Day 6: Asakusa 浅草

This was our last full day in Tokyo and we decided to go to some traditional Japanese tourist areas such as Kaminarimon (雷門) in Asakusa.  When tourists go to Asakusa, one common destination is Senso-ji (金龍山浅草寺), an ancient Buddhist temple.  We first took the JR train and transferred to the Tokyo Metro subway to get to Asakusa station.  When walking out to the exit, we saw a display of the mikoshi which is used during the Sanja Festival (三社祭). 

Mikoshi display in side the Asakusa Station

Kaminarimon, Nakamise-dōri and Senso-ji.

The entrance to Senso-ji is through Kaminarimon, a gate entrance with a gigantic red and black paper lantern.  Between Kaminarimon and Senso-ji is a street called Nakamise-dōri (仲見世通り) which is a pedestrian street leading up to the Senso-ji.  This street is full of small shops that sell various toys, accessories, souvenirs and traditional snacks.  Japanese people are very considerate and generally suggest people to follow a rule when buying snacks in this street.  When you buy snacks which you need to finish eating on the spot, you basically stand beside the shop you bought it from and finish it before continuing your way.  We visited quite a few shops and watched how some of the traditional snacks were made.  It's almost impossible to make your way down this street without getting something to eat and of course we had several.

Kibi-dango

One of the snacks we tried was called Kibi-dango (できたて きびだんご). These were traditional snacks that were available on this street since the Edo period of Japan. Kibi is millet powder. This snack is like a millet dumpling which made from kibi and sweet rice into several small balls, which are then coated in kinako, or soybean flour.

Age-manju & Ningyo-yaki

We also tried another snack called age-manju (deep-fried bean buns) which we saw lots of people were lining up for. The outside is made from rice flour so it was sort of chewy and mochi-like, on the inside is a puree of different flavours such as red bean, black sesame and more. It also comes with a cup of iced Matcha. It is almost like a 2 for 1 deal and no wonder so many people were lining up there. 

We also found a shop with more than 20 flavours of soft ice-creams and of course we had to have one in this hot weather.  I got the chestnut flavor which tasted great but my sister got the grape flavor which was awful. We also got a pack of Ningyo-yaki (人形焼).  These are freshly made doll-shaped cakes made from a batter of flour, eggs and sugar in an iron mold.  They looks pretty interesting but tasted so-so.

Reference Link:

Asakusa Nakamise (仲見世について)