Tsukiji Fish Market
No experience in Tokyo can be complete without having a sushi breakfast right in Tsukiji. You don't get any more fresher at the outlet stores. We wandered around in the market first soaking in the fishy atmosphere though to get ourselves psyched for the food delights.
Had a bit trouble finding the sushi street chain though. While it was one thing to take in the sights of fish being sold, but it's another when hunger pangs come knocking and we are in the middle of a vast fish market. I asked for directions and I was trying hard to think of how to communicate my wishes to the Japanese uncle cos it was kinda dumb to ask and gesture "fish fish" when we are practically surrounded by fish. So I did an eating action coupled with "sushi? sashimi?! oishi?!?" before giving him the thumbs up sign. It worked miracles as he blurted a whole load of Japanese and pointed in one direction before repeating "8, 8, eight!!" Ahh warehouse 8 it seems. Oh the wonders of food breaking down international barriers.
Sushi chains
Incredibly long queue at this popular sushi outlet...
We settled for the neighbouring outlet. For the love of sushi, I endured being pushed, man-handled and rotated by the sushi auntie in forming a "neat" queue outside the store as we waited.
But hey! It was all worth it! For 3500 yen!
Incredibly long queue at this popular sushi outlet...
We settled for the neighbouring outlet. For the love of sushi, I endured being pushed, man-handled and rotated by the sushi auntie in forming a "neat" queue outside the store as we waited.
But hey! It was all worth it! For 3500 yen!
Ginza (銀座)
This place speaks of atas and high-end shopping which was really out of our budget. Saw lots of shopping centres.
This place speaks of atas and high-end shopping which was really out of our budget. Saw lots of shopping centres.
The Kabuki theatre caught our attention though. Kabuki play is a form of traditional Japanese play and that day was swarmed with loads of Japanese uncles and aunties, some even dressed in kimono
A pachinko parlour. Some crazy game which the Japs love playing. First saw it in some game-show and it's a rather loud and noisy affair.
A pachinko parlour. Some crazy game which the Japs love playing. First saw it in some game-show and it's a rather loud and noisy affair.
Ryōgoku (両国)
One of the highlights of the trip was definitely catching the sumo match at Ryōgoku Kokugikan (両国国技館). Our tickets were booked way before the trip and we got seats at the topmost floor to the back. However, much to our delight, it wasn't a full turn-out since it was a few days before the grand finals so there were still seats aplenty, especially those red box seats closer to the stage on the first floor. The red box seats are basically cushions where we sat on and most Japanese folk would kneel on and set up a picnic too in the process. The stage was unique and the atmosphere was incredible, with elderly aunties, screaming ah peks cheering for his favourite wrestler, pleasant looking housewives, whole families young and old, business corporate types and your typical clueless tourist (that's us!) all put into the arena and cheering on the stars of the show. Things quickly heated up closer in the late afternoon where the top division ranks slug it out, since the competition begins in the morning and progresses in order of seniority, from amateurs to pros.
The pic that got my female friends really hot and excited for the sumos...Mmmm
One of the highlights of the trip was definitely catching the sumo match at Ryōgoku Kokugikan (両国国技館). Our tickets were booked way before the trip and we got seats at the topmost floor to the back. However, much to our delight, it wasn't a full turn-out since it was a few days before the grand finals so there were still seats aplenty, especially those red box seats closer to the stage on the first floor. The red box seats are basically cushions where we sat on and most Japanese folk would kneel on and set up a picnic too in the process. The stage was unique and the atmosphere was incredible, with elderly aunties, screaming ah peks cheering for his favourite wrestler, pleasant looking housewives, whole families young and old, business corporate types and your typical clueless tourist (that's us!) all put into the arena and cheering on the stars of the show. Things quickly heated up closer in the late afternoon where the top division ranks slug it out, since the competition begins in the morning and progresses in order of seniority, from amateurs to pros.
The pic that got my female friends really hot and excited for the sumos...Mmmm
Dinner at one of the eateries near our hostel which served really fantastic chasu ramen. Did not quite dig into the cold sake though....tasted too much like vodka
While at the convenience store, noticed lots of Jap guys checking out the comics at the news-stands. So I decided to join them and pick up one to read. What I saw was manga of schoolgirls or hentai if you want to put it, pics of semi nude models and ok...you get what I mean, yah? It's a common sight in every convenience store we visited throughout Japan.
Odaiba (お台場)
Odaiba Bay resembles Harbourfront quite a bit. It was expensive to get there by subway but very well worth the trip as it has a really nice setting especially at night and after a crazy day in Tokyo perhaps. The huge vastness of the area, the quietness, the cooling wind and the backdrop of the Rainbow Bridge in the distance makes it a perfectly ideal romantic spot. Really got "feel" ah according to the girls. Much of the hype of this area is also VenusFort, a huge shopping centre (well the whole area is a shopping place anw) and the obvious sight of the huge ferris wheel turning in the distance, although I found it more amusing cos it was the place where the girls finally found their Burberry Blue label after hunting high and low for it only to see that it has closed for the night. The Fuji TV building was also grand in its own right.
