Tokyo | Hello from the Five Star Vagabond

Yokohama Japan super city

April 17, 2014 by David Herd

Yokohama Japan super city, the second largest city in Japan by population after Tokyo, and most populous municipality of Japan. It is the capital city of Kanagawa Prefecture. It lies on Tokyo Bay, south of Tokyo, in the Kantō region of the main island of Honshu. It is a major commercial hub of the Greater Tokyo Area.

Intercontinental hotel

Yokohama is really worth a visit, much of the city was destroyed on September 1, 1923 by the Great Kantō earthquake. The Yokohama police reported casualties at 30,771 dead and 47,908 injured.

A great looking building

For some really good deals at this magnificent hotel just bookmark this link.

Yokohama station

Yokohama is a only 30 minutes from Tokyo on the metro, this mural is at the station.

My friend Kayo in Yokohama

We walked a few kms past the Intercontinental hotel to the cruise terminal at Minato Mirai 21, then onto Chinatown for lunch.

Car Sharing Service

Japan’s first one-way car sharing service with a large number of vehicles. The scheme, which enables the company to trial new concepts for mobility within urban areas, has been jointly organized with the City of Yokohama. Drivers will be able to rent units of NISSAN New Mobility CONCEPT, an ultra-compact electric vehicle. They will be able to drop off the car at a different location from where they started, enabling one-way travel.

Yokohama Japan super city Yamashita Park

Yamashita Park on the waterfront which opened in 1930. Much of Yokohama was destroyed on 1 September 1923 by the Great Kanto earthquake. Yokohama was rebuilt, only to be destroyed again by thirty-odd U.S. air raids during World War II. An estimated seven or eight thousand people were killed in a single morning on 29 May 1945 in what is now known as the Great Yokohama Air Raid, when B-29s firebombed the city and in just one hour and nine minutes reduced 42% of it to rubble.

Goddess of Water Statue in Yamashita Park

This section of the park is only a short walk to Chinatown.

Seagulls resting on Hikawa Maru

Hikawa Maru is a Japanese ocean liner that Yokohama Dock Company built for Nippon Yūsen Kabushiki Kaisha. She was launched on 30 September 1929 and made her maiden voyage from Kobe to Seattle on 13 May 1930.

Yokohama Red Brick Warehouse

Yokohama Red Brick Warehouse is a historical building that is used as a complex that includes a shopping mall, banquet hall, and event venues. The complex, officially known as the Newport Pier Tax Keeping Warehouse.

The coast guard

Lots of interesting ships to see in Yokohama Japan super city.

Cosmo Clock 21

Cosmo Clock 21 is an enormous Ferris Wheel clock in Yokohama, that, at 353 ft. (107 m), was the world’s tallest Ferris Wheel for eight years, from it’s construction in 1989 (for the ‘89 Yokohama Exposition) to 1997, and has been the world’s largest clock from 1989 to the present.

Chinatown

Yokohama Chinatown is the largest Chinatown not only in Japan but also in Asia (larger than China-towns in both Kobe and Nagasaki) and it is one of the largest in the world.

Yokohama super city

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That’s all folks

Please check out my “Sleepless town” and my “Piss Alley” posts.

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Tokyo is fantastic

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Here is a quaint Tokyo Street

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Shinjuku Tokyo’s Business Center

April 16, 2014 by David Herd

Mode Gakuen Cocoon Tower

Shinjuku Tokyo’s Business Center

Shinjuku Tokyo’s Business Center located in Tokyo Metropolis. It is a major commercial and administrative center, housing the busiest train station in the world and the Tokyo Metropolitan Government building.

Mode Gakuen Cocoon Tower is a 204-meter, 50-story educational facility located in the Nishi-Shinjuku district in Shinjuku. The building is home to three educational institutions.

Shinjuku is the busiest train station in the world

West of the station

Nishi-Shinjuku: The area west of Shinjuku Station, historically known as Yodobashi, is home to Tokyo’s largest concentration of skyscrapers. Several of the tallest buildings in Tokyo are located in this area, including the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building, KDDI Building and Park Tower.

From Skyscrapers to tiny restaurants

There is an incredible diversification in Shinjuku, everything from modern skyscrapers to tiny “hole in the wall” restaurants.

