Tokyo Hidden Spots: Exploring Tokyo’s Local Old Towns

Who says you can’t enjoy both the traditional and modern things in Tokyo? Yanaka-ginza is near Nippori station in Tokyo Many people transfer through this station to get to Narita airport So I've arrived in Nippori Station and Yanaka Ginza Street is approximately 3 to 5 minutes away by walk So, it's already really local and really residential when you get out of the station so I'm looking forward to the local shops that are here When you first arrive you will see these stairs which are very popular for seeing the sunset Also this area is very popular for its stray cats So I have arrived and that's the sign up there Yanaka-Ginza street is a popular shopping street with about 70 small shops and stretching around 170 meters long This downtown area survived the earthquakes and wars so you can still experience the traditional older feeling of Tokyo As you walk a long the streets you can see Japanese people doing their normal everyday shopping and errands so there's a little bit of everything practical here This is a great way to see how the locals live and avoid the tourist crowds There are also many goods and souvenirs sold here so you should also check that out So there's lots of street food here and I think I'm going to have this one behind me If you come to Yanaka-Ginza you must try the street food They try to keep it affordable for the locals so its all around 100 yen or so The next shop I went to, is this one right here and they sell donuts shaped like a cats tail and they have different flavours like custard, chocolate, red bean and much more These shops are not only popular with the locals but also many Japanese celebrities come here So I was trying to take a photo of this the thing I just got and then it just snapped and I don't know if you guys can see it but it just snapped off and it fell on the ground Looks like tigger from winnie the pooh looks like his tail These are also some very popular shops on the street this one has red bean inside and obento that tastes better than your local convenient shops and don't forget to take a selfie with the cats So now we're going to walk to the next location which is Sendagi So actually Yanaka-Sendagi-Nezu make up the area called Yanesen which is basically their names combined and it's a great traditional local area to take a stroll around I'm kinda lost ... Found this machine If you put 1000 yen inside, you don't know which one you will get but you will get a prize and there's some really good ones and some booby prizes Since the Edo era this part of Tokyo has been famous for artisan and craftsman so you should find some really interesting interesting shops here I went to this shop that crafts their own candy, one of the very few who do in Japan nowadays When you first go in, the walls are lined with hard candy in all shapes and colours You can either buy the pre-made ones or you can get it customize and design it yourself and see them make it right in front of your eyes There are many animals you can choose from but they are usually around 1000 yen and I picked this rabbit and I also picked the pose it did and you can also do add ons for special days or special occasions In the Edo period candy making evolved into a kind of street performance where Candy craftsmen would walk the streets of the city making candy for children on request While you can’t see candy making on Tokyo streets anymore, this shop keeps the tradition alive. and this was the first time I saw candy being made right in front of my eyes so it was a pretty cool experience and you can also take their classes and actually make one yourself and why I chose the rabbit is because my favourite animal is the rabbit so if I could have any pet I wanted, I would chose the rabbit How about you guys?! So I want to show you guys more of the Japan, like the local ... So when you walk these local streets, it's when you see more locals and how everyday life is like in Japan So I think that is really cool because especially in Tokyo the everyday lifestyle kind of gets washed away by the big city, the buildings But if you actually look into the local areas or just the backstreets you will see a lot of Japan's culture If you ever stop by Nezu, you have to visit Nezu Shrine which is one of Japan's most oldest shrines Nezu shirine is surrounded by nature, and it has with ponds with carp in it and also pathways with small shrines called tori and is a place where the locals often come so it doesn’t have a touristy feel to it This shrine is styled after the famous Toshugu Shrine in Nikko so you don’t have to go far from Tokyo to see something similar So I hope you guys could see more of the local normal everyday Japan life in this video If there was anything you guys found interesting or something you didn’t know about Japan I would love to hear it down below Thank you for watching and I will see you in the next video :)

Channel: internationally ME

Views: 563,464

Keywords: internationallyme, internationally me, life in japan, old tokyo, traditional japan, traditional tokyo, exploring tokyo, tokyo vlog, japan vlog, local traditional old town tokyo, traditional old town, yanesen, yanaka ginza, shitamachi, tokyo shitamachi, 東京下町, 下町散歩, 谷根千, day in the life, angela japan, angela tokyo, japan travel, japan, japan travel tips, japan trip, travel in japan, travel japan, tokyo, yanaka, yanaka-ginza

Id: f0F8loEK9cE

Length: 8min 14sec (494 seconds)

Published: Wed May 25 2016