We raced from the train station with the thoughts that we have probably missed the festival, until we stepped onto the soaring walkway. We were greeted by the rhythmic dum  dum dum of drums not only in our ears but we could feel every percussion through the concrete. We shared a glance and both smiled, they are still here! 

The darkness festival or Kurayami Matsuri happens during Golden week in Tokyo at Okunitama-jinja every year for the last almost 1000 years, which people carry around mini shrines in the dark. 

Nostalgia galore, Justin was in heaven seeing all the life size models of Nintendo characters. We also came across a One Piece and studio Ghibli shop in PARCO. I think I finally understand the excitement when people talk about going to Disneyland when we were seeing all the themed merchandise of our favourite games and shows. 

As a foodie, I could not miss the fluffy pancakes Japan is widely well known for. After much research, I settled on Happy Pancakes in Shibuya. They have a lot of locations throughout the cities.  I was pumped for a towering stack of impossibly fluffy pancakes served with a dollop of butter and a drizzle of maple syrup. Justin got the Strawberry set and I got the signature. 

As a fervent cat lover and avid traveler, my visit to Tokyo wouldn't have been complete without experiencing one of its most unique attractions - the renowned cat cafes. Nestled amidst the bustling streets of Japan's capital, these cozy havens offer a delightful blend of relaxation, companionship, and feline charm. They have spaced out times so the cats aren't too overwhelmed by visitors. Once you put on your temporary slides and grab a drink they let in you in the cat area. 

I saw this Shabu restaurant on one of the Japan bloggers Instagram and I knew we had to make a trip here. Total Kawaii cuteness overload. This shabu (think hot pot) restaurant does individual pots and the broth to start your meal is in the shape of a bear (kuma-chan) as if he was in an onsen (japanese hot springs). You order your set of veggies, meat and then flavour of your bear for your broth. They showed us how to turn on the elements built into the table but said to take as many photos before hand as kumachan would melt pretty fast. 

We couldn't pass up going to the limited time Pokemon high tea, since the regular Pokemon themed cafe is honestly harder to get a reservation to then the Met Gala.  The first couple courses of the meal weren't quite to my liking, but the dessert course was adorable. White chocolate pops and mango parfait were my highlights. 

 After a bit of a sleep in from the night before at Ninja Tokyo, we headed out to soak up the traditional side of Tokyo. Meiji Shrine is a Shinto shrine in Shibuya, it's dedicated to the deified spirits of Emperor Meiji and his wife, Empress Shōken.  

 After spending the afternoon in Akihabara playing way way too many claws machines and losing more money then I care to recall, we stepped into Tokyo Ninja. Ok in all honesty it wasn't that easy to find Tokyo Ninja. 

Since its supposed to be a "Ninja hideout" the front door is barely marked at all. Wandered around for a solid 15 mins trying to find it. 

 Akihabara, a true paradise for the Otaku and gaming fans where pixels come to life and virtual world collide. No, I'm not joking. Everything you've seen in animes, manga and games takes physical form in Akihabara. There's more figure stores than I could count. 

Right behind and to the right of Senso Ji is a little shopping area, this is where you'll find the best and biggest Melon Pan in your life. Melonpan is a type of Japanese sweetbun is made from an enriched dough covered in a thin layer of crisp cookie dough. Their appearance resembles a melon. Because of their light sweetness, soft inside and crunchy outside I could eat these buns all day long and not get sick. 

Sensō-ji, is an ancient Buddhist temple in Asakusa. It is Tokyo's oldest-established temple, and one of its most significant. It is dedicated to Kannon, the bodhisattva of compassion.

I'd like to say its a tranquil temple compared to the chaos of Tokyo around it but its not. Not because the amount of tourists although that helps with the chaos but because of the shops that line the path from the gate to the main hall. 

 After thoroughly stuffing our faces at the Niku Fes with meat we headed over to the Diver City. In front of the mega shopping complex on the Tokyo bay stands a life size unicorn Gundam statue at 110 ft tall. (about 7 stories high)

 This was honestly a big top pick for Justin. Niku Fes is a meat festival of the best beef in Japan, it happens during golden week. 

The whole ticket system for the niku fes was a bit complicated but once we got it figured out we bought a couple normal grades, a few premiums, and two desserts ones. Justin had spotted those strawberries on sticks we had to try. We later found out they are called Tanghulu. Not only were they the so delicious, they were the most ripe strawberries I've had since I was a child doing u-pick back home. 

 After a rather jammed packed first day in Japan we were looking forward to relaxing and getting doted on a little bit at the river cruise. We took the shuttle to the Tokyo bay docks then waited in the sitting area. Once it was our time to get on the boat, they of course made up take off their shoes as the cooking/sitting area in the boat was all tatami mates. We quickly realized we were the only foreigners on the boat and the staff looked a little concerned, properly wondering how in the world did a foreigner find out about the boat cruises they do. haha. They were very polite and still served us very well. 

A couple years ago I stumbled across this show on Netflix while I was browsing the categories. I clicked on Kantaro: The Sweet Tooth Salaryman on Netflix. It looked like the right amount of weirdness and complete "what the hell is going on." kind of show I needed that day. Boy, was I was right.  It’s basically a sitcom crossed with a food/travel show, all filtered through a lens of grade-A Japanese weirdness. You need to add it to your show list if that sounds up your alley. 

In the first episode Kantaro goes to Hatsune and gets a delicious and out of this world treat, which looks like the commendation of everything Japanese. I immediately added it to my bucket list. 

 First full day in Tokyo! Since the Sakura blossoms came quite early this year, I was determined to see some Wisteria plants since they bloom later and are still a treasured flower in Japan although not as internally known as Sakura. I scoped out Kameido Tenjin as they have a wisteria festival every year to celebrate the amazing purple flowers. Alas, they also came early and were particularly gone when we walked into the shrine. They still have some festivities going on and I know at night the food stalls and lights lighting up flowers would have been a spectacle to see. We enjoyed some traditional singing and then accepted our fate and headed to eat some shiratama ogura anmitsu. 

Guesthouse Toco has been on my list since my last Japan trip over 8 years ago! I honestly never thought a place that has been on my list for that long I would actually get to stay there, but it paid off keeping a Japan bucketlist after I missed it on my first trip. 

 Once we dropped our bags at the Toco house hostel we went out for our first adventure in Tokyo. Well who am I kidding just getting to Tokyo and our hostel was an adventure and a half.