Hidden Tokyo
Hidden Tokyo · 11. February 2018
The lucky cat doll is a Japanese traditional charm. It's known especially for the commercial success, but not limited to it. You will find cat dolls at many shops or restaurants. Some people say that Gotokuji temple in Tokyo is the origin of the cat doll. There are a lot of lucky cat dolls in the temple. Those are donated by who visit the temple. Would you like to donate your cat in order to make your wish true? Or would you like to bring it with you as your own lucky charm? You can purchase...
Hidden Tokyo · 11. February 2018
Plum blossoms are pretty, and there is something that leads to the traditional Japanese beauty "Wabi and Sabi". That's why many Japanese love plum blossoms. Plum Blossom Festival in Setagaya is going on in the Hanegi Park. There are more than 600 plum trees. You can stroll and enjoy the plum blossoms in the park. They offer food stalls, green tea ceremony, Haiku poem, stage performance, and so on. It is a local festival. It's a good opportunity to understand the usual Japanese people. It takes...
Hidden Tokyo · 11. February 2018
Japan Open-Air Folk House Museum or "NIHON MINKAEN" is a very unique and interesting place. You experience as if you are walking in the 17th-century countryside of Japan. There are 23 old Japanese folk houses. Those are really old houses built in the 17th - 19th century. They moved houses from many regions in Japan and re-built in the museum. You can not only observe from the outside but also walk in the building. You will understand the detail of the old construction and Old lifestyle. Many of...
Hidden Tokyo · 17. July 2017
A mikoshi is a small portable shrine of Japanese Shinto religion. It is believed that a deity is in it. Each city or town in Japan has its own mikoshi festival. On the festival day, people carry the mikoshi on their shoulders and go around the town streets. On the 17th of July, Hamaori festival of Chigasaki city in Kanagawa prefecture was held. Chigasaki is a seaside city located about 60 km south of Tokyo. On the festival, many mikoshis go into the sea to clean-up their spirits ritually. It's...
Hidden Tokyo · 27. May 2017
It's a good idea to visit local markets to understand the real life of Tokyo residents. These pictures are usual markets or shopping streets for common people. Those are located in Shinagawa-Ku ward. It takes only 30 minutes from the central Tokyo by train. Please visit there and you will find the daily life of Tokyo.
Hidden Tokyo · 21. May 2017
Harajuku is known as a fashionable, busy town. However, it has a calm aspect. Asides well known Meiji-Jingu shrine, there is another shrine just next to the Takeshita-Dori street. It is the Togojinja shrine. The shrine enshrines Admiral Togo. He saved Japan at the beginning of the 20th century as the chief commander of the Japanese navy. Now, the shrine is a very peaceful place. When I visited the shrine, the Japanese traditional wedding ceremony was held there. It would be very interesting for...
