Unusual Glimpses of Tokyo

·        Tokyo is a huge city and even though we spent five days there, we still could not finish seeing many of the main sights like the Imperial Palace. This blog gives a small glimpse into the Japanese mindset as seen by me… I feel that we have a lot to learn from them in terms of cleanliness, technical brilliance, respect for the dead and the aged, their desire for perfection in whatever they do.

      One of the first things we did was to go and see the totally, totally fascinating teamLabs audio visual experience in the distant Azabudai hills rather than the smaller one in town. This was something we had heard about and booked well in advance.

T   TeamLabs – this is a mind blowing experience which you all must experience. It’s a technological marvel, to quote them ::. "teamLab Borderless is a world of artworks without boundaries, a museum without a map created by art collective teamLab.  Artworks move out of rooms, relate to other works, influence each other, and at times intermingle, without boundaries. Through this group of works, one continuous world without boundaries is created.  Immerse your body in borderless art. Wander, explore with intention, discover, and create a world with others.     Azabudai Hills Garden Plaza B B1; 5-9, Toranomon, Minato-ku, Tokyo."  

You enter as per the exact scheduled time, and you can stay on as long as you like. You walk into a small dark corridor which then explodes into an everchanging mind-blowing explosion of technicolour visuals; you progress at your own pace, going from room to room, in awe of the human minds who created this masterpiece of illumination. You see waves, flocks of birds, animals, strings of lights, all in constant motion, in all sorts of directions and sizes. It is just awesome and when you come out, you are brain dead for an hour or so!! Don’t miss it if in Tokyo.

Like we have streets /areas of Mumbai where you can buy specific items, in Tokyo, you have Kappabashi….the go to place for any form of kitchen ware. My son is an expert cook and very fastidious in his needs of kitchen ware. 

He had already written down the makes and types of kitchen knives that he needed and so my daughter and I tagged along for nearly three hours walking up and down this very long street looking at every shop selling knives! Incidentally, we had also seen knives in some shopping mall which had 3 or 4 specialist shops. 

  

So, have a look at the Kappabashi knives and their variety, without forgetting to see their prices. I never knew that each task required a different type of knife, especially for sushi slicing! More important, i knew of German knives being renowned but these, they really were something else.   

We were pooped by the time the shopping was done !! 

  

 The knives are given their final sharpening at the shop itself.  This is a multiple part process using different types of stones depending upon the knife type and then the sharpening machine. Each stage is checked by the Master Sharpener.   The shop also offers the service of personalization – they write your name in Japanese. In my son’s case, his name is converted as per Japanese pronunciation and then etched into the knife…. A wonderful lasting memory of a truly Japanese experience.

For those starved of home cooked Indian food, you should eat here. 

Its awesome.                                                                                                

4-13-10 Kotobuki Taito Tokyo Japan,   Taito 111-0042, Tokyo 

81 3-5830-3509

 

                                                                                                                                My children and I were walking down this street looking for a lunch place and came across this unassuming small family owned restaurant. We were taken into the rear room where we could relax. The owner / chef brought the menu and asked where we came from.                                           

  

We spent a full hour enjoying a wonderful south Indian meal. Thank you, Anil Suzuki. We wish you all the very best.

To our total surprise, he then spoke to us in fluent Marathi !! He was an IT specialist who had lived in the well-known IT Park outside Pune teaching IT to students. He has travelled all over India, especially South India. He called himself Anil Suzuki – very common names in each country…..I think it’s a nom de plume !! He decided to start his own restaurant as he was so immersed in the various Indian cuisines and even now regularly goes to India to learn more cuisines and recipes. We had the BEST meal of our Japan trip over here. Do not miss this place if in Tokyo but do book in advance.                                                                            See the photographs – we were served a thali full of excellent quality food. We were hungry but also very happy with his quality which was pure home cooking so we had double helpings of most items. We had yellow daal, chettinad chicken, dry aloo, chana, jeera rice etc. outstanding and all served with a smile. We asked for masala tea but Anil Suzuki is a perfectionist and hence tea took a long time; we had to take it along with us rather than enjoying it in situ.

