A story with a mini-town guide by a fictional Tokyo couple.
They strolled around "Yanesen" and "Asakusa" areas in Tokyo, which are gaining popularity for being one of the few places still retaining a retro townscape with a rich historical ambiance.
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The couple recently started living together and headed out the Kappabashi Kitchen Street to look for some cookware for their new home. There are about 170 shops that span about a half mile. Kappabashi is known as “the best kitchen utensil district in Japan” and often attracts professional chefs from Japan and the world as well as foodies like this couple.
The old Japanese-house cafe where they take a coffee break used to be a historic rice store. Tokyo is the most cutting-edge city, but it develops current culture while a nostalgic atmosphere can also be felt in areas that create communities that repair and preserve. That was why they preferred to settle in this neighborhood.
They stopped by a cake shop in a renovated 115-year-old wooden building that used to be a liquor shop to buy some gifts for friends. In this small shop in a backstreet, simple treats such as puddings and cream puffs with the taste of fresh ingredients are lined up and are so popular they sell out every day.
At the end of the shopping street, at the top of a long sloping staircase called "Yuyake-dan-dan," is their favorite meeting spot after work. Tonight is the day they go out for a little pre-holiday date! .
YaNeSen, which is the nickname for the Yanaka, Nezu, and Sendagi neighborhoods, has been an area dating back to the Edo Period with a mix of many temples, residences of great writers, and some of the oldest shrines. It’s a neighborhood full of nostalgia and tradition. A small izakaya pub in the backstreets here is their destination tonight.
The couple stroll around the night scenery at the foot of the Azuma Bridge connecting the two major new and old tourist attractions of the Tokyo Sky Tree and Asakusa Temple at each end. But really, they’re letting each other know what gifts they want for this holiday season.
