I could be visiting Tokyo in the third week of November, and as the current schedule goes, I will have a couple of free days. What to do, where to go, what to see/wear?
The http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meiji_Shrine Meiji Shrine. It’s a beautiful park.
Meet up with Tokyo Player!!
Go to the top of the government building in Shinjuku. It’s free and you get amazing views over the city. Particularly in November when the air is clear.
Ok, how about traveling within Tokyo? Language, I assume that English should at least help me in Touristy areas. Any good days Tours for areas outside of Tokyo?
Go to a war shrine and start WW3?
You will be able to get around with English, but it will not be like you may have been led to believe, where you will be able to speak with everyone you meet. The Japanese proficiency with English has been greatly overstated IMHO. I am not sure I would have been able to do what I wanted to do in the city without my Japanese skills.
As far as a day trip, it would be a long day, but see if you can catch a super-early train up to Nikko. You can ride the bus up Irohazaka, rent a boat on Lake Chuzenji and take in Kegon Falls. The fall colors are wonderful, and the area is a popular destination for the Japanese themselves this time of year. Or, you could just visit Toshogu shrine in Nikko proper, where Ieyasu Tokugawa is buried. The shrine/temple complex there is fantastic.
Unfortunately, you won’t be there in time for Nikko Light-Up (http://www.nikko-jp.org/lightup/) which is one of the most amazing things I have seen in my life.
What sort of things do you enjoy? Museums, parks, shopping, eating, people-watching?
Also, have you been here before? Anything you’ve always wanted to try/see/eat?
Even if you hate shopping, please stop at any department store and head down to the basement food floor. It’s a maze of glass cases, housing thousands of types of food, nicely presented. They hand out samples, too! I work in Shinjuku, and recommend the Isetan department store.
I work in Shinjuku. If you’d like to meet for lunch/coffee/beer, and I’m in town, I’d love to meet you!
Oops, forgot weather. Hrm. It’s never really cold enough for me here. I find lightweight winter coats are sufficient, maybe with a scarf? Comfy walking shoes–those without laces–are easiest, since people remove their shoes for some places/restaurants.
Yeah, English won’t be a huge help, alas, but you’ll definitely come across a couple people who will want to chat you up. If you’re looking for something, write it down and show people, and most will be more than happy to help.
I visited Tokyo last November. It’s a great time to go: evening comes early, which means you see the bright lights sooner.
I cataloged my trip, with photos and maps. There’s quite a few, but I did organize them around Tokyo’s many cities.
https://picasaweb.google.com/grantjap/
Some impressions I wrote after my trip.
We hit all the highlights: Ginza, Imperial Palace, Asakusa, Shibuya, Shinjuku, and Odaiba. We were unashamedly tourists, and enjoyed Tokyo Tower, the sightseeing double-decker bus, and the large glass-floor ferris wheel. I’m a white boy with a camera around my neck pushing a stroller. Forget blending in. Although we saw a lot, it didn’t feel rushed. The train really made things easy to get around. Another plus was the early sunsets in November, so we could see the lights of Kabukicho and Akihabara without being out too late.
Anya totally loved Disneyland, especially the Pooh ride (which we wisely did first). Little Grant couldn’t get enough of Small World (“more boat, more boat”), although we cut him off after 3 straight times. Mean parents, we are. The costumed characters spent a lot of time with our kids, especially Pooh, Capt Sparrow, and Peter Pan. Maybe they were so thrilled to speak English with someone? The crowds didn’t seem to mind, they were also snapping pics of Anya & Grant with them. I’m sure we’ll take the kids to other Disney parks in the future, but it won’t feel as special as Tokyo’s.
Some of the little quirks I noticed:
People loved our kids (5 and 1 years old). Not just pointing, but stopping to take photos of them. I should’ve charged a modeling fee. I didn’t really mind when attractive girls in short skirts ran up squealing “Kawaii!” to the kids. Good job, Grant!
I read the restaurants could be hostile toward gaijin families with kids. We never had that problem. We were even welcomed into Omoide Yokocho places. High chairs, however, were few and far between.
McDonalds: Yes, we ate here. That makes me an uncultured American tourist. However, I have 2 rules: Rule 1): I must eat something not on an American menu. I had an ebi-burger, a patty with shrimp inside. Quite tasty. In fact, Anya finished it for me. Rule 2): “No McDonalds” rules go out the window when you have children
Narita is really, really far from Tokyo. But we loved the N’EX train so much that we just “counted it” as a Tokyo attraction. A very smooth ride, with lots of scenery. We saw the countryside, so the kids didn’t think it was one gigantic city. Now Hawaiian Airlines is flying to Haneda. Of course.
The crowded trains. Yes, they do get that cramped. We took the Chuo Line from Shinjuku to Tokyo Station at 7:30am. I thought I was beating the 8-10am rush hour. Nope. The train arrived and it was totally packed. Of course, I was a little smart and was carrying both kids and the folded stroller as a “backpack”. We got in easy enough, since a lot got off at Shinjuku… but a lot also got on. I was pressed like a puzzle piece, unable to move. If the train had crashed, I was plenty padded. Then, it made another stop, and MORE people got on. At this time, I was concered about the train’s capacity. The windows were completely fogged over due to breathing. At the next stop, still more people had got on. Maybe there were pushers outside, but I couldn’t see. Yet, the next day at 7:15am, we could easily sit down! Those 15 minutes apparently made a huge difference. “Daddy, I don’t like the squishy train!”
Most of the restaurants only had Japanese-lettered names, but a lot the stores had exclusively English characters. I wonder why? I couldn’t tell you what the Japanese characters for Mitsukoshi are, nor could I tell you the name of that terrific noodle place in Kabukicho.
I should mention my one peeve about Japan. Lack of public rubbish cans. Everything is so clean, but where does the litter go? I felt things were going a little too far,when I was in a diaper changing room, and noticed there was NO trash can! I realized this only AFTER I was holding the poopy diaper. Seriously, Japan?