Thought-process

It was a memorable first trip to Japan in 2025.

I visited one of the most scenic places in Japan – Yokohama, and we stayed in the best part of the city – Minato Mirai 21 at the Intercontinental Yokohama Grand. Because Tathagat, my husband, was invited as a Haematologist, I happily tagged along!

We landed at the Haneda International airport, Tokyo, early in the morning and had to wait for other invitees to arrive before we could leave for Yokohama. So, we had a couple of hours to catch up on sleep, freshen up and have breakfast at Tully’s at the airport. The wonderful thing was that the washrooms at the airport were truly 5 star and the TOTO toilet was a revelation to me!

As we left the airport, I spotted the majestic snow-covered Mt Fuji. I mostly slept through the 40 min drive to the Intercontinental Yokohama Grand hotel which is located in the Minato Mirai area. The name Minato Mirai means the Harbour of the Future and the buildings around us did have a futuristic look. We were staying right next to the bay and the 70-storied Landmark tower and opposite Cosmo World.

Since we could check in only at 3 pm, we deposited our luggage with the concierge and took off for Shibuya, a famous ward (area) in Tokyo, known for the famous Shibuya Scramble Crossing, besides being a commercial hub.

We walked to the Minato Mirai underground station which lies under two huge malls, Landmark and Queen’s Square which in the next couple of days became my go-to place. In less than an hour we were at Shibuya. The subway station opened close to the Hachiko (the dog) statue and the Shibuya crossing. There was a long queue for getting to Hachiko but I did not mind. Hachiko’s story had moved me since I was a kid, but never had I thought I would be able to be at the spot where he waited years for his loved one to return. Next to the Hachiko statue is the sculpture of hope showing tiny tots happily playing on a bronze statue of the Earth.

A short distance away is the Shibuya Scramble Crossing and it is certainly something to watch. Hundreds of people crossing at the same time without any difficulty. Crowds are not unknown to us from India. What was new was the discipline. As the traffic lights changed, people moved without dashing into one another.

This area of Shibuya is a business and retail area where I was surrounded by very interesting hoardings, colourful designs and swanky buildings. A little walk away was the famous stationary store, Loft, and I was lost in it for quite some time and also spoilt for choices. We had food at Bio Cafe, a vegan restaurant though we had to work hard to communicate exactly what we required. The menu was entirely in Japanese and the staff did not understand English.

We returned to our hotel around sunset and our room on the 18^th floor had the best view I could have imagined. Right ahead was the Yokohama Cosmo World which is a theme park and it has one of the world’s tallest Ferris wheels known as Cosmo Clock 21. As the sky darkened, the lights of the Cosmo World lit up and what a sight it was! Our hotel is beautifully designed like white sails of a yacht located in the magnificent bay area with its scenic waterfront, skyscrapers, huge malls, the Osanbasi pier and the old warehouse and the port.

The next day we wandered around, crossing Cosmo World which was full of activity with its Ferris wheel and merry go rounds filled with laughter. A little ahead was the 4-masted sailing ship, Nippon Maru, known as the Swan of the Pacific, now dry docked and turned into a museum. We followed the scenic path through the Kishamichi promenade which has three bridges and a well-laid out park, and turned into World Porters, a huge shopping mall.

After getting lost in this dazzling area and purchasing enough KitKats for friends and family, I walked to the Red Brick Warehouse which is a thriving retail place now but was once the Customs Office. The name remains, connecting it to its origins, where goods shipped from the western world would be unloaded here, stored and inspected here before being transported to the other regions of the country. The Yokohama Strawberry festival was in full swing here and we enjoyed some strawberry ice-cream and strawberry shake before having a sumptuous meal inside one of the restaurants at the Warehouse. This is located right next to the Pacific Ocean and it was a treat to watch the shimmering blue of the ocean and the azure sky with ships in the horizon. In the evening, we took a walk in the Queen’s Square mall next to our hotel and had dinner at the Landmark Plaza.

Next day we decided to visit Tokyo’s oldest Buddhist temple, Senso-ji at Asakusa, Tokyo. We took a local train unfortunately, and we reached Asakusa in 3 hours. This train stopped at every station and I understood that we needed to study the type of trains we should take. We finally reached the Senso-ji temple and it is beautiful. The tall pagoda and the two gates were magnificent. The lane from the outer gate to the inner gate is lined by shops just like in India, only cleaner and less noisy, though it is crowded with people. We bought some biscuits, sweets and candies from these shops. It is worth spending time looking at these shops selling interesting merchandise and eatables.

From here we walked to the well-known café, Hatoya, famous for its matcha tea. We decided to have cappuccino and mochi since we are not big fans of matcha. We then walked towards the Sumida Park next to the Sumida river and watched as the sun set and the Tokyo Sky tree lit up. This is the third tallest structure in the world and is an observation and broadcasting tower. Right next to the Sky tree are the iconic buildings of the Asahi beer headquarters.

Since we had quite an adventure while coming to Asakusa, we decided to leave with enough time, just in case. This time we travelled via Ueno to Yokohama and then to Minato Mirai in less than an hour!! Had dinner at the Landmark Plaza (Wolfgang and Puck).

The next day in the morning, I walked to the Yokohama Museum of Art and it was a couple of hours well spent. The depiction of Yokohama by artists who had spent time here was quite interesting. Paintings of this port city and its origins were especially attractive.

We left for another walk in the afternoon. This time we took the Yamashita Rinko line promenade and we walked by the ocean, crossing the Red brick warehouse, by the Osanbashi pier and to the Yamagata park. The Yamagata Park has the Drinking Fountain which was gifted to the city by the Indian community living here for the help they received from the Japanese during the aftermath of the Great Kanto Earthquake in 1923. The Ocean Liner, Hikawa Maru like the Nippon Maru, is now a ship museum docked next to the the Yamagata Park.

The Pacific ocean, the ships, the port terminal, the clear blue sky, the smooth road, lack of noise, all of this combined led to a feeling of contentment. We returned taking another route, crossing the City Hall, Museum of Cultural History and the Customs Building (also known as the Queen’s Tower) with its iconic turquoise dome. Returned back to the hotel in time for dinner and packed up for our journey back home the next day.

Next morning we left for Haneda airport at 8 am. We touched down on Indira Gandhi International Airport, New Delhi at 5.30 pm in the evening.

Wait, that is not all about Japan. I visited the country again. Watch this space!