When people think of famous sightseeing districts in Tokyo, Asakusa is usually one of the first places that comes to mind. Visitors from around the world come to see the giant red lantern of Kaminarimon and the historic temple Senso-ji . Amid all this, there is a small but familiar “Tokyo moment” that people sometimes talk about. “I meant to go to Asakusa, but I accidentally ended up in Asakusabashi .” Because the station names sound similar, visitors occasionally get off at the wrong stop. When they step out of the station, instead of a bustling tourist area they find themselves in a calm business district. Looking around, they start wondering: “Where is Kaminarimon?” There is no need to be disappointed. Asakusa is only a few minutes away by train. And there is something else. Asakusabashi itself is actually a surprisingly interesting neighborhood. It may not have many flashy tourist attractions. But the area is filled with the atmosphere of Tokyo’s old downtown, a hist...
Early spring in Tokyo. Around Tokyo Skytree , the crowds are as lively as ever. The plaza and nearby riverside paths are filled with visitors, many of them looking up at the 634-meter tower that has become one of the city’s most recognizable landmarks. If You Want to See Cherry Blossoms Now: Discovering Kawazu-zakura In a recent column, I wrote about the early-blooming Kawazu cherry blossoms near Tokyo Skytree . When I visited the area on February 27, many people were trying to capture the same photo: pink blossoms in the foreground, with the tall tower rising behind them. Standing there, you could hear not only Japanese but English, Chinese, and several other languages drifting through the air. It was a reminder that this landmark continues to draw visitors from all over the world. As people looked up at the tower that day, however, most of them probably didn’t know that only a few days earlier something unusual had happened inside it. A rescue that lasted until midnight The inc...