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2019年8月

UENO PARK HOLDS AN EXHIBITION OF ANCIENT CHINA, August 25, Ueno & Asakusa

  • 2019.08.28

Thank you for joining our Tokyo Free Walking Tour in Asakusa and Ueno. On that day, the 25th of August, we welcomed 6 guests on our walking tour. These people came from different regions of the world, including Canada, Chile and Netherlands Finally, peak time of summer season is coming to an end. Seemingly, we no longer experience a sweltering day, which started early in August following rainy season and left unbearable sensation of scorching days in Japan. Under these seasonal changes, we met 6 people at Ueno and Asakusa. At first, we started our morning tour at 10:00 A.M. in Asakusa. Our walking started from an iconic location in the area named “Kaminarimon Gate” or Thunder Gate and ended at Asakusa Shinto Shrine. Upon arriving at the main hall of Sensoji Buddhist Temple, a lot of people were surrounding an incense burner and bathing the smoke from there. Due to religious faith, this smoke is believed to heal their wounds. Eventually, appealing smells of food wafting out of food stalls come into our nose. Walking and eating is also one of the attractions for temple visitors. Meanwhile, at the concourse of Ueno Station, a large stuffed panda warmly welcomed […]

TOUR REPORT: THE EAST GARDENS OF THE IMPERIAL PALACE TOUR ON AUGUST 24, 2019

  • 2019.08.27

Thank you for all! We welcomed 17 guests from various countries such as US, Germany, Italy, Spain, Switzerland and the Philippines. We divided all the guests into 2 groups and each tour took 2 hours with the guides. The sunshine was still strong and my phone suddenly dead during the tour due to the heat! ( That’s why I couldn’t take many photos) We tried to stay in a shade as possible. Now the Honmaru area of the Imperial Palace is under the construction for preparing the ceremony of our new emperor. So we took the alternative course to Ninomaru Garden. There are not many flowers in this season but you can find that the thick green leaves and the sound of the waterfall make you feel cooler. We offer the Kimono experience in the end of the tour. It takes half an hour to put on real Kimono, but our instant Kimono is far easier than it. You can experience Japanese tradition in thirty seconds. All the members of the family from Spain tried the Kimono. How nice! Feel and experience Japanese tradition with us. For more information about our tour, please visit our East Gardens of the Imperial […]

WEEKDAY TOUR REPORT OF THE EAST GARDEN OF THE IMPERIAL PALACE ON AUG.21, 2019

  • 2019.08.23

Thank you joining us. We welcomed 10 guests from various countries such as Spain, UK, Italy, Poland, US. We divided all the guests into 2 groups and started our tour at 10:00 am from Tokyo station. Each group has 3 guides, so all guests and guides were able to enjoy conversation while walking. It was a cloudy day and not so bad for walking tour.   After the tour, all the guests tried to wear “instant kimono” Thanks again to all the guests for joining and having good time with us.We have been introducing our activities at Facebook and TripAdvisor. If you have joined our tour, please check them, and give us your comments or feedback. TFWT is going to hold a walking tours at Meiji shrine, Asakusa and Ueno Park. Please check our website for more details. Lastly,I’d like to inform that  “Hibiya Park Marunouchi Ondo Bon-odori Dance Festival.” will be held  at  Hibiya Park on 23 and 24 AUG, from 18:00 to 21:00pm. Bon-odori or Bon-dance is one of Japanese style dance. It is originally an event to calm the ancestral spirits that came back during Obon  season ( mid of July or August). People gather at the precinct yard of […]

Tour Report: Meiji Shrine & Harajuku Tour on August 18, 2019

  • 2019.08.18

Thank you so much for joining our tour at Meiji Shrine & Harajuku Tour!  Even it was over 35℃, murderous heat in the morning, we welcomed 10 guests from the US, Italy, Columbia, and Spain. Meiji Shrine is one of the mecca of wedding.  If you are lucky, you can see the ceremony at the main hall. After 1 hour walking in the shrine, we headed to Harajuku area, where was the famous shopping area for young people.  There were so many teenagers enjoying shopping and eating out.  Some of the guest also enjoyed taking pictures at the famous instagram point! We have another four tours in this month, so please check our tour calendar.  We all hope you enjoy your days in Japan, and look forward to meeting you someday! (posted by Hisako)

COOL “OMOTENASHI” (HOSPITALITY) IN SUMMER: The East Gardens of the Imperial Palace Tour on Aug. 17, 2019

  • 2019.08.18

Thank you for joining our tour to the East garden of the Imperial Palace on Aug 17th. We welcomed 14 guests from USA, UK, Spain, Colombia and India, and made 2 groups with a few guides respectively. The weather was typical summer one, very hot (35℃/95℉). We really appreciate all guest for sharing your precious time together and enjoyed our tour with the guests. As we reported, the construction in “Honmaru” area is under gong for the preparation of Grand Ceremony by new Emperor in Nov. We didn’t go to there but explained how looked like Edo Castle those days. We hope all guests enjoyed a short time-trip from Japanese modern era to Edo period in 17th through 19th. According to the Japanese traditional calendar, “Risshu (beginning of autumn/fall)” was on August 7, but it is still hot and humid even in mid-August, this year. In the days when there were no air conditioners or electric fans, people were trying to cool down the hot and humid seasons. One of them is that the house was made of wooden structure with excellent ventilation. Also, in everyday life, various ideas were made, such as cooling in the evening while listening to […]

