Kewpie the popular doll character was created like illustration in 1909 and in early twentieth century the dolls were selling very well.
In 1925 the Kewpie mayonnaise was created in Japan with this character like the mascot of the company and suddenly the Kewpie doll becomes a Icon, the vinyl doll is everywhere in Japan.
Now only in Asakusa there is a very special souvenir, the classic Kewpie doll with Yakuza Tattoos!!!!
You can choose size and tattoos, really is a piece of crafts!
A very nice souvenir for the Japanese culture lovers.
Have a very detailed drawing just like the traditional tattoos of the Japanese Mafia: "The Yakuza"
Hi! I'm Manuel and all people knows that I a great Ice-cream lover,
In the supermarkets, convenience stores, shops, etc in Japan, you can buy many different Ice-Creams.
The Japanese ice-cream list is endless, I will present only a few of them:
The " Yukimi-daifuku" ( 雪見だいふく ) "Lotte" company, from 1981,
maybe is the most beloved of the Japanese people.
Is like a creamy Vanilla ice ball with a coverage of tender Mochi Rice.
In a pack there is two Yukimidaifuku, ideal for sharing.^^
All persons that comes to Japan, have to try to eat this ice-cream.
The classic flavor of Yukimi daifuku is the vanilla flavor but there is another delicious flavors!
For example, the Milk Strawberry Yukimi daifuku.
Another classic: The Calpis Icebar!!
The omnipresent Calpis have many forms, not only a soft drink and a soda, there is chocolates, candys, marshmalows, .... and of course; Ice candy too.
Simple but great idea.
Papico is another living classic from "Glico", there is some different flavors, this time: "Peach Flavor"!
The List of Ice-cream in Japan is never-ending....
The "Matccha" (Green Tea) flavor is habitual and easy to eat. Mattcha is always very refreshing!!
On the future will talk again about Ice-creams! See you!!
Yesterday while walking take some pictures. The place is a small park in Itabashi, on Tokyo.
板橋区 東京都
This week the weather was good and nice to walk at night, probably no more Cherry Blossoms in a few days and then I was take the chance for enjoy the beautiful Sakura trees.
With the light of the traditional paper lanterns the leafs had a special and subtle color.
We will have to wait a year for admire again the Cherry Blossoms..., is a bit sad...
If you love cosplaying or eagerly desire to cosplay once in your life,
You cannot miss this event on 25th (SUN)!
At TOKYO DOME CITY (nearest station is Suidou-Bashi, only 20 min by subway & train from Asakusa),
On 25th of November (SUN), there is a big cosplay festa = COSFES.
This event is the oldest cosplay event at the amusement park in the world and have been held annually since 1997. Every year more than 6,000 people join it! WOW!
In addition, there is the all-night event on 24th at the same place.
From 11:00PM to 6:30AM, the party floor will appear and DJ & VJ will play all night long!
Of course this pre-event is for COSPLAYERS too :)
It's gonna be extremely fun event! Don't miss it XD!!!
TOKYO COSPLAY FESTA
Date & Time : 2012.11.25 (Sun) 10:00-21:00
Place : Tokyo Dome City Attractions & Prism Hall
Ticket : Advance 2,000 YEN / Walk-up 2,200YEN
*If you'd like to take pictures of cosplayers without cosplaying yourself, you need to pay the extra fee 500 YEN.
Hi, this is Yutaka. How are you doing, everyone?
You know in Japan, we normally use both Japanese Calendar and Western Calendar. But we also use Chinese Zodiac Calendar which uses 12 animal symbols. The animals are the Rat, Ox, Tiger, Hare, Dragon, Serpent, Horse, Sheep, Monkey, Rooster, Dog and Boar, and change year by year. So it is common for us Japanese to print the animal symbol of the year on new year's card. This year 2012, the symbol is Dragon which has been believed as a sacred and lucky animal. (Is Dragon an animal? ...Anyway.)
When I was organizing my new year card the other day, my 5years old son asked me a simple question. "Dad, How many nails (thumb and fingers) do dragons have?" Well, let's see.........was it 3? 4? 5?,
I finally could not answer to his question.
Next day, I started to look for the dragons here and there for the research. However, to my surprise, it was found that every answer of 3nails, 4nails or 5nails is all correct as follows.
3 Dragon Nail
4 Dragon Nail
5 Dragon Nail
According to the internet information, this difference has come from some historical background. But anyway I finally found the answer to keep my dignity as a father. If you find dragons, pay attention to the numbers of its nails(fingers)!!
You might have already known this, but there is a life size robot, Gundam in Odaiba, Tokyo.
I went there the other day, and I was amazed how big it was.
The life size Gundam was first appeared in July 2009 in Odaiba, then it went to Shizuoka for a while.
Odaiba is about 30 minutes train ride from Asakusa.
Take either Ginza line or Asakusa line to Shinbashi station, then take Yurikamome line to Daiba station. Easy!
Gundam returned to Tokyo and it should be here until next spring, 2013. So come visit us before it goes away!
The other week, I went to an Art Aquarium in Nihonbashi, which is about 15 minutes train ride from Asakusa.
They had a live goldfish exhibition there.
Goldfish is iconic of Japanese summer. Around Edo period, they feel that seeing goldfish make Japanese people cool down in the hot summer. They use this theme and arrange it in modern style by using light, vision, and sound.
The daytime exhibition is held from 11:00 am till 7:00 pm.
The place transforms into a bar where you can enjoy live music and have alcoholic beverage.
The exhibition is held until September 24th, 2012.
Where: Nihonbashi Mitsui Hall in Chuo-ku, Tokyo. (Inside Coredo Muromachi building)
Hours: 11:00 am to 11:30 pm.
So on my first day off I spent the day relaxing at a Cat cafe in Ikebukuro. This was the first time in my life and I've always wanted to go!
It took awhile to find but I eventually found the shop located on the 3rd floor of a building next to the Sunshine City shopping center. On arrival you are greeted by a friendly staff member who hands you the rule book. Most are commonsense such as " You cannot forcefully hug the cats " or " Feeding the cats without authorization from staff ".
After we read the rules we were ushered into the bathroom where we had to thoroughly wash our hands before going into the main playroom where the cats live.
Inside the playroom, they had a Nintendo wii, laptop, ipad, free snacks & drinks while you chill amongst the cats. They had plenty of cat toys to lure them in but to be honest most of the cats seemed to be disinterested in the customers.
I spent most of the time sipping on the free coffee and taking photos of the cats! The staff were nice enough to provide little satchels of food to feed the cats but since I have an allergy to cats I had to give them to my friend!
Yesterday my friends and I went to the Wakasu Camping Park in Koto-ku for BBQ!
Near this park, there is the new spot of Tokyo.
That is...
TOKYO GATE BRIDGE
This bridge which connects Wakasu ward to Central Breakwater had been constructed for reducing the clog by containerized transportation since 2004. It has about 2,600m of length!
Since this rare shape looks like a dinosaur, the bridge is sometimes
called "Dino Bridge".
It looked huge, I think!
At the night time, the bridge will be lighten-up.
Oh, I missed to see that!
It's the sunset time~
The park near TOKYO GATE BRIDGE is very calm and nice place to spend times.
We enjoyed delicious BBQ there :)
From Asakusa to Shinkiba where is the closest station to the park, it takes only 30 min by metro with less than 300 yen(one way).
The area is very popular for foreigners too. Odaiba, Maihama, Tokyo Big Sight.. they are very close each other.
TOKYO GATE BRIDGE and Wakasu Camping Park could be recommended as the places to visit in Tokyo!
Don't miss it ;)
The other week I went to Kappabashi street for the first time to get some things for the hostel.
Kappabashi is a shopping street that sells lots of kitchen/restaurant items.
Items on sale include tableware, kitchen utensils and appliances, sample food, furniture, signs, lanterns and uniforms.
Everything you need for restaurant business is here!
Walking around the area, I saw many statues of Kappa.
Kappa is a popular mythical creature in Japan.
It's a walking distance from the hostel.
You could get some nice souviners!
Sakura Hostel Asakusa
Address: 2-24-2 Asakusa Taito-ku, Tokyo
tel +81-3-3847-8111
fax +81-3-3847-8112
Yes, he has just returned to Odaiba Island recently.
An 18-meter tall Gundam real size statue is standing right in front of the newest shopping complex called "DiverCity Tokyo" (5 min from Daiba station on Yurikamome line and Tokyo Teleport station on Rinkai line)
There were dozens of visitors to see it and its spectacular show which takes place several times a day.
Especially shows at night time was amazing with the Gundam featuring light and sound, and also animation projected on the wall of the shopping complex.
To view this statue, it is absolutely free as it is located outside of the building.
Inside the building of DiverCity Tokyo, they have an exhibition of Gundam called "Gundam Front Tokyo" and the admission is 1,000 to 1,200 yen.
Advanced tickets were sold online, but any remaining tickets are also sold at the door when you arrive there.
For example, I arrived at 15:00 yesterday on Sunday but there were still tickets available for the 18:00 exhibition on the same day.
It must be a paradise for fans who might want to spend hours in Gundam world.
When you visit Tokyo, don't forget to go to Odaiba
to be amazed by the spectacle of Gundam!
Access from our hostel:
Take the subway Asakusa line to Shimbashi station (210 yen, 15 min)
Change to Yurikamome line and get off at Daiba station (310 yen, 15 min)
In many countries, there are 24 hours supermarkets and convenient stores.
In Japan, especially Tokyo, there are so many 24 hours shops and restaurants.
There are:
24 hours family restaurants
24 hours izakaya
24 hours karaoke bars
24 hours manga/internet cafe
24 hours gym
24 hours bowling alleys
... etc.
Tokyo is one of the safest cities in the world with street crime extremely rare and helpful policeman in police boxes.
No mater what time it is, people are always around.
I think that is why there are many places that are open 24 hours.
Tokyo is truly the city that never sleeps.
Also, Sakura Hostel Asakusa is open 24 hours. Reception is open all the time, so you could check in late, or ask questions to the front staff.
Sakura Hostel Asakusa
Address: 2-24-2 Asakusa Taito-ku, Tokyo
tel +81-3-3847-8111
fax +81-3-3847-8112
Asakusa is a great place to get souvenirs.
Just 5 minutes away walking from Sakura Hostel, you'll find a shopping street called Nakamise.
Starting from Kaminarimon gate to outer gate of Sensoji temple, you'll see lots of souvenir shops.
You could get souvenirs such as Yukata, masks, katana, fans, traditional Japanese sweets and so much more!
Even if you have less time to spend in Tokyo, there are direct trains from the airport to Asakusa which makes it easier for visitors.
So why don't you stop by Asakusa and enjoy sightseeing as well as shopping.
If you get tired, we have a place for you to rest.
Enjoy shopping!
