The Tokyo Traveler

Travel & Leisure has published their 2008 World’s Best Awards and two hotels in Tokyo made the cut! Of the 50 World’s Best Hotels in Asia, The Imperial Hotel ranks 22nd while the Park Hyatt Tokyo ranks 16th in Asia and 77th Worldwide.
The Imperial Hotel, at number 22, first opened it’s doors in 1890 and was the was the only fully European style hotel in Tokyo for decades. This legendary Tokyo landmark has welcomed royalty, heads of state, celebrities and international business leaders for over 115 years and is located within walking distance of the Imperial Palace …read more

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Traveling to Tokyo may seem a bit intimidating to those with disabilities but with a little advanced planning and a bit of determination it can be done! Just a few years back in would have been practically impossible to get around Tokyo if you used a wheelchair or had any other significant impediment to your mobility but things have improved quite a bit. Accessible Tokyo is a website created by volunteers from the Japanese Red Cross Society to help the disabled plan their trip and find hotels, parks, and museums that meet their special needs. The site …read more

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If you ever find yourself in need of assistance in Japan look for a police box or Koban. There are approximately 1200 Kobans located at major intersections and near most train stations throughout Tokyo. If you don’t see a sign for a Koban you can locate one by looking for a circled X on most maps.
The officers in the Koban can provide directions and guidance to citizens and visitors that are lost (Japan’s address system can be quite confusing even to the Japanese), accept reports of crime and respond to local emergencies. They also act as …read more

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Summer is festival time in Japan, or Matsuri time if you are a local, and my fellow Japan bloggers have decided to revive the Japan Blog Matsuri in honor of the season.  The Japan Blog Matsuri is a blog carnival covering a variety of Japan related subjects and I am honored to host the inaugural Matsuri here at The Tokyo Traveler.

Have you been to Tokyo or do you just dream of visiting this great city?  This version of the Japan Blog Matsuri will cover just that and if you want to participate all you need to do is write …read more

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Tokyo Underground, written by a foreign university student, is an interesting read about what you can learn from taking Tokyo Metro, the city’s vast and often intimidating subway network.
Townsend Harris was one of the key figures that helped open Japan to the west, was first American consul-general in Japan and negotiated a treaty that established trade between the two countries.  A group from Shimoda, Japan makes an annual pilgrimage to his graveside in Brooklyn, New York to honor his memory.
Jim Allen writes that “Hideo Nomo changed Japanese baseball more than any player of his generation” in his weekly column for …read more

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National Geographic has put together a WorldWise quiz about Tokyo that will test your knowledge of this great city. Some of the questions are tough ones but taking the quiz a great opportunity to learn more about the history, landmarks and some trivia about Tokyo.  Here are six of the ten questions:

What does the word “Tokyo” mean?
What are the “flowers of Edo”?
How tall is the Tokyo Tower?
What is the name of Tokyo’s famous fish market?
Today’s Imperial Palace dates back to what year?
Which is the biggest of Tokyo’s “Three Grand Festivals”?

Take the WorldWise Quiz:Tokyo by National Geographic to find out how …read more

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The best baseball players in Japan will compete in the 2008 Mazda All-Star Game at Yokohama Stadium on Friday, August 1st at 6:10 PM. The Central League will play the Pacific League and will each have a 28 man roster that includes the best players as voted on by the fans, fellow players and coaches.  The August 1st game is the second of two All-Star Game scheduled for 2008, the first will be held the day before at the Kyocera Dome in Osaka.
Mazda will provide green electricity indirectly for this years games under the “Green Power Certification System” by …read more

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The Rihga Royal Hotel Tokyo is offering a great family event during the months of July and August.  Mom, Dad and kids can all learn to make and decorate cupcakes under the guidance of the hotel’s pastry chef, Ryoko Nonoda, the first-ever female chief pastry chef in the history of RIHGA Royal Hotels group.
You can eat your creations too!  After the class, enjoy you cupcakes fresh from the oven with some tea and take some home to eat later.  Classes are scheduled on July 29th, August 4th, 7th, 22nd and 26th at 1PM and are estimated to be 3 1/2 …read more

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The origins of Yebisu Beer date back to 1887, when Nippon Beer Brewery started producing beer in the area then called Mita Village. The name “Yebisu” was adopted later and is a variation of the name of Ebisu, the surrounding town and the station closest to the Beer Museum. Nippon Breweries, Ltd. changed its name to Sapporo Breweries, Ltd. in 1964.
The Beer Museum Yebisu is dedicated to the history, science and culture of the beloved beverage and the century-old tradition of brewing beer. Beer making made its debut in Japan as early as 1876 when Seibei …read more

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It’s getting hot and humid in Tokyo and with the increase in temperature it’s hard to find your appetite. The Japanese use the term natsubate, summer exhaustion or summer lethargy, to describe the effects of the heat and claim that the best cure for it is to eat well. Here are five summer foods that the Japanese love to eat and that you should definitely give a try when you visit.
Any type of cold noodle goes down well on a hot summer day in Tokyo and Zaru soba is one of my favorites. I make it at …read more

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