Shibuya crossing - Everybody who visits Japan has heard of, and definitely seen, Shibuya junction – it’s an un-Japanese phenomenon. I am told this is where eight roads meet and it’s the crossing with the maximum roads meeting at one point; It certainly has the record for maximum people crossing this multi pedestrian site every evening.At one place, there is this huge hi tech billboard pf a giant panda and he does a lot of innovative movements. At times, you feel he will fall off! We just stood there gazing up at all his various antics. 

We had planned to attend one of Tokyo’s major festivals – Kanda Matsuri - but then we were told of the massive crowds and other issues which put off my family. But during my second session in Tokyo, I was very surprised to see a Japanese float festival on the main road right outside my hotel. The major arterial road had been closed since morning, so I knew something was up, but nobody explained what was happening. Then the drums could be heard in the distance and there was a sense of curiosity in the crowd which developed fast. 

Japanese believe in Buddhism and Shintoism. They have major festivals in spring and autumn when they take out very large floats with ornately dressed priests and patrons, traditional clothing for the teams pulling or carrying the floats. Originally, the festival gave thanks to a shrine using performances of Noh theater. Though the Noh style did not last, the performance element of the festival did. Townspeople would dress up in costume and produce lavish theatrical performances, and during the Edo period (603 - 1868) the parade would lead through the precincts of Edo Castle, giving commoners a rare view inside.

Basically, its all about mikoshi, which are portable shrines that are carried by large teams of people, often representing neighborhoods or groups. Mikoshis are adorned with a golden phoenix on top of each, are carried throughout the parade route, on the way to Kanda Myojin Shrine. At the shrine, each team takes a turn bringing their mikoshi to the front for an individual ceremony and prayer. Teams chant and bounce as they try to maneuver their mikoshi through the thicks crowds in the temple. It's a lively atmosphere and a lot of fun to watch up close.

 

It’s a festive atmosphere and the groups stop at various points along the way… generally due to traffic congestion or for stragglers to catch up. Water or soft drinks are served and someone goes along afterwards to collect the empty cups / containers!   

A really good service offered by most hotels and guest houses is that they keep the luggage for you whilst its not in the room – you may have arrived early before check in opens, or because of checkout timings or you are out for a couple days and returning back, the luggage is kept safely in the foyer of most hotels. 

We all know that Japan suffered a major defeat in the second World War 1939-1944. The dedication of its soldiers to the Emperor who had God like status was unbelievable.

The Japanese people created this amazing war shrine dedicated to their War dead called the Yasukuni Jinja. It is an amazing testimony of the people for their people who gave up their lives. I have seen war museums from Vietnam to USA but this was something really uplifting to the human spirit. Museums generally exhibit their weapons and their war policies / military history. This is a shrine in its truest sense as it glorified the day-to-day activities of the common soldier in each service as well as explained their fighting conditions.

It’s a huge museum and each year, there is debate whether the Japanese PM should honour the anniversary for the War. At every Japanese tourist spot, you will find stalls selling good luck charms. They cover most eventualities. And ofcourse they are beautifully designed and crafted.    

This museum has exhibits from 300 years ago. It is vast. I loved the section on the samurai warriors and their armour. A large area is devoted to the various invaders who came to Japan – especially their history of conflict with China. Throughout, its always text and visuals. There is a section where every dead soldier is remembered – his name, rank, age, place of death and how he died. Another area of fascination  was the whole vast section on food. The types of food served, how  the system of provisions and budgets evolved, menus for each meal, etiquette etc. the detail is exhausting… I just took photos of each item so that I could digest it later and write a blog on the shrine. 