Sakura Hostel Asakusa
Address: 2-24-2 Asakusa Taito-ku, Tokyo
tel +81-3-3847-8111
fax +81-3-3847-8112
Then a lot of people went to the station to buy the last ticket as Narihira-bashi St. mignight!
After few hours, a lot of people came again to buy the memorial tickets as Tokyo Sky Tree St.!
And there is a good news about Sky Tree.
Since yesterday we are able to reserve tickets to enter the observation deck by lot.
To reserve the tickets, many people lined up in front of the travel agency.
We, Sakura Hostel Asakusa Staffs, see Sky Tree everyday.
東京スカイツリー Tokyo Sky Tree / Zengame
People who is living near to Tokyo Sky Tree cannot wait for its opening :D!
Sakura Hostel Asakusa
Address: 2-24-2 Asakusa Taito-ku, Tokyo
tel +81-3-3847-8111
fax +81-3-3847-8112
Roppongi area will become one artistic park all the night on this weekend!
六本木アートナイト Roppongi Art Night / na0905
This event "Roppongi Art Night" will be held on 24-25 of March at whole Roppongi area.
The feature of this event is that it's held all the night!
大こけし 花子 / gabuken
As some of foreigners who have come to Tokyo already knew,
Roppongi is famous for Night Life :)
John Lord Fonda dj set tokyo / dat'
In this event, you can enjoy almost all the museum in Roppongi for free!
There are various works of Japanese famous artists.
For example, Yayoi Kusama, who has been getting herself noticed recently,
will exhibit her dot works.
やよいちゃん / gabuken
And the very lovely new caracter will appear!!
The name is... Jappy!
ジャッピー君こわいよ / gabuken
Can you guess what the name means?
Jappy = "Japan" + "Happy"!
The group Antenna created Jappy wishing Happiness in Japan.
From Sakura Hostel Asakusa, it takes about 30 min by metro for Roppongi.
For this event, there are special buses to main area in Tokyo(Shibuya, Shinjuku, Shinagawa, Ueno etc).
The biggest anime event is coming soon! A large group of `cosplay`
(dressing up as anime characters) people will be thronging the halls to
promote the anime show.
This is the official character of this year designed by Mr. Takashi Yanase, conceived with "anime" and "Tokyo".
If you are a big anime freak, don't miss it!
Tokyo International Anime Fair
March 24 (Sat) & 25 (Sun) at Tokyo Big Sight
Admission for adults is 800 yen in advance and 1000 yen at the door.
Opens at 10 am-6 pm http://www.tokyoanime.jp/en/
Directions from Asakusa>>
From Asakusa station, take Metro Ginza line to Shinbashi station.
Transfer to Yurikamome line to Kokusai-Tenjijo-Seimon Station.
Sakura Hostel Asakusa
Address: 2-24-2 Asakusa Taito-ku, Tokyo
tel +81-3-3847-8111
fax +81-3-3847-8112
The first Tokyo Marathon was held in 2007 and since this time, the number of applicants has increased every year! ^^
For the Marathon, there's a maximum of 35,500 registered participants allowed (including 100 elite runners, 3,000 charity runners and 3,000 premium members of "ONE TOKYO," the official club of the Tokyo Marathon).
Johrel-san, our sporty staff member, wanted to join and registered early, but he didn't have the luck, to get a ticket (maybe he was applicant 35,501! ^^). But as there were around 285.000 applicants in total, who had registered for the Marathon, he's not the only one, who can't run tomorrow.
It's the only time during the year where you will find Tokyo's streets empty of cars as the route takes runners past such landmarks as the Imperial palace, Tokyo Tower, Ginza, Asakusa, and the Tsukiji fish market.
And that's the route! ^^
Here's an overview of the Marathon time schedule!
As you see, many many kilometres to walk! :D
Finish! ^^
Have you get a ticket for the Marathon? ^^
So if you didn't get one of the tickets and/or you are interested in taking part on the Marathon 2013, registration will start in the summer.
It's a great way to see Tokyo.
And a very healthy way, of course, too!
Sakura Hostel Asakusa
Address: 2-24-2 Asakusa Taito-ku, Tokyo
tel +81-3-3847-8111
fax +81-3-3847-8112
It looks like two dinosaurs facing each other, right ?
This is a new landmark in Tokyo which has been recently opened to traffic.
Its name is " Tokyo Gate Bridge ".
You might think, " It's just a bridge. What 's special ?!?! ".
It has a length of 1,618 meters, which is the biggest bridge crossing over Tokyo Bay.
And what make it popular is super nice view from the bridge.
You can see beautiful Mt. Fuji.
Tokyo Sky Tree, too !!
Because Tokyo Gate Bridge has not only roadway but also sidewalk,
you can enjoy the beautiful view from the bridge without car !!
The sidewalk is open from 10 am to 5 pm.
Unfortunately, no bicycle is allowed to enter.
Tokyo Gate Bridge was built to reduce traffic, expected to solve 20-30 % of traffic jam on Route 357.
Actually, because materials flows will be better, it leads to reconstruction of the disaster-stricken area.
Tokyo Gate Bridge is going to be one of the best spot to take photo.
Sakura Hostel Asakusa
Address: 2-24-2 Asakusa Taito-ku, Tokyo
tel +81-3-3847-8111
fax +81-3-3847-8112
ich moechte gar nicht wissen, wie oft ihr als Japanbegeisterte schon lesen musstet: Tokyo ist eine der teuersten Staedte der Welt! Und wie unglaublich teuer es sei, in Tokyo Spass zu haben.
Aber wisst ihr was: wenn man weiss, wie und wo, dann erscheint Tokyo ploetzlich gar nicht mehr teuer - im Gegenteil! ^^
Ja, es ist moeglich, einen wahnsinnig guten Tag in Tokyo zu verbringen fuer richtig wenig Geld! Wirklich! ^^
Um euch zu zeigen, wie das funktioniert, habe ich einen Tag fuer euch geplant - und der startet gleich hier in unserem Sakura Hostel Asakusa.
In meinem Beispiel ist die Uebernachtung natuerlich gleich mit eingeplant...hey, ihr sollt schliesslich frisch und relaxed in euer Tokyo Abenteuer starten! ^^
Ihr uebernachtet also in einem unserer Dormitory Betten. Kosten fuer Unterkunft total: 2940 Yen (natuerlich ist es eine gute Idee, unsere special offers oefer mal durchzuchecken, dann koennt ihr noch mehr sparen! ^^)
Damit ihr auch nicht hungrig in den Tag geschickt werdet, solltet ihr euch ruhig an unser leckeres Fruehstueck wagen - da koennt ihr naemlich so viel essen und trinken wie ihr wollt! ^^ Kosten fuer Fruehstueck total: 315 Yen
Dann wollen wir mal los! ^^
Zuerst - und das fuer voellig umsonst - koennt ihr den beruehmten Senso-ji besichtigen und ein wenig tiefer in die japanische Kultur eintauchen: der Senso-ji ist der aelteste Tempel Tokyos und wahrhaft ziemlich beeindruckend. Den solltet ihr echt nicht verpassen, wenn ihr in Tokyo seid!
Danach koennt ihr gemuetlich durch die Kaminarimon Street schlendern und euch an den traditionellen Marktstaenden ordentlich mit traditionellen Suessigkeiten und Souvenirs eindecken. ^^
Euer naechstes Ziel ist dann erst mal die Asakusa Station (Ginza Line). Dort solltet ihr euch unbedingt den Tokyo Metro One-Day pass zulegen. Damit koennt ihr naemlich den ganzen Tag unbegrenzt mit allen Tokyo Metro Linien durch die Gegend cruisen (vom ersten Zug morgens angefangen bis zum letzten Zug nachts)! ^^ Transportkosten total: pro Erwachsenen 710 Yen, fuer Kinder 360 Yen
Mit der immer puenktlichen, gepflegten Metro begebt ihr euch dann erst mal zur Sakuradamon Station, macht einen ca. 8 minuetigen Spaziergang und steht dann...tadaaa...mitten im wundervoll beeindruckenden Park vom Kaiserpalast / Imperial Palace! ^^ Auf jeden Fall ein Must See in Tokyo! ^^
Als der Kaiser nach der Meiji Restoration von Kyoto nach Tokyo umgezogen ist, wurde dieses Edo Schloss der neue Kaiserpalast. Und der Ostpark des Kaiserpalasts ist fuer die Oeffentlichkeit zugaenglich. Das sollte man sich definitiv nicht entgehen lassen.
Die Nijubashi Bruecke vor dem Hauptgebaeude des Palasts ist ebenfalls eine beruehmte Sehenswuerdigkeit! Daher empfehle ich euch, unbedingt vorbeizuschauen. Sowohl historisch betrachtet, als auch was die Atmosphaere betrifft, werdet ihr echt beeindruckt sein. :)
Soviel freie Flaeche - und die Skyline um einen herum ist echt fantastisch. Und das alles fuer voellig umsonst!
Ich denke, jetzt koenntet ihr sicherlich ein leckeres Mittagessen vertragen, stimmts? ^^
Und es ist absolut moeglich, traditionelle Gerichte zu geniessen, ohne davon gleich arm zu werden. Haltet euch einfach an die Restaurants (und die wuerde ich - im Gegensatz zu manchem Japaner - bei weitem nicht als "Fast Food Kette" bezeichnen), in denen auch richtig viele Japaner ihre Mittagspause verbringen. Da gibt es die grossen Ketten wie Sukiya, Yoshinoya, Fuji Soba, Matsuya und viele mehr, wo ihr euch richtig leckeres Gyudon, Udon, Ramen, Curry etc. etc. in unzehligen Varianten und Variationen ordern koennt. Tee gibts dazu umsonst zu jedem Essen (und meistens kann man auch unbegrenzt nachschenken ^^). Abhaengig davon, welches Restaurant ihr euch aussucht, solltet ihr mit durchschnittlich 500 Yen planen - fuer ein saettigendes, delizioeses Mittagessen! ^^ Heute nehmen wir mal Gyudon! Mittagessen Kosten total: 500 Yen
Kennt ihr den Film "Lost in Translation"? Zeit fuer unser naechstes Reiseziel: Takeshita Dori. Die Takeshita Dori ist in Harajuku, d. h. ihr koennt die Metro bis zur Meiji-jingumae Station nehmen, muesst noch gemaechliche 5 Minuten zu Fuss gehen und steht auch schon am Eingang dieser beruehmt-beruechtigten Strasse. ^^ Hier koennt ihr nicht nur die neueste (und verrueckteste) Mode Tokyos einkaufen, auch diverse Animefiguerchen und Idol-Artikel warten auf euch! Haltet die Augen offen und ihr koennt an den Menschen, die euch begegnen werden, wohl mehr als nur einmal die neuesten Fashion- und Cosplay-Wunderwerke begutachten. ^^
Wenn ihr euch sattgesehen habt an all den verrueckten Dingen, die man in der eigenen Heimat dann doch nicht so haeufig sehen kann (^^) und einfach mal eine Pause in der Natur einlegen wollt - gar kein Problem! Der allseits beliebte, wirklich wunderschoene Yoyogi Park befindet sich naemlich direkt neben der Takeshita Dori. Und ratet mal: alles fuer umsonst! ^^
Man kann wirklich viel Zeit im Yoyogi Park verbringen und sich fuehlen, wie als waere man in eine andere Welt versetzt worden. Sind es nicht genau diese Gegensaetze, die Tokyo so einzigartig machen?
