Day 2: Tokyo (Ikebukuro & Ginza)
After our late return to the hotel (by our old standards) last night, we had a bit of a sleep in. We woke up to some beautiful sunlight through our hotel room’s window.
Even on Boxing Day, the work day starts early for many it seems. My understanding is that Christmas isn’t as massive as a holiday as the New Year Period. One thing that continues to strike us is how generally silent it is even when there are crowds. Though the same can’t be said of all areas. We particularly enjoy the buzz at night near us when the izakayas in Shinbashi come to life and its patrons visit in groups — mixture of work colleagues ending the work day and spending time together and youth.
Breakfast was on the agenda. Given our hotel’s proximity to Ginza, we decided to start our trip proper exploring the area (and its shopping!). A bit of Googling led us to Choshoku Lab in Hotel Musse Ginza. A 15 to 20 minute walk away, we had our bellies filled by a range of small dishes (it is a bit of a buffet style concept that limits you to 50 minutes). At AUD$25 per person, our bellies were definitely filled. We of course, had to have seconds for the raw egg and rice as well as the made to order pork shabu shabu.
Everything you need for a long day at work or touring around Tokyo: rice, spring onion garnish, pickled daikon, raw egg, home made shoyu, bonito flakes, and yuzu broth.
Overall we were very satisfied with our breakfast. One of the older service staff was very excited to see our Nikon and Pentax cameras and was telling us about her growing up around some iconic cameras from both brands. I would recommend Choshoku Lab to any travellers in the area and are after a more traditional Japanese breakfast experience in Metropolitan Tokyo.
Choshoku Lab (Hotel Musse)
〒104-0061 Tokyo, Chuo City, Ginza, 7 Chome−12−9
Once we stepped outside, Cherry with her special sense for stamps, noticed there was one right outside the hotel. A tiny shrine with kitsune figures dedicated to traffic safety; and you guessed it… with a stamp!
Next stop was the historic Wako building and its’ watchtower. Seiko (then Seikosha) had the building completed in 1932 and was inspired by the Renaissance style of architecture. Today, it serves as Grand Seiko’s flagship boutique and offers several levels of luxury goods of various brands. We were able to try on a few Grand Seiko watches we have been eyeing of late but no purchases made as luxury watches sit pretty low on our “needs and wants”.
Budget conscious shoppers, take note: you should really visit the Flagship store for the experience. But chances are, any pieces you are keen on can be found in the Mitsukoshi Department Store next door — which offers 5% off for tourists with the Foreign Visitor Guest card as well as 10% tax refunded at time of purchase. If money is of no concern, by all means, the flagship boutique store offers the best service.
Contented with the reality of luxury goods being insanely unaffordable, we set off to the Seiko Museum about 2 blocks down from Wako. As it was the peak holiday season, appointments were necessary and I was able to secure one on the day itself, in the morning. An interesting dive into the history of watchmaking as well as the beginnings of Seikosha leading into the creation of its sister brands Grand Seiko and Credor. It’s free and takes about 30 to 45mins to go through all the floors depending on how much you engage in the exhibits. A must visit for any horological enthusiasts.
Contented with getting our horology fix, we set off for Ikebukuro by a catching the Marunochi line train at Ginza station.
Ikebukuro is well known for being a vibrant area filled with a mixture of shops that cater to various otaku interests. Like Akihabara, but a little less intense and dense. We arrived at the station within 30 minutes and head straight to Sunshine City, a department store home to the Pokémon Centre Mega Tokyo. As always, crowds were a feature but compared to our experiences at other Pokémon Centres on previous trips “cough Shibuya cough”, it was much more civilised in terms of crowds and availability of stock. Cherry and I did pretty ok and most of the purchases were going towards gifts to our friends and/or their children. There were eleven check out counters and very efficient crowd management. Around the same level in Sunshine City were various Pokémon decorations as well as the Pokémon Cafe, Pokémon Go Stop Area, and and area for visitors to challenge each other to a Pokémon Battle. Overall, our favourite Pokémon Centre experience so far.
