One thing that makes Tokyo Dome worth checking out is food. Especially in the building called LaQua which has a wonderful yakiniku place called Jojoen. It is expensive, but trust me, it is worth it to go one time. Besides the food, just the architecture of the area can make for some nice photos and it is kind of a unique place compared to other parts of Tokyo.

For more information, here is the Official English Homepage of Tokyo Dome.

Ikebukuro was actually one of the first places in Tokyo I went to, so it will always have a special place in my heart… I guess. But seriously, there is a huge shopping center called Sunshine 60 (above photo). In this shopping center, besides having an aquarium, hotel, nice view of Tokyo and of course shops, is Namja Town. What is Namja Town? It is a small theme park built by Namco. If you can read Japanese, here is the official homepage of Namja Town.

What makes Namja Town worth the visit? Well besides the wacky decor (Playboy is REALLY popular in Japan because the bunny is really cute! Seriously, that is why. No I am 100% dead serious) that only Japan could get away with, the food. First let me start with my favorite, Gyoza Stadium. I love Gyoza. For those of you who do not know, Gyoza is a Chinese dumpling that usually has pork and vegetables or shrimp in it. Gyoza is delicious (but can make your breathe stink). Anyway, Gyoza Stadium has about 20 different kinds of gyoza ranging from the classic style to curry gyoza, friend gyoza and many which I don’t really know what they were but were equally delicious. If you are a fan of gyoza, you CAN NOT miss this place.

After Gyoza Statdium, make sure you leave room for Ice Cream City, which you guessed it, has a many different kinds of ice cream. There are about 15 different vendors, one of which has over 100 flavors of ice cream and includes very, um, interesting flavors like Japanese sake (sah kay) and aloe. Also there is another dessert area where you can buy all kinds of cakes and parfaits and other treats. One of which you can buy a dessert that looks like food but is really dessert. For example, you can buy a dessert that looks like sushi, but is really cake, or something that looks like curry and rice but really is pudding and cake or something along those lines.

Also, if you like spicy food, be sure to go to Nakamoto Ramen!

Most of the happening places in Kobe are fairly close together, either in Sannomiya or Harborland (above photo) . Sannomiya is perhaps the busiest part of Kobe with many restaurants, bars, shops, and 3 different train stations! Harborland is a few minute walk from Kobe Station, think of it as a huge (seriously I mean huge) shopping mail with more shops and restaurants than you can care to choose from. Also there is a ferris wheel which offers a nice view of Kobe.

For more information about the city of Kobe, check out The Kobe City Info page which has a lot of useful information about Kobe.

Odaiba actually has a lot of attractions but they are mainly geared more towards tourists (local or foreign in somecases) such as:

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  • Toyota Showroom (called Mega Web for some reason)
  • Ferris Wheel (where on a weekend the line gets as long as a two hour wait)
  • National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation (bilingual)
  • National Museum of Maritime Science
  • Oedo Onsen Monogatari (the largest hot spring theme park in Japan, designed after the old Edo period)

I recommend getting there by taking the Yurikamome Line which is a fairly new (and slightly expensive) private train line that rides fairly high off the ground, over the Rainbow Bridge and between some really interesting and cool buildings. When the weather is nice, the train ride itself offers some great and unique views of Tokyo. You can transfer to the Yurikamome Line from Shimbashi. Below are photos of the Rainbow Bridge. The one taken during the day was taken while on the Yurikamome Line.

For more information about Odaiba, I strongly recommend checking out Sugihara’s Budget Guide to Tokyo’s Odaiba Distric. While his English isn’t perfect (which also makes it sometimes humorous), it does provide a lot of useful (and honest) information about Odaiba.