In a special corner of the shrine, there is a large stone memorial erected in memory of the Indian judge who was part of the International Military Tribunal of the Far East. One of the pivotal distinctions between “Japan’s Nuremberg” and its more famous predecessor was the disunity so evident among the 11 justices, each representing a distinct nation. In the case of the majority judgment, eight justices backed the conclusions released and read aloud in the courtroom in Tokyo’s Ichigaya district. Opposing their conclusions were the Dutch and French judges, as well as Justice Radhabinod Pal (1886-1967), the Tribunal’s representative from India and a judge on  Calcutta’s high court.

Pal’s dissent, more than 1,230 pages in length, reveals the fissures within the attempts to bring to justice Japanese war criminals. The last of the justices selected for the Tokyo proceedings, Pal, joined after protests from India about the lack of diversity on the Tribunal. His addition did not alter, however, the undeniable fact that the “trial was fundamentally a white man’s tribunal,” as historian John Dower stated so sharply.

Radha Binod Pal’s own legacy is thus quite ambivalent. As Norimitsu Onishi wrote, many in Japan, including former Prime Minister Shinzō Abe, have celebrated him as their champion and quoted his dissent at Tokyo quite selectively.

My final visual is of the automatic baggage loading machines in Haneda airport. I am told that such machines are becoming popular in many airports, but this was the first time that I did self-check in of my bags and off they went into the wide blue skies above.

Thank you for reading and if you enjoyed this article, do read the others of my many trips around our wonderful world. Stay safe and stay healthy. 

Text and photographs copyright of the author. No part of this article or photographs maybe transmitted or reproduced by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without written permission. Do contact the author on email -- helpthesun@gmail.com

Kanazawa's Historical & Higashi Chaya District.

Ever heard of a place called Kanazawa….?? We hadn’t. So, why go there, asked my son ? We were keen on seeing parts of Japan off the usual tourist track. My research showed Takayama, Shirakawa Go and Kanazawa as very interesting places worth a visit. They also were in a “straight” line from Tokyo, easily accessible and crossed the whole island. We were now in the coach having left Shirakawa at 3.35 pm and by 4.20 pm, we were in Kanazawa. An aspect which we were unaware of, was that in many cities, hotels are in pedestrian zones so you have to walk a distance to your destination. Here, luckily, the hotel was about 50 metres in the zone so it wasn’t far.   

Kanazawa is well known within Japan. Unlike many Japanese cities, Kanazawa escaped destruction during World War II. The old town survived and is well-preserved and attractive. The Nagamachi Samurai District and the Higashi Chaya District are particularly charming and are very popular with visitors. To appreciate the beauty of a new place, especially when you have very limited time and want to see as much as possible, the best thing to do is to hire a local guide who covers all the main spots in a 3- or 4-hour walking tour and then you aim for the rest. We wanted to see the historical part of Kanazawa and through the “withlocals” website searched for guides. Generally, I go for locals but here, I was intrigued by a foreigner who was a guide in what I felt was the boondocks. What was she doing there? What was her knowledge and love of the place – after all, to be a guide, you have to love a place to repeat every day, the same spiel. One never knows the type of customer one gets and hence its russian roulette on whether they will appreciate the guide. For us, we needed someone with real knowledge of the place, some interesting historical titbits, the ability to hold our attention over 3 – 4 hours and who would leave us feeling charmed and happy with our visit to the town of Kanazawa. After all, we had only one day in which to see all what we wanted. 

I chose Lucy and we waited in anticipation at 9.30 am for her arrival. In walked a tall foreigner, with a charming warm smile.  She spoke good English and whilst she had a planned route, she was flexible in what we may want. She was of French – German nationality, and was here as her husband was doing some research in a highly scientific subject. She had two young kids. During the walk she told us that in Japan, children as young as 5 – 6 years go to school on their own without any fear. They use public transport or walk. She told us when there was a power cut in the city, her own young child had walked a few kilometres home as there was no way to contact the parents !! A new insight into Japanese values and culture – as in most parts of the world, no child is sent unaccompanied at that age!

