Yanesen, Tokyo
Yanesen is one of the most quaint and aged parts of the city. Just about 20-30 minutes away from Shinjuku Station yet you feel like you've travelled to the outskirt of Tokyo. It's a good place to visit if you don't want to travel too far but you'd like to have some peace and quiet; somewhere that isn't too populated and not shaded by skyscrapers. It's a nice place to wander for at least half a day or so.
Kyooji Temple
Our first stop was to Kyooji temple, something we stumbled upon whilst making our way to Yanaka Ginza. Shrines and temples are just plentiful in Japan. It feels as if every corner we take, we'll see one staring right back at us.
To be honest, I wasn't quite sure what this shrine was all about until I did my Google search. Kyooji Temple actually contains a statue of Daitokuten, one the seven lucky gods which we obviously missed.
For those who's crazy over history, turns out the construction for this temple was completed back in 1655 when a powerful farmer Katsuhira Kanmuri donated his land. Also, you'll be able to find a bullet mark on the gate that was left behind from a conflict with the new government, Battle of Ueno back in 1868.
Yanaka Ginza
Just down the road, maybe 5 minutes walk (or less) from Kyooji temple, you'll arrive at Yanaka Ginza. It's about 175 metres long and 5-6 metres wide, packed with up to 70 stores selling mainly food and some souvenirs. Best part is, as compared to Tokyo city centre, all the food here is so cheap!
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| Squid tentacle karaage |
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| Cheese bun |
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| REAL wasabi |
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| the sweetest peach in the whole wide world |
Everything tasted so good especially that peach. The texture was slightly towards the soft side and every bite you take, peach juice will come dripping down your hand. It was so sweet and refreshing, perfect to combat the summer heat in Japan. We stood by the alley, gobbling it down, ignoring all the weird glances from passersby.
Nezu shrine
Fueled with food, it's time for more sight seeing. Off we went to Nezu Shrine, one of the oldest shrine around the metropolis. Its structure is pretty much intact since the mid Edo period (1705).
You will definitely not miss the red torri gate tunnel. Everyone knows about Fushimi Inari shrine in Kyoto but you don't need to go all the way there! You can experience them in Tokyo too (you're welcome).
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| FYI this is not a mirror image of any sort. |
Step 1 scoop up water with the ladle using your right hand and pour water over your left hand.
Step 2 (repeat) but now hold the ladle using your left hand and pour water over your right hand.
Step 3 pour water in your left hand and rinse your mouth.
Remember, never touch the ladle directly to your mouth.
Similarly, like any other shrines, you'll be able to get your future predicted with a mere 100 yen but accuracy level... well I got myself a "great good fortune". So you tell me.
Udon
When the photographer was done with all his panorama shots (finally), we decided to go get more food. As we were walking down the streets trying to decide which shop should we venture into, we saw this cute little store selling udon with their menu barely visible. We had to poke our head in just to check if it's actually open.
No names to be shared here because I don't see no signboard. No location to be shared because we I'm not even sure where were we right at that moment. The little things I enjoy when travelling with no strict itinerary to abide to.
We ordered duck "tsukumen" where the cold noodles and hot broth were served separately. The pieces of duck had some fats/skin attached to it, ah love it. Also ordered the cold udon served with radish, lime and sauce. Something so simple but the texture of the noodle really helped "up the game".
Shinobazuno Pond/Ueno Park
Once again, we were fuelled with food. Time to take a walk to the park nearby. The aim was to burn off some calories but we ended up having a mini picnic next to Shonobazuno pond while trying to wait out the pouring rain.
The size of the grapes were quite tiny but every bite felt like I was bursting a juice bubble bomb. I'm very particular with any sort sourness so I didn't exactly fancy the grapes skin but otherwise, refreshing!
Apart from that, we got ourself some chicken karaage, bought from some random corner shop and the shop was selling them in all kinds of flavour! Even had them in tandoori flavour (what!). I must say this is some good stuff though. It wasn't packed with flour and the meat weren't dry at all.
My favourite was "ebi katsu" prawn cutlets. I don't know how they managed to keep it crispy even after leaving them out for a while and they were very generous with the amount of prawns. So it wasn't the typical trying to con me with more potato/cream/carrot kind of batter mixture.
Took a walk through Ueno park just to arrive at a Ueshima coffee shop to have some cake and coffee. Yes I know... we just had a mini picnic right after lunch. Please don't judge us!
We ordered sparkling coffee, yes, sparkling f*kin coffee. The sensation was out of the world. Drinking coffee but then at the same time, it felt like I was having coffee flavoured soda. I'd try it it but I probably won't order it again. Obviously got overly excited about the coffee, next to it we have cheese cake.
Sparkling coffee stole all the limelight.
Yanaka cemetery
Final stop. We made it to the Yanaka cemetery. You will find reference spilling all through the internet saying it's not spooky at all, in fact you may find the environment serene. Agree to disagree. Maybe I'm just born timid. I was still getting goosebumps knowing for a fact that I'm surrounded by tombstone, having a stroll in a graveyard.
But hey. Look. That's the Tokyo Skytree at the backdrop. Ok let's go.
Summary
Basically we did a huge round starting from Kyooji back to Yanaka cemetery. It really boils down to how much more you'd like to see around this area (and how much you're physically capable of) but you can easily spend half a day here.
And that concludes our walkabouts at Yanesen! Leave a comment below if you think there's other interesting sights that I've missed.
