[jukebox333]

Ha ha be careful about Basashi 馬刺し..... it's not everyone's cup of tea, certainly not mine
*And you know I eat almost everything!

The plan is to try it somewhere the table can share a plate, not where it's placed in front of one of us and it's that soul's task to make it vanish

I'm not expecting to like it, but have got myself in a headspace where I'm willing to try it

 

[HirafuHeartAttack]

The plan is to try it somewhere the table can share a plate, not where it's placed in front of one of us and it's that soul's task to make it vanish

I'm not expecting to like it, but have got myself in a headspace where I'm willing to try it

I like good basashi and would liken it to a slightly less tender carpaccio but with pretty deep meaty flavour. However I've also had it a couple of times where it's been pretty awful. The worst was a place in Tokyo where it was still frozen unfortunately.

Also glad they had a good time at Daikoku but those tours are pretty unpopular amongst a lot of enthusiasts due to some wreckless behaviour from operators. If they go back I highly suggest renting a car from Omoshiro Rental Car (or similar) and doing the trip themselves. Happy to answer any questions about that, I've spent a lot of my time in Japan doing car stuff and have mountains of recommendations!