It is a small neighborhood in Setagaya, laid-back, local, and far from the city lights of Tokyo. Yet only about 30min from Shinjuku on the train. It is a nice little getaway, especially if you love cats…

Find Your Luck at Gotokuji Temple

Let’s start with the main attraction, cause who am I kidding, this is what we are here for!

Arriving at the station you will already be greeted by one of these lucky cats and a leisurely 10-15min walk later you will be facing this beautiful temple, with its immaculately trimmed gardens, main hall, and wooden pagoda.To be honest this Gotokuji Temple is already worth visiting for this alone. However, the moment you see the cats, all of it becomes background purr.

Gotokuji Temple

This temple, even without its feline inhabitants is worth a visit, peaceful and calm it is a place to rest an take a breath. Perfect to relax and get away from the hustle and bustle of Tokyo. Come in autumn and see the temple’s trees all turn beautifully red and orange.

Walking through the front gate you will first see a beautiful black lion statue and only at second glance realize this is actually an incense burner.

As you move on you are passing the majestic wooden pagoda on your left. To shortly after discovering the temples “Ema” plaques, the small wooden plaques to write your wishes and prayers on. And of course, these too feature our cat friend, along with the current year zodiac animal. Funnily enough which is the mouse/rat this year…

And just as you may get excited by these you will already be able to see a glimpse of what we came here for in the back. Like a sea of white cats, shelves over shelves…

It’s hard not to get excited and yes you will take too many pictures here. But how could you not? With every angle giving you another photo opportunity and with cats as small as your thumbnail or as big as a real ones it is impossible to resist.

And if you like, just around the corner you find the temple shop, so why not add your own? Starting from as little as ¥300 for a tiny one (which is absolutely adorable and will also make a great gift or souvenir). Or if you want to go all out and spend ¥5,000 for a life-size one. Good to know, the size does not matter here and your lucky cat will look after you no matter how big or small it is.

The idea is, you make a wish and either leave your cat there or you take it home and bring it back once your wish has come true. However, many of these lucky cats make their permanent home abroad and I have a feeling that is just as ok.

The Lucky Cat – A Story

If you are visiting the temple shop, you will be given the story of the Lucky Cat. They have an English leaflet so don’t worry.

As the legend goes, along time ago, this temple was looked after by a monk and his cat. In a particularly bad year the monk asked that the cat please bring good fortune. One day there was a big storm and five samurai were caught in it, as they saw the temple the cat waved them to come and stay and take shelter. As it turned out, one of them was the feudal lord of Hikone. And he was so grateful he donated rice fields as well as the grounds. Making Gotokuji into the temple of his family.

And this is how the story goes. After his lucky cat passed away, the monk put a cat statue on its grave and it became what we now know as the “Maneki Neko”, a symbol for luck and good fortune…

Gotokuji – Best Places to Eat

Now that you have fulfilled your cat-related needs, it is time to see what culinary delights this small neighborhood has to offer. With many small mum and pop shops, stalls and cafes you will not leave hungry, wait, unless it is a Monday…

Because as I sadly discovered, many places are shut on Mondays. Also, if you arrive before 11 am many things will still be closed. So make sure you had your coffee before and explore what Gotokuji has to offer after you visited the lucky cats. Let me share some of my favorite places to stop here.

Eat Sweet Potato from Around Japan at Fuji

Fuji is all about the humble sweet potato. Offering seasonal and often rare varieties from all over Japan, this is a great treat. The highlight and must-eat is the purple one from Miyazaki, but it is only available in autumn and winter. The rest of the year, the shop owner told me, they only sell 1 or 2 local varieties.

Contempory Japanese Sweets at Mahorodou Sougetsu

Between the Station and Gotokuji Temple, you will find these Japanese sweets shop. Come here to try some of their seasonal Japanese sweets with a nice cup of green tea for the full traditional experience. And the best part, you can also buy their sweets to take home. Look out for the “Maneki Neko dorayaki” the purr-fect treat to share with friends.

