Tokyo | lisezfaire

About time I came back for part two of my time in Tokyo isn’t it? This woman’s been busy… 🙂

Everyone always talks about the “quirky” nature of Japan. I think that if you live in a society where everyone pretty much wears the same clothes throughout school and is then expected to fall in line with the ‘norms’ while working…it’s no wonder they get creative whenever and however they can. Friends and I marvelled over the fact that when you walk by a dry-cleaner what you see in the window is ALWAYS the same – white shirts, dark suits. ALWAYS. It was so exciting for me when one of the people I worked with wore bow ties instead of a regular tie. He found a way to show his creative side, even in serious meetings. Thank you bow-tie-guy!

Another thing you always hear about are Japanese gardens. And yes, they are beautiful.

I love how they find ways to ensure there are peaceful gardens and green spots in the middle of the towers. No matter where you live, you can find a little respite from all the crowds and the hubbub. They also build around old temples – they don’t destroy them.

Luckily for me Shiba Park is right beside where I lived. It provided me with a wonderful place to go run through, walk through, sit in, and just go to when I wanted to get away from my computer, work and apartment. It was a lovely way to start the day, take a breather, or end the day.

Speaking of work and home….That was pretty much all in the same, roughly 400-square-foot, apartment.

Small, yes. Super-functional, definitely. I actually quite loved this little space. I have to say they really know how to make the most of every square inch – no wasted space here at all. Even though I spent most of my work time here (except for meetings with the local agencies), it really was my little sanctuary.

For the last three months of my time in Tokyo, I had a co-worker (she lived in the apartment below mine). That’s right – two of us working at that little table-come-desk all day long! Thank goodness we are friends as well as co-workers.

I found this place through a company called In The Hood. They were amazing. Extremely helpful in finding the right apartment and ensuring that I had all I needed. As their name suggests, they want to create a neighbourhood of travellers – enabling those who have common interests to meet and exchange ideas, conversation, travel experiences and generally fun times. Having traveled a lot themselves, they understand what people are looking for. On top of all that, when I traveled away from Tokyo for more than a few weeks, they stored my luggage and rented out the space to someone else – saving me from paying rent while I wasn’t there. If you, or anyone you know, are looking for a furnished apartment in Tokyo, I highly recommend In The Hood.

I was in the Higashi-Azabu area. Very central, easy access to the metro system (which is simple to use and amazing), and a great mix of both local and international inhabitants. Everything I needed was close by, including three grocery stores and a multitude of restaurants. There was this little spot that always had a line-up around lunch time – and I mean little – two customers at a time at most. So one day we decided to go check it out. It ended up being a little bakery/dessert spot. We still have no idea why people lined up to get in though. Let’s just say that with all the great food in Tokyo…dessert is not their forté. At least not that I could find. When I did, it was a “French” bakery…

My favourite neighbourhood restaurant. Sushi rolls are not the norm in Japan, so the fact that this tasty little treat was in my neighbourhood was definitely a nice surprise, and perk.

I just loved that their lunch specials sign had the titles in English and all the detail in Japanese. Um, I’ll have one of those?

And right around the corner was this place. The hairdresser was a very cool looking, long-haired, well-dressed man. So I decided to give it a try. Let me tell you….it is custom in Japan that when they wash your hair during your appointment they also give you a really lovely head massage. I could have gone every day…and when I told him that he laughed. Most people think it would have been really expensive, however my first trip to a hairdresser in Montreal cost me more….What’s up with that???

Up the hill from my place you will find a very busy tourist attraction….

The “Tokyo Tower” – which is actually a small version of The Eiffel Tower. You would be amazed at how many people visit that place. Still makes me laugh. It did look pretty at night though. It’s not just a tourist attraction either, it’s a functioning communications tower. They decided to make the towers in the city a design feature (some better than others, for sure!)