Der Yoyogi Park ist wirklich unglaublich gross und umgeben von diesen sicherlich vielen vielen Jahre alten Baeumen, fuehlt man sich wie im Maerchenwald oder weit ab von jeder Grossstadt. ^^ In der Mitte des Parks befindet sich eine grosse Rasenflaeche, auf der man gerne mal eine Pause einlegt und einfach nur das Drumherum geniesst. :)
Hoert ihr schon wieder euren Magen grummeln? ^^ Dann wird es wahrscheinlich Zeit fuer wohlschmeckende Udon-Nudeln, begleitet im Set von einem kleinen Curry oder Katsudon. Ich habe ja bereits geschrieben, wo ihr hinmuesst, um echt leckeres Essen fuer wenig Geld zu bekommen. Abendessen Kosten total: 500 Yen
Was, ihr habt immer noch Energie!? :D Dann wird es jetzt wohl Zeit, sich ins Nachtleben zu stuerzen! ^^ Deshalb heisst unsere naechste Station auch: Shinjuku! Von dort aus muesst ihr nur noch 5 Minuten laufen und seid auch schon mitten im bedeutendsten Vergnuegungsviertel in Shinjuku - in Kabukicho. Dort gibt es unglaublich viele, unzaehlige Restaurants, Theater, Kinos und Game Hallen.
Ihr denkt euch jetzt vielleicht: Na toll, das kostet doch nen Haufen Kohle. Da habt ihr auch absolut recht. Aber schon alleine, durch Kabukicho durchzuschlendern, ist echt beeindruckend. Ihr glaubt gar nicht, wie viele coole Menschen und neue Dinge ihr sehen werdet. ^^ Die Atmosphaere wird euch mitreissen. ^^ Und diese Dinge kosten absolut nichts. Ich denke wirklich, wenn ihr Tokyo einen Besuch abstattet, solltet ihr Kabukicho auf keinen Fall verpassen! ^^
Oh oh, jetzt solltet ihr euch aber langsam beeilen. Schliesslich muesst ihr noch einen der letzten Zuege nach Asakusa erwischen. Auch der schoenste (und superguenstigste) Tag hat leider mal ein Ende...aber soll man nicht eh aufhoeren, wenns am schoensten ist. ^^
Aber vergesst nicht, auf dem Rueckweg zum Hostel noch ein zweites Mal beim Senso-ji vorbeizuschauen. In der Nacht ist dieser Tempel wirklich absolut herrlich. ^^
So, dann lasst uns mal zusammenrechnen, wieviel dieser komplette Tag nun fuer einen Erwachsenen gekostet hat:
4965 Yen!
Fuer den ganzen Tag - inklusive Uebernachtung!
Und ihr habt wirklich richtig viel gesehen...und zwar nicht nur irgendwas, sondern mit die bekanntesten Sehenswuerdigkeiten Tokyos!
Ist Tokyo wirklich zu teuer?
Doch nicht fuer uns! ;)
Ich muss aber auch ehrlich gestehen - Souvenirs und Getraenke wie Cocktails oder Bier sind in diesen Kosten nicht mit einkalkuliert - das haengt natuerlich ganz von euch alleine ab. ^^
Wenn ihr mehr Zeit als nur diesen einen Tag habt (was ich doch schwer hoffe) - dann kann ich euch auch waermstens ans Herz legen, euch auch einfach mal ein Fahrrad auszuleihen. 5 Minuten Fussweg von unserem Hostel befindet sich auch rein zufaellig ein Fahrradverleih. Da koennt ihr euch ein Rad fuer nur 200 Yen fuer den ganzen Tag ausleihen! ^^
Und es ist echt total unkompliziert, in Tokyo mit dem Rad zu fahren. Hier gibt es echt ne ganze Menge Radfahrer und ihr seid auch nicht gezwungen, auf der stark befahrenen Strasse zu fahren - bleibt einfach auf dem Gehweg (wie alle anderen auch). ^^ Das ist echt eine perfekte (und guenstige) Gelegenheit, die naehere Umgebung besser kennenzulernen und dort keine Sehenswuerdigkeit auszulassen. :)
Und wenn ihr dann wieder hungrig werdet und nach kleinen Snacks sucht - es gibt ueberall 100 Yen Conbinis und Laeden. Dort koennt ihr echt fast alles an Essen und Trinken fuer 105 Yen einkaufen (oh, wie ich das Melonpan dort liebe! ^^).
Zum Schluss nochmal die Geldspartips fuer Tokyo:
- Leiht euch ruhig ein Fahrrad aus, nur keine Angst
- Nutzt die 100 Yen Laeden ausgiebig
- Schaut euch Abends in den Conbinis genauer um, zu spaeter Stunde sind naemlich viele Artikel reduziert zu haben
- Recherchiert immer mal wieder im Internet, ob nicht gerade wieder einmal ein spezieller Museumstag stattfindet (dann gibts naemlich meistens freien Eintritt!)
- Recherchiert ein bisschen mehr - es gibt wirklich unzaehlig viele Sehenswuerdigkeiten, die man voellig umsonst besuchen kann
- Probiert ruhig so oft wie moeglich das Sortiment der leckeren "Fast Food" Ketten durch - ihr werdet es nicht bereuen!
- Plant vorher schon eure Transportkosten/Zugtickets durch - manchmal kann das entsprechende Tagesticket durchaus guenstiger sein, als Einzeltickets
Tokyo kann wirklich guenstig sein, wenn man es richtig angeht! ^^
Wir freuen uns schon auf euren Besuch! ^^
Sakura Hostel Asakusa
Address: 2-24-2 Asakusa Taito-ku, Tokyo
tel +81-3-3847-8111
fax +81-3-3847-8112
a few days ago, it was the first time in my life, I was ice fishing!
^^
In Japan, ice fishing has a long tradition and of course, I didn't want to miss this kind of fun! ^^
So Hiro-san, Naoto-san and former employee Ryoko-san from our Hostel in Asakusa, Linn-san and Hitoshi-san from Sakura Hotel Jimbocho, my boyfriend Marius and me get our stuff packed and drive together to Nagano prefecture, where a nice and big, icy lake called lake Matsubara was waiting for our fishing skills! :D
We started our big fishing adventure at midnight and with some breaks, we had all our fishing material lent together at the lakeside very early in the morning (I think, it was around 6:30 am). ^^
Wow, it was soooo cold, you can't imagine! It should be around -6 degrees, but feels like -20. ^^
Fortunately, we all were wearing thick and warm clothes (I really recommend skying clothes for this kind of winter adventure) and rubber boots could be lent there (or just wearing snowboard boots, like Naoto-san did). ^^
And I had Kairo (small heating pillows) for my feet and hands! They are really cheap and you can get them almost in every supermarket and conbini in the winter. ^^ Really recommend that! ^^
As Hiro-san was the only one who went to ice fishing before a few years ago, he was a great teacher and perfectly knows, what we have to do! ^^
So first, you have to get the hole in the ice...with this useful tool, it isn't a problem (for man with power ^^).
Then just put the ice out of the whole with such a cute sieve! ^^
Next get your place clear. Get you a nice small chair (you can lent them there or bring one with you - thank you, Hiro-san!) and build up your tent. You can rent a tent for one or two persons or bring your own.
These tents are really great. ^^
Especially, when it starts snowing like that! :D
We had a really great fishing base camp! ^^
Tadaaa, this were the bait. Looking yummy, right :D
So "just" put the bait on the hooks.
It takes some time for me, because first, I put my finger in the hook, then one of my gloves, too. ^^
So: is the hole in the ice, the worms on the right place (not on the ground or sticking on my gloves :D), you put your fishing line in the water. On the end of the line, there's a little weight, so that you will feel and see it on the line, when you've reached the ground.
So we started to get our many many fish together! :D
Look at this cute fishing rod...it's very small and thin, hihi. But as the fish, we want to fish, are very small, too, that's totally fitting! ^^ They are called wakasagi (Hypomesus nipponensis). ^^ The fishing rod had 5 hooks, so that you could get the fish easily.
The wakasagi are swimming around 10 cm over the lake ground.
So you just have to move your fishing rod a few times a little bit up and down and wait around 5 seconds.
Normally, a fish will bite your worm, you'll feel this little movement and get your rod out of the water with yummy fish. NORMALLY :D
Here you can see some of the good work! :D
The fishing record of the day before we went fishing was around 140 wakasagi, one person has catched! ^^
Our record (7 persons) was
....13 fish...
together.
Marius and me have catched....NOTHING. ^^
I don't know why! ^^
Maybe the person the day before catched to much fish! ^^
But everyone was proud of the catch and in the restaurant near the lake (where you can borrow all the nice fishing materials) we get nice Tempura from our wakasagi.
You eat them with salt. It was so yummy! ^^
But it wasn't enough unfortunately. ^^ So I eat some Butadon. Love it! Udon was sold well there, too...but unfortunately I was so busy with eating, that I forgot to take pictures! :D
After we were finished with fishing, we drive to a nearby onsen.
The others told me, that it was really nice there...I couldn't go in...had a little tattoo problem unfortunately. ^^
Not so bad, I could sleep a little bit and watching then Marius, who went in an Onsen for the first time, coming out with a red head. Was hot, I guess :D
But the Onsen was really nice with an outside pool, too. The temperatures were around 40 degrees. ^^ Here's a picture from inside the onsen. ^^
Then, we were driving back to lovely Tokyo, where no single snowflake is hiding!
Wow, I was sleeping like a stone in the car. ^^
It was a great day and I'll never forget this experience of going ice fishing.
That was really wow! ^^ I think, that was an unique experience for me and I'm so happy, that my lovely colleagues take me with them! ^^
Thanks, you're great! :)
If you have the chance, cause staying in wintertime here in Japan, I recommend to go ice fishing. ^^
That would be a great experience you'll never forget! :)
(And if you don't have the space for skying clothes in your luggage, don't worry...it may look funny, like mine..really 80s :D ... but you can get such warm clothes really - and I mean REALLY - cheap second hand, like I did. There's a great store between Ueno and Akihabara not far away from our Hostel. ^^)
one day before the start of spring, on February the 3rd, here in Japan Setsubun (節分)
will take place.
