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What a beautiful face I have found in this place that is circling all round the sun. What a beautiful dream that could flash on the screen in a blink of an eye and be gone from me. Let me hold it close and keep it here with me. And one day we will die and our ashes will fly from the aeroplane over the sea. But for now we are young, let us lay in the sun and LIST every beautiful thing we see.

bookmarks:
listography GIVE A GIFT OF MEMORIES
FAVORITE LISTOGRAPHY MENTIONS
Ryan books (reading, read, bookclub)
movies (In theaters, TV series, or docs)
activities (Hikes + Trips + Outdoor Activism)
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Central Tokyo:

  • Cherry Blossom Viewing (late march - april)
  • Sumo tournament or sumo practice (january, may, sept)
  • Tokyo International Forum
  • Gardens of the Imperial Palace
  • Karaoke: karaoke kan in Shibuya (glass windows overlooking Shibuya: room 601: Lost in Translation: go at 5pm)
  • Flea Markets --Yoyogi Park, Ohi Racecourse Flea Market, Mottainai Flea Market, Oedo Antique Market outdoor fair held near Tokyo Station
  • Tokyo Tower (visible from various location -large red & white)
  • TeamLab Planets Exhibit Immersive
  • Museums
  • Relaxing in a hot springs bath, at an Onsen
  • Walk across the Rainbow Bridge

Shibuya & Harajuku:

  • Shibuya Crossing (massive intersection, also good to view from the train station above) RETURN AT NIGHT
  • Hachiko Memorial Statue, Shibuya Station. Monument (waited 9 years after doggy daddy death)
  • Shibuya Sky Observaton Deck
  • Cat Street (incredibly beautiful pedestrian shopping street betwn Shibuya & Harajuku)
  • Omotesando
  • Harajuku Maze shopping area (great boutiques and vintage -- chicago vintage) Ura-Hara, the maze of backstreets behind Omotesando
  • Takeshita-dori Street (crazy cheap youth clothing shopping street opposite Harajuku Station - fun to see)
  • Cat or Dog Cafes (hedgehog, pig, owl, otters), Vampire Cafe in Ginza
  • Yoyogi Park: Sundays - flea, Rockabilly dancers, bike rental, Meiji Shrine, Cosplay on the overpass between Meiji Shrine and Yoyogi Park, Sunday afternoon the best time (CHECK: yoyogi park events page)
  • Meiji Jingu Temples & Shrine & Park, Shibuya
  • SHOPS:
    • RagTag
    • Chicago
    • Flamingo
    • Big Love Records
    • Omote-sando Street (upscale shops)
    • JAM
    • Kinji (used clothing in Harajuku)
    • Don Quixote Mega Store

Shinjuku (Kabukicho):

  • Godzilla Statue
  • Yayoi Kusama Museum
  • Shinjuku Gyoen National Gardens (Cherry Blossom Garden Area)
  • BIG DEPT STORES:
    • Tokyu Hands (amazing everything store)
    • Takashimaya Times Square (giant upscale department store), food court on top floors, Depachika in basement selling all types of asian foods and treats (amazing!)
    • Don Quijote, 1-16-5 Kabukicho (funky floors of kitchy stuff)
    • Isetan Dept Store (3-14-1 Shinjuku) --get there right when they open
  • Mandarake: Manga Mall
  • Kabukicho Area (gambling, pachinko parlors: Maruhan, arcades, etc)
  • Golden Gai intimate bars alleys (incredible tiny bars even if you don't go in fun to see)
  • Club Sega Shinjuku Arcade
  • Omoide Yokocho - (mini old japan food court like Golden Gai)
  • Korea Town (stretch of korean shops and restaurants)

CLUBS:

  • Shibuya: Beat Cafe Bar
  • Shinjuku: Noize Bar, Godz, Bar Mother, Tangle
  • Golden Gai intimate bars alleys (Hair of the Dog, Golden Gai)
  • Shinjuku Nichome - gay district
  • Drinks at the Park Hyatt - Lost in Translation
  • Shimokitazawa - Garage & Mother
  • Ruby Room - indie club Shibuya
  • GarageLand - Shibuya
  • DANCE CLUBS Harlem, Womb, etc

Chuo:

  • Ginza shopping district, Chuo --kinda like mid town manhattan, boring
  • The Tsukiji Fish Market, Chuo (go in early morning before 9am)

Roppongi+ Meguro:

  • Midtown Roppongi mall connected to ritz carlton
  • Roppongi Hills: Mori Art Museum (incredible) and City View + mixed architecture + National Art Center (traveling exhibitions only)
  • Nakameguro: Meguro River walk around streets bordering water ravine during cherry trees blossoming, walk around Daikanyama neighborhood w/Hachiman-Dori shopping st, Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography (near Ebisu station :)
  • Claska Hotel neighborhood