Get Your Coffee Fix at Iron Coffee

This small standing coffee bar offers what might be the best coffee in the area. And as my secret tip, if you do want to sit down, just about 30m down the road is a small covered waiting area, including tables and all.

Pastries Galore at Uneclef

If you do like your danish and pastries than this is another place you don’t want to miss out on. Great to grab a quick breakfast or reenergise after walking around. It is located behind the station, in the opposite direction of the cat temple, which is why many people don’t see it. Making it the perfect stop on the way back.

Some Last Facts

How to get here?

Take the Odakyu Line from Shinjuku, it is about a 30min ride.

How much time to spend?

You can just do a quick 1h visit, however I would suggest spending at least 2h in the area. Half a day is probably the best amount of time, especially if you try some of the food or get a coffee.

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The post Your Ultimate Guide to Gotokuji – Cats, Cafes, and more appeared first on Obsessed with Japan.

In collaboration with JR East Japan Railway Tomokazu Matsuyama, a Brooklyn-based Japanese contemporary artist has created a small space for the community to come together. It is also part of Lumine’s art project looking to promote accessible public art within Tokyo.

If you are not familiar with Tomokazu Matsuyama’s style, he is best known for his multilayered, colourful artworks, a fusion of using traditional Japanese textures and images blended in with a 20-century American lifestyle.

The art parks main feature is the “Hanao-San”, a 7m tall sculpture, surrounded by abstract colourful patterns. It is a place to meet, rest and enjoy, which is why you will also find plenty of stools and benches to do so.

So come here and take a few minutes to take it all in. It is open 24h, free and the perfect place to get a break while exploring this busy Tokyo neighbourhood.

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Yes, some of you may have heard about it before, as is not an entirely new concept here in Tokyo. Since 2007 the annual summer Art Aquarium has been a favorite with Tokyoites, drawing roughly 10 million visitors since it was first started. And because of this huge popularity, they have decided to make it a permanent exhibition. Lucky us!

What is This Art Aquarium?

This is not your typical aquarium, as you may already imagine. This museum will, of course, have plenty of fish. Featuring over 30’000 goldfish, both rare and common types, swimming inside various vessels and sculptures. Creating a magical experience, very much alike the Epson Team Lab. As the Art Aquarium will also be using projection mapping to created multicolored displays. Taking you on a magical getaway.

Expect seasonal changes and of course cultural themes such as the ” Forest of Kingyo”, maybe one of their most amazing displays because of its scale.

The artist behind all of this is Hidetomo Kimura, who believes the goldfish or Koi to be an important part of Japanese culture. Therefore, he wanted to create spaces, where people could come and see their beauty, but also experience something even more magical.

I Want to Go, Tell Me More!

The Art Aquarium is located in Nihonbashi and the exhibition will open its doors on the 28th of August 2020. Tickets are now on sale but might be sold out pretty quickly. Despite Corona and all. So if you do want to visit get your ticket quickly available here. The Earlybird tickets are available at 2,000円, the full price will be 2,300円.

This is definitely a place worth visiting, yet please keep Corona guidelines in mind. Visiting this Art Aquarium is certainly one for the list, so bookmark and once there is less risk, make sure to go visit.

The post Updated: A Magical Art Aquarium is Opening in Tokyo This August! appeared first on Obsessed with Japan.

So I was wondering, are there any alternatives? How can I get a glimpse of Tokyo and discover this amazing city without actually getting on a plane? Well, you are in luck, as I have found the answer: Arigato Japans virtual tour of Tokyo!

This small and genius tour company has created a one-of-a-kind virtual tour of Tokyo. And no, you won’t be just watching a video on youtube or a live cam. This tour is an interactive experience, which includes meeting other “travelers”, being able to ask questions, and of course an expert tour guide.

How Does it Work?

It is pretty easy. All you have to do is go to their Website and click on “Tokyo Online: Virtual Experience in Shibuya and Shinjuku with a Local Expert“. Find a time that suits you, and with a few easy clicks and a bargain price of 1500Yen (which is about 15$) you will soon receive your confirmation email. It includes all the details on how to join, a personal zoom link and anything, you may need for the tour. In this case, all I needed was a pen and some paper for some interactive fun during the session.

