Places in the Tokyo/Kanto: Asakusa/Ueno

[Chiba] [Inage] [Kichijoji] [Shinjuku] [Shibuya] [Harajuku] [Yokohama] [Asakusa/Ueno]
[Ikebukuro] [Other places]

Asakusa is probably the biggest tourist area in Tokyo after the Imperial Palace. It is a town based around a temple, called Sensoji, and traces its existence back to the middle of the seventh century when it is said two fishermen pulled a statue of the Kannon out of the water of the neighbouring Sumida-gawa (river) and built a temple to house it. The statue is supposedly still inside the vault of the temple but is hidden from view. While the temple itself is impressive and the raison d'etre of the town, it is the areas surrounding the temple which are of greatest interest.

Upon arriving in Asakusa, the first point of call is usually Kaminari-mon (Thunder Gate) which is quite impressive and will be featured in any Tokyo postcard collection. I'm embarrassed to say I don't have a photo at present because I didn't have a camera with me the last time I went there. I will probably go back there some time during this trip so stay tuned. Leading down from Kaminari-mon to the temple is a long strip called Nakamise. It is lined with shops selling all manner of goods to the unsuspecting tourist (both Japanese and foreign) from kitsch toys to authentic traditional wares (although the latter are much less common). There is also plenty of food to be found particularly near the temple, all at extortionate prices.

Still there are some really worthwhile shops to be found in the backstreets around Nakamise and these should not be ignored. These areas are much more quiet than the exuberant Nakamise but after a while the quiet will probably be welcome since Nakamise is always crowded. If it is traditional, then it can probably be found in Asakusa, which makes the place very convenient for shopping for omiyage (souvenirs). At the end of Nakamise is Hozo-mon, the entrance to Sensoji itself. The temple grounds are dominated by the huge main hall containing the statue (only 6cm tall or so they say) but there are many other attractions. Just into the gate there is a little structure from which incense smoke flows and the idea is that you direct the smoke to the area which you believe needs improving (your head for intelligence, your face for looks, your belly for fertility etc) although who knows if it works or not (it's no loss if you try which is usually the Japanese philosophy on religion). To the left is a five-storeyed pagoda and to the right behind the main hall is Asakusa-jinja, the shrine dedicated to the two fishermen and their lord. This is the focus of the huge Sanja festival in May, in which three mikoshi (portable mini-shrines) are carried through the many streets amid throngs of people. Immediately to the right of the main hall is Niten-mon (gate) which leads back to the Sumida-gawa.

Heading along the path from Niten-mon, one sees the a stretch of park along the bank, aptly called Sumida Park. The park is a nice quiet place for a picnic usually but becomes very crowded in both cherry blossom season and on the night in July of the fireworks display. I haven't been to that particular display because it is just too crowded. Yokohama is bad enough! Across the river there is little to be seen except for the interesting architecture of the Asahi building which has a yellow blob on top of it meant to symbolise the head of a glass of beer but more commonly known as 'the golden turd' (photo coming soon, I promise!).

The Sumida-gawa is also the source of the more interesting way to get to Asakusa, a ferry which is known as a 'suijobasu' (water-bus). It is a quite pleasant cruise from Hamamatsu-cho which is on the Yamanote line. Alternatively one can take the ferry down from Asakusa and at Hamamatsu-cho visit the Imperial detached garden, Hamarikyu-en, which is a pleasant traditional Japanese garden.

Returning the topic to Asakusa, behind Sensoji lies the area that was once known as Yoshiwara or the Floating World and served as the pleasure district of old Edo, just outside the town's official borders. Unfortunately these days the place is simply a lower class red-light district full of rather pathetic dives. There is also an amusement park nearby which is possibly older and more dilapidated than Melbourne's own Luna Park, if you can believe it.

Apart from the ferry, Asakusa is serviced by two subway lines and is also the source of the Tobu Isesaki line which goes to Nikko among other places. However, the method of transport I have often used when leaving Asakusa (after arriving by ferry), as it is part of the route followed each year with the AIKOM Asakusa tour, is by double-decker bus to Ueno. Just when you think Japan's transport system couldn't be any more bizarre it throws up yet another surprise.

In any case, that leads us to Ueno, which counts as another of the more diverse areas of Tokyo. Ueno brings us back to the Yamanote loop line. It has long been an important centre for 'Shitamachi' culture. That word which could be directly translated as 'downtown' refers to the culture of the common people as opposed to the culture of Yamanote, further west, the domain of the upper class. Yet within the elements of Shitamachi, there were varying degrees of wealth. The two big upheavals in the modern era, at the start of the Meiji period when the ruling samurai lost their power and then after Japan lost WWII, have changed the demographics and today's Ueno differs from it's Edo past to some degree but in particular it retains it's commercial past.

As well as the Yamanote line, JR runs the Keihin-Tohoku line to Yokohama and the Joban line heading northeast to Ibaraki. In addition there are three subway lines and Ueno is also the source of the Keisei line which heads off to Chiba and also Narita Airport. Added to that, I head to Ueno when I want to go to Kanazawa because it is the departure point for the overnight train to there as with many other services although not as many as Tokyo of course. If you think I've spent too much talking about this train line or that (and perhaps I have), it's because the trains are my method of moving around on a personal level and on a higher level it is the trains which largely determine a place's importance. As I have said before it is the places which are apexes of train lines which make them important centres. Well there could be some of the chicken/egg paradox in that because it is more likely that in the very centre of Tokyo which mostly dates from the Edo period, before modernisation, the train lines were/are created to service the most important places. Either way, a place's importance is directly related to its transport services. The Yamanote line which marks an unofficial boundary of 'central Tokyo' is deceptive when you consider that some of the places it passes through are residential, barely deserving a mention, while others are basically cities in their own right. Still even the smallest station on the line will have a quite large shopping centre focused around the station as can be found at any station in Japan. To compare Yamanote with Melbourne's city loop is illogical by scope since Yamanote is independent of other train lines and it takes 45 minutes for one full circuit but even more because where Melbourne's loop marks the outer boundaries of the CBD, the Yamanote line provides a band of commericial areas and yet the are big empty holes of unimportance in the middle.

