Exploring Tokyo: Part III - Ikebukuro & Shinkuku

Looking through my Tokyo guidebooks, I had marked Ikebukuro out as a place I wanted to visit. Having ample free time on the weekends, a group of us from the Akasaka dorm decided to spend the afternoon. So this would probably be a good time to introduce some of my other friends that I've been living with the past 3 months.

Joining me for the adventure was Kevin, Eddie, John, and Ayane. Kevin as you might remember, is the same guy who climbed Mt. Fuji with me a few months back. Growing up in Japan, Kevin is fluent in English and Japanese and is studying to be a Finance major back at Temple University in the US. He also is working at Empire Entertainment, a marketing promo firm, as an intern during the semester. Although it takes up a lot of his time he was able to help out at some big parties at clubs as well as the grand opening of H&M in Omotesando. The resident expert when it comes to translations or cell phones, Kevin has been a big help to me during my time here.

Kevin

Eddie is a senior at Temple studying History and planning on going to law school in the near future. Roommates with Kevin, Eddie is also bilingual - speaking English and Korean. Right now he's working on making it 3 and Eddie was in the same Japanese language class as me during the semester. A serious student and avid tennis player, Eddie has been well focused throughout our time here, yet he wasn't afraid to get out and explore Tokyo.

Eddie

John Le, a Vietnamese American hailing from Philly, PA also goes to Temple and is working toward a Finance degree. John lives right next door to me in the dorm and is well known for his distinct fashion style. Always there to lend an ear me and John have come to know each other really well as we discussed plans our plans for the future. Also fluent in Vietnamese, John is the president of TUJ's tennis club and worked really hard to get the club up and running this semester. He's planning on continuing his work next semester in Japan as he is staying the entire year here.

John

The last member of our multi-national group was Ayane, a Japanese freshman at TUJ who was friends with Kevin Eddie. Having spent time in America her English proficiency was on par with her Japanese skill and she had a positive attitude the whole day.

The whole group minus John (taking the photo)

Near Ikebukuro station is one of Japan's nicest department stores - Seibu.

Seibu (on the right)

An interesting thing to note was that almost the day after Halloween was over, Christmas decorations started appearing all over the place. By now there are lights and ornaments on almost every major street and location in Tokyo.


The main attraction in Ikebukuro was the giant Sunshine City development. Outside the building a number of Arcades and Pachinko parlors lined the street, inviting anyone willing to waste some money for a little quick amusement. I've learned my lesson by now and rarely play video games anymore and no one else was that interested so we went straight for Sunshine City.


Near the entrance was a branch of Tokyu Hands - think ultimate Sears.
Going down below and under it though we entered the lower level of the mall and looked through a few clothing and shoe stores we found a creperie. One strawberry jam & cheese crepe down and I was feeling great.

As we wandered around the area, we eventually reached a multilevel plaza area where yet another TV was being filmed. This show initially seemed to be a talk show variety show but after watching for a few minutes the performers started singing and dancing some goofy tunes.

typical huge Japanese crowds gathered for the show

My favorite part of Sunshine City though was by far the Observatory up on the top. We made it up there at night and had a spectacular view of Tokyo's lit up skyline.

After coming back down and heading over the station I jumped on a train to Shinjuku to grab some dinner. Shinjuku also had some great decorations up for Christmas which is still puzzling to me since almost no one in Japan celebrates the holiday.

In addition, they also had a live jazz group playing on the street next to the station. I decided to stay awhile and listen.


I finished the night with some Japanese-style steak dinner in the "Golden Gai" district of Shinjuku, well known for its bars & Japanese pubs catering to the large salaryman population. Two very interesting parts of Tokyo definitely worth seeing!

Exploring Tokyo: Part II - Odaiba

Sorry for the absence; I've been working on papers for school as well as making a trip down to southern Japan to visit an old friend from Georgetown. The good news is I have plenty of material for some updates, so expect big things in the next week as I'm finishing classes on Monday and should have more time to write here!

