Things to do: This weekend: Koenji Awaodori 2013 dance festival
Sat Aug 24 – Sun Aug 25, 2013 Around Koenji 12,000 dancers pile out on to the streets of Koenji over the two days of the annual Awaodori, undoubtedly one of Tokyo’s most energetic festivals – and one with crowds to match. The awaodori (‘awa dance’) tradition can be traced back to Tokushima in Shikoku, where the story goes that the localdaimyo plied his citizens with booze to celebrate the completion of the local castle in 1586, leading to a citywide outbreak of dancing in the streets. Whatever the accuracy of that tale, the enthusiasm was...
read moreThings to do: This weekend: Roppongi Hills Bon-Odori dance festival
Until Sun Aug 25, 2013 Roppongi Hills Arena This lively Roppongi Hills event features traditional Obon dance performed in a purpose-built arena by yukata-clad dancers. Decorations add to the atmosphere, while the surrounding stalls cater to hungry crowds with all the usual festival fare. Details Open Aug 23-25 Time Fri (stalls only) 5-9pm, Sat-Sun stalls from 3-9pm, performance 5-8pm Venue Roppongi Hills Arena Address 6-10-1 Roppongi, Minato-ku, Tokyo Transport Roppongi Station...
read moreThings to do: This weekend: Super Yosakoi (2013) dance festival
Sat Aug 24 – Sun Aug 25, 2013 Yoyogi Park Omotesando, Meiji Shrine, Yoyogi Park The final weekend of August is always a good time for dancing in the streets, with many major festivals kicking off. The original yosakoi dance started life in Kochi in 1954, where it was intended to help revitalise the struggling post-war economy, and Tokyo’s own Super Yosakoi festival has been going for just over a decade now. The event sees 90-odd teams of brightly attired dancers trying to outdo each other as they strut their stuff to the rhythm of...
read moreThings to do: This weekend: U-1 Grand Prix; an undon noodle contest in Yoyogi park
Sat Aug 24 – Sun Aug 25, 2013 Yoyogi Park There are plenty of delicious udon places in Japan, but which is the best? How do you know whether you’re eating the finest bowl out there, or being fobbed off with second or third-rate noodles? The U-1 Grand Prix, held in Yoyogi Park, is a championship to determine Japan’s best udon. Stores from across the country will gather for the two-day fest to prove their worth, including representatives from as far afield as Akita, Fukuokaand the Goto Islands off the coast of Nagasaki. Go along and lend...
read moreWhere to eat: Tempura Buono, finger licking good
Buono, an Italian-named but authentically Japanese tempura restaurant in the back streets of central Tokyo’sNishi-Azabu neighborhood, about 10 minutes on foot from both Roppongi Hills to the east and Hiroo Station to the south. Buono’s concept is as appealing as its menu: serve top-quality tempura at accessible prices so that average people can experience what this well known Japanese specialty should taste like. The chef at Buono claims to have spent his past 39 years in tempura kitchens, starting out at the age of 17. He’d always worked in...
read moreThings to do: TONIGHT One Summer Night with DVS1 & DJ Nobu
Hallowed Nishi-Azabu club Eleven may have closed, but the folks who ran it are still busy bringing dance music to Japan. This weekend they host a one-off night at Unit featuring veteran US DJ DVS1 (“Devious One,” get it?). The Minneapolis-based artist is known in the Midwest for his Hush parties that draw on a 10,000-strong vinyl collection, and of late he’s been getting a worldwide rep for his simple, elegant productions as well. No less than Detroit techno avatar Derrick May has taken him under his wing, releasing DVS1 tracks on his newly...
read moreThings to do: Like the beach? Check out the Morito no Hama Bon dance festival on August 15th
Do you like the beach? Do you like or want to experience Japanese summer festivals? Then the Morito no hama, bon dance competition/Festival is the best place to be this summer. Location/Date The festival will be held this year on Wednesday, August 15, 2012 between 7pm and 9pm and takes place on the shores of the Morito beach in Hayama located in Yokosuka, Kanagawa prefecture. It’s just thirty minutes from Zushi or forty minutes from Yokohama city. To get there, take the JR Yokosuka line train from Yokohama station to JR Zushi station. After...
read moreThings to do: Go to Akihabara and enjoy some maid cafe madness. Here is my top 5
Maid cafés may seem like a fad from 2006 but they’re here to stay. We present you with a guide to the maid experience. Maid cafés have become so embedded in Japanese media and fetish culture that it is hard to imagine a Tokyo without them. There are now about 217 maid cafes in Japan, but the good news is that increased competition is making them much, much crazier. (For those needing background, there’s more on the history of maid cafes here) Here is a guide to the best maid cafes in Akihabara — to help you pick just the right place for your...
read more5 Tokyo bars for train nerds (yes, they exist)
You thought your grandfather was a train buff? Sorry to break the news to you, but ol’ gramps would have been a mere caboose in the train of railway geeks inJapan, where hard-core train aficionados are referred to by the somewhat affectionate term “densha otaku,” or train nerds. They’re famous for feats like memorizing phonebook-size timetables and visiting every single one of the country’s almost 10,000 stations. When they aren’t trying to increase their encyclopedic knowledge of all things rail, they’re out looking for like-minded people to...
read moreThings to do: Only in Japan; Visit an Art Aquarium
Of all the bizarre art niches out there, “goldfish aquarium art” must rank fairly high. Yet the artist Hidetomo Kimura has built an entire career as an “art aquarist,” and his weird and wonderful live installations are now on display again at an exhibition, “Edo — the coolness of goldfish“ (link in Japanese), at the Nihonbashi Mitsui Hall, in Tokyo. First held in 2011 to mark the centenary of the Nihonbashi Bridge, where the hall is located, the unusual exhibit proved so popular it has been held each year since. This year, Kimura’s exhibition...
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