Meet my new best friend

Here I am with y new best friend in the little “no name” restaurant that sits only 3 people, 4 at a squeeze.

Food was average, wine was excellent

I was not worried about the food being very average & overpriced, the experience was well worth it. My friend Kayo had given me a lovely present, a nice bottle of red & a bottle of sake. So I drank the red at this tiny “no name” restaurant.

Here is my present from Kayo

Japanese people are so nice, they love to give you presents. I will look forward to returning the favor when Kayo visits Thailand in August.

My friend Kayo

We met on the Gold Coast in Australia 10 years ago and it was great to catch up again in Tokyo.

Kabukicho is in Shinjuku

Kabukicho is in the heart of Shinjuku and right next to the railway line is one of my favorite places, Piss Alley.

Piss Alley

Piss Alley is a quaint Tokyo Street in Shinjuku which really has a distinctive personality. Known also as Memory Lane however I think Piss Alley has a far better sound to it.

My favourite Japanese song

Watch this video on YouTube

Toyoko Inn

My hotel was in a perfect location and a very reasonable price if you book through my Agoda link.

Granbell Hotel

If you would prefer to stay at Shibuya I got an excellent deal booking through this Agoda link.

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Here is a famous red light district in Bangkok

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Kabukicho Tokyo the sleepless town

April 15, 2014 by David Herd

Kabukicho Tokyo

Kabukicho Tokyo the sleepless town

Kabukicho Tokyo the sleepless town, an entertainment and red-light district in Shinjuku, Tokyo. Kabukicho is the location of many host and hostess clubs, love hotels, shops, restaurants, and nightclubs, and is often called the “Sleepless Town”

Kabukicho Tokyo has transformed from a residential area to a world famous red-light district housing over three thousand bars, nightclubs, love hotels, massage parlours, hostess clubs and the like. Although referred here as a “red light district”, there are no red lights in the literal sense with prostitutes in the windows as in Amsterdam.

Selling dreams to lonely women in Kabukicho.

The “sleepless town”

According to a spokesperson of Metropolitan Tokyo in 2004, there are more than 1,000 yakuza members in Kabukicho, and 120 different enterprises under their control.

Entering the new millennium, laws were more strictly enforced and patrols became more frequent. These, adding to the installation of fifty closed-circuit cameras in May 2002, reduced criminal activities here, amidst controversy.

In 2004, the police undertook an operation clamping down on illegal clubs and brothels, causing many to go out of business. Also, there is a movement to rid this area of the yakuza (“bad hand” gangs), known as the Kabukicho Renaissance.

Kabukicho Tokyo Neon lights everywhere

Kabukicho Tokyo was a great place to stay as there is always something to see & do. Also it is close to Piss Ally, one of my favorite spots in Tokyo.

An Australian influence?

You gotta love Wombat herbs. 🙂

Kabukicho Tokyo DVD shop

A typical Kabukicho neon.

One of many love hotels

Kabukicho is the largest red light district in Asia

Another love hotel

You have the option to pay for a short stay or all night, up to you.

It really is the town that never sleeps

They say the neon lights are bright on Broadway, but for me Kabukicho Tokyo is the world’s brightest city.

Here is a site which shows you what is available

Check out those wonderful innocent faces. 🙂 Photo by Phoenix & Phoenix.

Selling dreams to lonely women in Kabukicho.

Grambell Hotel Shibuya

A nice budget hotel in a fantastic location. Use this link for a great rate.

April 2nd 2020

Dozens of sex workers have been infected with coronavirus in Japan’s biggest red light district sparking fears hundreds of customers may have been infected with the killer disease.

Japanese media reports scores of people working in the adult industry in the notorious Kabukicho district of Tokyo have been confirmed to have COVID-19. Check out THIS LINK.

