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OCTOBER 2023
TRAVELLER
T KYO
Eplore Tokyo’s oldest temple, Senso-ji
T O K
TOKYO Y O
TOKYO
Japan’s capital is a megalopolis
made up of distinct
neighbourhoods, each with their
own character.
The outré trends of HARAJUKU
make it a mecca for independent
fashion, while the neon maze of
SHINJUKU, with its countless
cocktail bars, offers in-the-know
revellers an unforgettable night out.
Less famous but vital to Tokyo’s
cultural tapestry is CHIYODA
CITY, home to the Imperial Palace
and its landscaped gardens, and
ODAIBA, a manufactured island
housing hallucinogenic, futuristic
museums. AKIHABARA continues
to be the birthplace of technology
and subcultures that go global,
while in chichi GINZA, the world’s
best sushi awaits.
Tokyo may be impossible to
explore fully, but with our guide to
the best ‘hoods, there’s plenty of
fun to be had trying.
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HARAJUKU
Clinging on to the petticoated Lolita styles of that
era are Ai Akizuki and Hamuka (the latter, like all
HARAJUKU
good eccentrics, refuses to offer her age or surname).
The ladies are committed to their looks, which is to
HARAJUKU
say that they dress up with Victorian-style bloomers,
bonnets and parasols every day
- for them this is an unending lifestyle, not just an
option for events or, worse, Instagram.
Tokyo’s most famous district is the spiritual “Things are definitely become more boring,” says
Ai, who’s leading me on the Harajuku Kawaii Tour
home of self-expression in the city, filled
around the neighbourhood. “It was inevitable that
with quirky emporiums and indie clothing
things would change — that’s how fashion works.”
boutiques ‘Kawaii means ‘cute’ and is properly spelled with
just two ‘i’s but is typically said with many more,
The well-documented pressure in Japanese elongated as though someone has stepped on the
society to conform is sometimes summed speaker’s toes.
up by the idiom ‘the nail that stands out gets “Kawaiiiiiiiiiii,” says Hamuka — whose style is a
hammered down.’ For a long time, Harajuku, the gothic take on the Lolita look, featuring dark eye
celebrated fashion and shopping neighbourhood makeup and plenty of black lace - as she attaches a
in the west of Tokyo, was blissfully hammer- large magenta badge to my shirt to signify that I’m
free. Through the 1990s and early 2000s, it part of the tour.
became the international poster child of Japanese The ladies are extremely into anything that is kawaii
and, even though Harajuku may be evolving into
eccentricity, a hub of genuine counterculture
something else, there’s no shortage of things that still
where young Tokyoites spectacularly rejected
qualify.
the standards of so many of their peers by
dressing in madly creative costumes. Today, the
commitment to bombastic fashion has lessened
and the fashionistas are becoming an endangered
species in their one-time stronghold.
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GI N Z A
GI N Z A
GI N Z A
DINING OUT IN GINZA
GINZA YAMANOBE EDO CHUKA
Yamanobe’s unassuming interior and relatively
humble looking dishes give few clues about the
quality of this innovative Edomae-style Chinese
restaurant. The intimate setting and focus on
perfecting the omakase (chef’s selection) dishes
earned it a Michelin star in 2020 and it’s been
hailed by critics as offering a ‘new genre’ of food.
Book well in advance. ginza-yamanobe.com
SUSHI TAKE
It may initially seem that Sushi Take is just
another Edomae-style sushi place in Ginza,
serving the chef’s recommendations of fine sushi.
There’s one key difference here, however: chef
Tsukasa Takeuchi is one of Tokyo’s few female
sushi chefs. She also speaks good English and can
help demystify her menu should you need help. 7
Chome-6-5 Ginza, Chuo City
TSUJIRIHEI
If you want to try traditional matcha green tea
but don’t want to travel all the way to the geisha
district in Kyoto, this secluded spot is a fine place
to dip your toe. An offshoot of a 150-year-old
Kyoto teahouse, it now serves several modern
incarnations of matcha, including ice creams and
cakes, as well as the tea itself.
tsujirihei.co.jp
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AKIHABARA
AKIHABARA
AKIHABARA
Also known as Electric Town, this district is one the world’s most vibrant centres of technology and
otaku (nerd) culture, with its vast emporiums and offbeat cafes catering to shoppers, gamers and
anime fans alike
As the ashes and rubble of the Second World War began to be cleared from the Japanese capital, Akihabara
emerged at the heart of reborn Tokyo’s black market. Beginning with radios and rudimentary vacuum
cleaners, entrepreneurial electricians set up business here, triggering a snowball effect that would barrel
forward through the rest of the 20th century and into the 21st, making the neighbourhood one of the most
important tech centres in the world. Gamers and anime obsessives — known as ‘otaku’ in Japan — dutifully
followed, and today Akiba, as it’s also known, remains a beacon for anyone looking to find something new
and a little bit different. Here are five unique places to sample.
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Maid cafes
The concept (giggly
waitresses typically dressed
as French maids serving
guests while speaking in
a cutesy accent) was born
here around the turn of the
millennium. Maidreamin,
which is one of the largest
and most popular options in
the neighbourhood, serves up
teddy bear-shaped omelets,
rainbow-hued sundaes and
impromptu disco dance
routines. maidreamin.com
HEY arcade
Nerds of all ages make their
way to Akihabara, where
this pachinko parlour (retro
video game arcade) is one
of many serving up classics
from the past few decades for
anyone who refuses to fully
grow up. There are dozens of
cabinets hosting classics such
as Street Fighter and Tekken,
while more modern games
are hooked to local area
networks to allow for live
competitions.
taito.co.jp
Vending machines
Across the neighbourhood
are next-generation ma-
chines, including some that
can scan the face of users and
suggest which drink might
suit them best. If that mod-
ern tech isn’t creepy enough,
head just south of the Kan-
da River to find spooky
‘haunted’ machines that sell
mystery packages wrapped
in horror stories.
