Finding Shogun History By Walking Ancient Paths of Tokyo
Day 57, 2024 Grand World Voyage
Thursday, Feb. 29, 2024; Tokyo, Japan.
Today we immersed ourselves in ancient Tokyo, going north from the skyscrapers and bustling streets of the center city. The historic Yanaka district escaped fire-bombing during World War II and destruction from the Great Kanto Earthquake of 1923. Today it is full of shrines, temples, cemeteries and old wooden buildings, and populated by artists, restaurants and shops.
Our tour (booked through Viator) started at the Nippori train station in Yanaka. We would have made it on time had we not boarded the correct train going the wrong way. Our smartphones with GPS quickly showed us the error of our ways, so we easily exited and reboarded, but now were running behind schedule. When I called the guide, she said not to worry – the other person on the tour also was late.
This district is named for the yanaka ginger once grown in the farm village. Now it is known as a temple district, with more than 70 temples. We started with Tennōji Temple, established in 1274 and with beautiful grounds surrounding a bronze Buddha statue. It made a good backdrop for a group photo, including Shannon who is here to run in the upcoming Tokyo Marathon.
The surrounding Yanaka Cemetery is a Buddhist temple near the station. Were we here a month later, its main path would be awash with cherry blossoms. Today it was relatively quiet, with large stones etched with the accomplishments of the many well-known buried here.
We paused at the grave of the last Shogun, Tokugawa Shinobu. As the 15th shogun, he ended a fierce battle for power with the Meiji Emperor in 1867, saying it was better to quit fighting each other and instead concentrate on defending against Western threats to Japan. His tomb is enclosed behind iron bars featuring the three-leaf Tokugawa crest.
After leaving the large cemetery (complete with a small playground and police station), we walked through quiet streets of small shops. Bicycles protected children from the chilly temperatures.
We passed by many other beautiful Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines – so many I cannot place my photographs with the stories of each one.
Our guide Eriko said younger people are trying to preserve some of the old wooden buildings, starting small businesses such as a cluster including a beer hall, bakery and oil shop.
Across a busy street featuring a mixture of old and new buildings, we arrived at the Nezu-jinja Shrine, built in 1705 and one of the oldest Shinto shrines in Japan. Frankly, after days of touring, it is easy to start to become jaded about yet another shrine or temple (much like cathedrals or castles on a European vacation).
What made this one stand out to me was its paths lined with torii gates, considered in the Shinto religion as a portal allowing humans to access the spiritual world. They typically have two overhead lintels sitting on two pillars, made of wood and painted vermilion. At the Nezu Shrine, paths of torii gates line the hillside covered in azalea bushes. We were too early for the April festival when the hillside is covered with blossoms from the more than 100 varieties of azaleas.
Before ending our tour we sampled a variety of rice crackers flavored with matcha, curry, spices and sugar. They were delicious and nothing like the air-popped rice crackers in American supermarkets.
Lastly, we browsed in Yanaka Ginza, the neighborhood shopping district, where I bought a small embroidered washcloth. I have noticed that few Japanese restrooms have towels for drying hands. Instead, locals carry their own. In fact, there are few trashcans anywhere. Japan expects you to pack away trash and dispose of it at home.
After the tour, we successfully made our way on two trains to return to our ship, and headed for the hot tubs after two days of walking. Captain Frank announced that our next day’s call at Omaezaki is in jeopardy, as heavy winds are predicted. While I would enjoy a new-to-me Japanese port – especially one close to Mount Fuji — I also wouldn’t mind a restful day at sea.
I am so jealous! I’ve decided that if I EVER get to travel again I will definitely go to Japan. Sometimes I think I was Japanese in a past life. I’d love to see those Torii gates with the two beans (lentils) on top–I’m sure that made a change from the regular ones with lentels. (Forgive me for being snarky. I actually laughed out loud envisioning those beans in the sky. Sorry.)
Jo,
What a very interesting post. I especially like the children in the plastic bubbles on the bikes.😂 looks like your trip is going very well. Looking forward to your next port!
Susan
I want to see a picture of the washcloth!
I don’t believe I can put a photo in a comment, but I’ll try to work it into a future blog post!
Once again, so many things I did not know.
I didn’t know that about Japanese bathrooms, that’ll be good to know if we ever getto go. Seems like we don’t travel that much these days. V3ry coo!
Btw the pics of your are great!
Thanks, Caine! I’ll be in Dallas in mid May and will see if we can get together. I’d love to see you!
Washcloth: It’s not just Japan!
Daisy and I have our own washcloth travel story. The historic hotel out in the Cotswolds countryside where we stayed did not have washcloths in the bathroom.. Front desk said there were none to be requested and acted like we were nuts to ask. Really? So Daisy and I walked several miles to Cheltenham to purchase some. The ones we purchased were very basic and not embroidered like yours. So yes, let’s see a photo.
Hi Jo, We visited Yanaka during a land trip to Japan (2014 from memory) and Megan had planned the Yanaka tour you did as a walking trip – it was laid out in an Eyewitness guide from memory. Then, in 2018, during our shared Grand Asia Pacific cruise we did a shore excursion on our second day at Yokohama. When we came to the Nezu Shrine i thought it looked very familiar, and of course it was. What threw me off I initially is that doing it the first time as a walking tour, we had come through a different entrance to that used during our bus shore excursion. On our walking tour we had lunch in a tiny restaurant off Yanaka Ginza – the only round eyes in the establishment, and before Google Translate – challenging, but very enjoyable. (Can’t remember what we ate, but it must have been good – there was a line to get into the tiny restaurant.)
What a fun experience, Ian! I am really enjoying the anticipation of my Majestic Japan cruise this fall — lots of new Japanese ports.
Thank you for the commentary. Very easy to read and interesting. I like the detail about the lack of trash cans and paper towels. I know what you mean about becoming jaded with temples.