Romana and I spent three days in Tokyo. We explored the Shinjuku area and met up with a friend for beers, spent a day in Koto City at an onsen complex, and visited Tsukiji Fish Market. Food was eaten and fun was had!

Day 2 of our three-day trip to Tokyo

Ramen brunch

We rose and headed out to get to an onsen (spa) village that Romana wanted to try out. On the way we stopped at Yasubee Shinjuku, a ramen place that apparently is quite famous. It was busy and there were suitcases outside. You need to order from a machine and thankfully one of the helpers helped us. I imagine the machine helps this place get people in and out with minimum fuss and efficiency… until the foreign tourists arrive! Anyway, bloody great ramen!

Onsen

I don’t recall how exactly we got to Odaiba Ōedo-Onsen Monogatari spa; I do remember it was a bit of a pain as there wasn’t an easy bus to take. Anyway, we got there! It’s a huge building and requires a process to get in. Queuing and separating into men and women. You also get a wristband that you use inside instead of cash and credit cards. Then you change into Japanese robes before you enter into the ‘village’ area.

This inside area is made to look like a Japanese village. There are lots of stalls and places to sit that serve food and beer. We did the right thing and got beers. I went to the sauna for a bit (the naked area, men or women only) which was refreshing. There was one other white person in there and, of course, we locked eyes for a second; always good to bond when you’re naked in a sauna…

I met Romana again after and we went outside. The garden has places to sit and paddle in heated streams, and lots of places for cute photo ops. Getting out was also a process, making sure we paid for our wristband purchases. I thought it was an interesting experience. Unfortunately, as of writing this in March 2022, it seems it is permanently closed.

Odaiba

The onsen was on an artificial island called Odaiba. The surrounding area is home to some river and seaside parks and attractions on Odaiba. We wandered around talking photos in the coming dusk. The highlight for me was the giant Gundam statue. We took the Tokyo Teleport train back into Shinjuku (can’t remember if we had to change, and maybe this was how we got in!).

Ryuu-no-su yakiniku

We wandered around the Shinjuku area looking for the Japanese version of grilled meat, yakiniku. We found Ryuu-no-su , there was only space to sit outside, which in this case was a shame since izakayas are meant to be cosy indoor spaces! It looked like and interesting inside and I really wanted a counter-side seat, but no joy. Perhaps we didn’t order right or neglected to get side dishes, but we were still hungry after.

Sashimi izakaya

Still hungry, we wandered up one of the street to a lively izakaya that seemed to serve sashimi. It was going to close soon so we were lucky to get in. It was bust and full of well lubricated punters. Also, finally, a counter seat! One of the dishes was stuffed chicken wings which looked a bit like testicles. Anyway, loved this place and hope it survived the pandemic.

I can’t find it on Google Maps, but there’s a Street View photo of in on the map. I’ve labelled it Sashimi Izakaya on the map below as I can’t translate the name. The whole street is full of food.

Places visited this trip (click the ‘door’ icon to see a list):