Tokyo has a funny way of giving you complete sensory whiplash. One minute you’re walking beneath a tunnel of vermilion torii gates surrounded by little fox statues, a few hours later you’re standing hundreds of meters above one of the biggest cities in the world, and by late afternoon you’re watching samurai dancers, over the top lights, music, and general Tokyo-style craziness explode around you. Then, just when you think your brain has had quite enough stimulation for one day, Tokyo says, “How about an ancient Buddhist temple glowing beneath lanterns at night?”
Obviously, the answer is yes.
Welcome to Tokyo Summer Part 2, a day that took us from the peaceful grounds of Nezu Shrine and the old-fashioned streets of Yanaka to sushi beneath Tokyo Skytree, a trip waaaaay up above the city, the glorious insanity of the Samurai Restaurant, and finally the beautiful calm of Senso-ji after dark.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/8qEKdVpN1lA
⛩️ Nezu Shrine: Torii Gates and Foxes Everywhere
After a quick breakfast, we headed out early for Nezu Shrine, which was a very good decision because Tokyo in August is HOT. Not cute little sundress-and-iced-coffee hot. More like “why did I voluntarily leave an air-conditioned building?” hot. Getting to the shrine around 9:00 AM gave us a chance to explore before the worst of the midday heat arrived.
Nezu Shrine is one of Tokyo’s oldest Shinto shrines, and despite being right in the middle of this enormous city, the grounds feel wonderfully peaceful. The highlight is the beautiful hillside pathway lined with rows of small vermilion torii gates. Torii traditionally mark the transition from the everyday world into sacred space, and walking beneath gate after gate creates a gorgeous red-orange tunnel winding through the greenery.
And then there were the foxes.
Lots and lots of foxes!
The fox statues, called kitsune, are associated with Inari and are traditionally considered messengers of the deity. You’ll find them standing guard around the shrine area, and some of these little guys were wearing adorable red bibs and coats. I’m not sure I expected shrine fox fashion to become one of my favorite things in Tokyo, but here we are.
Between the endless torii gates, lush greenery, beautiful shrine buildings, and foxes tucked seemingly everywhere, Nezu felt like a little pocket of old Tokyo hidden away from the skyscrapers. Peaceful, beautiful, slightly mysterious—and a perfect start to the day.
🐈 Wandering Through Old Tokyo in Yanaka
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/wsL5onkOC58
From Nezu Shrine, we continued into Yanaka, one of those Tokyo neighborhoods that makes you feel as though you’ve slipped backward in time. Much of Yanaka retained its older character while other parts of Tokyo were rebuilt and modernized, so instead of giant towers and flashing screens, you’ll find narrow streets, traditional buildings, small shops, temples, cafés, and a much slower pace.
We wandered toward Yanaka Ginza, the neighborhood’s traditional shopping street, browsing handmade ceramics, antiques, little local shops, and all sorts of treasures tucked down the side streets. Yanaka is famous for its cats, so you’ll spot cat statues, signs, souvenirs, and artwork everywhere. I fully expected that a cute little cat would be coming home with me.
But instead, I found a Daruma.
Daruma dolls are traditional Japanese good-luck figures associated with perseverance and achieving your goals. When you get one, both eyes are blank. You make a wish or set a goal and fill in one eye. Then you put your Daruma somewhere you’ll see it as a reminder to keep working toward that goal. When your wish comes true or your goal is achieved, you fill in the second eye. My little Daruma is coming home with me—with one eye patiently waiting for something very special to happen.
By 11:30, naturally, it was snack time. We stopped at La Cadres Futsuundao-aso for a little something before continuing our adventures. One of the fundamental rules of WanderLynTravel is that sightseeing is significantly improved by strategic snacking.
🍣 Sushi, Smoothies and Ghibli at Tokyo Solamachi
Next up was Tokyo Skytree, but first: lunch.
At the base of Skytree is Tokyo Solamachi, a huge shopping and entertainment complex filled with restaurants, cafés, souvenir shops, character stores, and approximately 10,000 opportunities to spend money you had absolutely no intention of spending.
We headed into the food court area and found wonderfully fresh sushi along with a fantastic fruit smoothie—exactly what we needed after walking around Tokyo in the August heat. And then I found the Ghibli store. Oh dear.