Back where we left off, the next place I'm going to detail in the blog is Tokyo's amusement island - Odaiba. I'll be writing about two separate trips I made to Odaiba and all the fun things I did over there. Located in southeast Tokyo, Odaiba is an entirely man-made island originally constructed in the 1850s after Perry came to Japan and opened them up for trade. Originally a defensive outpost, Odaiba was transformed into an amusement park center in the late 90's and is now home to Fuji TV's HQ (Japan's NBC basically). Getting over to the area is also a fun ride, since the best way to do it is by riding a monorail which gives you some great views of the harbor.

Fuji TV HQ

The first time I made a venture out there was back in mid-October. I walked around near the water boardwalk for awhile before reaching the popular Museum of Emerging Sciences and Innovation.

Inside they had a bunch of different robots and various other exhibits. Two of my favorite items in the museum were a small model "Hover Car," which they plan to use in the future for transportation, and the giant video screen globe hanging in the central plaza.

Shortly after that, I walked over to the waterfront which provided some beautiful views of Tokyo and the Rainbow bridge. Inside one of the developments is Muscle Park, possibly the most fun place in Tokyo. Muscle Park is a floor full of simulation sports games and physical challenges similar to what you would find on a game show. For a small fee you can play some of the same games they use in those wacky Japanese game shows.

vacuum game

Also, I tried my hand at the pitching accuracy game. The concept was simple, hit the 9 square of the strikezone to knock out blocks and you win. 3 Misses and its over! I managed to hit the first 3 in a row and the small crowd watching was impressed. Unfortunately, I came back down to earth and ended up missing some and finishing with 5 blocks. Guess my pitching lessons 2 summers ago came in handy a little bit.

I my time there with dinner at a nice tonkatsu restaurant (breaded pork cutlets) which was delicious.

Rainbow Bridge at night

My next visit to Odaiba was even better, I went over right after my Econ midterm and planned to check out Palette Town and the Ooedo Onsen. Arriving near sunset, the bayside looked awesome.

Palette Town is comprised of primarily 3 parts: 1)Venus Fort, 2) Toyota Showcase Center, and 3) Amusement Center. I began at the Venus Fort, which is a large indoor full of various designer clothing stores, restaurants, etc designed to look like an Italian street.

Venus Fort

On the way to the amusement center I walked through the Toyota showcase where they were heavily advertising for the launch of their new IQ sedan. The IQ is a small fuel efficient car that boasts sharp turning and an advanced navigational system. The car is supposed to fit “3 +1” (+1 meaning a small animal or baby could fit in the back with the 3^rd person). In reality, the car was very small and I doubt that I could fit comfortably in it.

Finally, upon reaching the amusement center I looked through the huge indoor arcade before taking a ride on the landmark Ferris wheel. I managed to snap some nice shots of the Tokyo Skyline near the top.

The last place I visited was the Ooedo Onsen, what I had been looking forward to all day. Similar to LaQua, the onsen I wrote about previously, Ooedo is Tokyo’s other top notch hot springs location.

Ooedo Onsen entrance

Instead of using a modern design like LaQua, this onsen took a traditional theme, in the Edo-period design. Before separating off to the hot spring baths, we walked around the communal foot bath area where there were a number of TV cameras and film crew. After asking around, I found out that they were filming the Greek version of the US TV show “I Survived a Japanese Game Show” which aired this past summer on ABC.

The hot springs felt great and afterwards I grabbed some dinner and walked around the Edo-style indoor plaza. They also had a bunch of carnival-style games and traditional souvenirs.

So concluded another great trip to Odaiba, I hope to go once more before leaving!

