Ireland day 1335. Sunday 25 May 2025- Tokyo 2

Today’s summary	Had another early breakfast then took the Maranouchi line underground train from Shinjuku-Sanchome station downtown. Walked the short distance to the Imperial Palace East gardens and had a good look round (including tea plantation). Walked from there to Tokyo station to admire the architecture and to buy tickets for airport transfer later in the week. From there walked on to the Ginza area to oggle at the shops. Tea in Muji then took the underground back to Shinjuku. Finished off the day with a spa session and dinner afterwards at Thermae-yu.
Today’s weather	Heavy overnight rain cleared by morning and dry for the rest of the day, but overcast. Light south westerly breeze. Appx 21c

Today’s overview location (The blue mark shows the location of our route)		Close-up location (The blue line shows where we walked) (Click button below to download GPX of today’s walk as recorded, or see interactive map at bottom with elevations corrected): Imperial Palace and Ginza

Commentary

We’ve allowed ourselves three days to get the feel of Japan’s capital city, and today was day two. Much as yesterday, we were determined to make the most of the daylight hours so were up early and down at breakfast as soon as the restaurant opened at 7am. Then once as we had eaten, we were out and on our way.

A short trip on the Maranouchi underground line from the nearby Shinjuku-Sanchome station saw us downtown shortly after 9am, and ready to start exploring.

Our first destination today was the Imperial Palace East garden. As soon as we emerged from the labyrinthine underground station at Otemachi, we could tell we had moved to an upmarket area of Tokyo. Neatly manicured trees, skyscrapers and smart cafes replaced the dark alleys and Yokocho bars of Shinjuku, where we are staying. once we had orientated ourselves, we crossed the street and entered the Imperial Palace grounds by the eastern entrance (free of charge – though with a bag-search) and started to have a look round.

The gardens were extensive and impressive. I was particularly struck by the miniature tea plantation and the monolithic fortifications. Val on the other hand liked the rare fruit tree collection and the manicured lakes. We spent a good hour there before leaving and walking down to Tokyo station.

It’s an impressive, genteel, building looking somewhat incongruous amongst its glassy and angular neighbours. We dropped in to have a look at the architecture and to buy some tickets for a trip to the airport later in the week, and then got a light lunch in the basement.

Moving on from the station, we walked a few blocks further south to enter the Ginza area, noting the impressive brick-built architecture along the way. It was designed by Irish architect Thomas Waters after a devastating fire in 1872 destroyed much of the old architecture.

Ginza is Tokyo’s smartest area – a bit like London’s Knightsbridge or Bond Street, and with the shops and Ferraris to match. But perhaps without the depth of quality architecture that you might find in a European city. We did as yesterday and followed a walking tour from our guidebook, and paused for tea and refreshments in the Muji store – which was very good but very slow.

By the time we eventually finished our walk, we were actually beginning to feel pretty whacked after all this active sightseeing, so beat a hasty path to the Maranouchi line back to Shinjuku. Then, following in yesterday’s successful footsteps, we rounded off the day with a an onsen and sauna session followed by a light dinner in the basement at the Thermae-yu spa.

Finally back to the hotel by about 9pm, and ready for another early night by ten!

Today’s photos (click to enlarge)


Canyonlike street leading from the Imperial Palace down towards Tokyo Station	Perfectly manicured gardens – complete with azalea hedging – in the Imperial Palace gardens

Imposing façade of Tokyo station., Although it’s the central station in Tokyo, it’s not as big as some of the suburban stations like Shinjuku or Shinagawa. But it’s far more elegant	The Irish influence (Thomas Waters) in evidence on Ginza

If you need to ask the price, you can’t afford it	The Mikimoto Ginza2 building – a jewellery store with unusual windows designed to evoke the sea. It’s obvious really

A slightly odd perspective on the mini-tea plantation in the Palace gardens