World Travel – Japan Trip – Tokyo – Day Three

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So far, we have shared our two-week Japan Itinerary, our travel day and arrival, and our first full day in Tokyo… it’s been a lot and it’s only day three! On our second full day in Tokyo, we set out to make it much more relaxed and less crowded… at least, that’s how it started – keep reading to hear some lessons learned! Here’s everything we did on day three of our trip.

Tokyo Day Three

That morning, we woke up naturally early, so we decided to start the day by seeing what all the fuss is about when it comes to the famous Konbini in Japan (Japanese convenience stores).  In the US, if you tell people you ate lunch or dinner from a convenience store like 7/11, they may think, “Oh gosh, I hope you don’t get sick”. In Japan, eating at places like 7/11, Family Mart, and Lawson’s is common and highly esteemed. Many foods you can purchase at a Konbini have gone viral on social media and created high expectations for us. 

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Konbini Favorites

Finally, we were here in person to try it, and it did not disappoint! We tried the famous egg sandwich and loved it.  The sushi was unbelievably fresh and delicious.  The crepes were lovely, and trying different flavored chips and drinks we had never heard of was fun.  Overall, the Konbini are worth the hype, and we suggest you try everything! We also loved the noodle bowls and the fried chicken tenders – to the point that we had them on hand daily for snacks in our room. Luckily, an excellent Family Mart was located directly across the street from our hotel – Hotel Sunroute Plaza Shinjuku. Another perk to our hotel location! It was a rainy morning, so we also purchased umbrellas that we used for the entire rest of the trip! 

Since we were up early, we looked at our Tokyo Google Map, where we had pinned about 50 things we were interested in seeing. We knew we wouldn’t see it all since we only had a few days in Tokyo. We decided to pick something a little more zen than the intensely crowded Shibuya/ Shinjuku area from the day before and chose to go to our first shrine. 

Gotokuji Temple

We were thrilled to arrive at the train station and see almost no people on a Saturday morning! We boarded the nearly empty train and headed to our first stop of the day – Gotokuji Temple.  

Gotokuji Temple, located less than 30 minutes by train in the Setagaya ward of Tokyo, is a Buddhist temple that is said to be the birthplace of the maneki-neko, or “luck-inviting cat figurine.” These small statues, which portray a cat sitting up and beckoning with its front paw, have become quite popular with cat lovers worldwide and are a symbol of Asian culture. Although many kinds of maneki-neko raise their right or left paws, Gotokuji Temple specializes in the right-pawed version of this good-luck symbol.

Gotokuji Temple legend states that during the early 17th century, Ii Naotaka (then the second lord of the Omi-Hikone Domain) escaped from being caught in a sudden thunderstorm after being invited inside the temple by a cat that lived there. To show his gratitude to the cat, Naotaka decided to dedicate the temple to the Ii clan. After Naotaka passed away, the temple was renamed to Gotokuji, after his posthumous Buddhist name, “Kyushoin-den Gotokuten ei-daikoji.” The cat was later said to bring good fortune, and it was called “shou-fuku byou-ji” or “maneki-neko.” Ever since, Gotokuji Temple has been filled with lucky cat figurines donated by worshippers.

Gotokuji is a beautiful and quiet temple outside Tokyo’s noisy center. It is the perfect stop for any cat lover interested in Japanese culture and history. Even by the end of our trip, this one remains one of our favorites. 

Purchase a Lucky Cat

Visitors can purchase omikuji (Japanese fortunes) and cat figurines in various sizes inside the temple. Of course Mark and I purrchased cat figurines!  Previously, visitors to Gotokuji would often buy a cat figurine, make a wish or pray for good luck, and then leave it at the temple. However, now guests are encouraged to take the cat figurine home and keep it until the wish or prayer is fulfilled. Afterward, it is advised that the cat figurine be returned to Gotokuji and placed at the temple to give thanks. We hope our wishes come true and we can return our cats to the temple someday. 

Temple Grounds

Although the Lucky cats are the main focus of Gotokuji Temple, there are many other things to see.

Near the back of the temple grounds is a small cemetery containing a small piece of history. Gotokuji Temple’s cemetery is said to hold the remains of the Ii clan, the family that brought the temple its fortune.  Japanese cemeteries are an interesting part of the culture that isn’t commonly mentioned. They can be challenging to visit as a tourist in Japan because they are often locked, or you need to be able to read the language—luckily, we used Google Lens to read signs!

The grounds of Gotokuji Temple are serene and beautiful. It’s an excellent example of traditional Japanese architecture paired with well-tended gardens and a peaceful atmosphere.

It is worth a side trip from Tokyo’s more congested and touristy areas to visit this calm space in the middle of the big city. We recommend going in the morning. It is a unique experience that we enjoyed. After all, there was no way we could go to Japan without visiting a “Lucky Cat” Shrine! 

After our morning zen moment at Gotokuji Temple, we boarded the train and decided to check out Yoyogi Park to see if any Sakura (cherry blossoms) were starting to bloom yet. Spoiler alert – they were not, LOL!

Yoyogi Park

Yoyogi Park is a 133-acre park near Harajuku and the Meiji Shrine in Shibuya, Tokyo. The park is a popular Tokyo destination and is a gathering place for Japanese cosplayers, and other subculture and hobby groups along with those who seek nature and athletics in the middle of a busy city.

Thousands of people visit the park to enjoy the cherry blossoms during hanami in spring. The landscaped park has picnic areas, bike paths, cycle rentals, public sports courts, and a dog run. We saw many people walking their adorable dogs and just strolling along in the drizzling Tokyo rain. This year’s weather stayed colder for longer than normal, so unfortunately, they were having a late blooming year. We hadn’t seen any Sakura yet, but we saw the start of spring in Japan!