Halloween Musings

Akasaka Dorm Group

A few weeks ago Halloween quickly came and went, without most of Japan noticing. While Halloween is a widely celebrated holiday for both young and old alike in the US, it isn’t truly recognized on these shores. A far cry from Washington DC’s M street which is stuffed full of people in costume going out to be seen and drink at one of the many bars, Tokyo’s streets remained clear for the most part of costumed revelers. But, being a foreigner in Japan doesn’t change your traditions, and I along with all of our friends pieced together a costume during the week before.

On October 30^th, Metropolis Magazine – Japan’s #1 weekly magazine for concerts, events, and anything you could possibly want to do if you’re a foreigner living in Japan (gaijin) – was hosting their annual Glitterball extravaganza. Advertised for weeks at “Womb” (one of Japan’s most popular clubs) from 8pm – 12 all you can drink and eat with guest appearances by a number of popular DJs, the Glitterball sounded too good to be true. Being in the Halloween spirit, Nick, Harry, and I all purchased tickets for the event and we planned to get there slightly after 8 to make the most of it.

This year, I decided to be a geek due to its simple requirements and instant recognizability. To properly pull it off, I purchased a pair of suspenders, pocket protector, and a cheap bowtie to go along with a friends nerdy glasses (which he lent me), my shirt, and slacks. The end product was fairly convincing, and I got Nick and Chris to go along with it also!

We got to the Glitterball around 8:20 and it was already packed with people. It seems wherever you go in Tokyo, you can expect it to be crowded. Barely able to move, we made our way down to the bar at the basement which was located right next to the food they were offering. True to their word, the Glitterball delivered on all their promises: Drinks – unlimited bottles of Corona as well as mixed drinks made to order at the bar; Food – pizza, Indian curry, garlic bread, and burritos, afterwards your breath wouldn’t impress anyone but your stomach sure would be satisfied; and Music – they had 3 floors each with a different genre, Techno, hip hop, and house. All 3 of us ended up having a great time and I managed to meet some German people who I used some of my neglected language skills on. Harry ended up meeting his current girlfriend in the last hour of the party and Nick and I made a stop off at McDonald's before calling it a night.

with Kevin on our way to the TUJ party

Halloween night Temple Japan’s student council made an arrangement with Muse (a club in Roppongi) to have a party for all of the students. For discounted drinks and no entry fee it was a good deal and all of my friends made the trip over. There were a bunch of good costumes and it was definitely an entertaining night. I was really impressed with the turnout and the organizers did a good job of making sure all the TUJ students had something to do on Halloween.

Nikko & Lake Chuzenji Trip

As the Autumn leaves began to change colors, the perfect time had come to visit Nikko. Located near the mountains 2 hours north of Tokyo (by train), Nikko is one of Japan's favorite places to visit during the Fall before it gets too cold in the winter months. Looking through my travel books, they strongly recommended a visit to see Nikko's famous historical sights and natural beauty. It wouldn't disappoint...

After a week of minor planning, we jumped on an early train during a clear Saturday morning. Being one of the first to get on, I was lucky enough to have seats for the whole ride, but after making a few stops the way up, the train car became stuffed with people standing on-top of one another. Eventually, I made it up to the station and the difference in temperature was noticeable immediately.

Nikko Station

The area all around the station was very crowded and I think we picked the weekend that almost everyone else did to come visit Nikko. Due to the large crowds, many of the inns and hotels were full so we had to settle for one that was separated from both central Nikko and also the historical region. But you take what you can get and after a quick check in, I set out to visit the shrines & POIs. The path to Nikko's most famous spot - Toshogu Shrine - begins near the river with the picturesque Shinkyoo bridge.

Nikko is home to the burial shrines of both Tokugawa Ieyasu (Toshogu Shrine) and Tokugawa Iemitsu (Taiyu-in Shrine). Ieyasu was Japan's first Shogun and founder of the Tokugawa Shogunate. Under his leadership, Japan entered its golden age of Samurai during a time that would be known as Edo Period. His grandson Iemitsu was the third shogun of Japan and is notable for two things: 1) for constructing the lavish shrine for his grandfather at Nikko (which we visited) and 2) Cutting off Japan's trade with foreign countries in 1635. This led to a period of isolation up until Matthew Perry came in 1854 and the rest is history...

