#4606

How to spend one day in east Tokyo, for first-time visitors to Japan

Tokyo day trip Japanese food Asakusa Kappabashi Japanese garden Matome Department store Souvenir

Asakusa: Visit Tokyo’s oldest temple and the best place to buy Japanese knives and cookware

Photo by heiwa4126, from Flickr CC BY 2.0

Photo by Shadowgate, from Flickr CC BY 2.0

Senso-ji Temple: Make your visit special by putting on a Kimono

“Kimono is usually made of silk or hemp, beautifully dyed or embroidered. Yukata is made of cotton, the Kimono for summer. Most of Ryokan (Japanese hotels) prepare Yukata in each room as a sleepwear, but you can get out with Yukata in summer. There are many shops you can rent Kimono for few hours. Take a walk wearing Kimono around Asakusa.”

Read the full post http://www.deepjapan.org/a/3428

Kappabashi: Tokyo’s kitchentown where you can buy everything to cook like a Japanese chef

“Kappabashi, a street full of restaurant goods. These range from awesome crockery to individual taiyaki (fish-shaped cake) forms, and of course the amazing plastic food you see in restaurant windows. There are also a few antique stores hidden here and there... Besides being a fascinating little area, it is also an ideal place to shop for inexpensive but high-quality souvenirs, such as porcelain, cute chopstick holders and rice crackers.”

Read the full post http://www.deepjapan.org/a/3126

Browse the delicious world of Tokyo’s depachika & have tea at a beautiful Japanese landscape garden

Photo by alq666, from Flickr CC BY-SA 2.0

Photo by fletcherjcm, from Flickr CC BY-SA 2.0

Department store’s depachika food halls have excellent bentos and beautiful foodie gifts

“You can find anything here from quick snacks to eat right away to beautifully wrapped gifts... The depachika is the place you want to go to pick up a delicious meal without having to do any cooking at all. You can buy a birthday cake with candles here on the way to a birthday party or treat yourself to an especially nice bento lunch box. I also like to at least window-shop here because some of the shops prepare the foods on site.”

Read the full post http://www.deepjapan.org/a/3509

Hamarikyu Gardens – A traditional Japanese Garden and tea house

“Experience the Shogun Lifestyle... you will be able to relax in a Japanese style gazebo, in the middle of a historical garden where the Shogun used to indulge in his falconry hobby, with a freshly made cup of Japanese tea in your hands. The tea served is the special "maccha" tea, which is the tea used in tea ceremonies.”

Read the full post http://www.deepjapan.org/a/732

Explore some local secrets: craft shops, bars, and food stalls under the JR Yamanote Line

2k540 Aki-Oka Artisan, a collection of craft shops and boutiques

“Land is quite rare and expensive in Tokyo so it is put into good use. Any plot of land, how small it may be, is productive. This is also the case for the roads under rail tracks... In Yurakucho or Kanda areas, there are many popular and cheap restaurants. In Okachimachi and Ueno, they sometimes host dusty shopping arcades. But there is another kind of tunnels-under-rail-tracks: the artistic one! The one where you will find interesting and unique souvenirs. Close to Suehirocho station, there is 2k540 Aki-Oka Artisan. It is a lovely place all white with many artist-shops.”

Read the full post http://www.deepjapan.org/a/3994

Explore the area betweeen Yurakucho and Shinbashi and eat like a local

“Visit a few yakitori specialty restaurants... If you want to have an even deeper experience, you should go to yakitori stalls operated under the elevated railways between Shimbashi and Yurakucho. This chain of stalls displays the symbolic red lantern, permeate the air with a scent of scorched soy source and invite you to a real, "local style" yakitori experience.”

Read the full post http://www.deepjapan.org/a/2631