My favourite Japanese song

Watch this video on YouTube

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Here is a hidden gem in Tokyo

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March 11, 2014
by David Herd
Comments Off on Visited Seven Super Cities 2014

Visited Seven Super Cities 2014

First stop Hong Kong Seven Super Cities 2014 Visited Seven Super Cities 2014, left in February I traveled over a period of 5 weeks to Hong Kong, Tokyo, London, Amsterdam, Brussels, Capetown & Sydney. It may well be my last … Continue reading →

Piss Alley Tokyo very quaint Street

February 27, 2014 by David Herd

Piss Alley Tokyo very quaint Street in Shinjuku which really has a distinctive personality. Known also as Memory Lane however I think Piss Alley has a far better sound to it. 😆

Piss Alley Tokyo

Piss Alley Tokyo was named many years ago, when it was a shady destination for criminals to get drunk together. The place wasn’t very built up back in those days, so instead of using a toilet, people just relieved themselves wherever they could.

Wonderful tiny restaurants

Many of the restaurants in Piss Alley Tokyo only seat 6 or 7 people, the larger ones probably up to 20 and people are often packed in like sardines.

Little “hole in the wall” restaurants

There are some very strange dishes available on Piss Alley.

Frog sashimi
Pig testicles
Soft-shelled turtle
Still-beating frog’s heart
Grilled salamander
Snake liquor

I was not taking any risks so I stuck to the Yakitori.

Yakitori in Piss Alley Tokyo

Great yakitori, this is still the place to eat Japan’s original fast foods: yakitori (chicken skewers), motsu-nabe (offal stew) and hormone-yaki (grilled organ meats). Most items on the menus are made from the rejected body parts of livestock.

Foreign television crews love izakaya Asadachi (Shinjuku 1-2-14, no phone) for delicacies such as pig testicles, grilled salamanders, frog sashimi and other foods. Even for adventurous Japanese eaters, most of the menu is considered off-the-wall. There’s a reason Asadachi has maintained its near city-wide monopoly on serving horse penis.

For the less experimental, standard yakitori joints abound, though truth be told, many of these Shinjuku bars survive as much on location as quality. Finding the best yakitori is often a hit or miss affair. The best strategy is to follow the crowds — or better, go with a knowledgeable friend. A general rule of thumb: the less crowded an establishment, the less you can trust its cooking.

Piss alley Tokyo one of the larger restaurants

Most are not much bigger than a shoe box. 🙂

Bright lights of Memory Lane

The collection of small Shinjuku bars evocatively called Piss Alley (‘Shonben Yokocho’) — or Memory Lane (‘Omoide Yokocho’), as the authorities would rather you call it — is a sliver of post-war Japanese culture a few minutes walk from Shinjuku station. The cramped alley of restaurant and bar stalls offers a ‘nostalgic’ experience, which means something like visiting a decrepit shantytown.

My favourite Japanese song

Watch this video on YouTube

Busy chef at work

On a Friday night Piss Alley is in full swing. It’s like a film set of tiny buildings, with staircases leading nowhere. The place feels like it’s painted nicotine brown (no smoking laws definitely don’t apply to Piss Alley), and then spritzed with a hot, savory steam. It’s beside the railway (at one point, there’s a rusty ladder up to the main train track out of Tokyo) and the rumble of trains never goes away. Nor does the smell of fried food and sake, as salary-men eat and drink their fill.

My favorite PA photo

Each time I look at this shot it reminds me of the song “Only the Lonely’. The truth, however, is that the run-down, old-timey atmosphere of the Alley is as carefully cultivated as any of the city’s famed theme bars. The theme here just happens to be ‘post-war poverty.’ A black market drinking quarter in the 1940s, Piss Alley earned its name from its lack of toilet facilities, which compelled patrons to relieve themselves against nearby train tracks. The ramshackle post-war infrastructure lasted until 1999, when a fire destroyed most of the buildings and the Alley had to be rebuilt. Along with the renovation came actual restrooms and a new marketing campaign — at least officially, the Shinjuku bars of Piss Alley became Memory Lane. Though none of the current structures are more than a decade old, you’d hardly know it from the grease and grime covering nearly every surface. Although positioned as the ‘ultimate old-style Japanese drinking experience,’ the bars of Memory Lane are mostly staffed by young women from various Asian countries. Between the broken Japanese and hard-drinking patrons, many of them tourists, the area remains a little seedy — just in a new way.

Piss alley Tokyo nice American girls

I visited Piss Alley again in September 2015 & chatted to these nice American girls.

