If you are visiting Japan, you most likely will come across the thousands of shrines and temples that Japan hold. At each shrine or temple, you can purchase an omamori and a fortune. An omamori is basically a lucky charm, special to that temple or shrine. Depending on the shrine or temple, they have lucky charms for different things. For example, if the shrine or temples deity relates to school or work, you may find charms related to success in school or work. If you are on a tour in Tokyo, a great place to get an omamori or fortune would be from Meiji Shrine or Sensoji Temple. Both are major shrines and temples in Tokyo and would be a great spot to get a fun little souvenir from Tokyo!

Photo credit: Japan Hoppers

Where to buy:

Meiji Shrine: 1-1 Yoyogikamizonocho, Shibuya City, Tokyo 151-8557

Sensoji Temple: 2 Chome-3-1 Asakusa, Taito City, Tokyo 111-0032

Tel: N/A

Website:

https://www.meijijingu.or.jp/

http://www.senso-ji.jp/

Hours:

Meiji Shrine: 5am - 6pm

Sensoji Temple: 6am - 5pm

Located in Kuramae, Tokyo, Neutral Gray offers some of the most durable yet lightest leather bags around. The secret lies within the amount of oil used in their light cow leather. The oil plays a key role in keeping the leather durable and thick, yet adjusted perfectly to make the leather nice and light to carry around. You’d have to carry one yourself to see how incredibly light these bags are, yet maintaining high quality and excellent leather.

Photo credit: Neutral Gray website

Where to buy: Rose Garden 101. 4-14-13, Kuramae Taito-ku Tokyo, 111-0051

Tel: 03-5809-2241

Website: https://neutralgray.jp/

Hours: Closed Mon-Wed, 12:00pm - 7:00pm

Ippodo tea hails from Kyoto and has been offering authentic Japanese green tea for over three centuries now. In 2010, Ippodo tea opened up a shop in Tokyo making it the first street front shop aside from their main branch in Kyoto. Here, you can experience Japanese green tea and see the depths of different types of green teas and enjoy the wide variations of flavors. Each flavor differs depending on how you prepare the leaves. They also feature a tea room where you order a tea set that comes with freshly brewed tea and traditional Japanese sweets.

Photo credit: Ippodo website

Where to buy: Kokusai Bldg. 1F 3-1-1 Marunouchi Chiyoda Ward, Tokyo 100-0005

Tel: +81-3-6212-0202

Website: https://www.ippodo-tea.co.jp/en/shop/marunouchi-tokyo.html

Hours: 11:00am - 7:00pm

Part exhibitions space, part store, you can find Japanese modern, contemporary, traditional ceramics and antiques at Kurodatouen. Setting up shop in 1935 right in the heart of Ginza, the shop is still owned by the Kuroda family. They have a wide variety of ceramics and and their collection is so vast that they opened another store in Shibuya more recently. Both the Ginza and Shibuya stores feature an exhibition space from rotating artists. Even if you aren’t going to purchase ceramics, it’s definitely a unique shop to step into to check out.

Photo credit: Kurodatouen website

Where to buy: 7-8-6 Ginza, Chuo, Tokyo JAPAN

Tel: +81-3-3571-3223

Website: https://kurodatouen.com/info?lang=en

Hours: Closed Mondays, 11:00am - 7:00pm

A very common staple food in Japanese dishes, miso soup is a basic soup familiar to the Japanese household. This traditional soup is made from dashi stock mixed with miso paste. Additionally, it is common to put in Japanese kelp, tofu and other seasonal ingredients of your choice inside.

They can be sold in instant packets or as a side dish a long with a traditional Japanese meal. It is normal to enjoy miso soup for any meal as some households will even have it for breakfast a long with rice and fish.

If you’d like to try miso soup at home, try making it at home! It’s nice and easy!

Video Credit to Tasty. Miso Soup instructions are from 1:27-2:44.

INGREDIENTS

• Dashi broth (360ml)

• 7oz of tofu

• 1/2 cup of snow peas (Can be substituted for your choice of veggies. I personally like onions or carrots!)

• 2oz enoki mushrooms (Again, it can be substituted with your choice of veggies)

• 2 tablespoons of miso paste

• A handful of Japanese wakame seaweed

Procedure

• Cut the tofu into cubes.

• Trim your snow peas (Or whatever veggies that you may have).

• Cut the ends of your enoki mushrooms off.

• In a pot, add your dashi and bring it to a boil. Then add your tofu, snow peas and mushrooms in and boil for 3 minutes. Add in your wakame seaweed into the soup while its boiling as well.