Setsubun, what originally means "seasonal division", nowadays is called the bean-throwing Festival or bean-throwing Ceremony, which is my topic for today :)
So on Setsubun, roasted soybeans, which are called 大豆(daizu), will be thrown through the air.
This bean throwing ritual is called 豆まき(mamemaki).
The people, who are throwing the beans, will shouting 鬼は外！福は内！(Oni wa soto! Fuku wa uchi!),
what means "Demons out! Good luck in!".
This will get rid of bad luck and invite in good luck.
For that, the beans will thrown against people, who are wearing an oni costume.
Oni (鬼) are creatures from Japanese folklore, variously translated as demons, devils, ogres or trolls.
Because of this special event, the beans are not longer just daizo (= soy beans), they will be called fuku mame (fortune beans) on this day and you can buy them in most of the stores. ^^
So it is also believed, that people can be healthy and happy, if they pick up and eat the thrown fuku mame. You should eat so many fuku mame equal to the number of your age! So I had to eat a lot of beans :D
A lot of shrines or temples hold a mamemaki throwing soybeans event.
Some of the big shrines or temples have celebrities, such as popular sumo wrestlers or Kabuki actors, as guests to throw beans to crowds.
Traditionally, people in Japan not only visit temples/shrines on Setsubun, but also perform bean throwing at home to drive away bad lucks and invite happiness into their houses.
One person (usually the father ^^) wears then an oni demon mask and the rest of the family throw beans at that person.
If I imagine, to hold this ritual with my family in Germany, that would be really fun! ^^
Children surely would love that :D
So if you want to experience Setsubun here in Japan - this event is held on February 3rd at 11:30 AM and 1:30 PM in Sensoji Temple
only two minutes walk away from our Hostel.
I hope, you will enjoy that special, traditional event and get all the demons away from you! ^^
And might be better not to wear only red on that day! :D
because we're often asked, how expensive it would be, to go to this and that and those places here in Tokyo, I want to recommend you a really magical great ticket and want to show you, what you could do with that in one day! ^^
The Toei One-Day Economy Pass!
It's only 700 Yen! ^^
This Toei One-Day Economy Passes allows you the unlimited use of Toei subways, Toei buses, the Toei Streetcar (Toden) Arakawa Line, and the Nippori-Toneri Liner for one day (so in Japanese please ask it with "Toei Marugoto Kippu" in the case of an inquiry).
One-Day Economy Passes are available at Toei subway station ticket counters; Toei bus offices/branches; Toei streetcar offices; and vending locations for commuter passes for Toei subways, Toei buses, Toei streetcars, and the Nippori-Toneri Liner.
On the day of use, passes are available at ticket machines in all Toei subway stations and Nippori-Toneri Liner stations and on Toei buses and streetcars.
Following Toei Metro Lines you can use unlimited with this pass:
Asakusa Line
Mita Line
Shinjuku Line
Oedo Line
Here's a plan of the Tokyo Metro, where you have everything on it! ^^
So let's start our big 700 Yen transportation costs day! ^^
1. aim: Tsukiji Fish Market
Desription:
Tsukiji Market is a large wholesale market for fish, fruits and vegetables in central Tokyo and one of the world's largest fish markets, handling over 2,000 tons of marine products per day! And it is the most famous of over ten wholesale markets that handle the distribution of fish, meat, produce and flowers in metropolitan Tokyo. So you have the chance, to walk around the huge wholesale area, enjoying the atmosphere and watching the big big tunas. ^^
How to get there:
Asakusa --> Toei Asakusa Line --> Daimon (change here!) --> Toei Oedo Line --> Tsukijishijo
2. aim: Imperial Palace
Description:
After the Meiji Restoration, the Emperor moved from Kyoto to Tokyo and so this Edo Castle became the Imperial Palace. A part of the site is opened to the public as the Imperial Palace East Park. The Nijubashi Bridge in front of the main entrance is really popular and perfect for pictures to remember.
How to get there:
Take a short walk from Tsukiji Fish Market to Higashi Ginza Station
Tsukiji-Honganji Temple on the way
Kabuki-za Theater on the way
Higashi Ginza --> Toei Asakusa Line --> Mita (change here!) --> Toei Mita Line --> Otemachi
3. aim: Yasukuni Shrine
Description:
Yasukuni Shrine is a Shinto shrine in central Tokyo that commemorates Japan's war dead. The shrine was founded in 1869 with the purpose of enshrining those who have died in war for their country and sacrificed their lives to help build the foundation for a peaceful Japan. A political controversy surrounds Yasukuni Shrine because since 1978, fourteen class A war criminals are among the 2.5 million people enshrined at Yasukuni. As you can see, with visiting Yasukuni Shrine, you are visiting a big part of history, too.
How to get there:
Just take a short walk, it's on the way :)
3. aim: Shinjuku
Description:
Time for shopping and entertainment now! ^^
Here are so many things to see and visit: the Electric Street with the big electronic stores, Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden (really totally beautiful), Shinjuku Southern Terrace (a large promenade with many shops) and Kabukicho, the major entertainment area with many restaurants, theaters, movie theaters and game arcades. Just enjoy to watch the busy life and atmosphere around you! ^^
How to get there:
Just take a short walk to Kudanshita --> Toei Shinjuku Line --> Shinjuku
4. aim: Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building
Description:
This big, important building has an observatory on the 45th floor and on the 1st floor, volunteers of the Tokyo Tourist Information, offers a tour through the building. As the observatory is open until 23:30, you can have an unforgettable view over Tokyo at night. ^^
How to get there:
You can just take a walk, it shouldn't take too much time...but after full program, if you're tired, you can take:
Shinjuku --> Toei Oedo Line --> Tochomae
5. aim: Back home! ^^
Description:
Your lovely Hostel Asakusa with your comfortable bed and a soft blanket and pillow is waiting for you! ^^
How to get there:
Tochomae --> Toei Oedo Line --> Kuramae (change here!) --> Toei Asakusa Line --> Asakusa
I hope, you will enjoy your Tour! ^^
Will be a full day of culture and fun for sure!
Sakura Hostel Asakusa
Address: 2-24-2 Asakusa Taito-ku, Tokyo
tel +81-3-3847-8111
fax +81-3-3847-8112
Before you're travelling to another country, you'll may often ask you first, if you can really feel well there and if you could find everything there for serving your needs.
Here in Sakura Hostel Asakusa, we often accommodate Islamic people - for example we're are always happy to welcome many guests from Malaysia and Indonesia - and know well about their needs.
In this entry, I want to show you, that it's no problem finding Mosques, halal restaurants and halal food stores.
-----
So did you know - in Tokyo, you can find many Mosques! HERE you can find a list with all Mosques in Tokyo and around Tokyo with addresses and contact data.
The nearest Mosque to our Hostel is the Asakusa Mosque.
It was established in 1998. The four story building has a library on its ground floor which has a variety of books in various languages.
It's around 20 minutes of walk away from our Hostel.
-----
So there are several halal food restaurants here in Tokyo, too.
In Ueno, close to our Hostel, you can find two nice restaurants, which offers halal food!
So the "Samrat" Restaurant, where you can eat delicious Indian halal food.
And the "NAZ" Restaurant, which offers tasty Persian halal food.
But, too, if you want to cook by yourself for you and your family, you don't have to worry!
Our guest kitchen is free to use for you every time!
You can find also many halal food stores in Tokyo.
On this picture you can see the "Ohtsuya Shouten" Halal food store in Ueno, which is not far away from our Hostel!
HERE you can find a list with ALL halal stores AND restaurants (when you scroll down the list) in Tokyo!
Really many many restaurants and stores, right. :)
Of course we'll always help you with maps, directions and advices to find all this places!
-----
And our Hostels offers big rooms of 6 or 8 beds, which are perfect for family use. So your whole family can enjoy its holiday together for the best! :)
Just look here!
-----
So, as you can see, Tokyo is prepared with a big variety of opportunities to let you feel at home every time.
And of course, we too! :) So we'll be very happy to welcome you!
Like this it could sound, if you would imagine, a real, life-size RX-78-2 Gundam is walking over Rainbow Bridge to Odaiba! :D
Let's dream. ^^
Ahhh, I see, some of you don't know, what Gundam is! ^^
So let me explain.
The Gundam series (Gandamu Shirizu) is an amime series created by Sundrise Studios that features giant robots (or "mecha") called "Mobile Suits" (MS). The RX-78-2 Gundam is the iconic Gundam mecha design introduced 1979 in Yoshiyuki Tomino's and Sunrise's anime series Mobile Suit Gundam.
And what's this Odaiba?
Odaiba is a large artificial island in Tokyo Bay, across the Rainbow Bridge from central Tokyo.
So from fiction to reality, the RX-78-2 Gundam from the 1979 anime "Mobile Suit Gundam" has been brought to life in massive 1/1 scale as an 18 meter tall statue! That's life size! ^^
Look, how big that this Gundam is and how small all these people...totally fascinating for me! ^^
And this famous statue of the life-size Gundam will be returning to Odaiba!
So the construction is scheduled for completion in Spring 2012.
The statue will then be on display until 2013.
Great, right! :D
The life-size Gundam statue was originally constructed back in July 2009 in Odaiba to celebrate the 30th anniversary of the Gundam franchise.
It was then taken apart and brought over to Shizuoka for exhibition until it got damaged in the earthquake.
Then the dismantled parts was recently displayed in Tokyo again.
And now back to the roots, back to Odaiba!
The estimated prize for the contstruction of the Gundam was around $724,310,000 Dollars and the statue has a weight of 35 tons!
Its head can move and it can emit lights or mist from 50 points on its body.
So until now Tokyo's giant Gundam has attracted millions of visitors who came to see the giant robot! ^^
More details on when the display will be open for public will be released at later dates by Sunrise and Bandai.
I hope, it will be soon! ^^
So if you are in Tokyo then, don't miss the chance to watch the almost real Gundam RX-78-2! ^^
Are you curious, too? ^^
Sakura Hostel Asakusa
Address: 2-24-2 Asakusa Taito-ku, Tokyo
tel +81-3-3847-8111
fax +81-3-3847-8112
There's a cool New Year's Eve event in Zojoji Temple.
Let's cry out the countdown together with everyone !!
Let's pray for the world's happiness together with everyone !!
You write down your wish on the paper, and attach it to the balloon.
About 3,000 balloons are provided.
These balloons are really eco-friendly.
They are made of water-soluble wafer, so no garbage will be produced.
When 0:00 AM comes,
the balloons are flown to the sky all together with the sound of a large temple bell.
< Schedule >
20:30 Starting to distribute the wish papers
22:30 Starting to distribute the balloons
23:20 Countdown Event
23:59 Starting to cry out the countdown
< Access >
By Train
From Asakusa station, take Toei Asakusa line to Daimon station
It's about 5 minutes walk from Daimon station.