Fuji TV building
VenusFort
Odaiba Bay resembles Harbourfront quite a bit. It was expensive to get there by subway but very well worth the trip as it has a really nice setting especially at night and after a crazy day in Tokyo perhaps. The huge vastness of the area, the quietness, the cooling wind and the backdrop of the Rainbow Bridge in the distance makes it a perfectly ideal romantic spot. Really got "feel" ah according to the girls. Much of the hype of this area is also VenusFort, a huge shopping centre (well the whole area is a shopping place anw) and the obvious sight of the huge ferris wheel turning in the distance, although I found it more amusing cos it was the place where the girls finally found their Burberry Blue label after hunting high and low for it only to see that it has closed for the night. The Fuji TV building was also grand in its own right.
Fuji TV building
VenusFort
Harajuku (原宿)
This is the place where you get to see both the traditional and the vibrant youth culture. Starting from Meiji Jingū (明治神宮), a huge torii gate awaits us as we walk through a forested area before arriving at the shrine. We even caught a wedding ceremony there which was a very solemn affair.
Instructions were to wash our hands and rinse our mouth before praying. Start with the left, followed by the right while shifting the dipper and then rinse mouth using the palm from the left hand
Wishes written on the tablets and hung
This wish or wishes caught my attention the most though. How true! LOL :p
A wedding procession. My friends were remarking the solemnness of the whole affair and thought that marriages should be happy and noisy events.
This is the place where you get to see both the traditional and the vibrant youth culture. Starting from Meiji Jingū (明治神宮), a huge torii gate awaits us as we walk through a forested area before arriving at the shrine. We even caught a wedding ceremony there which was a very solemn affair.
Instructions were to wash our hands and rinse our mouth before praying. Start with the left, followed by the right while shifting the dipper and then rinse mouth using the palm from the left hand
Wishes written on the tablets and hung
This wish or wishes caught my attention the most though. How true! LOL :p
A wedding procession. My friends were remarking the solemnness of the whole affair and thought that marriages should be happy and noisy events.
And noisy was what we got as we headed over to the teen haven in Harajuku just across the street after the shrine visit. Takeshita-dōri (竹下通り) is this whole line of stalls down this street which more or less is similar in concept to our Far East Plaza in Singapore. The weird, funky and trendy as shown by the Japanese youths.
Gothic lolita
And I caught sight of a very angry Lolita Goth indeed
Somehow noticed these shoes were in the rage...shoes that look kinda oversized to me
Spotted a funky looking house with street graffiti
And over at the main street, a long queue for Forever 21
Gothic lolita
And I caught sight of a very angry Lolita Goth indeed
Somehow noticed these shoes were in the rage...shoes that look kinda oversized to me
Spotted a funky looking house with street graffiti
And over at the main street, a long queue for Forever 21
Shibuya (渋谷)
This is the equivalent of our Orchard Road. A crazy shopping, eating and hangout place for everyone. And this was the first time I got really lost amidst the human crowd. Lost as in mentally lost as I was drowned out by the insane human crowd in the evening. Good place to people-watch though.
This is the equivalent of our Orchard Road. A crazy shopping, eating and hangout place for everyone. And this was the first time I got really lost amidst the human crowd. Lost as in mentally lost as I was drowned out by the insane human crowd in the evening. Good place to people-watch though.
The system of buying your meal by getting a coupon dispensed from a machine. After pictures failed us (well as you can see it's not much of pictures but many buttons though), we got the waiter to help us order and punch in our choices
Curry rice, gyoza and ramen
The crazy scramble crossing in Shibuya. People mountain people sea. The building in the backdrop is Shibuya 109, an entire mall worth of shopping just for the ladies, which we gladly let the girls do so while me and Simon sat and people-watch. Hmm...girl watching actually. What better way to do so right outside a popular shopping mall for the girls! :p
Other oddities sighted. Soapland! I would least expect to see this in Shibuya. I won't elaborate here but suffice to say, it's a very Japanese thing and it's rated R.
Office ladies, housewives or students? Hmmm.....
An interesting billboard. FYI, Soft on Demand is an adult video company.
Caught a small fashion event outside a shopping mall
I have no idea what HbC means but everyone wants to take a photo with it. Can't help but notice Jap girls love posing with the V sign
So as clueless tourists, we joined in...
Much noise and performance in the streets to get people to play.......
PACHINKO!!!!
