posted by Traveller on Aug 27

Tokyo Tower. Before I steep foot in Tokyo City, I came across a lot of information on this Tokyo Tower from travel books and tour agency’s brochures. With such a wide publicity, it definitely warrants a visit.

Let me say a bit about this Tokyo Tower first.  This orange-white tower was built in 1958 as a broadcast tower with a height of 333m. It was reported that it is actually 13m taller than the Eiffel Tower in Paris.   It opens daily from 9am to 10pm with admission charge.

There is an observatory deck where you can have an excellent view of the city.  At the base of the Tower, it has an aquarium, wax museum and trick art gallery.

While the tower is quite dated, it stills remains the most recognizable and tallest structure in Tokyo City. During the night, when the tower is illuminated, it is quite remarkable.

I was there during both the day and night.  While I must say that it is not truly a piece of masterpiece, a brief visit as part of the overall tour package is ok. 

The Tokyo Tower stands on the eastern side of Shiba-koen (park). If youhave some time, you can walk to the near by Zojo-ji. This is a family temple of the Tokugawa clan. It is said that Zojo-ji remains one of the most monumental temples in Tokyo City. There is a giant bell made of metal. It was reported that the bell was made from the melted metal hairpins donated by the ladies of the shougun’s court.

While the Shiba park area does not have the most attractions, nonetheless, it is a good place to stay as the base. It is a city-within-a-city itself. Train station and sub-way stations are all near-by for you to take to any to the designations. The nearest JR station is the Hamamatsucho station. The two nearest sub-way are the Onarimon station and the Diamon Station. There are many eateries and convenient shows as well. 

posted by Traveller on Aug 22

Roppongi in Tokyo, there are absolutely nothing to see and do there during the day. Are you sure? You must be kidding, right? Yes, I am absolutely sure if you ask the Tokyo local 10, 20 or 50 years ago. Absolutely nothing! However, night time was another story all together.However, not today as I was there a few weeks ago to witness its grandeur. Since the opening of Roppongi Hills in April 2003, things changes. It was noted that there are up to one million visitors visited Roppongi Hills in the first three day alone of its opening. 

First off, if you are an art lover, you are in for a treat. Roppongi is known for its Art Triangle Roppongi. Why? This is because, there are three excellent art centers forming a triangle. They are the Mori Art Museum at Roppongi Hills, The National Art Center, Tokyo, and the Suntory Museum of Art at Tokyo Midtown. 

The Mori Art Museum opened in 2003.  This museum is the cultural heart of Roppongi Hills, offering a wide spectrum of contemporary art to the public. Apart from the exhibits, the Mori Art Museum also held a diverse of public programs. As it closes quite late and with the adjacent observation deck, it is definitely an interesting place to visit.

The National Art Center, Tokyo is Japan’s 5th national art institution. It has a very unique architecture with a striking sinuous giant glass facade. The National Graduate Institute for Policy Studies is by its side. The National Art Center, Tokyo has one of the country’s largest gallery spaces which have exhibits focusing on modern and contemporary art.  The National Art Center, Tokyo is located in a quiet location with surrounding greenery.  You can come here to relax and have a quiet time. In this building, there is a library, shops and restaurant.

Suntory Museum of Art focuses on the theme of “Art of Life”. The original Suntory Museum of Art opened in 1961. The new museum was designed by Kengo Kuma and has shop for all ages to enjoy.

If you are here for shopping, you are at the right place as well. Roppongi Hills houses more than 200 cafes, restaurants and shops. It also has a nine-screen Virgin Toho Cinemas, the Ashahi TV studio, several parks and the Grand Hyatt Tokyo. Go up to 52nd floor of the Mori Tower where the Tokyo City View observation is located, and you are able to see Mt. Fuji in the distance on a clear day.  Roppongi has a distinct foreign feel. You don’t find any traditional Japan here. This is mainly due to the foreign presence in the past. Oh ya, you will find the giant spider here as well called Maman.