You may think, what if I live on the other side of the globe, surely that will be difficult? Not at all, with both morning and evening tours available, you will be able to join, no matter where you are in the world.

So, What is The Tour like?

I booked the morning “Tokyo Online: Virtual Experience in Shibuya and Shinjuku with a Local Expert“, starting at 10 am. So I got up early on my day off, showered, dressed like an adult, and prepared a pen and paper as requested in the confirmation email. The link worked perfectly and right on time our tour guide opened the zoom session for us all to meet.

We were a small group of 5 people, including myself and to be totally honest, I did not quite know what to expect. However, as our tour guide, Alex explained how it will all work, his energy was exuberating and I started to get excited about what we would see and explore in the next hour.

Soon after, we all briefly introduced ourselves and it was fun to learn where everyone else was located and why they were taking the tour.

And just like that, we set off to Shibuya. Virtually passing the famous “Shibuya Scramble”, a busy Tokyo intersection well known for its zebra crossing. Where every day thousands of people walk across the street, with neon billboards and animated screens glaring down on them.

We go to see pictures of how this crazy busy place looked 100 years ago, learned about animes that are set here, along with some great personal stories from our guide Alex.

Then we moved on to the statue of “Hatchiko”, the loyal dog who became famous because he waited for 9 years at the station after his owner passed away.

We all had a tear in our eyes and this really was the moment the tour became tangible and special. Listening to the stories, not just seeing pictures but videos, there right from the comfort of my house I was transported to Shibuya. And I guess that is what great storytelling does. Our guide did everything right.

As we all composed ourselves, we moved on to explore Shibuya’s food scene including some hidden places and where to eat the best Ramen in the area. I quickly wrote that down, because you can never have enough Ramen shops on your where-to-eat list.

Then we continued on to Shinjuku, receiving useful travel information including detailed directions on how to get there, with tips and tricks for our journey.

Once in Shinjuku, we learned the ins and outs of this busy Tokyo neighborhood. The atmosphere was light and fun as we talked about Japanese izakayas, karaoke, and of course “Gozilla”, who we discovered is towering majestically over Kabukicho, the entertainment district of Shinjuku.

We ended the tour a little later than scheduled, laughing and with a feeling of having made some new friends.

Was This Virtual Tour of Tokyo Worth It?

The short answer is: YES!

I really really enjoyed it. Having had some initial doubts, our tour guide Alex quickly brushed them off. Being fun, entertaining, and full of energy he gave us a great personal experience.

Like a captivating movie where you forget the time and everything around you, for one hour I was transported to the streets of Tokyo. Which by the way, I know very well. I had to give them massive bonus points as I discovered a place or two that I did not know yet.

And don’t get me wrong, this is not just a walk along, listen, and leave. All through the tour, we were entertained by little quizzes and games. Asked about our opinion and invited to give feedback or bring up questions. Making it the perfect small escape as well as giving you some amazing travel tips. The perfect preparation for when you get off that plane once we can all travel safely again.

Tour Details

Available Tuesday to Saturday twice a day

Time: 10:00 AM JST -11:00 AM JST and 21:00 PM JST- 22:00 PM JST

Price: 1500Yen

Bookable from: Arigato Japan

Other Tours Offered Online and Offline

And if you are looking for more, they offer another two tours online, so why not join them for their “Cocktail Connections: Online Happy Hour in Japan” or learn about how to make the perfect green tea at their “Tokyo Online: Green Teatime in Japan” experience. Both of them are interactive and fun.

Furthermore, if you happen to be in Japan or lucky to travel here soon, check out their small guided tours. You can join them in person and discover the Tokyo fish market on their “Tsukiji Insider’s Tour, with Breakfast” or join them on their “Nightlife Osaka Food Tour“.

Also, Spanish speakers listen up, as they also offer tours for you. Check out “Shinsekai, Osaka. Tour Retro de Comida Tradicional (en Español)“.

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