As you saw in my Tokyo Times Part 1 post, I didn’t spend ALL of my time in my neighbourhood. I even had some guests come to town. One of the first places everyone wanted to see was Shibuya Crossing.

And this isn’t at a terribly busy time…at night there are even more people crossing every which way. You’d think there would be tons of people bumping into each other, but no. Somehow it all just works.

Once you are done having fun in the crazy crosswalk, there are a myriad of little streets and alleys to explore. It is very easy to get lost. Luckily it is also very easy to find fun spots and great food.

Funky little alleys everywhere. And in them you find gems like this little bar that seated four. Our limited Japanese and the bartender’s lack of English made it fun. Plus, I don’t think they see too many women in these places – at least not this particular spot!

Shibuya Crossing at night. There’s definitely something about night time – an additional layer of energy provided by the dark skies and flashing neon lights.

Another popular spot was Team Lab. They have a few locations, and Borderless is my favourite. I first went with a friend who had lived in Tokyo for 12 years, and wanted to make sure I saw it while she was in town. Just about everyone who visited while I was there wanted to go, which means I went four times. I also saw their larger installation once, and didn’t enjoy it as much — too many different rooms, no real path to follow which meant you ended up in the same place more than once. I think it was just sensory overload as well.

If you want to calm your senses…I recommend Meiji Shrine and the surrounding parkland and woodland. There is just something about walking amongst tall, majestic trees, green space and flowers, that both calms and feeds the soul. Being a Shinto shrine, we are able to enjoy the pure, simple beauty of it all.

Little adornment means a simple, elegant beauty.

One really could go on and on and on about Tokyo. Wait…maybe I already have! 🙂

So, I will close again with some random fun photos to give you more of a feel for some of the experiences I have been lucky enough to have. #charmedlife for sure.

The best things really are found off the main roads, in the back alleys and around major metro/train stations – so many little shops, restaurants and bars tucked into those spaces. I also loved seeing the tapestry created by all the wiring and electrical lines intertwined with signage and buildings.

9am = lineup for the office elevator. Crazy. But that’s what happens when everyone arrives at the same time…

Spring = blue skies and cherry blossoms.

And if you have made it this far down the blog post – thank you! You deserve something extra-special for that. I present you with……The Robot Restaurant!

Thank you Tokyo. Such good times with some amazing people. As much as I wish I hadn’t been feeling like such crap most of the time I was there (I alluded to this in my Why I Run post), I really did enjoy discovering as much as I did. Thank you to LH for bringing a much-needed breath of fresh air to my last three months there, and to AK and SG for your constant support.

See you again Tokyo…one day….

A city of high-rises. The view from one of the office buildings I went to regularly.

I have been back in Canada for five months now…clearly about time I wrote about my Tokyo Times. I was in the city on and off between May 2019 – April 2020 for work, and although I wasn’t always feeling my best (I touched on this somewhat in my post on Why I Run), I did manage to have some pretty awesome experiences.

The question is … where do I start? I think it’s taken me so long to write because I was overwhelmed by this question. Tokyo offers so much that it’s hard to wrap my brain around it all. I think the best thing to do is start with a few of my favourite experiences and observations, including some of my favourite spots to take visitors.

When I first arrived, I spent my free time just walking around different areas of the cities – this wasn’t always easy and comfortable, given the almost 100-degree temperature with 100% humidity (or close to it!). I joked that everyone was just going to have to accept that from May to September 2020 I was going to be a walking ball of sweat… Obviously that’s not quite how 2020 turned out.

So as I sit here miles and miles away from Tokyo and think back on my time there, here’s what comes to mind.

The food! Clearly the best place to start is with the food. So much amazing food – even if you don’t eat fish (which I do). From sushi to ramen to pizza (yes, pizza) to tempura to steak to gyoza to soba noodles to sandwiches from the 7-Eleven (really very good, particularly the egg salad). One of my favourite things to do was visit the food level at a department store late afternoon as they markdown the sushi which needs to be sold quickly. Super fresh and well priced. Yummy! I wasn’t adventurous enough to try out the many strange looking “sweets” – to be honest, they just didn’t appeal to me, they didn’t look like they were meant to be eaten.