Japan’s kitchenware paradise (August 11)

  • 2019.08.12

Thank you for taking the time out of your busy schedule to join our Asakusa/Ueno Park tours on August 11. It was a very hot day in the middle of summer. We welcomed 11 people from Italy, Australia and America. As some of you may be aware our website has been renewed and the long-awaited Ueno Park Tour page is here! It has been added to our Website as the fourth tour. I hope that the new page will raise the interest and awareness of Ueno Park Tour. There is an interesting and exciting place at Ueno/Asakusa area. It is Kappabashi Street which boasts the Japan’s largest kitchen ware products. It is located almost in the middle between Ueno Park and Sensoji Temple. You could walk from each place. The closest station is Tawaramachi of Tokyo Metro Ginza Line. The big statue of a chef is the landmark of Kappabashi Street. It is recommendable for a foreign visitor to get a handy map. The map has industrial classification in English with the free Wi-Fi spots which is available at most of the shops for free. The total length is approximately 1 kilometer with over 170 shops specializing in kitchen tools […]

TOUR REPORT: THE EAST GARDENS OF THE IMPERIAL PALACE TOUR ON AUGUST 10, 2019

  • 2019.08.11

Thank you for all! We welcomed 30 guests from various countries such as US, UK, Germany, Italy, Spain, Croatia, Poland, South Africa, Dubai, India, Singapore and Indonesia. We divided all the guests into 2 groups and each tour took 2 hour with 2 guides. Although it was very hot and humid, we tried to choose cool area and stay in a shade as possible. From some photo below, can you feel how we were active and concentrated in our tour? There is one antique street lamp in the east garden of Imperial place. The bridge shown by photo is generally called Nijubashi, which is the symbolic bridge for Imperial palace. In 1887, this bridge was arranged with 6 street lamps. They started to use these lamps only after 10 years since great inventor Thomas Edison had launched electric lamp in US. It was brand new technology with modern design at that time. And in 1964 this bridge was secondary rearranged, 6 lamps were also renewed and one of no longer used lamps was preserved here. After that it has been placed on our tour course very quietly. Actually, we have a lot of topics in our tour. Please come and […]

Important Notice regarding Our Tours

  • 2019.08.11

Please be advised of the recent situations that may affect our tour. Tokyo is experiencing an unprecedented heat wave this summer with temperatures nearing 40 degrees celcius (100 fahrenheit). Our tours may be modified or canceled without prior notice in order to protect the health of our guests and guides. The East Gardens of the Imperial Palace is being prepared for the Ceremony by the new Emperor in November. The Gardens are currently partially closed down; as the Ceremony nears and the construction progresses, we may modify or cancel our East Gardens tour. Please also refer to our terms and conditions. Thank you for your understanding!

PRICE OF CLOSE RELATIONSHIP? :Meiji Shrine and Harajuku Tour on Aug 4, 2019

  • 2019.08.05

Thank you for joining our tour to Meiji Shrine and Harajuku on Aug. 4th. We welcomed 8 guests in total from Australia, Canada, UK, Italy and Poland. We made 3 groups and had more mutual communication between guests and a guide. It was really hot, today. 32℃ (90℉), Summer sunshine, almost no wind. but we still could feel the cool forest in the morning, too. The tour started at the gate of Meiji Shrine, walked into its forest and arrived at Main Shrine Building. After the small rest, we moved to Harajuku area and reached out Omote Sando, Champs Elysees in Japan. We hope our guest enjoyed there 2 completely different attractive areas in the center of Tokyo metropolis. In addition, we exchanged a lot of questions and answers, and were inspired by some of them. I really love it. When visiting shrines and temples, including Meiji Jingu Shrine, we will make small offering. At that time, the famous thing as the auspicious amount is “5 yen”. One of our guests knew that. One reason is that “5 yen” is read as “Goen” in Japanese. Because this “Goen” has the same pronunciation as “Close relationship”, the 5 yen coin means that […]

Enjoy walking and talking in the Imperial Palace East Garden! Aug 3, 2019

  • 2019.08.05

Hi everybody! We had a walking tour in the Imperial Palace East Garden, which is located in the very center of Tokyo. We welcomed many guests from all over the world such as the United States, Spain, Italy, Poland, and Australia. The Imperial Palace is the residence of the Emperor and the family. In the 17th century, it was built as a Samurai castle by the Shogun family. Now, the east part is open for public. It’s a good site to learn Japanese history and culture. And, our walking tour is the best way to understand it, because we explain every background of traditional buildings and episodes of the historical places.   Don’t worry! It’s not only educational, but also fun. Our guide members are all volunteer tour guides. Office workers, engineers, housewives, retired elders, and so on. We are all friendly locals. If you would like to have interaction with locals but you don’t have friends in Japan, our walking tour is what you are looking for! While we are walking from a site to another in the Imperial Palace, we talk many things. About Japan, your country, society, family, friends, culture, custom, sports, and anything! “Does the Emperor […]