arakawa & kita

Yesterday, we went to check out the other half of the Toden Arakawa Line (Tokyo Sakura Tram line)...if you missed the previous adventure (Oji to Waseda) we went on before.

Minowabashi is the east end of the line.

We realized they have a 1 day pass (400 yen for adults), so we decided to get it for this adventure.

Loved the street art nearby

Buy the 1 day pass from the teeny kiosk near the Minowabashi station.

Show the pass to the driver as you get onto the street car

Our first stop was Higashiogu 3chome...

To look for Suzuki Seiya's MLB manhole cover, which was located in front of Soma Kogyo, a metal factory

(The artwork was done by Yu Suda.)

The factory was closed, but we talked story for a bit with another couple who had gone to see Sugano Tomoyuki's manhole cover

We hope to check out the two others in Kanagawa Prefecture soon! (probably when it gets cooler)

Lunch was at Donpey, a tonkatsu shop...was featured in "Kodoku no gurume" ("Solitary Gourmet) season 3, episode 10

Also if you have watched "Shinya Shokudo" ("Midnight Diner"), the stripper, played by Ando Tamae, this is where she grew up and apparently her brother runs the tonkatsu shop

The tonkatsu comes with a housemade demi glace sauce poured on top, if you want the sauce on the side you need to tell them when you order.

Satoshi had the full sized teishoku while Kat had the half size...total 2250 yen (tax included)

I was surprised that the breading of the tonkatsu was still crisp even with all that sauce on it.

The demi glace sauce seemed to be tomato based and not too rich

The pork was juicy and super tender.

Kat had mugi gohan (barley rice) while Satoshi had white rice

Kat didn't have miso soup while Satoshi did.

The food comes out quite quickly and we were glad we got to try this place.

Across from the Miyanomae station, is the Ogu Hachiman Shrine

At the Arakawa Shako Mae station, there is a tiny area with these two retro street cars

The retro street cars are right next to the "garage" for the street cars that are running on the Toden Arakawa Line

From there we went to Oji and checked out Meijido

I love this bakery and have to come whenever I am in the area.

Went a little krazy since it has been awhile...we got okara doughnuts, satsuma imo (sweet potato) sesame bread, apple pie, chicken katsu sandwich, mentaiko sandwich, chocolate danish and milk france…1920 yen (tax included)

As we walked to JR Oji station, we stumbled upon a replica of the Nagasaki Peace Statue

Apparently the people who live in this part of Tokyo want to strive for peace in the world so they asked Kitamura Seibo, the sculptor who made the Nagasaki Peace Statue (and also an honorary citizen of this area of Tokyo) to make a replica for their ward.

It was blazing hot and humid but we were glad we got to see and do all that we did.

Donpey

2-2-5 Nishiogu

Arakawa, Tokyo

Closed Sundays

Hours: 11:00-13:30 (lunch), 17:30-20:30 (dinner)

*cash only

7797

Monday, after physical therapy, I went to Higashi Jujo to check out Sogetsu.

Apparently their dorayaki is one of the "big 3" in Tokyo

The other 2 are made by Usagiya and Kameju

Since I've tried the other 2, I wanted to try this one to compare.

They have been in business since 1930 and their dorayaki is called Kuromatsu…162 yen (tax included)

This was delicious but small!

and I thought it could’ve had a little more sweet bean paste in it.

Still glad I got to try this, I think Kameju is my favorite of the three.

I also bought Satoshi some dango (anko (sweet bean paste) and shoyu) because he doesn't really care for dorayaki…118 yen (tax included) each

And then I went one station over to Oji and bought some baked items from Meijido

It had been awhile since I was here.

Bought some things for my lunch as well as things for Satoshi’s “bento”

clockwise: curry pan, long vacation (a long hot dog), cheese burger, mentai france (spicy pollack roe and mayo), milk france (soft baguette filled with a butter sugar cream) and mini coronet (filled with chocolate cream)…1480 yen (tax included)

Before getting back on the train, I went to Asukayama Park to check out the hydrangea.

It had been awhile since I was here too

It was pretty but the flowering plants seemed sparse in some areas.

I overheard two women chatting, they said that the area was filled with people over the weekend...I guess it being a weekday and it drizzling, the amount of people was way less.

This white hydrangea area was new (to me)

I'm glad this place wasn't krazy like Kita Kamakura was.

