Wall paintings and lunch at Cat Street in Ura Harajuku (September 1)

Thank you for choosing our tour among the many candidates in Meiji Shrine and Harajuku area on September 1. 12 guests kindly joined our tour from America, Britain, Ireland, France. Bosnia-Herzegovina and Sudan. I hope all of you enjoyed walking with us in spite of muggy weather.

Cat Street is a 1 kilometer-road between Harajuku and Shibuya, and crosses Omote Sando Avenue in the middle. The street is almost straight consisting of south part (Shibuya) and north part (toward Shinjuku) going deeper into Harajuku (“Ura Harajuku”). The narrow road seems to originate from many homeless cats basking in the sun in the old days. You may not be able to see them now. In fact, this road was made over the river prior to the Tokyo Olympic Games in 1964.

Cat Street is one of the hot spots in Harajuku. There are a number of trendy shops and cafes including vintage clothing stores. However, it has much less teenagers in cosplay like Takeshita Street. People show more adult fashion. Since there is not that much traffic, it is an ideal place to go for a walk with your friends or family. In addition, you will see many outstanding mural arts on and around the street. It will be a great fun to stroll around while looking for a lunch place.
‘’Sakura Tei’’(www.Sakuratei.co.jp) is an okonomiyaki restaurant. The restaurant features astonishing wall arts on the colorful interior murals across the rooms as well as outside walls. You may feel as if you have strayed into a different world. Why is okonomiyaki in Harajuku? Okonomiyaki is a Japanese-style pancake made from flour, eggs and water with lots of toppings. The quality of pancake here is fantastic with organic vegetables and friendly English-speaking staffs who could help you in making okonomiyaki on the hot plate. It is located around north end of the street in Ura Harajuku. 1050yen upward.

Another restaurant is ‘’Sun&Witch’’(www.facebook.com/sunandwitch/) located close to Sakura Tei. The storefront is decorated in different color based on red depicting the sun and a witch. You won’t miss it. The restaurant boasts various sandwiches, hamburgers and hotdogs. The food is great and service is satisfactory. Menu available for take out !
The last recommendation is “Madosh!Cafe”(http://www.mado.in/) around south end of the street. This restaurant specializes in avocado. It is one of a few avocado restaurants in Tokyo and serves superb dishes. A mixture of avocado juices is unique and delicious. The sign of a big avocado is conspicuous. Do not forget to see the wall art outside the restaurant.

Cat street is fashionable and artistic. It’s worth visiting in Tokyo. You will find the cool and fancy shops, restaurants and cafes together with bold and colorful wall paintings which you won’t be able see at other places in Tokyo. Join us and let’s explore more in our tours.
(posted by Yoshi)