In October 2017 I travelled to Kagoshima and was happy to find another “Piss Alley” type village, check it out on THIS LINK.

It will remain a favourite part of Tokyo for me.

Make sure you put this unique piss alley Tokyo 0n your bucket list. My hotel was 10 minutes walk from here, great value for Tokyo, only $85 per night. Use THIS LINK to book.

Granbell Hotel

This is a great hotel in Shibuya, I got an excellent deal booking through this Agoda link.

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Tsujiki wholesale Fish market

December 21, 2013 by David Herd

The market is being relocated in 2018

Tsujiki wholesale Fish market

Tsujiki wholesale Fish market Tokyo is an amazing sight to see, however you have to set your alarm for an early start. To experience the action yo need to be there around 5am or earlier. The address is 5 Chome-2-1 Tsukiji, Chuo, Tokyo 104-0045, Japan

Negotiating the price

The Tokyo Metropolitan Central Wholesale Market, commonly known as the Tsukiji Market, is the biggest wholesale fish and seafood market in the world and also one of the largest wholesale food markets of any kind.

Don’t argue with this guy. 😯

His knife is almost as big as a Samurai sword.

The Tokyo Fish market is located near the Tsukijishijō Station on the Toei Ōedo Line and Tsukiji Station on the Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line. There are two distinct sections of the market. The “inner market” is the licensed wholesale market, where the auctions and most of the processing of the fish take place, and where licensed wholesale dealers (approximately 900 of them) operate small stalls. The “outer market” is a mixture of wholesale and retail shops that sell Japanese kitchen tools, restaurant supplies, groceries, and seafood, and many restaurants, especially sushi restaurants. Most of the shops in the outer market close by the early afternoon, and in the inner market even earlier.

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Tsujiki wholesale Fish market

The Tokyo Fish market handles more than 400 different types of seafood from cheap seaweed to the most expensive caviar, and from tiny sardines to 300 kg tuna and controversial whale species. Overall, more than 700,000 metric tons of seafood are handled every year at the three seafood markets in Tokyo, with a total value in excess of 600 billion yen (approximately 5.9 billion US dollars on November 24th, 2013). The number of registered employees as of 25 January 2010 varies from 60,000 to 65,000, including wholesalers, accountants, auctioneers, company officials, and distributors.

Here’s looking at you kid.

Tokyo Fish market opens most mornings (except Sundays, holidays and some Wednesdays) at 3:00 a.m. with the arrival of the products by ship, truck and plane from all over the world. Particularly impressive is the unloading of tons of frozen tuna. The auction houses (wholesalers known in Japanese as oroshi gyōsha) then estimate the value and prepare the incoming products for the auctions. The buyers (licensed to participate in the auctions) also inspect the fish to estimate which fish they would like to bid for and at which price.

The auctions start around 5:20 a.m. Bidding can only be done by licensed participants. These bidders include intermediate wholesalers (nakaoroshi gyōsha) who operate stalls in the marketplace and other licensed buyers who are agents for restaurants, food processing companies, and large retailers.

The auctions usually end around 7:00 a.m. Afterward, the purchased fish is either loaded onto trucks to be shipped to the next destination or on small carts and moved to the many shops inside the market. There the shop owners cut and prepare the products for retail. In case of large fish, for example tuna and swordfish, cutting and preparation is elaborate. Frozen tuna and swordfish are often cut with large band saws, and fresh tuna is carved with extremely long knives, some well over a meter in length.

Giant tuna fetches more than US$600,000 at Tokyo auction

Watch this video on YouTube

Tsujiki wholesale Fish market

Without a doubt AGODA is the best online Hotel booking site.

Tsujiki wholesale Fish market Tokyo

Sushizanmai is my favourite sushi restaurant in Tokyo is very close to the old Tokyo Fish market & open 24 hours a day. There is always a queue of people waiting to get in.

Tuna fetches record $3m at Tokyo auction January 5 2019

A 278-kilogramme bluefin tuna sold for a record 333.6 million yen (US$3 million) in the first auction of 2019 on Saturday, after Tokyo’s famed Tsukiji market was moved to a new site on the city’s waterfront.