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posted by Traveller on Aug 15

Whenever I visit a city, I will always find out where are their popular or traditional open market, weekend market etc.. This is because it always excites and trills me to browse through the hundreds of stores selling all sorts of things that I have never seen before. From my experience, it is only from these markets, you will be able to find exotic, unusual or special things about the country. My experiences had never failed me as I always ended up getting something usually and exciting. I have never disappointed before.As usual, when I was in Tokyo, I also find out where I can visit such a place.  To my delights, I came to know about this place called Asakusa. The grandest sight in Asakusa is the temple called Senso-ji (Asakusa KannoTemple). Another distinct feature of Asakusa is the close-to-the ground feeling of the common people. This is not seen or felt in other parts of Tokyo. Another notabl e structure is the Kaminarimon which hung with a gigantic red paper lantern. This Kaminatrimon marks the entrance to the temple.Getting to Asakusa is rather simple. The simplest way is to take a taxi. Depending where you stay in Tokyo (be warned, Tokyo is rather big), the taxi fare can cause you a fortune. The best way, in my opinion is to take the sub-way or train. Another interesting way to get there is by the river boat.As Asakusa is near to the bank of the Sumida river, there is a ‘water buses’ or Suiju basu ply between Hinode Pier to Azuma-bashi.Taking this river water bus allows you the opportunity to see the old Tokyo as it passes under 12 bridges.If you prefer to take the subway, you can take the Ginza Line.  The Ginza Line stops at Asakusa just in front of the Asuma-bashi. In addition, there is also an Asakusa station on the Toei Asakusa Line. Taking either sub-way line will do as it depends on where you come from. Again, if you prefer to take the train, you can take the Tobu Nikko Line which terminates at Asakusa Station. You see, getting to Asakusa is easy as this place is well served by public transport.Leading to the Senso-ji (aka Asakusa Kannon Temple), is a street called the Nakamise-dori. At the start of the Nakamise-dori, is a big wooden gate called the Kaminari-mon (or” Thunder Gate”) named after its two vigorous guardian gods of Thunder and Wind.  A notable feature of Kaminari-mon is the extremely big red lantern. Along both sides of the Nakamise-dori, leading to the Senso-ji (aka Asakusa Kannon Temple), it is lined with hundreds of colorful stores selling gaudy souvenirs, tiny traditional dolls & toys, traditional combs, umbrellas, paper wallets, kimono accessories and sweet-scented piles of sembei rice crackers. For centuries, the Nakamise-Dore was lined with stalls catering to the crows on their way to and from the temple. This Nakamise-Dori is one of the places I have enjoyed and spent a considerably amount of time browsing through. If you want to see how colorful the stores alone the Nakamise-dori.

While Nakamise-Dori is interesting, the various adjacent small streets branching out Nakamise-Dori are as interesting as well.  Apart from the stores, you will also find arrays of restaurants, drinking places and fast-food stands. I managed to visit a western café and eat some chicken burgers in the comfort of the air-conditioning (as it is rather hot outside due to the summer heat). Asakusa has a festive atmosphere all year round. No matter which season you visit Asakusa, you will be in for a treat.

Asakusa is a place you need to take time to explore, admire and explore. You simply can’t rush through. If you are following a day tour group, you will most likely given about 40 minutes to visit the Senso-ji (aka Asakusa Kannon Temple) and Nakamise-Dori. This serves as an introduction visit and the time give is definitely not enough if you want to know more about this place and browse through the hundreds of stores at your leisure. If you are in this situation, my suggestion to you is to visit Asakusa yourself on your free day (if you have). Otherwise, enjoy and explore as much as you can with your limited time.

After you have enjoyed the shopping, you can visit the near by Sumida Koen. This is a riverside park that is popular during cherry-blossom season.

Asakusa and Nakamise-Dori, a place that I really enjoyed and found fond memories. Be sure to visit when you are in Tokyo. You will not be disappointed.