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Anime shrine
Lying just west of downtown
Akihabara, the Kanda Mojin Shrine
has been in its current location
since 1616. Although the Shinto
holy site long predates the nation's
fascination with the anime art
form, it's been folded into modern
otaku culture, and young artists
make a pilgrimage here to decorate
talismans that are said to bring them
good fortune. For some it's worked
incredibly well
— a handful have been scouted
and hired for work on comic books
based on sketches they've left here.
kandamyoujin.or.jp
Yodobashi Camera
Not so many years ago, Sony and
Nintendo would've debuted their latest
devices in Akihabara before sending
them out to the wider world. These
days, in the era of synchronised
international releases, that doesn't
happen, but nonetheless the Akihabara
branch of Yodobashi Camera
- one of the world's largest electronics
chains -is still a thrilling place to be.
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Inside the packed little pubs, hundreds of Tokyoites
SHINJUKU
are ordering rounds of beer, then shots of shochu
to chase them down. Before downing each drink, it
SHINJUKU
seems compulsory to shout “Kampai!” I check with
Brett, but this is just a random, rainy Tuesday, not a
SHINJUKU
special holiday.
Shinjuku provides no shortage of outlets for hedo-
nism.
Golden Gai, a labyrinth of even more bars has be-
While many areas claim to be the best for night- come the stuff of legend, a place where people can
life, Shinjuku - with its neon-lit clubs, tantalis- disappear and only be found again if they want to.
ing street food and tucked-away dive bars - is a For a country that prides itself on politeness and pre-
strong contender for the crown sentation, the areas around the chaotic train station
are some of the most bacchanalian in the capital.
Brett and I squeeze into an izakaya, where he does
Ask a group of Tokyoites where to find the best night his best to try and contextualise the mayhem outside
out in their city and expect to hear as many answers over several plates of drool-inducing gyoza.
as you have people. Cases will be made for Shim- “This isn’t the geographic centre of Tokyo, but I think
bashi and Asakusa, perhaps Roppongi, too, but for of it as the heart of the city,” he says, while expertly
frenetic energy and sheer weight of options, it’s hard dissecting a dumpling with chopsticks. According to
to look past Shinjuku. Brett, the city is
Stepping out from Shinjuku Station, one of the “all business” during the day but is transformed at
busiest in the world, feels like coming up for air after night.
a long dive, except the maze of restaurants and bars “Shinjuku has multistorey buildings with karaoke,
nearby mean that the air’s filled with dizzying aro- games centres, thousands and thousands of bars and
mas of Japanese food. “It’s a warren of bars around restaurants..
here,” says Brett Plotz, a tour guide from InsideJa- When people close their eyes and think of Tokyo
pan, as we make our way down Omoide Yokucho, a with the neon lights and the crowds, they’re thinking
lane of packed izakaya (gastropubs). of Shinjuku.” Further to the west of the station, bars
Smoke rolls up and down the alley like a morning and restaurants are stacked high on top of one anoth-
mist. er in tower blocks.
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A PERFECT DAY @
CHIYODA
CHIYODA
CHIYODA
The Imperial Palace’s landscaped gardens sit at the heart
of this neighbourhood, with bike tours, quirky museums
and Kabuki theatre all close at hand
7am: Stretch your legs with 8am: Breakfast at the other 10am: Join a bike tour
the locals palace Learn about the history of the
Head out to join the thousands Enjoy a moatside breakfast at area on a two-wheeled guided
of joggers who have made the the historic Palace Hotel Tokyo, tour, taking in sights including the
palace grounds their running the design of which mirrors the mighty palace gates and Tokyo
route. One lap of the periphery nearby citadel. Keep an eye out Station, dating back to 1914.
measures three miles, along for famous faces here, too — tokyocycling.ip
which you’ll get a feeling for the actors and sports stars often check
neighbourhood’s scenic clash of in. palacehoteltokyo.com
new and old.
12am: Explore the East 1:30am: Stop for lunch 4pm: Visit the city’s quirkiest
Gardens Sushi Mizukami is the home of museum
The Imperial Palace was chef Yukinori Mizukami, who Intermediatheque, in the old
destroyed during the Second spent 18 years learning under Japan Post Tower, has a hidden
World War but has been the seat legendary sushi chef Jiro Ono. For entrance leading to a collection
of the royal family ever since its something more affordable, put on that includes Persian swords and
restoration. Parts of the grounds a bib and head to the slurptastic a menagerie of animal skeletons.
are closed but there are still miles ramen spot Ippudo Marunouchi. intermediatheque.jp
of paths to explore. sushi--mizukami.jp ippudo.com
sankan.kunaicho.go.jp
6pm: Enjoy a whisky aperitif 7pm: Experience Kabuki
While the maze of bars in Ginza theatre
isn’t far away, stay local and go Watch traditional Kabuki at the
to Chotto Bar Ho, a characterful National Theatre, where actors
whisky joint outside of Kojimachi wear elaborate costumes and
Station with friendly staff. bombastic make-up. Try a Kabuki
gghj000.gorp.jp for beginners evening, which
attempts to demystify the form for
newcomers. nntt.jac.go.jp
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NATIONAL
GEOGRAPHIC
Tokyo Skytree is a broadcasting and observation tower in Sumida, Tokyo.
It became the tallest structure in Japan in 2010 and reached its full height
of 634 meters (2,080 ft) in March 2011