The winning bid for the prized but threatened species at the predawn auction was more than double the old mark set in 2013. It was paid by Kiyomura Corp, whose owner Kiyoshi Kimura runs the Sushi Zanmai chain. Kimura has often won the annual auction in the past.

Last year’s auction was the last at Tsukiji before the market shifted to a new facility on a former gas plant site on Tokyo Bay. The move was delayed repeatedly due to concerns over soil contamination. However it has now relocated.

The Toyosu Market is a wholesale market in Tokyo, located in the Toyosu area of the Kōtō ward. There are two markets for seafood, one for general wholesale and one for bidding and one market for fruits and vegetables, with each in their own buildings.

One of the happy chefs

This is the best sushi in the world.

Two of the happy customers

My friend Hamish was really enjoying his first trip to Tokyo in September 2015, he was blown away by the quality and price at Sushizanmai.

Sushizanmai has the best quality sushi in the world at a reasonable price.

The Sushizanmai in Tokyo is an experience to enjoy and remember. If you want a quiet romantic setting cross this place off your list. It is a happy frenetic chaotic dining experience, and the food is wonderful. Check out this video to experience the atmosphere. It’s now October 2018 & the market finally closes.

Watch this video on YouTube

Fantastic chaotic Sushi restaurant in Tokyo.

Watch this video on YouTube

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Tokyo is a great city

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A very quaint Tokyo Street

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Shinkansen bullet train

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Gion Temples Geishas Kyoto Japan

August 24, 2013 by David Herd

Fabulous Kyoto

Gion Temples Geishas Kyoto

Gion Temples Geishas Kyoto Japan, originally developed in the Middle Ages, in front of Yasaka Shrine. The district was built to accommodate the needs of travellers and visitors to the shrine. It eventually evolved to become one of the most exclusive and well-known geisha districts in all of Japan.

Gion shop

A great window display.

Wonderful Japanese garden in Kyoto

In my eyes this is perfection.

The magnificent Kinkakuju temple.

Kinkakuji (金閣寺, Golden Pavilion) is a Zen temple in northern Kyoto whose top two floors are completely covered in gold leaf. Formally known as Rokuonji, the temple was the retirement villa of the shogun Ashikaga Yoshimitsu, and according to his will it became a Zen temple of the Rinzai sect after his death in 1408. Kinkakuji was the inspiration for the similarly named Ginkakuji (Silver Pavilion), built by Yoshimitsu’s grandson, Ashikaga Yoshimasa, on the other side of the city a few decades later. Kinkakuji is an impressive structure built overlooking a large pond, and is the only building left of Yoshimitsu’s former retirement complex. It has burned down numerous times throughout its history including twice during the Onin War, a civil war that destroyed much of Kyoto; and once again more recently in 1950 when it was set on fire by a fanatic monk. The present structure was rebuilt in 1955.

Hanami-koj St Gion.

Part of the Gion district has been declared a national historical preservation district. Recently, the City of Kyoto completed a project to restore the streets of Gion, which included such plans as moving all overhead utilities underground as part of the ongoing effort to preserve the original beauty of Gion.

Gion

Gion is my favourite part of Kyoto.

Nijo Castle.

The castle is an excellent example of social control manifested in architectural space. Low-ranking visitors were received in the outer regions of the Ninomaru, whereas high-ranking visitors were shown the more subtle inner chambers. Rather than attempt to conceal the entrances to the rooms for bodyguards (as was done in many castles), the Tokugawas chose to display them prominently. Thus, the construction lent itself to expressing intimidation and power to Edo-period visitors. The building houses several different reception chambers, offices and the living quarters of the shogun, where only female attendants were allowed. One of the most striking features of the Ninomaru Palace are the “nightingale floors” (uguisubari) in the corridors. To protect the occupants from sneak attacks and assassins, the builders constructed the floors of the corridors in such a way as to squeak like birds when anyone walks on them.

Check out the Kiyomizu-dera buddhist temple.

So many wonderful restaurants in Gion.

Good food & beautiful faces, what more could you ask for?

Jyuunidanya restaurant in Gion

Probably has not changed for hundreds of years.

Kyoto Tower

Kyoto’s iconic landmark is a very convenient place to stay, for an excellent room rate just book through THIS LINK.