Curry rice, gyoza and ramen
The crazy scramble crossing in Shibuya. People mountain people sea. The building in the backdrop is Shibuya 109, an entire mall worth of shopping just for the ladies, which we gladly let the girls do so while me and Simon sat and people-watch. Hmm...girl watching actually. What better way to do so right outside a popular shopping mall for the girls! :p
Other oddities sighted. Soapland! I would least expect to see this in Shibuya. I won't elaborate here but suffice to say, it's a very Japanese thing and it's rated R.
Office ladies, housewives or students? Hmmm.....
An interesting billboard. FYI, Soft on Demand is an adult video company.
Caught a small fashion event outside a shopping mall
I have no idea what HbC means but everyone wants to take a photo with it. Can't help but notice Jap girls love posing with the V sign
So as clueless tourists, we joined in...
Much noise and performance in the streets to get people to play.......
PACHINKO!!!!
Shinjuku (新宿)
This is a district which somehow got popularised by Jackie Chan's show. Forgot the title but it was something abt Chinese immigrants and the related Chinese gangsters and feuding with the yakuza. To me, it was a place where on one side, you see the government and office buildings and then on the other, it's a vibrant nightlife and shopping district. And that, plus a red-light district that's very much in the open. Yet, if you seek and probe deeper, hidden gems do lie quietly by the side.
This is a district which somehow got popularised by Jackie Chan's show. Forgot the title but it was something abt Chinese immigrants and the related Chinese gangsters and feuding with the yakuza. To me, it was a place where on one side, you see the government and office buildings and then on the other, it's a vibrant nightlife and shopping district. And that, plus a red-light district that's very much in the open. Yet, if you seek and probe deeper, hidden gems do lie quietly by the side.
Moving from Shibuya to Shinjuku on the subway was a crazy affair and we were stuck in one of those jams and cramming with the rush hour crowd that we tend to associate Japan with...however, honestly I think every city faces the same prob
On one side lies the serious, no-nonsense government buildings
and on the other...shopping, neon lights and more people
Kabukicho (歌舞伎町), the stretch of red-light district. Definitely not as brazenly open like in Amsterdam, but there are agents and gangsters on the streets actively jio-ing men on the streets instead. Oh yea, some dude tried approaching me and even identified me as a Singaporean from the way I was speaking in Chinese to my friends...wows...And I swear I was speaking just in Chinese and not Singlish!
It's R18 down here..
Our brush with Chinese immigrants came in the form of PRCs running the sukiyaki restaurant that we went to. However I was left feeling less than satisfied as I was not full.
My partial satisfaction came in the form of a takopachi outlet round the corner
On one side lies the serious, no-nonsense government buildings
and on the other...shopping, neon lights and more people
Kabukicho (歌舞伎町), the stretch of red-light district. Definitely not as brazenly open like in Amsterdam, but there are agents and gangsters on the streets actively jio-ing men on the streets instead. Oh yea, some dude tried approaching me and even identified me as a Singaporean from the way I was speaking in Chinese to my friends...wows...And I swear I was speaking just in Chinese and not Singlish!
It's R18 down here..
Our brush with Chinese immigrants came in the form of PRCs running the sukiyaki restaurant that we went to. However I was left feeling less than satisfied as I was not full.
My partial satisfaction came in the form of a takopachi outlet round the corner
But perhaps the greatest satisfaction and gem we had discovered merely by randomly walking around Shinjuku was this night market 夜市 set within the shrine compounds. Heck I wasn't even aware that the shrine existed out in busy Shinjuku or even a 夜市 but it was a real welcome breather from the outside. Only later found out it was called Hanazono Shrine. (花園神社) And with a 夜市 comes plenty of food, drinks, entertainment and a bit of insight into the lives of ordinary Japanese folk!
Entrance into the 夜市 with the torii gate sticking out..imagine our surprise when we turned around the corner to see this narrow street filled with stalls!
Lanterns aplenty
I seriously offered a prayer of thanks for this wonderful discovery!
Malt sugar candies
Friendly grandpa with his turtles
It was interesting to see all the adults catching the fish
Games galore
This is sooooo a 夜市!
My bloody satisfied expression as we bought a bit of food to chow down and chill within the shrine compound. I ordered an Asahi beer, although the stall keeper was somehow trying to explain to me that it came with a long piece of avocado that was supposed to be dipped in salt. But who cares? Good food, good beer, gr8 atmosphere. Damn.......
Lanterns aplenty
I seriously offered a prayer of thanks for this wonderful discovery!
Malt sugar candies
Friendly grandpa with his turtles
It was interesting to see all the adults catching the fish
Games galore
This is sooooo a 夜市!
My bloody satisfied expression as we bought a bit of food to chow down and chill within the shrine compound. I ordered an Asahi beer, although the stall keeper was somehow trying to explain to me that it came with a long piece of avocado that was supposed to be dipped in salt. But who cares? Good food, good beer, gr8 atmosphere. Damn.......
Further updates on the way!
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