Also near Shimabata Station is Taishakuten Temple where you can browse a 200 meter long strip of shops selling dumplings, candy and traditional toys on your way the temple.

Mizumoto Park (PDF) is home to over 600 cherry trees, the largest concentration of Japanese Irises in Tokyo and forests of Japanese Poplar and Metasequoai trees and is well worth a visit.

Take a walk through Katsushika, download the PDF Guide to Katsushika sights from the city’s website or read through ATT.Japan’s article on Katsushika and Kita Senju to plan you visit.

Image Credit: Flickr, The life of a travelling salesman &  Wikipedia, Shimabata Taishakuten

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The area is home to a number of sights and attractions including the Itabashi Art Museum and the Itabashi Historical Museum (pictured below).

The Itabashi City website offers information for foreigners and visitors including seasonal events and traditional arts & crafts from the area. The sightseeing guide around ITABASHI ART MUSEUM provides some great options when planning a visit to Itabashi City in Tokyo as does the Tokyo Tourism Info – Itabashi-ku area guide.

Image Credit:  Flickr, Itabashi Historical Museum (郷土資料館) (2/2) #8737

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A kendama (pictured on the right) is a traditional wooden toy that consists of a ball connected by a string to a handle with 3 cups and a spike on top.  The goal is to catch the ball in the cups or on the spike and like a yo-yo there are many tricks that you can do with a Kendama.  Here are just a few (Japanese name / English name ):

• Oozara / Big cup
• Kozara / Small cup
• Chuuzara / Base cup
• Rousoku / Candlestick
• Swinging Oozara (String must remain taut until ball is above the level of the ken)
• Tsubame Kaeshi / Orbit (Oozara>Orbit>Ozara)
  Tomeken / Pull-up-in
• Kajiya / Tap Back (Oozara>tap ball with ken>Oozara)
• Hikouki / Aeroplane
• Moshikame for 10 catches (Starting with Oozara or Kozara – player’s choice)

Kendama competitions are sponsored by the British Kendama Association and the Japan Kendama Association tells us how to identify a certified sport Kendama at toy stores and department stores throughout Japan.  But you don’t need a certified sport Kendama to have a lot of fun playing this game as this video proves.

Can you do it?  Try it out yourself with some virtual kendama before picking up one of these fun and affordable toys on your next trip to Tokyo?

Image Credit:  Wikimedia, Kendama Video: You Tube: kendama high technique play

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Geisha, Interrupted, a fellow Japan blogger and writer of the book “Bar Flower: My Decadently Destructive Days and Nights as a Tokyo Nightclub Hostess” was featured in the Japan Times.  Read the Geisha, Interrupted interview and check out some of the other bloggers who have been included in the Japan Times Blogroll.

Tracing the roots and of “The Tale of Genji”, the epic novel about Japan that celebrates its 1,000th anniversary this year.

An editorial on Japan as a tourist destination from The Japan Times talks about what Japan has to do to meet its goal of increasing the number of foreign visitors.

Image Credit:  Wikiimedia, Illustration Genji Monogatari Musée Saint-Remi 928 3

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As you leave bustling shops and crowds of Nakamise Dori behind, you pass though an impressive gate on your approach to the Senso-ji Temple, which sits in essentially the same spot and in the same configuration that is has for hundreds of years.

Shops on either side sell religious tokens and incense and pamphlets about the shrine in English are available for free.  Directly in front of the temple you will find a large cauldron billowing the smoke from the incense burnt by worshipers, who then fan the smoke to various part of their bodies in hope of healing or comfort.  The interior of the temple is often crowded but the altar and artwork within is worth pausing to ponder for a moment or two.

Senso-ji Temple and the other smaller shrines and temples within close proximity make this an area that should be included in any Tokyo itinerary.

Image Credit:  Flickr, tokyo 2 – Asakusa 香火

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Riyo Mori, Miss Universe 2007, has allowed cameras to follow her from her home in Shizuoka to the big city of Tokyo and talks about her love of shopping in Ginza and along Takeshita Dori in Harajuku.  Read an interview with Riyo Mori or watch the her video tour of the city. (Riyo Mori video tour Part 1 and Part 2)

Jean Snow is a Canadian who blogs about design and pop culture in Tokyo on Jeansnow.net and tells CNN that “Tokyo is a city that offers a constant stream of discovery and wonder.” in Tokyo: A local’s view. My City_My Life: Tokyo has pulled together a lot of great information.  If you are looking for a quick itinerary for an upcoming trip you can’t go wrong reading through this series of articles about Tokyo.