Pokémon Center Mega and Cafe
〒170-6002 Tokyo, Toshima City, Higashiikebukuro
The surrounding area of Ikebukuro was much more interesting. We found a little respite in a park nearby Sunshine City that still had its autumn red and yellow leaves. A bit of respite from our metropolitan surrounds.
More importantly, Cherry was able to engage in… GACHAPON! It was pretty insane how many gachapon capsule machines were around. We even found a shop, Gashacoco, where Level 1 featured 1000 capsules and B1F had… 1500 more machines. Talk about variety! They have a number of stores scattered across metropolitan Tokyo. Of course, gachapon can really be found anywhere; some restaurants and shops even offer their own custom gachas tailored to their own products. Always have change handy with you because you never know what you might come across!
Gashacoco Ikebukuro
〒170-0013 Tokyo, Toshima City, Higashiikebukuro
I left Cherry to her devices as I wandered around the area. By this time in the afternoon, the crowds had definitely picked up.
By the time I reunited with Cherry, she had about 15 gacha capsules in hand. Decent haul! It was time to head back to Ginza and relax a little before heading back for the night.
It was really important to Cherry and I that we had a bit of downtime each day. To write, rest and work on editing photos and the blog posts. Muji was always known to have a cafe attached in Japan. Ginza’s was definitely no different. Cherry and I headed up to 6th floor of Muji Ginza for the Muji Diner. It was filled with fellow visitors looking for similar respites or friends catching up with each other over a cuppa. We both opted for a glass of Japanese Whiskey each. I asked for “neat” which confused the service person (sorry!). Turns out I should have been asking for it “straight”. It was a good time to write up some blog posts and edit photos.
The both of us spent a good 45 minutes up at the Muji Diner sipping our respective glasses of whiskey and sharing some assorted donuts. One thing I have noticed is that in most cafes, there really isn’t the sense or pressure to leave. Coincidentally, the Muji Hotel concierge was also found on the same floor. Yes, Japan’s Muji also runs a hotel! At about $600 AUD a night, it certainly isn’t cheap. But from what we observed, it seems to offer impeccable service. For example, a guest had checked in while we were nearby and we noticed the concierge staff would escort them to the elevator and bow until the door closes. One can also imagine the beautiful Muji products that must be used in each of the rooms. Before we left, we picked up some snacks we had yet to see in Australia’s Muji. Fizzy Cacao Truffles, Chocolate Infused Apricot Bites, and Earl Grey Chocolate & Feuilletine Coated Strawberries. Can’t wait to try them!
Muji (Ginza Flagship Store)
3 Chome-3-5 Ginza, Chuo City, Tokyo
Our final stop for the night was Itoya Ginza. 12 themed floors of stationery goodness. Each floor dedicated to a different set of stationery. For example, the 3rd floor was dedicated to Writing and carries a large selection of premium pens, leather cases as well as inks and hundreds of writing paper. Cherry spotted a little cloth bag that resembles a miniature version of the bags we use to carry our Kendo shinais. At $34 AUD, we purchased it to home my beautiful Platinum #3776 fountain pen (which has seen better days since I bought it years ago). As we approach Japan’s New Year, every floor also had goods related to the upcoming Year of the Snake.
Stepping back out into the cool winter breeze of Tokyo was a bit of a relief to be honest. As the store’s building is narrow and long, floor space is anemic especially with large crowds. Every floor only has downward escalators and your other options are to use the stairs or to wait for the elevator, which is almost always full. The best way to navigate Itoya is to start from the top and work your way down. You are able to pay for all your goods at any level; remember to pay though!
Ginza Itoya
2 Chome-7-15 Ginza, Chuo City, Tokyo
Given that it was Boxing Day, the Christmas decorations and lights were still lit up around Ginza and it followed us most of the way back to our hotel in Shimbashi.
If you made it up to this point, definitely a big thank you for reading. Tomorrow, we visit Gotokuji Temple in Setagaya, the so-called “Cat Temple”!