Before reaching Toshogu I stopped off to look at the garden of Rinno-ji, a Buddhist temple built in 766.

Rinno-ji

After getting a taste of Nikko's natural beauty, it was time to see the real deal - Toshogu! To build it they claim that 15,000 craftsman worked for two years, using 2.5 million sheets of gold leaf. It's good to be a king huh... Near the entrance was a 5 story pagoda and up the first steps you entered the outer grounds where a number of elaborate warehouses were constructed. In addition, just past the entry gates is the Sacred Stable where they used to keep a horse sent as a gift from New Zealand.

5 story pagoda

Warehouse

Sacred Stable

As you can see on the Sacred Stable they have a series of wood carvings depicting monkeys in a number of situations. These carvings are actually a pictoral maxim with each one offering advice on how to life a proper life. The most famous is referred to as the '3 wise monkeys' which warn viewers to "hear no evil, speak no evil, and see no evil" (which you can see them covering corresponding body parts)

Moving along, I entered the inner sanctum after walking through another set of gates. On the way, I made sure to snap a few photos of the intricately crafted decorations in the woodwork and the elaborate bell towers.

bell tower
Tokugawa family crest

Besides the 3 wise monkey carvings, Toshogu shrine is also well-known for the "sleeping cat." This woodcarving is located at the entrance to the final path up to the burial spot of Ieyasu and the cat itself is a symbol that the in-fighting Japan had experienced was at an end and they were looking forward to a peaceful period.


After the cat, a narrow path led up the final resting place of Japan's first shogun. With so many people there at the time, the line bottlenecked and it took around 30 minutes of waiting to reach the site.

Tokugawa Ieyasu's tomb

The final attraction of Toshugu was the shrine of the crying dragon. A separate building in the inner grounds to the complex, the shrine was carefully designed to create a distinct clashing echo when priests would hit wooden sticks together in one section of the shrine. To demonstrate the effect, a priest hit the sticks a few feet away from the proper area with no special effect, he then moved to the spot and everyone could hear the trademark 'crying dragon' echo.

Crying Dragon Ceiling

A short 10 minute walk northwest led us to the entrance of the Taiyuin shrine. Although not as well known or ornamentally decorated, Iemitsu's shrine is noted as having superior artistic value.

Taiyuin Shrine

There were much less people visiting Taiyuin and it helped to create a more peaceful impression upon me. Surrounded by trees the shrine had tremendous natural as well as man-made beauty - well worth the visit.



To finish off the first day in Nikko, I walked over to the Nikko Green Hotel to use their hot-spring (onsen) facilities. It was really refreshing after a day of walking non-stop and adapting to the colder weather.

Finally, I retreated back to our distant hotel and had one of the most peaceful sleeps I've had in a long time, despite the fact I was sleeping on a futon laid out over the hard floor.

the hotel room

The next day I got up bright and early in preparation for the bus ride over to Lake Chuzenji. Guidebooks advertised the locale as a short 40 minute ride through the mountains to view the beautiful Keegon Falls (Japan's version of the Niagara Falls) as well as the lake itself. For me it wasn't the case, gridlock ensued and we were stuck on the bus ride over for 2 1/2 hours. By the time the bus reached Lake Chuzenji, I only had enough time to look around for 3 hours.

view of the mountain from the bus

I went to the Keegon Falls first and snapped some photos like the rest of the people there. The sound of the waves hitting the rocks below was very soothing, yet the breeze coming from the nearby lake as well as the altitude we were at created near freezing conditions.

Keegon Falls

The trip came to a close after a short tour of the lake followed by a strawberry crepe near the station. In conclusion, while Kyoto may be everyone's favorite side trip from Tokyo, Nikko is number 1 for its natural beauty and well a weekend trip, especially during the fall.

Lake Chuzenji