HAVE FUN !! 三(ノ^▽^)ノ三(ノ^▽^)ノ
Sakura Hostel Asakusa
Address: 2-24-2 Asakusa Taito-ku, Tokyo
tel +81-3-3847-8111
fax +81-3-3847-8112
First I wish you a merry Christmas! ^^ I hope you have a nice time with all the people you love. :)
Yesterday was my first Christmas without my family and of course - in a different country. ^^
So I asked myself "What can I do on Christmas here in Japan?" and I found a great solution and have a wonderful Christmas here in Tokyo! ^^ I want to recommend this to you, because it was such a great day!
Me and my boyfriend have a nice trip to Odaiba yesterday. ^^ And it was soooo romantic (and that's perfect for Christmas, isn't it? ^^).
Odaiba (お台場) is a large artificial island in Tokyo Bay. It's not far away from here - only around 30 minutes by train and it's really easy to get there (and not expensive, too, so it costs one way 500 Yen for this great Odaiba experience). So only take Ginza line at Tawaramachi station (around ten minutes walk from here) to Shimbashi and then take the train to Daiba with Yurikamome line. If you can take a seat in this train, then do so, it's great, to get some nice pictures there and you can really enjoy.^^
For itself, Odaiba is total wonderful and fascinating. You have a great sight to the rainbow bridge. That looks so fantastic!
And there's the only sand beach in Tokyo. That was so great walking along the beach in the sand watching the small waves. You feel like beamed in another world.
But hey, you're not allowed to swim there! :D
I don't know, if that's usual, but yesterday they played romantic music which you can hear on the strand, like "Eternal Flame" or "I will always love you" and that was really heartmelting, hihi.
I never before in my life see so many couples as I saw yesterday on Odaiba. There were couples everywhere and you really could feel the love in the air. ^^ But Odaiba is not only on Christmas popular for couples, you can go there the whole year and have a day full of romantic.
And nobody went alone to Odaiba - everyone takes "somebody" he/she loves with. ^^
So first we have a nice time on the beach and took so many pictures (because everything looks so great there) of the skyline and of course the Rainbow Bridge.
Then we walked around, see the Fuji TV Building and the Telecom Center (doesn't they look like from outer space or from a Science Fiction movie ^^).
Can you see the Tokyo Tower? ^^
There was a great street artist there, too and so many people enjoyed his show. He was really cool and entertaining! ^^
We were totally fascinated of the big ferris wheel we saw. It's one of the world's largest ferris wheels and you surely have a great sight over the whole area (the complete revolution takes around 15 minutes).
And of course you can take boat tours too at Odaiba. ^^ Here you can see more (but not only ^^) info.
But we had spend so much time with taking pictures of us, the things around and gaping ^^, so that we realized, that we now should find a nice place to have a delicious Christmas dinner and be ready for the evening, when it's getting dark and the atmosphere would be totally great because of the many lights you can see then! ^^
So we went to Aquacity Odaiba, which is a shopping mall with many various stores, boutiques, restaurants, cafes and a cinema complex.
There we found a nice restaurant, where many couples wait for a seat. Unfortunately we didn't had a reservation and have to wait for an hour. But that was fun, so we could watching all the people and thinking about, what we want to eat (on Christmas, restaurants often offers different Christmas menu choices). ^^
The restaurant looks a little bit like a pirate cave and it was delicious (and really not so expensive as you would imagine for a 4 courses dinner). All the couples around had fun and give their loved companion it's Christmas presents. ^^ So we had a lot to look at! ^^
Aquacity has nice Christmas lights inside, so - of course - we have to take a picture, like hundreds of Japanese couples, too. ^^
When we were finished with having dinner, we enjoyed the night sight and atmosphere. It was so great, I'm not able to describe that properly. So enjoy the pictures (and I wish, I had and DSLR-Camera with me, but I hadn't, so sorry, if the pics aren't so clear at night ^^).
So just enjoy! ^^
Later there were a group of boys and make big party on the beach. Seems, that they are friends, who didn't have a date on Christmas Eve, but much fun together with celebrating ^^).
I'm honest, I didn't see really any other foreign couple there (so where have you been?) and my boyfriend either (sometimes I'm blind ^^) but the many many many many Japanese couples there showed us, that Odaiba was the totally right choice to spend a great Christmas day here in Japan! ^^
In Germany, there often is snow on Christmas and me and my family take a walk through the woods and along the two big ponds close to our house, so this Christmas was really special for me (but in a really good way! ^^).
So even if you don't visit Japan here at Christmas or only for a short holiday trip, please don't miss Odaiba. You will never forget the sight and can spend a wonderful day there! I'm sure, I'll went there a second time (and maybe in every time of the year one visit), because it was so great, I will never forget! ^^
Sakura Hostel Asakusa
Address: 2-24-2 Asakusa Taito-ku, Tokyo
tel +81-3-3847-8111
fax +81-3-3847-8112
today I don't want to write too much - instead of this, there's much more to watch for you! ^^
Two days ago, we had the idea, to make a short video for you - what's around WITHIN 5 MINUTES WALK around our Hostel.
That was so much fun!
Everything you'll see was spontaneous! ^^
Naoto-san and me walk through the streets, around and in Senso-ji, along the Japanese Bar street, had a look into Nakamise Dori, Kannon Onsen and where you can get the best Tempura and much more. ^^
Just watch it! ^^
Over 12 minutes pure Asakusa! ^^
You even can learn a little bit, how to look at your fortune or improve your health (or in my case, my intelligence :D).
So if you don't have the chance to visit Japan at the moment, let's have a virtual visit here in traditional Asakusa! ^^
I hope, you have fun while watching, like we had a lot of fun while making! ^^
And I'm sorry for my bad English (I'm much more better in writing than in speaking, I think ^^), my bad hair day and that I forgot to pull out the hood of my shirt out of my jacket, lol. ^^
Thank you for watching! ^^
Sakura Hostel Asakusa
Address: 2-24-2 Asakusa Taito-ku, Tokyo
tel +81-3-3847-8111
fax +81-3-3847-8112
Doraemon is a cat-looking robot that produces unimaginable gadgets out of his front pocket.
This manga character is very popular, and everybody knows him in Japan.
Now,
you can meet such a popular Doraemon in Roppongi. o((=゜エ゜=))o
The event named " Doraemon Park " is held on the first floor of TV Asahi until September 12.
This a familiar sight in Doraemon World.
Nobita and his friends often play in this place.
Now, Gian, who is the kid boss, has a recital.
His song is very terrible, and everybody runs away.
Takecoptar, and Dokodemo(= Anywhere) Door
These are Doraemon's secret gadgets.
If you apply Takecoptar to the head, you can fly over the sky.
Dokodemo Door is a teleportation tool.
When you open the door, there's another place in front of your eyes.
Other secret gadgets are also on display.
It's open from 9:30 AM to 20:30 PM.
Free Admission !!
Why don't you go there and enjoy Doraemon World ? ヾ(･c_,･｡) ﾉ =з =з= з
It's not super hot in Tokyo these days, but it is still hot and humid.
How about cooling yourself, watching fish which swims comfortably in a big glass tank.
" Sony Aquarium ", which is the popular event in Ginza every summer, started on July 18th.
The 14-ton large-scale fish tank reproduces the sea in Okinawa
where fish such as sharks and brutal morays swim.
In the small fish tank,
you can enjoy small sea animals such as starfish, sea urchin, and sea cucumber.
In another floor,
ecology of sea animal in Okinawa is screened by 200-inch 3D screen television.
People of all ages can enjoy learning fish with unique shape and brightly coloured fish etc.
On June 24th, 2011, Ogasawara Islands were finally inscribed on UNESCO's World Heritage List
by the World Heritage Committee.
Do you know that Ogasawara Islands belong to Tokyo ?
Ogasawara Islands,
which is composed of about 30 big and small islands that reach about 400km from south to north,
are located on the Pacific Ocean in about 1,000km south from the center of Tokyo.
It's " Oceanic Island " that has never been adjacent to the continent.
Accordingly, various creatures in Ogasawara Islands evolved from one species.
It is highly valued that
Ogasawara Islands have a number of endemic species which are not seen in other regions.
Do you want to visit Ogasawara Islands ??
Although it's a part of Tokyo,
the access to Ogasawara Islands has only ship and the ferry.
Besides,
only one ship is operated every 6 days.
Moreover,
It takes 25 hours and a half to get there.
If you are interested in visiting Ogasawara Islands, please click here
There's someone who sheltered in Ueno Zoo from the aquarium in the disaster stricken area.
That is two Eurasia Otters.
Because the electricity and water supply has failed since the earthquake,
it became a difficult situation to keep them.
Therefore,
Ueno Zoo accepted those refugee otters.
One is " Donau " (male), who was born in Germany.
The other is " Tyrol " (female), who was born in Austria.
At first, they had been moving around or shrinking with mental strain.
But now, they seem to get acclimatized to the new environment.
They are getting to eat food a lot.
The number of Eurasia Otter decreases worldwide,
and it's specified as "Semi-Vulnerable Species.
It means, it faces extinction.
Those two otters crossed over the sea, and came to Japan.
And now, they have overcome the difficulty.
How about going to see those lovely otters in Ueno Zoo ?
It is still May, though.....
" Hibiya Oktoberfest 2011 " , where you can enjoy drinking 20 kinds of German beers,
has started.
Following the beer festival "Oktoberfest" held in Germany every autumn,
Oktoberfest in Japan started in 2006.
In this festival, you can enjoy
the beer with the history of more than 600 years ,
the black beer known as the fact that Goethe loved, etc.
German sausage and German bread " pretzel " are sold.
In addition,
" Tohoku SAKE Festa "is also held at the same time.
About 10 kinds of SAKE in Tohoku region are sold.
You can enjoy the unique sake such as the sparkling sake " Puchi Puchi ".
A part of sales is contributed to the stricken area.
Are you a beer lover ? Or, do you prefer sake ??
It is held in Hibiya Park from May 20th to 29th.
On weekdays, it's open from noon till 9:30 PM.
On weekends, it's open from 11:00 AM till 9:30 PM.
Although the tragedy fell over Japan, we got an encouraging news in Tokyo.
Tokyo Sky Tree reached 634 meters in height at 1:34 PM on 18th of March !!
It has become the world's tallest freestanding broadcast structure. (ﾟδﾟ*)☆☆
When the earthquake occurred on 11th of March,
the construction was immediately interrupted,
and the workers headed to the ground for safety.
There was neither injured person nor damage in the main body of the tower.
Therefore,
The construction was restarted on 14th of March.
At 9:50 AM on 18th of March,
the work was started that
"Gain Tower" for the antenna installation , which jut out from the main body of the tower,
was lifted up.