If you are spending time in Tokyo, Asakusa is worth checking out and a lot of interesting photos can be made here. Also there are a lot of festivals in Asakusa throughout the year, these festivals, or “matsuri” in Japanese, always make for good photographs. Here is some information with short descriptions of the festivals in Asakusa and here is another list with the 2007 dates of festivals in Asakusa. Note that some of the dates may change from year to year. Perhaps one of the more interesting festivals is the annual Samba Festival, which takes place in late August. It is interesting because it is obviously very different from the usual traditional festival in Japan. Here is more information on the history of the samba festival in Asakusa. Below is a photo of the shopping arcade.

Another interesting area close by is Kappabashi Dori, a restaurant wholesale shopping street where you can buy anything you can think of related to Japanese cooking. Kappabashi is a great place to buy gifts for the cook in the family and because most places are wholesales, the prices can’t be beat. It is about a 8-10 minute walk from Sensoji. Here is another photo from a festival in Asakusa.

No matter time you go, Shibuya is busy and it is a good palce to check out the trends of fashion in Japan, as Japan is typically a boom society, the trends come and go with the wind. The crossing in the photo below is one of the most famous and most photographed in Japan.

Below is the famous statue of a dog called Hachiko. I have heard many stories about this dog and I am not sure which parts are true, but the (bitter sweet) story I like to believe goes as following. Hachiko and the owner of the dog had a very special relationship. Everyday this dog met his owner at the Shibuya Station when he would come home from work; however, the man got old and one day he died while he was at work. The dog waited all night for his owner to come but of course he never did. Eventually Hachiko left Shibuya Station, but everyday, for the rest of the dog’s life, Hachiko would come back to Shibuya Station to wait for his owner. A statue was built to honor the dog and now it is a popular place to meet and wait for people; however, there are so many people waiting there it is not always easy to find your friends!

The nightlife scene is very happening in Shibuya with lot’s of clubs, restaurants, bars, adult entertainment and love hotels. Like I said earlier, whatever you are looking for can be found here.

Fore more more information check out the Japan-Guide.com.

Shibuya – article about the Shibuya area of Tokyo.

Akihabara is also undergoing some changes. While it use to be just “Electric Town,” it has morphed into that and also a place associated with manga (Japanese Comics), cosplay (shot for costume play) and maid cafes (cafes where you are served by a girl wearing a french maid outfit).

One store I need to specifically recommend is Yodobashi Camera in Akihabara, you can see the entrance to the store on the right. Yodobashi Camera is a chain for electronic stores all over Japan and this is the largest. This place has 7 floors of electronic goodness from everything to cell phones, cameras, video games, heated toilet seats, washers, fridges, massage chairs and pretty much anything else you can think of. For those of you Americans out there, picture a Bust Buy store and then give that store 7 floors. This place is huge and if you are into electronics is a must see!

For more information about Akihabara see the officail Akihabara home page or the Japan-Guide.com.

Below you can see people waiting for the Gucci store to open and also a melon from a department store. The sign with the melon says you can buy two of those bad boys for about 200 USD. Yes that is 200 not 2.00.

For more information about Ginza, see the Japan-Guide.com.

Also Miyajima, one of Japan’s 3 most scenic views, is just a short ferry ride away. If you plan on visiting Miyajima, a lot of people stay in Hiroshima for the night and visit Miyajima the next day because Hiroshima has much more of a nightlife, restaurants, cheaper places to stay and more things to do; however if you are a photographer I recommend staying the night in Miyajima. While it is a little more expensive and there is no nightlife, you will find it really nice before and after all the tourists leave the island.

For more information, please see the Japan-Guide.com or here is the official Hiroshima City website.

If you go late at night it is not uncommon to see drunk, passed out salary men sleeping on the streets or friends carrying another friend who is too drunk to walk. I recommend going, but do be careful if you wander into Kabukicho, the entertainment, drinking, adult and red light district, which has a lot of ties with the Yakuza (Japanese Mafia). In general, this area is fairly safe compared to the rest of the world, but compared to the rest of Japan it is a little unsafe. That being said, just don’t go picking fights with anyone and you should be fine.

For more information please see the Japan-Guide.com.