Tokyo Free Walking Tour welcomed eight guests for our regular Meiji Shrine and Harajuku route tour on February 18. Big thank YOU to all the guests who were from Australia, New Zealand, Turkey, Slovakia, Netherland and England. We hope all enjoyed not only the tour itself but chat with other guests and us. It was a lovely sunny day with shining blue sky, though it was still bit cold. Luckily, we encountered wedding parties at the main shrine area. One party was proceeding to main hall for ceremony and the others were ready to take memorial wedding photos. The second half of this tour after short break is Harajuku district tour. Tour guests can enjoy comparison between natural-rich peaceful Meiji Shrine and lively crowded Harajuku district. One of the most popular (and most crowded) streets in this area is Takeshita-dori. It is the landmark of many Japanese subcultures, the best known of which is the Kawaii culture. The tour covers both Takeshita-dori and Omote-sando avenue within just an hour. During the tour, visitors could grasp the general ideas of this area thus they often continue walking after the tour, but this time do deep dive depends on their interests. Tokyo […]
Thank you very much for joining our tour on Feb 17th. We welcomed 23 guests from Australia, Canada, China, Hong Kong, Israel, Japan, Netherlands, Norway, Slovakia, Turkey, UK and US. Plum trees in the East Garden of Imperial Palace bloom! The combination of pink and white color is so beautiful. I guess beautiful Japanese spring season is around the corner, on the other hand….during the tour, it was raining unexpectedly. It might have been sleety rain according to the weather forecast. And also, chilly wind was blowing. In such cold weather, I always have “Hokkairo” which is disposable hot pack, and of course I had them a lot on that day. It was always packaged in the plastic pack, and it becomes warm itself as soon as it opens. Originally it was developed in Japan, but I heard that we can get it not only in Japan but also some foreign country nowadays, however in Japan there are various sizes and types of “Hokkairoes”. I love sticker type for sole^^ You can get it cheap less than 50 Japanese yen each at the supermarket in Japan, so why don’t you get them as a souvenir? We have […]
On the day of Feb 11, with low temperature and clear sunny sky, we welcomed around six guests from different regions, Australia, Austria, Germany and Philippines. After splitting these enthusiastic visitors into three, each group was assigned with a few guides who also loves this historical town and are honored to guide them. Starting with introducing ourselves and giving our brief orientation about this tour, we went to Asakusa Information Center in order to see better views of the Asakusa areas. This is because the rooftop of this building is high enough for us to enjoy breathtaking views. The sceneries sighted from this location seemed like a pictured guidebook, which can catch visitor’s interests and notify the proper outlooks to their ideal spots from there. Normally, our guides point out the direction of iconic spots, like Tokyo SkyTree, Smida River and particularly an eye-catching object like poop, which is fully painted in gold on the top of Asahi brewer building. By the time we concluded our tour in the last location, Asakusa Shinto Shrine, which is adjacent to the Sensoji Buddhist temple, we were already surrounded by a lot of visitors amid the crowds of people proceeding to the compound […]
We thank many guests joining this tour. On that day, we welcomed 29 guests from Australia, Argentina, Brazil, U.K., Philippines, USA, France, Germany, South Korea and Slovenia. We divided into 4 groups. We are in the midst of winter season. In our neighboring country, South Korea, Winter Olympics are held. For last two weeks Tokyo had a few heavy snowing days. Some remaining of snow was seen in the garden. Up north are blizzards. Japan is a big snow country. There are many snow resorts in northern Japan. That is why so many skiers or snowboarders from the world are coming here to enjoy snow sports like Pyeongchang athletes. Japan hosted two winter Olympics in the past. One in Sapporo, Hokkaido, 1972. The other is Nagano in 1998. Every winter, we met a lot of snow sports tourists who have already been in the snow resorts and on their way to the airport or those who are going there after Tokyo. On this blog and from words of the guides, you can get good snow resort information during your stay in Japan. But winter in Japan may be too cold. You might wonder if you can go somewhere warmer […]
Thank you very much for joining our regular tour on February 4. We welcomed guests from Taiwan and the US. We hope all enjoyed walking with us. Anyways, did anyone eat “Eho-maki”, the thick sushi rolls on February 3rd, the Setsubun day ? You might find them sold at supermarkets or convenience stores at that time. Eho literally means the good luck direction, and Eho-maki is believed to bring good fortune if eaten while facing the year’s eho. While you eat Eho-maki, you must be silent, look in the year’s good luck direction (south-southeast in 2018), and make a wish. Eho-maki usually have seven ingredients such as cucumber, sweet omelet, shiitake mushroom and eel after the Seven Deities of Good Luck. Eho-maki are about 8-10cm long and should not be cut because they reflect the idea of forming good relationships. Why not try our traditional dishes during your staying? (Hisako)
