We chose a sleep-in rather than an early morning trek to the Tsukiji Fish Market for the tuna auctions. If we had gone, it would have meant a 3am wake-up call and we wouldn't have been guaranteed seeing it as only the first 120 people each day are allowed in.
So, a much more reasonable 8am alarm was set and we made our way to the Tsukiji Fish Market
. The market is a wholesale market for fish, fruits and vegetables in central Tokyo and is a very popular tourist attraction. It had been expected to move sites at the end of 2016 so we weren't sure we would see it in its current form. However, concerns about toxic soil at the new site has forced at least a 12-month delay and the market remains in its original position.
Within the "outer market" are many tiny restaurants that serve breakfast and lunch. The queues for these restaurants were long as many of them only seat 10-12 people at a time. We picked one that looked busy, but not too busy, and frequented by some locals and ordered some fatty tuna, lean tuna and salmon (all sashimi - raw) for brunch. It was delicious. The fatty tuna for which the Japanese are famous for, is my favourite.
We left the fish market and walked to Ginza, a famous shopping and entertainment district of Tokyo. Every high-end label is represented here and the lights and size of buildings is impressive
. We didn't do any shopping but enjoyed walking the streets and window shopping.
Next stop was Akihambara, also known as "Electric City"! Most shops and establishments are dedicated to anime and it is impossible to describe the lights, sights and sounds of this district. We went into a "Sega" store where every amusement machine was a "claw" or similar machine where you could win figurines and other collectables. Dad, I think there might be a market in some parts of Australia for these!! At 100yen per turn, we think it would have been much cheaper to just buy the figurines! We didn't go into any of the "maid cafes" but I have read that they are also hugely popular as the waitresses dress up as anime characters.
Dylan's cousins Matt had recently been to Japan and we noticed on his Facebook that he had gone go-karting around Tokyo dressed as a cartoon character from Mario Kart. It looked like heaps of fun and so we organised our International Drivers' Licences before we left Australia
. We had a booking at 2pm for the 3-hour course around Tokyo. Dylan dressed up as Luigi and I settled on Minnie Mouse (Princess Peach and Yoshi were my first picks but all their costumes had been taken).
This tour was CRAZY!! We drove around Tokyo, in the middle of ordinary traffic, in go-karts, dressed up in cartoon character outfits. We were treated like celebrities! Every traffic light we stopped at we were forced to smile and wave for the many locals and tourists who wanted to take our photo. We saw lots of the sights of Tokyo, albeit briefly, as we often drove in excess of 70km/hr. At one stage, my speedo couldn't go any further than the 100km/hr it was limited to!! We would highly recommend this tour as it was not only a bit of fun, but we got to see parts of Tokyo we wouldn't have ordinarily seen.
By the end of the tour, which had gone longer than expected due to Dylan's go-kart breaking down, we were cold and exhausted. A quick (but incredibly packed) train ride back to Shinjuku and we found a Japanese BBQ restaurant for dinner where we cooked our own steak pieces and had some salad, draught beer and white wine. Absolutely delicious but given we had skipped lunch, a visit to the local 7-11 was in order with dessert of chocolate chip cookies and a Snickers bar on order.
Another great day in Tokyo. Our faces are sore from smiling and our feet are sore from walking - only 9.4kms today. Disneyland tomorrow!
Love Lisa and Dylan x
Tsukiji, Ginza, Akihambara and Mario Kart Tour
Tuesday, April 04, 2017
Shinjuku-ku, 東京都, Japan
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Comments

2025-02-14
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Sam
2017-04-04
Sounds & looks like you're having an amazing time. Sending you both love xx
Rachel
2017-04-05
love the photos guys! Awesome outfits!
Sue Milligan
2017-04-05
Loved your post!! Keep enjoying Japan!!
helliecoughlin
2017-04-05
Looks like you are having a great time. Enjoy the rest of your trip. xx