Other:

  • Shimokitazawa Neighborhood surrounding Shimo-Kitazawa Station (__FAVORITE!!!__) (shops/cafes: head to neighborhood under big Shimokitazawa sign) Shops: Flamingo, Ocean Blvd, NY Joe, Reload Mall
  • Cat-filled Gotokuji Temple in Setagaya
  • Akihabara District (“Electric Town” massive electronics lights district), Tokyo Leisure Land, Pop Life Sex Shop, GiGo gaming, Anime
  • Asakusa: Kappabashi-dori (fake food mall-kind of a bust), Senso Ji Shrine in Park (visit nakamise street: vendor stands all along the outside for treats)
  • Ueno: Tokyo Nat Art Museum (boring), Ueno Park (esp cherry blossoms season), Ameyoko Arcade --open air market (not that interesting), National Science Museum (good for kids)
  • Chidorigafuchi Gardens, Chiyoda
  • Museum of Contemporary Art (accessible from the Oedo Subway line (E-14 station), in a suburban area)
  • Koenji District (__FAVORITE!!!__) for vintage (neighborhood all around JR station: “Yakitori street” called Gado Shita, is one of the streets parallel to the train line from JR Koenji station. birthplace of punk in Tokyo. Taisho. shopping streets with a cozy atmosphere: Streets - Koenji Junjo, Koenji Pal or Koenji Look. SHOPS: Sokkyou, Kiki2, Fizz, Umber, Super Old. Whistler. Re’all. Hayatochiri. Tatouage. Slut. Big Time. Small Change. Furugisho Otora. CLUBS: UFO Club, Kôenji Cave, 20000 Den-Atsu (great punk club), Kôenji High

Day Trips

  • Disneyland or Hello Kitty Land
  • Fox Village!
  • Odaiba modern neighborhood: O-edo Onsen Monogatari -public bath mp tattoos, Kichijoji and Studio Ghibli Museum, Hakone, Kyoto: 140 mins by train, approx $200, Mt Fuji, Shibamata Village (old japan town)
  • Bunny Island

Hotel in Shinjuku:

  • Century Southern Tower --NEX Narita airport express to Shinjuku, take the Southern Terrace Exit.
    • Room Tip: Ask for a room on the Shinjuku Gyoen / Takashimaya side
    • Used the bullet train from Tokyo Station to visit Kyoto (does not leave from Shinjuku station).
    • In Japan you only can use international ATM cards in post office ATM machines or at Citibank arms.
  • April 2023 - Airbnb in Shinjuku “Shin Okubo Station”

Directions:

  • By Train
    • From Narita International Airport (NRT)
    • 74 minutes by Narita Express (NEX)

Personal Notes:

  • no tipping
  • cannot find trash cans in the city yet there's no trash anywhere
  • people wear masks everywhere, esp during flu season
  • there are several different train line companies, don't get them confused (JR, metro, etc)
  • often you pay at cash registers in restaurants (even nice ones)
  • dressing rooms: often you remove your shoes and they give you a face cover to protect clothes from make-up
  • you'll hear cover songs everywhere!
  • their subway bathrooms are reliable and clean
  • underneath dining tables are storage boxes for your purse jackets etc
  • bring your passport to major dept stores for tax refunds (no tax) on items of $100 or more

JAPAN'S ART ISLANDS:

  • Benesse House Museum – integrating a museum with a hotel, this is an amazing place to stay on Naoshima.
  • Valley Gallery – designed by Tadao Ando, this Naoshima geometric gem capitalises on its secluded setting and houses Yayoi Kusama’s incredible Narcissus Garden installation.
  • Chichu Art Museum – literally meaning ‘art museum in the earth’, this Naoshima museum is built underground and is a work of art itself.
  • Yayoi Kusama’s Yellow Pumpkin – it is very cool to see the iconic installation in nature on Naoshima’s coast.
  • Inujima Seirensho Art Museum – incorporating an art gallery into the ruins of a former copper refinery, this museum was built around the idea of ‘using what exists to create what is to be’ – and it’s just epic.
  • Inujima Art House Project – a collection of galleries that transforms the town into a museum!
  • Teshima Art Museum – this has the most striking architecture and was designed to be an artwork that interacts with its environment.
  • Teshima Yokoo House – a collaboration between artist Tadanori Yokoo and architect Yuko Nagayama, they renovated an old private house to create a gallery like no other.
dec 26 2011 ∞
jun 18 2023 +