So here were six Indians with differing requirements / tastes – one of my conditions to my family on taking them with me, was that walking tours were obligatory ! So, when I fixed tours in each city, they were part of the group. The rest was personal time. Lucy’s Walking tour covered Oyama shrine, the walk to the Fort, the fascinating Geisha quarter, those strange Omiyage shops, antique shops and ended with a visit to a gold workshop. She directed us to Omichi market. And later we landed up at the Samurai house and the famous Kenkoruen Gardens. That day, we walked and walked … over 22,000 steps. Next day, we ached but it was fun. Lucy was the epitome of a perfect guide… she herded us like lost lambs! (the photographers in our group took their time and I explained that within the group, we kept an eye on each other so no one got lost and she could happily walk ahead with a few of us if that happened); we learnt a lot and saw a large part of the city. She happily waited whilst we looked around in Omiyage and Samurai shops, and gave advice in the gold workshop; she stayed over her time limit and then gently showed us the route to the market. Thank you, Lucy, for a wonderful time. 

We began with the Oyama Jinja – an impressive shrine dedicated to Kanazawa's founder Maeda Toshiie. Built in 1599, it was moved to its present location in 1873. The gate is 25 metres / 82 ft high. The design fuses Japanese, Chinese, and European design elements including beautiful Dutch stained-glass windows. While the first story displays a mixture of Japanese and Chinese influence, the upper stories once served as a lighthouse. The gate originally guarded the entrance to the palace of the Castle, and was only later moved to Oyama Shrine. On the shrine grounds stands a statue of Lord Toshiie and his wife in appreciation of rebuilding the whole city.  Adjacent to the shrine, is a beautiful Musu garden : each section with ponds and bridges designed to resemble Japanese musical instruments like harps and lutes. Great care is taken to place each stone bridge, the decorative stones and plants.

Next stop was a longish slightly uphill walk to reach Kanazawa Castle. Massive battlements, gates and walls. Kanazawa Castle was home to one family for the entire 280-year history of the Edo Period: the Maeda clan, who ruled over the Kaga Domain of present-day Ishikawa and Toyama. The castle had a peaceful history under the powerful Maeda clan but two major fires claimed many of its major structures, including the castle tower, which was never rebuilt. Two of its major structures, the Ishikawa-mon Gate and the Sanjikken Nagaya were rebuilt and are now important cultural assets. The local authorities have also ensured that the materials and techniques of the original construction are followed for any reconstruction to ensure authenticity. The castle park is most famous for its many formidable stone walls that fortified the castle against potential attackers. Because walls were added during different periods of the castle's long history, the evolution of building techniques over the centuries can be clearly appreciated in the various walls around the castle park.  A garden was constructed on the castle grounds by the 3rd Maeda lord in 1634. Gyokusen-inmaru Garden was destroyed at the beginning of the Meiji Period (1868–1912) but reconstructed to its former glory again in 2015. 

We reached the Geisha district by 11.00 am. Higashi Chaya is the largest of the three historical geisha entertainment districts still existing in Kanazawa. This is an area of great interest even though we did not see any geisha up close but walking through the district was unreal. At times its claustrophobic and one can visualise the grave danger of fire. I love the history of Japan – shoguns and warlords, geishas and ninjas etc. Great stuff. Here, we saw the wooden buildings, crafted with great care, so close to each other, a perfectly preserved neighbourhood from Kanazawa's Edo Period history. Just imagine, with eyes closed, an evening in this place a few centuries ago. 

We learnt that in the social hierarchy, Samurai were at the top of the list. Then came the farmers, followed by merchants. Over time, the merchants became very rich and samurai poor !! 

incidentally, Samurai never went to the Geisha houses – they visited the prostitutes instead.

Lucy said that there were over 1,000 tea houses in Japan at one time; now in Kyoto, there are only 14 houses. 

