Michael Powell's Blog, page 86
May 14, 2014
The Nezu Museum
It houses a priceless collection of bronze sculpture from China, along with artwork that spans the history of Japan, but the most valuable commodity of the Nezu Museum might just be tranquility. The distressingly crowded shopping mecca of Omotesando lurks right outside the door, but the Japanese garden in the museum’s courtyard manages to be one of the most peaceful places we’ve had the pleasure of visiting while in Tokyo.
It doesn’t often happen that we’re pleased by how expensive something i...
May 13, 2014
After One Month in Tokyo
Well, we blinked. We tried our hardest to resist the impulse, but three seconds after stepping off the plane, we blinked… and that’s the last thing I remember. Here we are, a month later. Understand this: Tokyo warps time. If you visit, hours, days and weeks of your life will collapse into a blur. A colorful, wild, entertaining, weird and amazing blur, but still just a blur.
Most Memorable
Mike: Sakura season in Tokyo is truly magical. It’s the end of winter, and people are so happy. Everyone i...
May 12, 2014
The Temples of Meguro
We only visited Meguro because of its reputation as a great spot to view cherry blossoms. But while there, we figured we should see a bit more of the neighborhood, and embarked on a journey that would take us to four temples.
On the eastern side of the Meguro River, we encountered the Daien-ji, which has the dubious honor of being where the Great Meiwa Fire of 1772 sparked to life. The second of the three “great” fires of Edo, the Meiwa blaze resulted in thousands of deaths, and the utter dest...
May 8, 2014
Look at You! You Think You’re Ready for Harajuku!
We knew it was going to be crazy. We’d seen pictures! We had read online accounts and talked to people who’d been there. Sure, Harajuku was going to be nuts, especially on the shopping street of Takeshita-dori, but we were ready. I mean, this is still Earth, people are people, and a crowd is a crowd. Am I right? It really can’t be anything we haven’t seen a million times before.
It was Sunday and we were standing at the top of Takeshita-dori, next to the entrance to the Meiji Shrine, looking d...
May 6, 2014
The Architecture and Glamour of Omotesando
The street of Omotesando-dori, leading westward to the Meiji Shrine and Yoyogi Park, has earned a reputation as the Champs-Élysées of Tokyo. With haute couture brands like Gucci, Prada and Louis Vitton occupying architecturally ambitious buildings, and Tokyo’s most stylish citizenry occupying the sidewalks, a stroll along Omotesando-dori can be both impressive and humbling.
After exiting the subway station, we started our exploration of the neighborhood by walking along Aoyama-dori, which inte...
May 5, 2014
Asakusa’s Owl & Parakeet Cafe
“This is fun,” I said to the girl working at the cafe, raising my voice to be heard above the squawking. “But it would never be allowed in America!” She looked at me, baffled, and asked why not. At this moment, there were six parakeets on my head, and bird poop was running down my shoulder. Something was pecking at my neck, and in the next room there were people petting an eagle. I considered explaining, but decided against it. Regarding animal cafes, the rift between our cultures might be to...
May 1, 2014
Yumenoshima, Also Known as Dream Island
Close your eyes and picture “Dream Island”. What do you see? Rolling hills, verdant valleys, beaches of fine white sand? Okay, now open your eyes and… Welcome to Yumenoshima! What’s with that look of horrified dismay? You weren’t expecting an artificial island created from landfill, with a greenhouse powered by waste incineration, and a fishing boat exposed to nuclear radiation? Well, Yumenoshima is Dream Island, Tokyo Style.
Yumenoshima came into being in the 1930s, when the city decided to b...
The Sumida Aquarium
The rain was showing no sign of stopping. We stared sullenly at the clouds from our habitual perch in the SkyTree’s sixth-floor Starbucks and tried to figure out what to do with the day. Suddenly, an inspiration: the Sumida Aquarium. A brilliant idea! So brilliant, in fact, it was shared by approximately 74% of Tokyo.
Before describing the Aquarium, allow me to address my designation of Starbucks as our “habitual perch”. Jürgen and I are in no way Starbucks people. Just seeing the logo sends c...
April 24, 2014
The Imperial Palace Tour
The Imperial Palace grounds have been at the center of Japanese politics since the early 1600s, when Tokugawa Ieyasu moved into the moat-protected Edo Castle, far to the east of the country’s traditional capital of Kyoto. We joined a brief tour, to get a peek behind the gates.
It seems almost unfair that, in a city swamped with skyscrapers and cement, the royal family enjoys life in a lush, spacious garden. The Imperial Palace grounds occupy a verdant park with none of the congestion suffered...
April 23, 2014
A Perfectly Normal Day in Yoyogi Park
It’s hard to say exactly when Tokyo started to frighten me, but it was probably during our visit to Yoyogi Park. While watching Japanese rockabillies bounce-step to Joan Jett, I moved out of the way for a couple dressed in … let’s call it “Victorian Gothic Steampunk, Pastels Version”. And that’s when it really hit home; something’s not quite right in Tokyo.
I’m from the American Midwest, where brightly-colored shoelaces would be considered a rebellious act of fashion outrage. I’ve never felt t...
