This is my 6th visit to Tokyo.
In the past there have been a couple of marathon runs - Tokyo was the 6th of what are now 7 Abbott World Marathon Majors. I got my 6 Star Abbott World Marathon Medal here in 2017.
Also, a couple of visits to the beautiful Buddhist temples and gardens at Asakusa (Senso-ji) and Harajuku (Meiji Jingu), shopping for Japanese chef’s knives and teapots at Kapabashi, the Elvis impersonators at Yoyogi Park, day trips to Hakone, Mt Fuji, and the giant buddhas at Kamakura, further afield to the Imperial Palace and back alley yakitori restaurants of Kyoto.
And of course, imaginary dinner and drinks with Scarlet Johanson at the Hollywood Bar overlooking the ever-humming megalopolis at evening.
I’ve never been up for cats and robots and I’m not now. Nor many of the other well knowns on the Tokyo tourist trail. Nor the tiny bars of Golden Gai or the drinking dens of Piss Alley.
I found myself at Shibuya Crossing in a vain hunt for western sized jeans. If you come here to watch the pedestrian crossing scramble, I recommend the cafe at L’Occitanie.
I still visit Ippo in Ebisu, my favourite sake and seafood Izakaya, primarily to say hello to Hideki, it’s friendly owner, and the kitchen hand who is a percussionist with an experimental jazz band, his instrument of choice being tap dance! Bloody great sashimi and sake here, mind. Hideki is out of town but his brother treats me to an evolving tastebud explosion of raw fish and jeroboams of saki, progressively richer and full bodied.
Also, I visit the Shinjuku Pit Inn …a grungy and legendary little jazz joint frequented mostly by students. Don’t expect a glass with your can of beer.
While it’s still possible to attend Tokyo’s early morning tuna auction it isn’t the same. It became popular among young western pill-popping nightclubbers and that was the end of that. The market has been moved from central Tskiji out to woop-woop Toyosu and the public is now separated from the magnificent tuna fish and commercial buzz by booking systems, a floor level and glass.
Pity, I would definitely go back for the old Tskuji experience …especially if I could get my hands on anything other than pills for my blood pressure and anxiety.
This trip I also focus on Jimbocho, the world's largest used bookstore district, featuring over 150 bookstores and antique shops, and Yanesen, a neighborhood that preserves prewar Tokyo.
And, miracle of miracles, at short notice on my last night, pretend-Scarlet was once again available for cocktails and a delightful conversation at the Hollywood Bar.