Sogetsu

2-15-16 Higashijujo

Kita, Tokyo

Closed: Tuesdays

Hours: 10:00-18:00

21392

Have you travelled on the Toden Arakawa line? It's also called the Tokyo Sakura Tram and is the last tram/cable car in Tokyo which runs between Minowabashi and Waseda.

Since we had never rode on this line before, we wanted to check it out.

From where we live though neither Waseda nor Minowabashi is close by, so we decided to ride the line from Oji, which I've been to before , which is about the middle of the line and easy for us to access.

The interesting thing about this line is there are no wickets or ticket machines, so you need to charge your IC cards before hand or have change on hand.

The cars of the tram are rather squishy/narrow in comparison to the trains and subways around Tokyo and since they run on the roadways they need to follow the traffic signals.

From Oji, we rode until Higashi Ikebukuro and got off to check out the area.

I had been wanting to check out this area for some time.

Unfortunately, since it was January 2, a lot of places were closed for the holidays.

On top of that, the observatory area in the Ikebukuro Sunshine City building was closed for renovations too.

We wanted to have something with coffee so we checked out Mamemono to Taiyaki...round taiyaki filled with your choice of sweet bean paste, custard or an butter (sweet bean paste and butter)

I ordered the soft serve thinking it came with a taiyaki on top but it was only topped with a cookie...boo!

Satoshi had their tsubuan (chunky sweet bean paste) taiyaki...total 1550 yen (tax included)

I'm glad we tried this place.

After walking around we looked for lunch and decided on Romespa Balboa...a chain pasta place...

the regular size is a whopping 350 grams of pasta!

I chose the bokkake (beef tendon and konnyaku simmered in a sweet salty shoyu based sauce) and topped it with kim chee...loved this, the sweet, the salty, the beef was tender! 950 yen (tax included)

Satoshi had their mentaiko pasta with pickled takana (mustard greens) topping 900 yen (tax included)

It was huge and I thought I wouldn't be able to finish but I came pretty close and surprised Satoshi who also thought I would leave him more to finish.

After lunch we went to check out the Zoshigaya cemetery which has many Japanese historical figures as well as literary figures buried there.

We saw so many cats hanging out here too.

From Zoshigaya, we got back on the tram and went to the Waseda end of the line.

It was our first time to see the Waseda University campus...beautiful.

On the outskirt of Waseda University is Anahachimangu shrine that has a yabusame ceremony every October

Yabusame is where the horseman shoots arrows at a target while riding on the horse.

We then decided to walk to Takadanobaba...the only problem was that we realized a little to late that we were headed in the wrong direction and heading to Itabashi instead.

So we stumbled on Kagurazaka.

I love this area! so many shops and places to eat, definitely want to come back to this area.

My feet were so sore after this but it was good to walk off all that pasta and desserts.

More photos and videos, here if you are interested.

I hope you enjoyed this adventure as much as we did.

Mamemono to Taiyaki

Sunshine City Ikebukuro, Alpa B1

Closed when Alpa is

Hours: 10:30-21:00

Romespa Balboa

Sunshine City Ikebukuro, Alpa 3F

Closed when Alpa is

Hours: 11:00-22:00

p.s. today is a national holiday, Seijin no hi (Coming of Age Day)

sakura walk (akabane iwabuchi)

The backstory: On our way to Gunma, as the train crossed over the Arakawa (Ara River), I noticed a line of (bald) cherry trees that went as far as the eye could see.

After returning from our trip, I figured out where the spot was and then waited for cherry blossom season.

Fast forward to yesterday, I went to check it out and it didn't disappoint...there were even some shibazakura (moss phlox).

The line of cherry trees reminded me of Yawata, which we visited in the past.

The wind was icy but at least the sun was out and I'm glad it wasn't crowded.

Afterwards, I went to Oji Station and had lunch at Meijido.

Apparently, this bakery has been in business since 1889!

On the 2nd floor is their cafe.

You can eat your baked goods there (with purchase of a beverage), or order from their menu.

I had their butter pretzel (chewy and filled with butter!), tandoori cheese bread (loved the burnt cheese bits) & nut danish...everything was so good!

I also bought a half loaf of their sakura (cherry blossom) & matcha (green tea) patchwork bread for our breakfast today.

Not much walking on this day but I'm glad I got to visit this part of Tokyo.

Meijido
1-14-8 Oji
Kita, Tokyo
Phone: 03.3913.4662
Hours: 6:30-21:00
Closed Sundays