“Tokyo was known as Edo until 1868, but it’s hard to imagine that this high-rise, high-tech metropolis could possibly have existed in a time before electricity and concrete. Tokyo isn’t just a futuristic city; it’s the place that has shaped our vision of what the future will look like.”  From Tokyo: City Overview

Tokyo: What to See offers a quick primer on some of the city’s better know sights including Kabukiza, Meiji-jingu Shrine and the Imperial Palace East Garden.

Back in September I shared Tokyo Travel – 10 Practical Things You Need to Know – check out Tokyo: Insider tips for some more suggestions including taking advantage of Tokyo Metro, the city’s vast and very efficient subway system.

Sumo, festivals and cherry blossoms and are all covered in the The Tokyo:Seasonal Guide and if you want to check out some of the most popular bars and restaurants in the city be sure to read Tokyo: Where to be seen.

Show times for My City_My Life: Tokyo on CNN are as follows (All times GMT):

Thursday November 6: 0930
Friday November 7: 0400
Saturday November 8: 0930, 1800, 2330
Sunday November 9: 1530
Monday November 10: 0330

I’ll be watching – will you?

Image Credit: Personal Collection

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Events

In March and April, see the Cherry Blossom Festival along Komatsugawa Promenade or at Komatsugawa-Sakaigawa Shinsui Park.

In June visit the Koiwa Iris Garden to see over 50 thousand flowers in full bloom.

One of the largest fireworks shows in Tokyo is held on the banks of the Edogawa river in early August each year.

Blow your own glass wind chime at Edo Furin (map) throughout the year.

The Sights

Spend a day at Kasai Rinkai Koen, one of the largest parks in Tokyo and home to Tokyo Sea Life Park, a great aquarium only 15 minutes from Tokyo station.

Take the free bus from Nishi Kasai Staion to Gyosen, home of the Shizen Zoo that has a small petting zoo, offers a bit fishing, in addition to a small collection of animals.

The city website offers a listing of Parks in Edogawa  as well as a list of Sports Facilities that include Edogawa Sports Land (map) where you can swim in the summer and pull out your ice skates in the winter.

Edogawa was featured in an article titled “To infinity and beyond” in 2007 and in  “Good cool hunting in Edogawa” this year, both articles are from the Japan Times.

Fun Facts & Trivia

Seven rivers run through the city, with a combined total length of 45 kilometers.

Edogawa has adopted the Camphor Tree and the Azalea in the city tree ad flower respectively.

Image Credit: Flickr, edogawa fireworks 2008 & kasai rinkai park, tokyo 葛西臨海公園・東京

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In October 1587, the feudal warlord, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, hosted a tea ceremony occasion at Kitano Tenmangu Shrine in Kyoto, serving tea to his guests whether or not they were interested in tea. It is said that he created over 800 place settings and brought a golden tea room into the shrine and showed off his fine tea-making utensils.

Inspired by the Kitano Grand Tea Ceremony the Tokyo Culture Recreation Project is presenting the Tokyo Grand Tea Ceremony, the first ever large-scale tea ceremony, at Hamarikyu Gardens.  Bring the kids along as there will be a special tea ceremony for children as well as traditional Edo-period Geisha dancing and music performed by musicians from Tokyo University of the Arts.

Hamarikyu gardens were used as a falconry site for Shogun families until 1644, eventually becoming home to the detached palace of Japan’s royal family and finally a public park in 1946.  It is a fitting venue of the Tokyo Grand Tea Ceremony.

Event Details

Dates:  October 25th & 26th
Location: Hamarikyu Gardens, 7 minute walk from Shiodome or Tukiji-ichiba Stations, 12 minute walk from Shinbashi Station, or via the scenic Suijo Waterbus.
Park Admission fees:
Adults and students of 7th grade and over – 300 yen
Seniors (65 and over) -150 yen
Children (6th grade and under) and students up to and including 9th grade who live in Tokyo or who go to schools in Tokyo – Free
Tea Ceremony Participation Fee: An additional 300 to 500 yen, purchase tickets at the park entrance.

Image Credit: Flickr, tea ceremony

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