Then,
the lightning rod in the top of "Gain Tower" reached 634 meters.
So far, the construction plan not influenced by the earthquake.
It's almost on schedule.
After the interior finishing, it will be completed in this December.
It's scheduled to open next spring.
I think this news really cheers up people in Japan.
I hope the positive news like this will increase more.
･ﾟ･｡･ﾟﾟ･*:(((｡･-･)从(･-･｡)))･ﾟ･｡･ﾟﾟ･*:
Finally,
The Japanese names of two giant pandas has been decided on March 9th.
Do you want to know their Japanese names ?
"比力( bi li ) " got "力力( lee lee )" as his Japanese name.
"仙女( xian nu ) " got "真真( shin shin ) as her Japanese name.
40,438 people applied for a chance to give Japanese name to them.
Top 3 names are as follows ;
< male panda>
( 1 ) Tan Tan （タンタン）
( 2 ) You you (ユウユウ）
( 3 ) Pan Pan （パンパン）
< female panda >
( 1 ) May May （メイメイ）
( 2 ) Ru-n Ru-n (ルンルン）
( 3 ) Sakura （サクラ）
Beyond these top 3 names,
"Lee Lee （リーリー）" and "Shin Shin （シンシン）" were chosen because of the following images.
"Lee Lee （リーリー）" : Active and Powerful image
"Shin Shin （シンシン）" : Sweet image such as Innocent and Naivete
In addition,
the names of nine pandas in the past were made with the double sound.
They took over the history.
"Lee Lee （リーリー）" and "Shin Shin （シンシン）" arrived in Ueno Zoo on February 21st.
After various inspection and training in a new environment,
they will be open to the public. (the schedule undecided as the zoo is closed for a while because of the earthquake.)
We can't wait to see them !! ♪♪- o(ﾟ∇ﾟ*o)(o*ﾟ∇ﾟ)o-♪♪
Tokyo. It is the capital of Japan, the center of the Greater Tokyo Area, and the largest metropolitan area of Japan.
Even in this big city, there are wild animals living in Tokyo.
Have you ever heard of Tanuki? It is similar to raccoon or badger in appearance, but it is part of carnivora families such as cats and bears.
There are about 1,000 tanuki in Tokyo.
They can eat food which human eat, so living in Tokyo is suitable for them.
They could be seen in Shinjuku, Roppongi, and Ginza area.
Tanuki have been part of Japanese folklore since ancient times.
Statues of tanuki can be found outside many Japanese temples and restaurants.
They've become Japanese animated film, "Pom poko", animated by Studio Ghibli.
If you're lucky, you might be able to see them in Tokyo.
A new attraction opens in Tokyo Disneyland on January 24th !!
The name is "Mickey's PhilharMagic".
It's a theater type attraction which makes full use of 3D.
By using the wind etc, it gives you a sense of presence.
The scene of this attraction is laid in an orchestra concert conducted by Mickey Mouse.
As Donald Duck prepares for the concert, he unwittingly causes trouble.
And then,
you will travel the world of Disney's Fantasi, The Lion King, Aladdin etc one after another.
In "Aladdin",
you will enjoy the image with depth which is produced by 3D technology and the wide screen.
In addition,
one of the special effects : comfortable wind blows into the theater.
You feel as if you flew in the sky together with Aladdin and Jasmine.
Following the Walt Disney World Resort and Hong Kong Disneyland,
Tokyo Disneyland is the third to have founded this new attraction.
On July 26th in 2010,
Tokyo and the Chinese Wildlife Protection Society signed the cooperation agreement
on the giant panda protection research in Beijing.
The giant pandas imported to Japan are two in total, which are male and female.
It's scheduled to come to Japan at the end of January in 2011.
They adjust the schedule now.
After the procedure of medical inspection etc,
those giant pandas are open to the public.
Both pandas were born in Chinese giant panda protection research center.
Male panda who is very active and has a vast appetite was born in August 2005.
Female panda who is well grown and good-looking was born in July 2005.
They are 5 years old.
Chinese name of the male panda is "比力( bi li ) ", and female panda is "仙女( xian nu ) ".
Two giant pandas will come to Ueno Zoo from China shortly !!
( top : male , and bottom : female )
Now,
Ueno Zoo asks for Japanese name of these pandas.
The name should be written by KATAKANA.
The best names will be chosen for each panda.
When your idea is chosen,
Ueno Zoo presents you the special giant panda goods, which is not for sale.
Surely, these two pandas become the new star in Ueno Zoo.
Do you have any idea of their Japanese name?
The deadline is January 23rd !!
There's 100 km distance from the center of Tokyo to Mt. Fuji.
At the time when no tall building existed,
beautiful Mt. Fuji was able to be viewed from the top of a hill and the high ground in sunny days.
Because many skyscrapers were built,
it's difficult to find the nice Mt. Fuji view spot now.
However,
some Mt. Fuji view spots still remain in Tokyo.
Such as an observation tower, and a park.
This is the view from "Skydeck" on the 54th floor in Roppongi Hills.
< Sangenjaya Carrot Tower >
< the Ebisu Garden Place Tower >
It is directly connected from Yamanote line "Ebisu Station" by moving sidewalk "Sky walk".
In sunny day, you can see Mt. Fuji in the west.
< the Bunkyo-ku Civic Center >
The 25th floor observation lounge here is a famous Mt. Fuji view spot between the shutter bugs.
In sunny day,
beautiful Fuji shows the face beyond the buildings in Shinjuku.
< Toyosu Lalaport >
< the Nippori Fujimi Zaka >
In the morning and evening of good weather,
the right-side ridge line in Mt. Fuji is watched.
In January and November,
you have a chance to see "Diamond Fuji".
< Around Ogikubo Station >
< Nogawa Park >
It is located in Mitaka and has an area of about 399,211.30 square metre.
Although it's near the center of Tokyo, it's still remained a lot of nature.
< Kita Ayase Station >
In a good weather, the head of Mt. Fuji is watched.
Especially,
after typhoon or on the day and night with clear air in winter,
you have a chance to see the stunningly beautiful Mt. Fuji.
Let's go and take a fabulous photo of Mt. Fuji !!
☆*゜¨゜゜・*:..(っ´∀｀o)っ
I tell you one of the best natural hot springs in the city of Tokyo.
It's HEIWAJIMA KURHAUS.
The features of this hot spring is a high salt content.
By creating a barrier around the skin, your skin maintains a high level of moisture.
You can enjoy many types of bath such as
< Douche Bath >
The jet water from the nozzle of the wall of the bathtub gives a pressure to the body.
By the douching effect, blood circulation is improved.
< Air Bubble Bath >
The bubble is generated from the bottom of the bathtub.
Negative ions are produced by the bursting of bubbles.
These are good for not only the reduction of stress but also the beauty.
< Lying Bath >
Lying comfortably, you soak into the bathtub.
It has a relaxation effect.
In addition, it is effective for insomnia.
You can also enjoy outdoor bath.
Good thing is it's open 24 hours.
You want to know how much it costs, don't you?
It's 1,200 yen on weekday, and 1,500 yen on weekend.
It's much cheaper than Ooedo Onsen Monogatari.
Moreover,
There are the amusement facilities such as Bowling and Movie Theater around HEIWAJIMA KURHAUS.
You can also enjoy shopping in Don Quixote.
"FURUSATO MATSURI TOKYO 2011" is held in Tokyo Dome
from Jan 8th till Jan 16th.
It is the biggest event in Japan
that you can enjoy the folk entertainment and country dishes of Japan.
In general,
You have a chance to see the genuine festival only on that place on that time.
However,
the various festivals all over Japan is reproduced on a grand scale in this event.
They are certainly worth seeing.
More than 300 country dishes gather together in this event.
From Hokkaido to Okinawa,
you will see various food, sweets and beer over there.
It's a very good opportunity to enjoy specialty of each place.
< information >
*TIME*
January 8th (Sat) - January 16th (Sun)
10:00 AM - 20:00 PM
*PLACE*
Tokyo Dome
( It's about 20 minutes from Asakusa by train. )
*Entrance Fee*
1,500 yen
Happy New Year!!
How are you doing everyone? We hope all is going well.
Well, the Sumo tour at Sakura Hostel Asakusa is around the cornder.
We would be very happy if you could come on January 12th and 19th and join us.
We will walk to the Sumo studium together by walking or bus from our hostel, and when we get to the studium you can choose having Chanko(Sumo Wresler's stew) or going to the Edo Tokyo museum before we see the main mutch. Let's enjoy the Sumo tour together!!
Have you ever heard the word " Sakasa Fuji "?
"Sakasa Fuji " is the inverted image of Mt. Fuji which is reflected in the water.
Because it's very beautiful, Sakasa Fuji has been admired by Japanese for a long time.
Now,
a beautiful view which takes the place of Sakasa Fuji showed up in Asakusa.
That is " Sakasa Sky Tree ".
There's Kitajikken River just beside Tokyo Sky Tree.
The figure of Tokyo Sky Tree is reflected onto the water surface of this river.
Some bridges are laid over this river.
The most popular spot to see Sakasa Sky Tree is Jikken-bashi bridge.
On weekend, it is crowded with a lot of tourists who try to take the photo.
It's photographed between handrails of the bridge.
It is said that it's difficult to take a nice photo if it's windy.
The water surface wavers on the day when the wind blows.
Look !! It's also elegant, isn't it?
Do you want to take the photo of Sakasa Sky Tree?
The nearest station for Jikken-bashi bridge is Oshigami station.
You will reach the photo spot in 10 minutes walk from the station.
Tokyo is very attractive city.
In Omotesando Hills, a new winter entertainment appeared last year.
That is "Omotesando Skating Theater".
This year, it's open from December 10th till January 10th.
Omotesando Skating Theater is the indoor skating rink made of the special resin.
The rink is coated with the special wax, and you can enjoy skating with the regular ice skates.
What is attractive is that at night, it changes to the night club on ice.
Various music livens up the skating theater.
At event time such as Christmas and New Year's Eve, the special performance is scheduled.
In addition,
the video related with Omotesando is projected onto the wall.
You will be in the romantic atmosphere.
Because of non-ice, it's not cold at all.
It's OK to do skating with the casual clothes.
It's free admission.
For the rental ice skates,
it's 1,000 yen for an adult and 500 yen for a high school student and under.
Why don't you stop by Omotesando Skating Theater when you go sightseeing around Tokyo?
Walking through the cosplay girls town Harajuku, you will find luxury brands and top architects in Omotesando that is one of the most fashionable shopping districts, Tokyo's famous tree-lined street. Below are the buildings on the cutting-edge of architectural design in Omotesando area.