Today we welcomed guests from Australia, Canada, Israel, New Zealand, UK, and US. Despite the cold weather outdoors, we were able to join the sun and the nice chill air during the 2 hour walk. Feb.3 is “Setsubun” the day before the beginning of spring. On this day, many homes would have an event called “bean throwing” ceremony which goes back to 1500s. People would throw roasted beans or grains inside and outside their houses, also at family members wearing a demon mask. While throwing the beans, they would chant, “Demons out, happiness in! ” to drive away evil and bring in good luck. Later after beans are collected from the floor, people would eat the same number of the beans as their age and wish for a disease/disaster- free year. Demons represent evil spirits, or inner invisible negative vibes. Roasted beans represent the tool to drive away the evil, as it was once believed that grains and soybeans have the power to do so. Beans are roasted in order to confine the evil spirits into each bean. As a soylover, I would buy a pack of roasted soybeans at this time of the year. Although I try to keep the […]
Thank you for joining our tour in Asakusa on January 28. We had seven guests from Singapore,Chile,America and China. It was cloudy and cold, but nevertheless I hope all of you enjoyed the atmosphere of old Tokyo. February 3 is Setsubun,literally splitting the season when Mamemaki or bean-throwing festival is held at Sensoji Temple. It is the day before the first day of spring. Actually it is New Year’s Eve according to the Old calendar system. On this day people throw beans to ward off demons and welcome good fortune. (Photoes:The Asakusa Tourism Federation 365 ASAKUSA) This tradition dates back over 1,000 years. In Japan it is believed from ancient times that demons come out in the changing of the seasons. Hence, there were year-end ceremonies to cleanse away all the evils and diseses of the previous year prior to the new year at the Imperial Court in Kyoto during the Heian period. Then this event developed into bean-throwing ritual since beans were believed to have the power to dispel evil spirits. Bean-throwing festival is not a national holiday but a major event in February throughout the country. It is held at home but many people gather at temples and […]
We explored the East Garden of the Imperial Palace with 17 guests from Australia, Philippine, Portugal, Brazil, Russia, UK, Spain, Belgium, China, Chile, and the USA. The start point is the Tokyo Station. The traditional western style red brick building is so impressive. We walk through the Marunouchi district. It is the core of the Japanese business center. Then we approach to the Imperial Palace East Garden. The palace is the former Edo Castle, which was the headquarters of the Samurai’s military government in the 17-19 century. The castle was also the residence of the Shogun, the top commander general of the government. You can enjoy not only beautiful sceneries but also learn about Japanese history and tradition. Our guests asked many questions to us. What is the difference between a Samurai and a Ninja? How many wives did the Shogun have? Was the Ohoku in the Shogun’s palace like a harem? Why there were many fire disasters in the old Tokyo? When was the year the Samurai government was finished? Is there a noble class other than the royal family and the commoners? Very interesting questions! Last week, we had snowfall in Tokyo. The snow depth was 23cm. Snowscape […]
We thank all our guests who joined our East Garden of Imperial Palace tour on Jan.20th. We welcomed 17 guests from Australia, Canada, Denmark, Taiwan and USA, including an 11-months baby boy. We hope you enjoyed experiencing the Edo period adventure with us. It was a little bit cold but it was a good day to walk around the garden (former Edo castle). Even in the middle of the winter, we enjoyed watching the nature around the Edo castle. The moat is a good place for various kinds of birds, such as spot‐billed ducks, swans and so on, to inhabit. If you will have the opportunity to join our tour, make sure to look for these adorable creatures! Like in the previous tour report, the flowers of the plum in the Imperial garden are in bloom one by one. Actually, during the earlier times, plum blossom viewing was more popular than cherry blossom viewing. Japanese people had different culture in the Nara period (8th Century). They used Japanese words “花 (flower)” in waka (a traditional Japanese poem of thirty-one syllables) to mean Japanese plum flower. There are 118 pieces of waka talking about plum, compare to 42 pieces of […]
Many thanks for joining our tour to Meiji Shrine and Harajuku area on January 21. The weather was unusually mild and comfortable in the middle of winter. We welcomed eight guests from America,Australia,Israel,Canada and Thailand. I hope you enjoyed walking with us. On our tour route there is lovely Ota Memorial Museum of Art in Harajuku. It is located at the quiet place between Takeshita Street and Omotesanso street. This museum is one of the most outstanding museums specializing in Ukiyo-e woodblock printing in Japan. The museum opened in 1980 and has 12,000 pieces which late Seizo Ohta, former president of a large insurance company collected through his life. They change the exhibition every month. The current performance displays the new forms of Ukiyo-e art in the turbulent transitional period between the end of the Edo and the beginning of the Meiji Period when Japan was becoming modern and industrialized. 150 pieces are shown in the light of the 150th year from the Meiji Restoration which continues until February 25. Ukiyo-e is a style of woodblock printing created and developed in Japan about 300 years ago during the Edo period. ‘uki’ means floating, ‘yo’ means world and ‘e’ means picture. […]