Nissan Crossing. One of the first places I took visitors to was Nissan Crossing – the Nissan feature store in Ginza. Sounds strange, I know…however, on the 2nd floor they have a café. Not just any old café though. Here you can have a photo printed onto the foam of your coffee or hot chocolate (or iced chocolate). Then you get to watch yourself melt away as you drink. I even saw teenagers asking for a photo of their K-pop idol on their drink! Just a fun thing to do while catching up and deciding where to go next. My friend B. introduced me to this place, and I took everyone who visited – whether they were in Tokyo for work or for play. I still think that if I had enough of these photos they’d make for a fun poster.

Asakusa. This is another area that B introduced me to, and to which I kept going back (with or without visitors!). It was fortuitous that my friend B (who I met while doing my yoga teacher training) happened to be in Tokyo two weeks after I first landed. She and her husband lived in Tokyo for many years and it was wonderful to have her show me around. There were many gems in her tours, and one of them was Asakusa.

We went to Asakusa with some of B’s friends who still live in Japan on the weekend of its neighbourhood celebration. This is a three-day celebration where local residents parade items from the local temple through the streets to bless the area. All neighbourhoods do this. Asakusa’s was a real eye-opener!

I was quite surprised to see men walking around baring their butts. When I asked one of my new friends why they were doing this I was informed that it’s a tradition for areas by water to also take the temple items into the water to bless it and pray for good fishing. Okay, I get that, it’s amazing. However….nobody here was going into the water… It also cracks me up that this man looks so happy and proud of himself, all while getting a wedgie…

Asakusa is a very popular destination for locals as well as tourists, and was usually teaming with people there to see the temple, shop at the little kiosks, and eat lots of food. On weekends you see a good number locals wearing traditional kimonos which are so beautiful.

While walking around Asakusa I would head over to Kappabashidogugai street which is a very long street filled with kitchen supply stores. Here you will find everything from ceramics to glassware to pots and pans to restaurant uniforms to utensils and wonderfully sharp Japanese knives. A number of my friends bought some lovely ceramic bowls and I always meant to go back and do that eventually, but I never did.

I did, however, buy me some sharp Japanese knives! Luckily for me I have friends who love to do a lot of research before they travel somewhere and they did the leg work on finding the best knife store. Kama-Asa. They sell much more than knives, but that’s what I was there for and that’s what I brought a few people there for. Some bought gifts for others, some bought gifts for themselves.

And one of the cool things is they will engrave your name or whatever you want on the knives in Japanese and in English. All done free-hand. So impressive!

It’s amazing to me how quickly and perfectly the woman does this – and the scripty English is all done free hand! I had her put my name on these two knives and then went back later for a more traditional Japanese vegetable knife and had her put “chop chop” on that one. This made her laugh. I can not take credit for it though as my friend V who bought these 2 knives as well had “chop” and “pare” put on her knives, so I stole the idea from her 🙂

And that, my friends is only a little insight to Asakusa. A few other interesting tidbits:

I was told that the Yakuza (mafia) have their head office in the area. As far as I know I didn’t see it, however during the neighbourhood celebrations you did see people walking around showing their tattoos, which are traditionally representative of being part of the Yakuza. When you go to pools or spas you generally see signs saying tattoos are not permitted or have to be covered. This poses an interesting challenge for the Japanese tourism industry as more and more international visitors have tattoos – and aren’t part of a crime syndicate.
The first “western style” bar that opened in Japan is said to be in Asakusa as well. Kamiya bar – I nearly went in….but we opted for something else that day.

I feel like this is already a fair amount of information. And really, Tokyo deserves more than one blog post – being the big, beautiful, complex, interesting city that it is. So I’ll save some for Part 2 and leave you with a few random sitings.