Dior Omotesando
[Address] 5-9-11 Jingumae, Shibuya-ku, Tokyo
PRADA Aoyama Butique
[Address] 5-2-6 Minami-Aoyama, Minato-ku, Tokyo
Omotesando Hills
Built in 2005. Designed by Tadao Ando, and contains over 130 shops and 38 apartments.
The "Spiral Slope" ramp spiraling around the six-level atrium space in a gradient roughly the equal to that of Omotesando.
Now, this shopping complex is full of the Christmas color.
And not only those buildings, so lucky if you are in Tokyo now ;-)
Omotesando street is amazingly decorated by the Christmas illumination.
Isn't it so romantic! You can see this illumination until 10th of January.
Enjoy the Tokyo winter :-)
What is Design Festa?
The concept is that anyone with a love of original creativity can participate.
Not only Japanese but also 8500 international artists participate in Design Festa.
Design Festa offers an opportunity expressing innovative ideas and designs to the artists.
Their world as a Design Festa exhibitor expands infinitely.
Design Festa vol.32 is held in Tokyo Big Sight West halls on November 6th and 7th.
There are 3 main areas, that are Event area, Restaurant area, and Booth area.
< Event Area >
You can enjoy various genre of music from acoustic sound to punk rock at outdoor live-show stage.
In mini live-painting area, you have a chance to encounter the artistic painting.
< Restaurant Area >
There are many interesting menu from all over the world in this area.
You can enjoy international taste.
< Booth Area >
More than 2,800 booths exhibit and sell their works in free style.
Real insect !?
Actually, it's made of paper.
Are they Japanese swords?
No. They are umbrellas designed in the shape of Japanese sword.
I went to Design Festa on November 6th.
It was very fun !!
Next Design Festa will be on May 14th & 15th in 2011.
If you visit Japan during this period, I recommend you to go there.
I'm sure you find something nice in Design Festa.
Do you know Japanese animation "MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM"?
It's a robot animation.
Characters board the humanoid robot called GUNDAM, and fight with enemies in space.
MOBILE SUIT GUNDAM is still popular even though it is in 1979 to appear on TV for the first time.
This is GUNDAM CAFE !!
GUNDAM CAFE is filled with something about GUNDAM.
First of all, Gundam welcomes you when you get in the entrance.
They also have bar-time menu such as alcohol.
You can enjoy the world of GUNDAM at night as well.
GUNDAM CAFE is located in Akihabara that is famous for the electric town.
It's easy to go to Akihabara from Asakusa.
Just take Tsukuba Express line at Asakusa station, and you will be in Akihabara in 5 minutes.
Ginza is elegant and stylish city where a retro-modern atmosphere still lingers in the air.
It's one of the most popular sightseeing spots in Tokyo.
Ginza has old department stores with history and tradition as well as prestigious boutiques.
One of the old department stores is Ginza Mitsukoshi.
Since Mitsukoshi department store was merged with Isetan department store,
Ginza Mitsukoshi was renewed bigger in September.
The beautiful garden named "Ginza Terrace" appeared in the renewal store.
Lawn grasses are spreading over the terrace.
You can stretch your legs and arms, and breathe fresh air.
It's a good idea to take lunch in Ginza Terrace under the sun if you buy sandwiches and rice balls.
It seems you enjoy a picnic, doesn't it?
Do you have any difficulty to sit on the ground?
Of course, there are tables and chairs on the deck as well as benches.
Ginza Terrace provide relaxation and healing for all generations.
Did you get tired from walking around Ginza?
It's a good place to take a rest.
Have you ever eaten Ramen?
Ramen is Chinese noodle arranged in Japanese-style.
There are mainly 4 kinds of soup : Soy Sauce (Shohyu), Soy Bean Paste (Miso), Salt (Shio), Pork Broth(Tonkotsu).
Ramen is very popular among not only Japanese people but also foreign people.
Here is a good news for you.
Tokyo Ramen Show will be held in Komazawa Olympics Park from Nov 3rd till Nov 7th.
Local ramen all over Japan and collaborative ramen by popular chefs gather there.
More than 100 ramen restaurants participate in this event.
There are many ramen that you can enjoy only in this time.
Besides, you can eat any ramen by 750 yen per bowl
It's only Tokyo Ramen Show that has such a wonderful chance.
In Japan, many prefectures have their own citizen's day.
October 1st is the one for Tokyo citizens.
Most schools in Tokyo has no class on that day.
It's a good chance for many students to go out with their friends.
In expectation of it, there are many events and facilities with free of charge.
Do you want to go to see cute animals?
[ Ueno Zoo at Ueno Station ]
[ Tama Zoo at Tama Dobutsu Koen Station ]
[ Tokyo Sea Life Park at Kasai Rinkai Koen Station ]
[ Inokashira Park Zoo at Kichijoji Station ] http://http://www.tokyo-zoo.net/english/index.html
Why don't you take a walk and enjoy the beautiful garden?
[ Hama-rikyu Gardens at Shiodome Station ]
[ Kiyosumi Gardens at Kiyosumi Shirakawa Station ]
[ Koishikawa Korakuen Gardens at Iidabashi Station ]
[ Kyu-Furukawa Gardens at Kaminakazato Station ]
[ Kyu-Iwasaki-tei Gardens at Yushima Station ]
[ Kyu-Shina-rikyu Gardens at Hamamatsucho Station ]
[ Mukojima-Hyakkaen Gardens at Higashi Mukojima Station ]
[ Tonogayato Gardens at Kokubunji Station ]
[ Rikugien Gardens at Komagome Station ] http://http://www.tokyo-park.or.jp/english/park/index.html
In Japan, it is said that autumn is the best season for art.
If you choose your accommodation in Asakusa for your Tokyo stay, you cannot travel around without Ginza subway line.
Ginza line runs between Asakusa and Shibuya, and stops at the main attractions such as Ueno, Akihabara, Ginza, Akasaka and Aoyama/Harajuku area.
You might have thought that the cars of Ginza line are pretty small when you compare to the other subway lines or train, and the stations may look old.
It's because Ginza line is the oldest subway line in Tokyo.
Acutally, the first underground railway not only in Japan, but in Asia!! Isn't it cool? ;)
Upon its opening in 1927, the line was only between Asakusa and Ueno.
It was so popular, so people often had to wait for 2 hours to get on the subway for 5 minutes trip!
Now Ginza line runs every 3 minutes, and takes a lot of people around the big city Tokyo by the smallest cars. It's shown color orange on the metro map.
There is a more convenient way to get to the Narita International Airport NOW.
The Sky Access Route debuted on 17th of July this year.
Thanks to the new route, you can reach to the Narita Airport around 20-30min faster than the past from Asakusa station.
And it is direct train which means you don't have to stumble with your heavy suitcase or backpack.
We made Time Table&Information board for our guests.
It is really simple.
Just go to Asakusa Line Asakusa Staion and buy one ticket for Narita Airport through Sky Access route
Price is 1240yen.
You can buy ticket by yourself by following steps below.(recommend: Left)
(And previous route is still available, 1060yen, 80min-90min, cheapest way)
Last weekend, the organization "peace" organized a free sightseeing trip for guests of Sakura Hostel and other Hostels to the Ueno-Park.
The Ueno-Park is a huge Park in Ueno on the area of the former Kaneiji-Temple. The temple was build to guard the Edo-Castle against the Demons-Gate to the north-east.
The important places include several museums, a concert hall and many shrines. There also is a zoo.
The Park is a popular holiday area.
This place is famous for "hanami". Many(!) people gather here to view the cherry blossom in spring.
Here are a few pictures of the parks lush vegetation in the middle of Tokyo:
Are you interested in German beer festival?
Tokyo beer paradise 2010 is for 200th anniversary of Munich's famous beer festival.
They offer many hard to find beer brands and tasty German treats.
This festival is perfect for a laid back summer day.
TOKYO BEER PARADISE 2010
Place: Roppongi Hills
Opens until next Sunday, June 20.
Open hours: 11:30am-9pm (last order 8:30pm)
Admission fee: 200yen
*Do you wanna get a free admission?
You should follow ''beerpara2010'' on Twitter.
When you send a direct mail to them about the date you will plan to go,
they will send you a free admission!
When you arrive, you just need to show the screen of their reply mail .
You can only see it right this moment.
"Sky tree under construction" because it will be built and you cannot see it anymore in the middle of it's progress of consturction.
You can see it is "BIG enough" But it will be much Bigger.
You can see the number "398" it means it reached 398m right now
Want to see it together right NOW or you will miss it.
We have many Beer Gardens open during summer season.
I just found an information of 'Neo Stall Village Super Night' on June 11th which looks so nice.
They usually appear at lunch time on weekdays there.
The colorful small cars are so cute☆ You'll see many people are waiting in a queue at each stalls as it is in a business town in a middle of Tokyo.
There will be live music, and 20 stalls selling food such as kebab, curry, tacos, noodles and of course BEER on Friday night!
One draft beer is 400 yen, but if you purchase a reuse cup for 800 yen there, you'll get 100 yen off for each beer =D
Let's hope it will be a nice warm (not too hot) evening on Friday!
Date: June 11th, 2010 (Fri)
Time: 6PM - 10PM
@ Tokyo International Forum [Access]
The Firefly festival in Kugayama, Suginami Ward is coming this Sat & Sun!
Nowadays it is hard to see many fireflies in Japan because of the pollution of water and air.
However, in this festival, you can enjoy the firefly's beautiful lights, because
people gather thousands of fireflies and release them into the air.
Date: June 5 (Sat) & 6 (Sun)
Place: Kugayama Sta- Just 15 mins from Shibuya. 45 mins from Asakusa.
Time: 10am-9pm
Naoto was excited one night when he arrived at the hostel for his night shift.
"It's tall! Did you see it?? It's tall!", he says.
He went to see"Tokyo Sky Tree" under construction.
We will have this "second Tokyo Tower" pretty close to our hostel in the year 2011.
They started building it a year ago.
It's now taller than 100 m. (Will be taller than 600 m when it's completed.)
I'm looking forward to seeing the beautiful tower behind Sumida River in two years.
Will we be able to see it from our hostel? What do you think, Naoto?
Can you run 42.195 km within 6 hours and 40 minutes?
If so, send an entry to TOKYO MARATHON 2010.
The entry started on August 1st and the number of applicants has already exceeded
the number of runners.
Lottery will be held to choose 32,000 lucky runners after the deadline of entry on August 31st.
Sorry if you are already an applicant and the number of competitors will be increased by this post. :p
Till lately, one of my dream was to get marry the CEO of Haagen Dazs.
When I was tennnager, my breakfast was always ice-cream (Rum raisin!) and
there were many stocks in the fridge.
Now, I'm working and I rediscover that I'm adult everytime I buy Haagen Dazs
because it's a bit expensive for a student.
On 17th of July, they opened a new shop in Ginza.