Kyoto railway station

Best station I have ever seen.

Japan is full of surprises

In this country there is the ancient & the new. 🙂

A beautiful Japanese lady

This is Ake and she provided me with a real surprise. It was a wet Monday evening so I found a small bar to enjoy a few drinks and a light dinner. An hour or so later Aki came in with 2 of her friends, they all said hello to me and joined me at the bar. After a couple more drinks they invited me to join them at another bar where they were meeting friends. I said “please wait a minute while I pay my bill here”, Ake said “don’t worry I have already paid it”. You could have knocked me over with a feather, so off we went and the night got better and better. 🙂

Aki’s friends Jun and Alice

It’s always great meeting the locals. 🙂

My 3rd visit in 2018

Certainly one of my favourite cities in Japan.

Make sure you visit the Pontocho Entertainment District

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Holiday Inn

Fabulous views, excellent restaurants & a very good room rate if you book through THIS LINK.

The building in the middle is the Holiday Inn, on the left is the Amari Hotel which is another very good five star hotel. Use THIS LINK to book for a very good room rate.

Sabai Wing North Pattaya

The best Pattaya budget hotel, 3 pools & opposite Central Marina shopping mall. For a great room rate just book through THIS LINK.

Sutus Court is a great budget hotel right i the heart of one of Pattaya’s main bar areas, just use THIS LINK for a terrific room rate. 420/100 Moo 9 Soi Buakhao.

Pattaya Hilton

This is the view from Horizons the amazing rooftop bar. A great five star hotel located opposte the beach & above the Central Festival shopping mall. Just book through THIS LINK for an excellent room rate.

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A very quaint Tokyo street

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You gotta love the Ginza

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Tokyo food fashion style

July 29, 2013 by David Herd

Tokyo food fashion style

Tokyo food fashion style, my first trip to Japan was April 2007, I loved it so much I went back in December the same year. As I said Tokyo is a great city for food and Japanese was always my favourite cuisine before I ever came to the country, and now that I have experienced the best Tokyo has to offer it will certainly remain my favourite food.

For great hotel deals book here and choose to either pay now, or pay later when you check out.

One square meter of land in the Ginza center is worth more than ten million yen (more than 100,000 US dollars), making it one of the most expensive real estate in Japan. It is where you can find the infamous $10 cups of coffee and where virtually every leading brand name in fashion and cosmetics has a presence. Ginza is named after the silver-coin mint established there in 1612 during the Edo period. Modern Ginza began in 1872 when, after a devastating fire, the district was rebuilt with two- and three-story Georgian brick buildings designed by the English architect Thomas Waters, along with a shopping promenade on the street from the Shinbashi bridge to the Kyōbashi bridge in the southwestern part of Chūō Ward. Most of these European-style buildings are gone, but some older buildings are still there, most famously the Wakō building with its clock tower.

The Ginza in Tokyo

Popular opinion states Tokyo is an expensive city but I tend to disagree, I believe 20 years ago it was, however the prices seem to have remained at the same level it was back then. For instance a coffee in one of the popular chains is under $3, as is a delicious ham & lettuce sandwich. My hotel was only $100 per night, 10 minutes walk from the Ginza. Of course if you wish to can stay in a 5 star hotel and dine on Kobe beef every night and it will cost you a fortune, similar to London or New York. I eat in the fantastic little traditional cafes & restaurants where the prices are very reasonable.

The wonderful Harajuku girls gather every Sunday morning.

Harajuku style originated among teens on the streets near Harajuku Station in Shibuya, Japan. It may have been brought to many people’s attention by American singer Gwen Stefani, but the evolution of the style certainly didn’t begin with her and it certainly won’t end with her. Like many “street fashions” it is difficult to characterize because it is constantly changing and because it has many manifestations.

I believe Tokyo is the food capital of the world.

To me Tokyo is all about food, food and more food, interestingly the Michelin guide has Tokyo comfortably ahead of Paris (10 three-starred restaurants), New York (7) and London (2), with a total of 350 establishments making it into the guide this time around. Six new places were awarded two stars, a couple of them – French restaurant Esquisse and the Japanese-style Ginza Okamoto. Tokyo is without a doubt the fine food capital of the world.

