Exploring Tokyo: Asakusa, Harajuku and Tsukiji Market
- Lucy and the lens
- Apr 30, 2019
- 4 min read
In this post I want to focus on three areas of Tokyo: historic Asakusa, which was our base for our time in Tokyo; Harajuku, which is the wackiest place we visited; and Tsukiji Fish Market, a place where all my dreams of Japanese food came true!
Early morning: Senso-ji Temple and Ueno Park
We intentionally chose a hotel just 5 minutes' walk from Senso-ji Temple, one of the most visited places in Tokyo, to beat the crowds with an early morning visit. When we arrived there were already a few people there, but the gardens to the side of the temple were mostly deserted. It was our most peaceful cherry blossom experience!
We followed the etiquette of the temple as much as we could: as a Buddhist temple there were places to purify our bodies with incense smoke and our hands with water ladled from a stone pool.
We also collected our fortunes: you take a numbered stick from a special box, then find the corresponding numbered drawer, from which you take your fortune. Fortunes come in three main varieties: good, very good, and bad. If you happen to get a bad fortune, you can improve your luck by tying it to a string to rid yourself of it. I got a 'normal fortune', but Patrick somehow wound up with a 'best fortune', which I was a little jealous about!
The only downside to visiting Senso-ji early in the morning is that the extensive Nakamise market wasn't yet fully open. Here, you can buy all sorts of souvenirs and, most importantly, all the street food you could ever want! Obviously, this gets ridiculously busy later in the day.
We then walked 20 minutes to Ueno Park, one of the city's most popular cherry blossom viewing spots. Even though it was still early, it was already busy along its blossom-lined main avenues. 'Hanami', the act of cherry blossom viewing, was already in full swing: people buy cheap blue plastic tarps that they spread out on the grass under the trees. It wasn't the most picturesque thing we'd ever seen: maybe if the tarps had been white or pink they might have blended a little better with the beautiful natural surroundings!
Mid-morning: Harajuku
Speaking of braving the crowds, this is what we had to do in Harajuku. We ended up having quite the foodie experience here! Harajuku is known for its kawaii vibe (kawaii roughly translates as 'cute' or 'adorable', and seems to involve rainbow colours and big-eyed animals mostly. We began with a brunch of souffle pancakes (so thick and light and wobbly!) at Burn Side St Cafe...
...followed by a chance to meet the hedgehogs at Harry Hedgehog Cafe. This one was over-hyped in our opinion. Yes, the hedgehogs were beyond cute, but they just seemed to be tired of being handled by humans and we felt bad trying to pick them up. I settled for letting mine nap on my hand for almost the entire half hour slot that we paid for. (We actually later discovered another far less busy hedgehog cafe just minutes from our hotel in Asakusa, which we wished we'd visited instead!)
We then tried our luck at Totti Candy Factory, home of the famous giant rainbow candyfloss. It was so busy that we were given a card with a time slot on it, allowing us to go away and explore and return to collect our candyfloss during our allotted slot. It was worth the wait, however: not only was my giant candyfloss a formidable sight, but it also tasted delicious - if Harajuku had a taste, this would be it, all bubblegum sweet and fruity.
While we were waiting for our time slot to come around at Totti, we took a chance and joined the queue at Ichiran Ramen. This famous chain specialising in tonkotsu (pork bone broth) ramen is popular for its unique minimal-interaction dining style: you order and pay for your meal at an automated machine and then proceed to an individual, private cubicle where a pair of hands produces your bowl of ramen through a hatch. You can order and eat a meal without speaking to a soul. We were slightly worried about the length of the queue, but it was constantly moving and we finished our ramen just minutes before our collection slot at Totti Candy Factory was due to begin. Dessert was sorted!
One final thing to check out in Harajuku is the entrance to the Tokyu Plaza, famous for its stunning mirrored escalators. Take a ride to the top and look down to be mesmerised by the refracted reflections of hundreds of passers-by.
Afternoon: Tsukiji Fish Market tour
We'd booked a 90-minute tour of Tsukiji Fish Market through Air BnB, as a way of getting us orientated on our first full day in Tokyo. Our guide, Tak, was so friendly and helpful: although the tour didn't include free food (it was super cheap!) he did show us the whole market, explaining just what all these mysterious new foods were, and pointed us in the direction of all the free samples!
Tsukiji Market is enormous and incredibly busy, and I think we would have quickly given up if it hadn't been for Tak! After our tour, we felt confident enough to go through a second time on our own this time, grazing our way through strawberry mochi, rolled omelette, fish cakes on sticks, and more.
One highlight of the market tour was the chance to see an example of the giant tuna (well, some of it...) that gets sold at auction every morning for hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars each!
Sunset: View of Tokyo Skytree from the Asakusa Tourist Centre
This tourist centre is not only incredible helpful if you want to learn about the Asakusa area, but it also offers a completely free observation deck! From here, you can look down onto Senso-ji Temple and its sprawling markets, or across the water towards Tokyo Skytree!
Evening: back to Senso-ji Temple
As we returned to our hotel after sunset, we found ourselves once again at the Kaminarimon Gate leading to Senso-ji Temple. Exploring Senso-ji at night is a very different experience to daytime: there was something very calm about it, and we enjoyed it very much!
The next two days of our time in Tokyo were all about hanami, otherwise known as cherry blossom viewing! Click here to see how we experienced sakura season!
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