The rain let up a little, so we stopped at the park’s concession stand. We enjoyed Pork Buns, Japanese chip flavors, sake, and a delicious peach drink while watching the world walk by. (look how happy Mark is <3)

Meiji Shrine

Our next stop was just next door to Yoyogi Park: Meiji Shrine.

Meiji Shrine is a Shinto shrine in Shibuya, Tokyo, dedicated to the deified spirits of Emperor Meiji and his wife, Empress Shōken. It was established in 1920 to commemorate the virtue of Emperor Meiji and Empress Shoken, who took the initiative to make a foundation of modernized Japan. 

Meiji Shrine is located in a forest that covers an area of 70 hectares (170 acres). This area is covered by an evergreen forest of 120,000 trees of 365 species, donated by people from all parts of Japan when the shrine was established. Many visit the forest as a recreation and relaxation area in the center of Tokyo. The Torii Gate entrance to the shrine complex leads through the Jingu Bashi Bridge. At Shinto shrines in Japan, the torii demarcates the dividing line between profane and sacred spaces. At the Meiji Jingu Shrine,  two immense wooden torii gates — the largest in Japan — are made of cypress wood and are over 1600 years old. 

As you walk towards Meiji Shrine, you pass vast displays of Sake and wine barrels. Mark loves Sake, and I love wine, so we knew we were on the right path – and it’s such an exciting story! Check out the photos for the full stories on why they are there.  

Once we reached the shrine, the blue sky started to appear, and the rain finally stopped altogether. We witnessed a wedding ceremony too!  This Shrine was a bit more crowded than we would have liked, so we looked around, showed our respects, and headed off to find another snack.  It was time to return to Harajuku and eat the rainbow in the middle of an even bigger crowd.

Rainbow Food in Harajuku

As I mentioned earlier, we have seen many viral social media trends in Japan, and one of them that always caught my eye was the food and treats in Harajuku—primarily the rainbow food. Also, one of my favorite comfort foods is grilled cheese, so when I saw Le Shiner in Harajuku serves rainbow grilled cheese, it became a must-try.  

First, I must say that Japan’s bread is at the next level.  It didn’t matter if it was a sandwich, boa bun, or dessert; it was always delicious.  That said, this was one of the best-grilled cheese sandwiches of my life.  Not only was it epically pretty, an incredible memory, and super cheap – it was so good! Despite all the fancy colors, it just tasted like cheese! But you can tell from the photos that it was SUPER busy on a Saturday afternoon, so we decided to take a break, head back to the hotel for a bit, and reset before deciding how to spend a Saturday night in Tokyo.

Saturday Night in Shinjuku

Remember, Mark and I have some social anxiety and aren’t nightlife types, so this was almost too much to handle at times. We have never seen so many people, places, and things happening on a Saturday night, and we doubt we will ever see anything like it again. Everything you have ever heard about Tokyo nightlife is probably true. It was truly wild and overwhelming yet also chaotic magic.  

We decided to check an item off our Google Maps list and find “Godzilla”. Godzilla can be found 50 meters above Kabukicho Street on top of Hotel Gracery in Shinjuku.  He spews smoke and mist and has glowing red eyes with special music and sound effects that go off every hour on the hour. He wasn’t hard to find and is even cooler after sunset.  Pretty sure you can’t go to Japan and NOT see Godzilla – it gave me goosebumps and made me laugh all in one. 

The sheer magnitude of restaurants and places to eat is mind-blowing, and we were quickly losing steam and knew we needed to eat and take a break from the crowds. So we randomly picked a place we knew nothing about and merely chose it because it didn’t have a line— and it was something we had wanted to try—Katsu! 

Suzuya Shinjuku

Suzuya Shinjuku Honten is located on the fifth floor of the Suzuya Building on Kabukicho. This intimate and thankfully quiet restaurant has unbelievable views of the busy streets below and flashing billboards all around. It was a welcome escape from the chaos outside, and the meal was wonderful! We both tried Katsu (pork cutlet) for the first time, and they gave us a great first impression. 

Travel Lessons Learned

Once again, we probably should have headed back to the hotel after this but decided we’d try to find one more hotspot on our list… that’s when technology failed us.  Another lesson learned – when you have had a great day and are tired, head back and sleep; otherwise, your brain stops working, and you get lost on a Saturday night in Tokyo, LOL! Thankfully, we weren’t lost very long, and it just caused us to walk a few extra blocks, but we happily stumbled across another Shinjuku icon – the 3-D Cat billboard! 

Bright lights and countless billboards are some of the first things that come to mind when you think of busy areas such as Shibuya or Shinjuku. While the large-screen billboards are eye-catching all over the city, they don’t compare to the high-tech billboard attached to Cross Shinjuku Vision, located across from Shinjuku Station’s east exit. 

The digital billboard spans three floors and stands out from the rest as it features a curved LED screen, which can display 4K images and is accompanied by speakers. The curved screen allows for more depth and can also help create a jaw-dropping 3D effect. You’ve probably seen viral footage of these 3D screens where the ads seem to jump off the screen, and it is truly amazing in person – plus cats, duh!

At this point, we had walked almost 20 miles, and the sensory overload was real! We finally smartened up, listened to our bodies, and returned to our hotel to reset, recharge, and eat all the yummy snacks we had stockpiled in our room. After all, we still had twelve days to go! Thanks for reading, and stay tuned as I continue to share the day-by-day details of this trip of a lifetime! 

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