↑La Maison Ginza
I haven't tried there yet but I checked their website and found that it's a paradice for me♪
I should go the next payday!
I don't think I can get marry him any more but I just wanna say
thank you for this great job to him;)
Do you think it's expensive to eat in Japan?
Compared with the other countries, though the size is small,
the price is the same or more expensive.
Then, I reccomend you to go to universities for your lunch.
I don't know much about universities in your country,
our universities have nice cafeterias on campus.
As Japanese students eat a lot but are saving their money (in general),
everything is easy-on-the-pockets;)
May Grand Sumo Tounament will start on this Sunday.
It will be at Ryogoku Sumo Stadium in Tokyo. It takes only 15 min. by train from our hostel, or you can even walk.
Have you seen sumo before?
I haven't. Well I want to.
There are many kinds of tickets still available.
Unfortunately, you cannot buy tickets if you are overseas.
But you still have chances to buy one after you arrived in Japan.
See here for more details or ask us at the reception when you arrive at the hostel.
In most areas of Tokyo, you are not allowed to smoke on the street.
If you ignore this kind of signs on the street and still smoke, you might get fined 1,000 to 20,000 yen, depending on the administering ward.
On the other hand, there is no punishment for drinking alcohol on the street.
You don't have to hide your bottles in a bag here. Different countries have different rules.
As we've informed, tourists were not allowed to watch the morning tuna auctions
to ensure a smooth and accident free course of business
during the busiest time of the year at Tsukiji Fish Market,
Finaly, they started tuna auction to be open to public from 19th.
Please be aware of these following things before watching the auctions.
?You can't take photos using strobe light.
?You can't touch tunas.
?Follow guards' directions there.
If you have a consciousness of being representative of your country, it's easy:)
In December, Japanese are always busy and in a hurry(I'm not, though). From 15th of Dec. to 17th of Jan, the government of Tokyo Metropolitan
decided not to open the auction to the public.
I guess it's because most of fishermans are rough-natured persons and it's dangerous:P
So, if you have a plan to go there in that period, you don't have to get up so early.
Of course, the other shops and restaurants are open for us.
The best time to go there will be around 8AM and have some fresh sushi for your breakfast;)
Tsukiji Fish Market is one of the most popular tourist atractions in Tokyo at the moment.
Every morning, we see many of our guests wake up before 6:00AM and go to the fish market to see the Tuna auctions. The auctions are really exciting to see, we believe.
But please remember that there are some rules and etiquettes you must observe.
No flash.
No touching fish.
No talking/shouting loud.
No entering/walking in prohibited areas.
Such and such....
Let's be careful about the etiquette to keep a good relationship with people working at the market.
You may think it's difficult to buy a ticket from the machine at stations.
Even Japanese sometimes make a mistake:(
In the morning, we are often asked how to buy a ticket to the Narita Airport.
But please don't worry:)
Direction is available next to each machine at Asakusa station like this↓↓
It's only three steps!
Touch "English"→Touch "Keisei Line"→"Touch 1060 "
Then, you can go to the airport without being afraid of closing the gate♪
Easy;)
From 18th to 26th, we have Tokyo International Film Festival at Roppongi Hills
and Shibuya Bunkamura theatre.
This year, “Ecology = Preservation of Earth’s Environment” is the main topic
and they had a Green carpet which is made of recycled plastic bottles instead of a red one.
Many films are available for this nine nights and tickets are still available for some films.
You may see some actors and actresses;)?
Many people go to Harajuku to see cosplay people every weekends.
If you want take a picture with them, you can just ask them(in English should be ok).
They would be happy to be asked;)
Also, if you are interested in the arts, I recommend you to go to a cool gallery near by.
It's called Design Festa Gallery and looks like this↓↓
I went there a few days ago and it was very interesting.
There are two different buildings and I prefer the East one.
You can also have a space for your works☆
After taking a look around the galleries, you might be hungry.
Then, just go and have some Japanese pancakes on the first floor of the West of them.
You can find a nice restaurant and appease your appetite.
Hmmm, it sounds a perfect plan for your Sunday in Tokyo:P
I was learning tea ceremony for three years in high school and I really love it.
Unfortunately, not all Japanese can do it but you can have an experience if you'd like to.
I like the smell of Japanese tatami mat rooms:)
At Hotel Okura, it has a room for the tea ceremony and you can have an experience there.
You don't have to be a guest there (at least 36.000 yen/night!).
We can make a reservation for you and you just need to pay 1,050 yen/person there.
(only weekdays)
Mt Fuji is the most famous mountain as the highest one in Japan.
Now, have you ever heard about Mt Takao?
It is getting popular among foreigners because it got three Michelin stars last year☆★☆
There is a big beer garden on the middle of this mountain
where you can enjoy nice view with tasty beer↑↑
From Shinjuku, it takes only 50mins to get there(direct).
It's still in Tokyo, but is surrounded by greenery. http://www.mt-takao.jp/
Don't worry about going home when you get drunk;)
There are both cable car and lift available.
This is our wall clock and tell us the time every hour on the hour by lovely misic♪
I love Totoro(my neighbor Totoro)so much, so I 'm happy to hear that.
Do you like Studio Ghibli animation?
If so, you gotta go to the Ghibli Museum.
It's worth to visit!
A new metro line, Fuku-Toshin line, is officially opened yesterday.
It connects Shibuya and Wako City through Ikebukuro and has 16 stations.
Tokyo is getting smaller and many choices to get to one place.
It will ease our terrible congestion every morning:)
How should I go to Ikebukuro now...by JR or by this new line?
In commemoration of the 150th anniversary of the conclusion of the U.S.
Treaty of Amity and Commerce, this exhibition aims to achieve further mutual
understanding between the U.S. and Japan by reviewing their diplomatic
relations during the late Edo period through sources provided from both
countries. (http://www.edo-tokyo-museum.or.jp/english/special/now/index.html)
This exhibition has been held till 22nd of June
at Edo-Tokyo museum in Ryogoku.
Also, on the 1st of June, we'll have a ceremony at Pacifico Yokohama hall
to commemorate the 149th of opening Yokohama Port.
If you are interested in the history of US-Japan relations,
you shouldn't miss it☆
As you know, our national sport is Sumo...though two Yokoduna(the highest ranked in sumo)
are from Mongolia.
We have grand sumo tournament in Tokyo right now and the next Sunday is the final day.
It is difficult to get a ticket for that but on weekdays,
you still have a chance if you go to the stadium(called Kokugikan) in the morning.
The cheapest one is 2,100yen for an adult.
Also, on the 1st of June, we have Grand Sumo Championship 2008 at the same stadium.
This is not a tournament but a special championship that
decides the strongest sumo wrestler!
More information is available if you click the picture above;)
Have you ever heard about "ice-cream city" ?
As one of our guest, Pierre, commented here, it does exist in Ikebukuro
and it looks really attractive place☆
According to their website, there are seven icecream shops and always have some events.
For example, they have a Mega Parfait Festa right now.
Also, many weird flavors such as eggplant, curry, Tofu and so on...are available.
Which one do you want to try?
There are "Dumpling Stadium" and "Republic of Dessert" inside the same building.
Once you enter there, you'll be so stuffed;)
If you get bored with sweets, you can just go and get some dumplings
and then, return to icecream♪
From Asakusa, take Tsukuba Express to Akihabara.
Akihabara to Ikebukuro, take JR Yamanote line and you'll get there in 30mins.
On the 29th of May, Eirou's friend will have a cool dance event
at one of the best clubs, HARLEM, in Shibuya.
According to their weblog, it's gonna be a fresh&cool night♪
I just heard about it today and need more information for that...
Anyone who is the member of this group gotta give some comments here;)
We went to Tsukiji Fish Market on Monday, and saw wholesale middlemen slaughtering a tuna.
Not only tuna auction, but slautering of the tuna is also fascinating.
Sky Bus Tokyo is the only open top sightseeing bus tour in Japan.
The tour starts from Tokyo Station and takes 50 minutes.
On the tour, you will see Imperial Palace, Supreme Court, National Diet (Parliament), and Ginza (shopping district) and Marunouchi (business district).
You will have spectacular view from the upper deck.
Tsukiji Fish Market is a one of the largest market in Tokyo,
Not only fishes but vegetables and fruits are sold here,
Although the market is basically for wholesalers and professionals, you're welcome to visit there as long as you don't disrupt their work.
As the market is very popular for foreign tourists, many guests of our hostel have been there.
Also we sometimes hold a tour to visit the market with guests.
If you stay at Sakura Hostel, please join us.
Many examples of buildings that display Tokyo at the cutting-edge of architectural design can be found amongst its fashionable shopping districts. One such place is Omotesando, Tokyo's famous four-lane, tree-lined boulevard that in recent years has become the city's showplace for luxury brands and top architects, and it is easily accessible from Asakusa. Just take the Ginza line for a 30-minute train ride from Asakusa to Omote-sando. Below are three recently built buildings located on Omotesando or in neighboring Aoyama:
Toyo Ito's Tod's Omotesando Building:
Designed for the Italian footwear retailer, Tod`s is a slender, L-shaped building, it contains offices and a boutique. The 27,448-square-foot building is wrapped by a dramatic enclosure composed of angled concrete elements and glass plates.
Tadao Ando`s Omotesando Hills
Omotesando Hills shopping arcade's low-rise profile echoes the height of the zelkova trees along Omotesando, an approach reinforced by extensive use of rooftop gardens. Omotesando Hills contains a six-story atrium, reaching from the third basement floor through the three above-ground floors. It is enclosed by a spiral ramp that echoes the slope of the boulevard outside.
Tokyo is a fascinating city for architecture lovers. Its ancient temples and shrines are complemented by many modern works. Works by famous architects such as Kenzo Tange, Tadao Ando, Kisho Kurokawa, Togo Murano,Taisei Kensetsu, and Shimizu Kensetsu can be found. Our location in Tokyo is ideal for exploring the many buildings of Tokyo further.
Close to Sakura Hostel Asakusa and a good starting point, for instance, is the Phillippe Starck designed Asahi Super Dry Hall (see picture). Asahi Super Dry was one of the most popular beers in Japan at the time it was designed, and is still found in vending machines everywhere. The resemblance to a tall foamy mug of beer is intentional. It's not hard to picture the Flame d'Or (golden flame) at the top as the foam being blown off a cold beer. Moreover, the building's black granite facade is punctuated by a grid of portholes that at night give the illusion of tiny bubbles of effervescent beer in a large mug.
Some interesting facts about the flame:
> The flame is 43 meters long.
> The flame is 14 meters tall.
> The flame is 12 meters wide.
> The flame weighs 360 tons.
> The flame was constructed by Kawasaki Heavy Industries
> Its popular nickname is `The Golden Poo` "O Gon No Unko."
on the metro map.