• Turn off your heat.

• Then, put your miso past in a small bowl and add some dashi inside.

• Dissolve the miso with the dashi by mixing

• Once dissolved, add this miso into your pot.

• Turn the heat back on and enjoy!

*How much dashi and miso you add in is up to you. It depends on how strong you want the taste to be! You can also use any veggies you wish to use.

Photo credit: Matcha Website

Recipe and procedure credits to Tasty

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#misosoup

A recent internet sensation that started appearing on YouTube were squishy toys from Japan. These super squishy toys, when pressed take some time to come back to it’s original form. When the toy is retracting back to it’s original form, it also makes a very subtle foamy noise which has been a big hit for ASMR sound recording videos. The squish toys have also been seen as a stress reliever for some people due to it’s unique feel when it’s squeezed. It also helps that they smell great! A bread shaped squeeze toy smells like you’re in a bakery! The harder you squeeze the more the scent is expelled out. Mooosh Squish in Harajuku specializes in these toys and sell the most popular squish toy brand Bloom.

Photo credit: Mooosh Squishy website

Where to buy: Stepin-Harajuku 1F, 1-16-7, Jingumae, Shibuya-Ku, Tokyo, 150-0001, Japan

Tel: 090-4705-8080

Website: https://i-bloom-squishy.com/english/

Hours: 10:00am - 6:30pm

Kit Kat is one of the most popular chocolate brands in Japan for several reasons. In Japanese, Kit Kat is pronounced Kitto Katsu which is an expression of good luck in Japan or literally “you will win”. It is often given to school children before a test as a good luck treat. Aside from this clever word play, Kit Kat also has over a hundred different flavors in Japan with some bizarre ones like wasabi, sake and pumpkin pudding to name a few! You can buy Kit Kat almost anywhere in Japan. Of course, you will come across the basic ones in supermarkets, but you can find far more varieties in Don Quijotes, select Bic Cameras and the Kit Kat Chocolatory stores for high-end expensive Kit Kats.

Photo credit: Time Out website

Where to buy:

Address for Kit Kat Chocolatory in Ginza: Oak Ginza Bldg.,3-7-2 Ginza, Chuo-ku Tokyo

or

Any Don Quijote Stores

Tel:

Ginza store: 03-6228-6285

Website:

https://nestle.jp/brand/kit/chocolatory/

https://www.donki.com/en/

Hours:

Kit Kat Chocolatory Ginza: 11:00am - 9:00pm

Ozu Washi has been serving Nihonbashi with their traditional Japanese paper since 1653. They sell a variety of different paper for decoration, gift wrappings, origami and different types of Japanese arts and crafts. Their top notch, high quality paper will make you realize why they have been around since 1653.

Photo credit: Jon Sheer

Where to buy: OzuHonkan Bldg., 3-6-2 Nihombashihoncho, Chuo-ku, Tokyo Japan

103-0023

Tel: +81 (0)3-3662-1184

Website: https://www.ozuwashi.net/en/

Hours: Closed Sundays, 10:00am - 6:00pm

Since ancient times, it was said that the sake production masters would have the most beautiful hands, thus sake for the skin was said to be beneficial. A recent boom in skincare has been taken over by sake products. Wafood made has a line of various sake cosmetic products such as face wash, lotion, cream and face masks all made from sake lees. Sake lees are the left overs from sake production and is said to wash away dullness to reveal smooth, moist skin. This face pack contains original sake extract from the Kawazu Sake Brewery in Kumamoto Prefecture. This unique face mask will help moisturize your skin and keep it silky smooth!

Photo credit: Don Quijote website

Where to buy: Any drugstores in Japan or Don Quijote Stores in Japan

Tel: N/A

Website: Don Quijote website

Hours: N/A

These superb quality towels has been leading the towel industry for over 120 years in Japan. The softness and ability to absorb water well has put its name in the books around the world and has also appeared in many exhibitions. The towels are produced in Imabari, Ehime Prefecture where they use the natural soft water nearby which is gentle to the yarn of the towel. Each towel goes through a 5 second test where if after 5 seconds, the towel sinks, then it passes.

Where to buy: 2F 203, 5-3-10, Minami-aoyama, minato-ku, Tokyo

〒 107-0062

Tel: ＋81-3-6427-2941

Website: https://www.imabaritowel.jp/en

Hours: Closed every 2nd Tuesday of the month, 11:00am - 7:30pm

Video Credits: Youtube