But back to Ueno. There are two cultures to be found in here although they definitely blur in some places. Ueno was originally the site of a castle owned by the Tokugawa family who ran Tokyo until the Meiji Restoration. Loyal retainers therefore used to stage a revolt against the new government in defiance despite unconditional surrender of Edo Castle itself. During the course of this Battle of Ueno Hill the auxilliary castle they were attempting to defend burnt down (cause unknown) and so the new government had some land to use as it wished. This area became Ueno Park, one of the biggest in Tokyo. Not only is it a park in the greenery sense but it is also the home of many of Tokyo's 'cultural' spots. These include The Tokyo National Museum, the National Science Museum, The Museum of Western Art, the Tokyo Metroplitan Art Museum and the Shitamachi Museum dedicated to the lower traditions of old Edo. In addition, there is the Tokyo branch of Toshogu, the shrine dedicated to Tokugawa Ieyasu that can also be found in Nikko. Then again, there is the Ueno Zoo that I am told is one of the better ones in Asia which makes me hate to see what the others would be like. I went there four years ago and haven't been back since. The pandas that are the star attraction just sit or pace in little concrete enclosures eating bamboo all day - not exactly 5 star treatment even for the honoured guests.

The park is also famous for its immense Shinobazu-ike (pond) and for hanami in cherry blossom season but is a nice enough park at any time. Unfortunately, while Ueno park has so much of the higher culture, it is also one of the more obvious places for homeless. These people can be found at almost any railway station and numbers are getting large enough that even the Japanese are no longer able to avoid them. And avoiding them is impossible in Ueno Park which has quite a large tent city used for temporary housing. Also to be found in the park are various seedy people (unfortunately often foreigners giving the rest of us a bad rep.) doing their less than legal deals.

One more feature of Ueno Park that deserves a mention is the statue of Saigo Takamori who was the general who led the armies of the Meiji Restoration and still a revered figure despite or perhaps because of the fact that he later led a rebellion against the establishment he had fought to install. It is in this light that, unlike his home of Kagoshima where another statues stands in commemoration of the rebellion, the statue in Ueno is of a gentleman in casual dress walking his dog, not looking at all martial. Behind Shinobazu-ike is what must be one of the most bizarre structures in a city known for its innovative architecture, the Sofitel Hotel building which is shaped something like a stylised Christmas Tree.

At the bottom of Ueno Park lies one of the largest and vibrant shopping centres in the city. Most famous is Ameyoko-cho, which heads south along the railway lines down to the next station, Okachimachi, full of small vendors and stalls selling their goods. Along with Ikebukuro, this area replaced Yurakucho near Ginza as the location of the black-market in the early postwar years and the area has retained that air of semi-illegality. It is also the home of shops run by many immigrants and is thus often the best place to get cheap food from Asian countries in particular. There are plenty of regular shops, banks, eateries, bars and of course less salubrious establishments in the regular commercial districts of Ueno, outside of Ameyoko, as well. Also, continuing down the main street, Chuo-dori, past Okachimachi, you soon reach Akihabara, Tokyo's famous Electric Town (Denki-gai), where you can get all manner of electronic goods most of which you would never need. As I have said earlier, however, these days with the advent of bulk sales centres like Yodobashi, Sakuraya and Kojima, it is possible to buy cheap electronics in Ikebukuro, Shinjuku, Shibuya or even Chiba and prices in distant Kanazawa are not all that different either. Added to that you save a train fare and the crowds. Still Akihabara is definitely worth a look for the tourist and it does have some advantages over other places. One is that nothing rivals it for variety and range and often the small stores will have items long before sold out in the main department stores. The other main one is that Akihabara's big stores all supply international models although these are never cheap. They do, however, save the hassles of transformers and such.

West of Ueno Park, away from the shops lies Tokyo University's larger campus at Hongo (different from Komaba where we used to study near Shibuya). It was the former Tokyo residence of the Maeda family, lords of Kanazawa, and the well known Aka-mon (red gate) is a relic from the time before the family were forced to 'donate' their property. It is surprisingly green and the grounds quite expansive with quaint late 19th century architecture giving the place quite a presence, lacking from most other Japanese University campuses. The library and facilities are beyond compare as well. The nearby associated Koishikawa Botanical Gardens are also interesting for a stroll to discover Japan's many and varied flora.

South of the University is an area called Yushima that is well known for its Yushima Tenjin shrine. Conveniently located near the University, this shrine is dedicated to academic prowess. And the kids still go there to pray for success in their entrance exams and the like. Apart from the shrine, there is little of note, except for some reason it is filled with hotels of varying levels of comfort. It is also home to a few watering holes catering for uni students and staff and one place often visited with Professor Boccellari us a nomiya called Akachochin (red lantern). This is a rather generic name since the red lantern is the nomiya's symbol and many display them in front of the shops.

So Ueno and Asakusa and environs are both centres of culture, both high and low, and are thus always interesting for a visit or the occasional shopping trip but neither are places that I visit regularly.

- View photos -

[Chiba] [Inage] [Kichijoji] [Shinjuku] [Shibuya] [Harajuku] [Yokohama] [Asakusa/Ueno]
[Ikebukuro] [Other places]