The tuna auction at Tokyo’s Tsukiji fish market begins at 5.30am, and the queue to be one of 120 tourists permitted to witness it .grows well before dawn.
One of the best ways to scratch the surface of Japanese life is to consume – to shop, to eat – and Tsukiji is a perfect place to start.
But, you have to start early. By 6am, the tuna have been sold and are on the slab, where they’re sliced and diced into steaks. At Tsukiji’s first auction this year, an endangered bluefin sold for an impressive, if ethically dubious, amount equivalent to about R5.27 mil¬lion.
Avoid being run down by the zig-zagging electric carts, and you’ll find an encyclopaedic selection of seafood in the maze of stalls here. By dusk each day, R60m of fish will have changed hands.
Tsukiji’s traders are indomitable envoys for food, commerce and tradition, yet even this market closed briefly last year, when much of Japan was devastated by the earthquake and tsunami. Though the traders went back to work within the week, tourists were banned from the tuna auction for more than four months.
Yet, Tokyo is as big and as resilient as London or New York, and, 12 months on, the city’s scars are only apparent if you persuade a reticent local to discuss them.
In fact, with a world-topping metropolitan population of more than 36 million, it’s so big that any enlightening walk will include some interstitial subway rides. So, prepare yourself with a sushi breakfast at Ryu Sushi, one of the market’s sushi joints, then stroll towards Shimbashi station.
Public transport in Tokyo is excellent. The extensive and efficient metro is complemented by the overground Yamanote Line, which connects most of the city’s places of interest. Get a Pasmo stored-value travelcard (pasmo.co.jp/ en).
From Shimbashi, it’s four stops north on the Yamanote Line to Akihabara, and “Electric Town”, where the streets are deep with otaku (“geeks”). In the basements of gaming arcades such as the Taito Tower, men chain-smoke and watch each other play Tekken and Super Street Fighter IV. A floor up, teens boogie furiously on Dance Dance Revolution pads, among rows and rows of end-of-the-pier claw-grabber games. In the Tora No Ana bookstore (www. toranoana. jp), next to Taito, the shelves of manga (comics) are sorted by age and gender, and men crowd into their allotted aisles to stand and read comics. This is also the district for cheap electronics and designer toys.
French cuisine is one of Japan’s favourite imports; French-style bistros and bakeries abound. One odd side-effect of this, is the “maid café”. Young women dressed as French maids cluster on street corners, advertising their services; no, not those kind of serv¬ices.
A short walk north up Chuo Dori from Tora No Ana and a left-turn into the side streets brings you to the T&K Akiba Building, address of the Pinky Café. Customers pay almost R480 an hour to sit in a pink room decorated with Hello Kitty dolls, where – for a price – waitresses will squeeze chocolate sauce on to your pudding in the shape of a kitten, play a children’s game, or squeak excit¬edly as they squelch your burger roll.
From Akihabara, hop back on to the Yamanote line. A ride through the northern districts will bring you to Harajuku, on the west side.
If you failed to brave a maid café, you’ll be hungry by now, so stop at Jangara, a few steps from Harajuku subway station on Omote¬sando, for some tonkotsu (“pig bone”) ramen.
If you’re after eclectic Japanese fashions, walk down Omotesando past the Nike store to the junction with Meiji Dori and take a left. Rising up beside you is Laforet (laforet.ne.jp), which houses seven floors of strange, wonderful and, occasionally, wearable clothing.
The city’s celebrated youth subcultures congregate each weekend, in their distinctive street-wear, on nearby Takeshita-dori: glam rock “Visual Kei”, cute and fluffy “Kawaii”, self-explanatory “Goth Lolitas” and more.
From Laforet, go back up Omotesando past Harajuku station and turn south at the national stadium. Wander down through the park into Shibuya – home to Tokyu Hands, a destination department store, with a double shot of only-in-Japan. You could spend as many hours in here, learning about Japanese life, as in any similarly sized museum.
Use the Shibuya pedestrian crossing to reach Shibuya station, from which the Yamanote line will take you back to Shimbashi. You’re now a short walk from the designer shops of Ginza. If you need perking up somewhere between Uniqlo and Bulgari, there’s one more thing you’ll only find in Japan: here, in Starbucks, they serve “small” lattes.
The Tokyo Sky Tree in Shitamachi provides the best view in Tokyo. At 634m high, it’s the world’s second-tallest structure (after the Burj Khalifa, in Dubai). There are two observation decks, at 350m and 450m, a shopping mall, aquarium and planetarium planned at its foot.
Food-lovers and rail passengers must visit Ramen Street in the bowels of Tokyo Station there are eight ramen shops, each special¬ising in a different noodle.
Getting there
British Airways serves both Tokyo Haneda and Narita airports from Heathrow. Narita is also served by Virgin Atlantic, Japan Airlines and All Nippon Airways.
Staying there
Tim stayed at the Shangri-La Hotel, Marunouchi Trust Tower Main, 1-8-3 Marunouchi, Chiyoda 0800 028 3337; shangri-la.com. Deluxe rooms start at Y51 944 (R4 858) a night, including breakfast. - Weekend Argus