Fresh Tuna at Tsukiji market

The Tokyo great city Metropolitan Central Wholesale Market, commonly known as the Tsukiji Market (築地市場 Tsukiji shijō?), is the biggest wholesale fish and seafood market in the world and also one of the largest wholesale food markets of any kind. The market is located in Tsukiji in central Tokyo, and is a major attraction for foreign visitors.

Tsukiji Market in Tokyo great city

You really need to arrive here around 5 am.

Crossing the road like ants at Shibuya.

The name “Shibuya” is also used to refer to the shopping district which surrounds Shibuya Station, one of Tokyo’s busiest railway stations. This area is known as one of the fashion centres of Japan, particularly for young people, and as a major nightlife area.

I often stay at the Granbell Hotel in Shibuya, great location 200 meters from the station. Use this link to book and receive a great rate.

Shibuya at dusk.

Certainly one of the best districts in Tokyo.

Tokyo Imperial Palace

Tokyo Imperial Palace is the main residence of the Emperor of Japan. It is a large park-like area located in the Chiyoda area of Tokyo close to Tokyo Station and contains several buildings including the main palace, the private residences of the imperial family, an archive, museum and administrative offices. It is built on the site of the old Edo castle. The total area including the gardens is 3.41 square kilometres (1.32 sq mi). During the height of the 1980s Japanese property bubble, the palace grounds were valued by some as more than the value of all the real estate in the state of California.

A traditional Japanese tea room near the Ginza

Sometimes you can be lucky enough to capture a perfect Japanese moment.

Welcome to Shabuzen at the Ginza.

A fabulous Ginza restaurant.

Kobe beef at Shabuzen, expensive but magnificent.

Best to go at lunchtime for a lower price.

David herd & the Thomsons at Shabuzen in the Ginza.

My good friends from Australia Phil & Junko love the Kobe Beef at Shabuzen. I was very lucky to be shown around Tokyo great city with Phil & Junko acting as my guides.

A beautiful Japanese wedding at Harajuku.

Another perfect Japanese moment.

Tokyo food fashion style, Togo Shrine

This seems to be a very popular wedding venue. The shrine is dedicated to Admiral Togo, famous for defeating the Russian fleet when they fought the Russo-Japanese War way back in 1905.

Bride & groom

A truly beautiful traditional Japanese wedding, I was so pleased to witness this delightful event.

Sushizanmai, my favorite Tokyo restaurant, chaotic & crazy.

Forget all the Michelin starred restaurants, my all time favorite is the Sushizanmai near the Tsukiji fish market. Dining here is pure theater and fun, 3 floors and open 24 hours a day. The ground floor is the place to be, but be prepared to wait in a queue for up to 45 minutes. Believe me however it is worth the wait. The food is fabulous and the atmosphere chaotic, 6 chefs work furiously to feed the hungry patrons in between shouting weird welcome cries each time someone enters or leaves the establishment. If you are looking for a romantic setting to propose to your sweetheart, cross this place off your list. If great sushi and organised chaos is what you enjoy then get on the end of the queue and wait your turn. Situated near the Tsukiji markets it is fast cheap and fabulous.

Here we are again

Hamish Elton & I enjoyed another wonderful meal in September 2015, still as great as ever. A few days later I also had dinner at the Osaka branch with also was excellent.

I have eaten oysters all over the world, please check out THIS LINK.

Happy chef at Sushizanmai

located almost next door the the world famous Tsukiji fish market where their produce is sourced daily, guarantees what they serve is as fresh and you will ever experience anywhere on the planet.

To prove my point check out a video of the chaos.

Fantastic chaotic Sushi restaurant in Tokyo.

Watch this video on YouTube

Super travel tips. From the airport take the limousine bus, by far the best value. I catch to bus to Tokyo station then take a taxi to my hotel, taxis are not expensive in Tokyo and like everything else in the city they are spotless. Super value hotel. I stay at the Higashi Ginza Toku, however they have hotels in other locations as well. For the best hotel deals book here and choose to either pay now, or later when you check out. Super sushi. At Sushizanmai 4-11-9 Tsukiji, Chuo-ku, Tokyo. 81-(0)3-3541-1117