Gakusei Travels

It’s Golden Week, so today I had no class which means….exploring another part of Tokyo! I think I’ve been feeling a bit homesick lately, and I didn’t think it was a good idea to sit in the dorm all day. I decided to visit Asakusa for a change of scenery and a different atmosphere.

Asakusa is one of the many neighborhoods in Japan, but unlike Shinjuku or Shibuya, it has a more traditional feel to it due to historical landmarks and the unique blend of Japanese culture. It took about an hour and a half train ride to get to Asakusa, and the first thing I did upon arriving was go rent a kimono. I found one place on Google that seemed to have good reviews, but there were many rental shops around. I didn’t make a reservation, but the shop was still willing to take me. I initially wanted a purple kimono, because purple is my favorite color, but they didn’t have any in the shade that I liked. I thought the pink with the flowers was cute, and it matched my hair. The staff were actually surprised that I could speak Japanese. Since Asakusa is another touristy area, there were many other foreigners also wanting to rent a kimono. I think they were taken aback when I responded in Japanese to their question asked in English lol.

Now, I completely underestimated the complexity of putting on a kimono. It’s not simply the outer garment and the obi (the sash around the waist). Underneath, I had on so many layers and layers tied together for another layer. Then, I had like two belts around the waist that made it difficult to bend over. I was just praying that I wouldn’t need to go to the bathroom at any point in the day. All the layers weren’t very heavy. In fact, they were quite lightweight. But, as the day wore on, I got pretty hot. I think the whole experience was fairly reasonable in price. I didn’t add any additional accessories outside of the bag and hair piece that was included with the outfit. In all, it was 6000￥ or around $40 for the basic package. I felt so pretty in pink and took so many photos around the city.

Afterwards, I kinda wandered around without a real destination in mind. I ended up at Sensoji Temple, one of the oldest Buddhist temples in Tokyo. It is dedicated to the Goddess Kannon, who is the goddess of mercy and compassion. The temple was pretty crowded, as many people were taking pictures or were trying to draw a fortune. For 100￥, you make a wish and pull a fortune. After you drop your yen, you shake the little box around and pull a stick. The number on the stick corresponds with the drawer you pull the fortune from. You either have good luck or bad luck.

My wish was pretty simple, “I just want my family to continue to be happy and healthy and I hope post-graduation treats me well.” The fortune I drew said I’d have good luck in the future, which is better than bad luck lol. If you do draw a bad luck fortune, they actually have this stand where you can tie it and get rid of it, but if it’s not a bad luck fortune, you’re supposed to keep it and be humble.

No.19: Good Fortune in Future

So many troubles and problems invade your family business, everything does not go so smoothly. A tiger demonstrates his spirit too much, then you should be more modest in defending its dashing, then you will be safe.

Do believe in gods earnestly, do your best, then everything will be fine in the end

Getting wealth and happiness, you may remain with them

The area around the temple was very beautiful. There were what I I think was other smaller shrines, ponds, and intricate murals. The atmosphere was very calming despite how many people there were. You could just tell that the there was this refreshing sense to it, and it honestly helped me forget about some of my worries for a bit.

After a while, I was pretty hungry, but I was so scared to get the kimono dirty that I avoided eating. I did have a shaved ice to cool down a bit. I could drink it through a straw. Then the weirdest interaction happened. These two older women just started touching my hair! They didn’t even say anything to me! No すみません or anything to acknowledge me. I only turned around, because they were standing close and I thought maybe they were trying to talk to me and I didn’t understand the Japanese. One of the ladies then reached out and just picked up my braids. I recoiled back and just gave an awkward smile. I know they weren’t intentionally trying to be rude, but I had no idea how to say “please do not touch me.” They walked off without saying anything, and I hurried off to another area, trying not to let it ruin my day.

Asakusa has a lot of food stalls and shopping stalls. Many of the shops sold things from keychains to paper fans to T-shirts, and just a bunch of other stereotypical souvenirs. There was even a place where you could get personalized and engraved chopsticks! Trust me, I thought about it, but it was kind of expensive lol. I did find some nice things for myself. I found a cute little purse (in purple of course) and a reusable bag with a shiba inu on it. There was also this store that sold 365 day hand cream. Basically, its one hand cream fragrance, but the package label has a different decoration for every day of the year. I quickly went and found my birthday before buying it haha.

One thing I wish I did was ride a jinrikisha or a rickshaw carriage. There is a ride attraction where you ride a man-pulled carriage and go around Asakusa. It is usually pulled around by a young man. I actually wonder how much the rickshaw weighs. I would assume it’s pretty heavy? And it can hold up to two passengers. Is there a weight limit? Can the puller be like “no, I can’t carry you?” Maybe the next time I go, I will ride it. I wasn’t sure how much it cost, and I had went a little overboard buying souvenirs. (￣∇￣)

The kimono, after a while, got a little uncomfortable to wear. As pretty as it was, it was difficult to walk in, and the layers underneath made my back start to hurt. I returned the kimono to the store and finally went to eat! All the food stalls looked so good, and there were several patio-type restaurants. I would like to come back next time with some friends, try some of them, and share a drink. I first got Takoyaki, which has kind of become my new favorite food here. It’s fried octopus (タコ=octopus), and it’s topped with various toppings and mayonnaise. Maybe that’s why I like it so much, because when I tried it for the first time back in America, it did not taste as good. I then tried something called Wagyu with Rice. Honestly, it looked better than it tasted. The meat kinda made my stomach hurt, so I can live without trying it again. I also tried some grilled meat skewers. They were super good, especially fresh off the grill. I don’t really know what I ate, but I think it’s best I probably don’t know. I’m pretty sure one option I saw was cow tongue. Next time I go to Asakusa, I would like to try many of the snacks and cookies I saw, such as dango. Something interesting I saw was that a lot of areas had signs telling you not to stand and eat there. Most of the food stalls had designated areas for you to eat, because it’s perceived as rude to walk around and eat. Many stores won’t let you in with food or open drinks either.

Overall, I really enjoyed Asakusa. It’s probably one of my favorite places now. Out of the places I’ve visited so far, Asakusa definitely had some of the best food. I of course walked 14,513 steps by the time I made it back to the university and my legs feel like they’re going to fall off, but I feel like I have a much clearer head and feel like I can reset, refresh, and retackle the next week.