by Philbert Ono
Tokyo-related posts.
Odaiba is Tokyo’s foremost waterfront area with large shopping malls, luxury hotels, beaches, park areas, Giant Unicorn Gundam, and Tokyo 2020 Olympic venues. Pleasant place to hang out. In the 19th century, it was once fortified as a line of military defense against invading foreign (US) naval powers. The purported enemy never had to come through here though. The dominant
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Ariake Arena in Koto Ward, Tokyo was completed in December 2019 and I attended the dedication ceremony held on Feb. 2, 2020. It will be the venue for Olympic volleyball and Paralympic wheelchair basketball. Arena capacity is about 15,000. They allowed only about 4,000 people to attend the ceremony that started at 10 am and ended at 12 noon. The
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Japan’s new Olympic Stadium (aka National Stadium, Kokuritsu Kyogijo 国立競技場) was completed in Nov. 2019 and the public could enter the stadium for the first time at the opening event called “Hello, Our Stadium” on Dec. 21, 2019. And on Jan 1, 2020, the new stadium saw its first sports event, the final game of the Emperor’s Cup JFA 99th
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Tokyo has been holding some “1 Year to Go!” events. If you visit Tokyo this summer 2019, here are some neat events/things you can see for a limited time. Olympic Rings at Nihonbashi Bridge Olympics rings were installed on Nihonbashi Bridge this Aug. Instant hit among passersby taking selfies in front of it. The on-site staff couldn’t tell me how
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Compiled by Philbert Ono, Updated: Oct. 11, 2019 This is the 2019 schedule of Awa Odori dance festivals to be held in the Tokyo/Kanto area (Tokyo, Saitama, Kanagawa, and Chiba Prefectures) from June to October 2019. Nobody has compiled such a schedule so I did it myself. Most Awa Odori are held in the summer and a few are held
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Kameido Tenjin Shrine (亀戸天神社) is one of Tokyo’s most beloved Shinto shrines. It has pretty flowers, it’s photogenic, it’s historical, and it retains a local ambience. From late April to early May, the shrine grounds will be colored purple during its annual Wisteria Festival (Fuji Matsuri 藤まつり). The shrine is central Tokyo’s most famous spot for wisteria, and people crowd
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On the northern and less crowded part of the JR Yamanote Line in Tokyo is Sugamo Station. Sugamo is famous for the Jizo-Dori shopping street near the train station. Dubbed the “Grandma’s Harajuku,” Jizo-Dori is supposedly where the elderly do their fashion shopping. Although shops do cater to the older generation, it is also lined with about 200 restaurants, confection
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