It costs US$ 1,000 to participate in a 2½ hour tea ceremony. Steep? You decide. To me, its unaffordable.

In many movies we have seen how the Lords are welcomed and entertained by the Geishas. I would have loved to be a part then ! There has been a drastic fall in the number of geishas but even so, I was aghast to learn of the cost of a Geisha experience – a couple of hours listening to the Geisha playing a samisen can put you back a 4 digit US$ amount! Even taking part or watching in a group tea ceremony is expensive. But like all things in Japan, bookings must be made well in advance or through certain websites to enable you to participate. All the three districts are designated as a Cultural Asset of Japan. We walked around and the streets were empty as it was mid morning but we heard the sound of the samisen – rather depressing on its own !  The architecture of the Higashi Chaya district is fairly unique, with wood latticework over the first floor exterior. Two story buildings were prohibited during the Edo Period except for geisha teahouses, making this neighbourhood a rarity.

Another fascinating nugget about Japan – you will see entrances of shops and restaurants with curtains in front of them. These are known as Noren… if there is a curtain flapping, the place is open. Else closed !!

We crossed through the Geisha area across the bridge over the river to see the Omiyage shops. Omiyage is the Japanese tradition of travellers bringing gifts back from their visits for friends, family and even colleagues. These are not bought for oneself and are typically region-specific food products packaged into several small portions to be easily distributed to those who did not make the trip.

Food is a classic choice for an omiyage because it is easily shared and doesn't add clutter to the home. Local goods like maple syrup, honey, jams, spices etc are unique gifts and can be enjoyed together as a family. Omiyage are usually sweet items such as candy, cake, or cookies but can include alcohol, dry snacks, rice crackers etc.

They are frequently selected from products associated with a particular area. Bringing back Omiyage from trips to co-workers and families is regarded as a social obligation, and can be considered a form of apology for the traveller's absence !! 

Omiyage sales are big business for Japanese tourism agencies. This tradition reminded me of the old days in the 1950’s and 60’s when my parents travelled and ensured they brought back gifts, however small, for every member of our extended family and close friends. This was quite a large number and today, with travel bag / weight restrictions and high costs, one finds it difficult to cater for even one’s immediate family !! 

After visiting a shop selling Samurai antiques (separate blog), we came to the Goldsmith workshop. I have been to Mandalay in Burma / Myanmar’s Gold workshops where male workers in awful conditions, wearing loin cloths in searing heat, beat the hell out of gold lumps to make thin gold sheets. I have seen shops selling these sheets outside temples where devotees buy them and apply it to the dome of famous pagodas. The dome of Shwedagon pagoda in Yangon (Rangoon) is entirely covered in pure gold. Just look up the internet : Ask how much gold covers this pagoda and you will be stunned at the different amounts mentioned.

 

The shop we visited is obviously well known and where foreign tourists are brought to see the workshop and then enticed to buy their fancy beautiful products at even fancier prices.  I was amazes at their work ethic and dedication of having to sit in one position for  a few hours to complete the task. One gold sheet is one micron thin. A sheet as such is of no value on its own as you cant do anything with it. The gold plated product is what makes you buy them. We spent some time appreciating the actual process of manufacture and then seeing the really fancy items. The dexterity of the skilled labour is awesome. Each sheet lifted and precisely placed. But my favorite was the way the female worker cut the gold sheet and then trashed the rest. If only it was really thrown away !!

From here, we went to the Omichi market for lunch. See a few photographs including one of Gold leaf ice-cream eaten by my son. He enjoyed it….. in India, we use gold and silver leaf on betel leaf (paan) as well as on high end Indian mithai (desserts).   

                       

Thank you for reading this travel blog on Kanazawa and do let your friends know about it as well as my other travel articles here. Happy reading and all the best.Sunil S Mehta

Text and photographs copyright of the author. No part of this article or photographs maybe transmitted or reproduced by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying or otherwise, without written permission. Do contact the author on email -- helpthesun@gmail.com