If you love My Neighbor Totoro, Spirited Away, Kiki’s Delivery Service, or anything Studio Ghibli, this store is ridiculously cute. There are characters and goodies everywhere, and “I’m just going to look” quickly becomes one of the great lies we tell ourselves while traveling in Japan.
🗼 Waaaaay Up Tokyo Skytree
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/K2gTYm0USbs
After lunch, it was finally time to head up Tokyo Skytree. And when I say up, I mean UP. At 634 meters tall, Tokyo Skytree absolutely dominates the surrounding skyline. The high-speed elevators shoot you upward so quickly that before you know it, the enormous city you’ve been navigating at street level has transformed into a miniature world far below.
We had a nice clear afternoon, and the views across Tokyo were incredible. Looking down from this height really gives you a sense of just how massive Tokyo is. Buildings stretch toward the horizon in every direction, seemingly forever. Of course, we didn’t stop at the first observation deck. We went all the way to the top because if you’ve already gone that far, why wouldn’t you?
No Mount Fuji. Fuji-san was apparently feeling shy and remained hidden in the distance. I kept looking, hoping the clouds would magically part and there it would be, but nope. Not today. Still, the panoramic views of Tokyo were spectacular, and being able to look down over this gigantic city from that height was absolutely worth it.
⚔️ From Peaceful Shrine to Complete Samurai Chaos
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/WBqbCXG3Sn8
After coming back down to earth, we decided our feet deserved a break and grabbed an Uber over to Kabukicho in Shinjuku for our next adventure: the Samurai Restaurant.
If Nezu Shrine represents peaceful, traditional Tokyo, the Samurai Restaurant represents Tokyo saying, “Hold my sake.” This place is gloriously, unapologetically, spectacularly over the top.
There are elaborate costumes, samurai-inspired battles, dancers, music, flashing lights, giant props, colorful sets, pounding drums, and moments when you’re not entirely sure what is happening—but you’re having way too much fun to worry about it.
Dinner is part of the experience, but let’s face it: nobody comes here because they heard rumors about a quiet gourmet dining experience. You come for the spectacle. And spectacle you shall receive. It is touristy Tokyo turned up to approximately 147%, and I loved every ridiculous minute of it.
Sometimes when we travel, we get so focused on finding the “authentic” hidden places that we forget there is absolutely nothing wrong with doing something simply because it is FUN. The Samurai Restaurant knows exactly what it is. It’s loud. It’s colorful. It’s crazy. It’s completely over the top. And it’s very, very Tokyo.
🏮 Senso-ji After Dark
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/udLWjkFoJUA
After all that noise, color, and chaos, Tokyo gave us another complete change of personality. We headed to Asakusa to visit Senso-ji Temple at night, and I think this may be one of the best ways to experience one of Tokyo’s most famous sights.
During the daytime, Senso-ji can be packed. Nakamise shopping street fills with visitors, crowds gather around the giant Kaminarimon Gate, and everyone is trying to take that perfect photograph. At night, it’s a completely different world. The shops have closed, most of the crowds are gone, and the enormous gates and temple buildings are beautifully illuminated against the dark sky. The warm orange-red glow brings out all the architectural details, while the historic streets surrounding the temple suddenly feel calm and atmospheric.
We could actually slow down, wander, take pictures, and simply enjoy being there. And after the sensory overload of the Samurai Restaurant, the quiet was wonderful.
There was something almost perfect about the way the day came full circle. We had started our morning beneath the vermilion torii gates of Nezu Shrine surrounded by little fox guardians, spent the afternoon hundreds of meters above modern Tokyo, plunged headfirst into the colorful chaos of Shinjuku, and ended beneath the lanterns of an ancient temple.
❤️ This Is Why I Love Tokyo
Tokyo never seems to make you choose between old and new, peaceful and crazy, traditional and completely over the top. Somehow, it gives you all of it—sometimes within a few hours.
Ancient Tokyo. Modern Tokyo. Crazy Tokyo. Quiet Tokyo. All in one day, and more to come.
Until next time,
Eat well. Move well. Wander well.
Lyn, WanderLynTravel
Check us out on Social media: @WanderLynTravel
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