08/05/2018 A day out on the last remaining street car line in Tokyo. Part 5, Koshinzuka to Arakawa-shakomae station.

After enjoying a step back in time exploring a traditional Tokyo shopping street and buying some old style rice cracker biscuits we returned to Koshinzuka station and caught the next streetcar to Arakawa-shakomae for a brief stop to see the rose bush lined tracks and the main depot for the Toden-Arakawa line. The tram we caught was a new car decorated to echo very early streetcar design and we saw a couple of genuine old trams parked up in a little display next to the depot.
We broke open the rice crackers for a snack and very tasty they were too.

08/05/2018 A day out on the last remaining street car line in Tokyo. Part 4, Sugamo Jizo-Dori (The "Old Ladies Harajuku")

After getting off the tram at Koshinzuka station and crossing the tracks we saw the colourful gateway to Sugamo Jizo Dori just a few yards away, passing the entrance to a small shinto shrine on the left as we approached this popular shopping street.
Sugamo Jizo Dori is an old style Tokyo shopping street supposedly popular with old people for it's accessibility, cheap prices, traditional snacks, healing Buddhist statue and lucky red underpants!!!
It was lined with some cafes and restaurants but mostly retail outlets and traditional food stalls selling snacks and sweets etc.
First we stopped at a nice cafe and enjoyed good coffee and a sandwich for lunch, a quick snack so as to allow more time for exploring and strolling in this colourful place. It isn't a street frequented by overseas visitors as far as I could see, it is a street with many attractions for Tokyo people.
The shops are selling comfortable clothing aimed at older people rather than the high fashion seen in trendier areas hence the nickname " Old Person's Harajuku" or " Old Ladies harajuku" plus the snacks and candy on sale seem very traditional  and nostalgic.
This street has a Buddhist Temple about half way along which opens onto the pavement , another reason for Sugamo's success as this temple is very popular for it's "healing" statue. Plus there are also the  famous " Aka-pantsu" stores .... shops selling red underpants for both sexes along with red socks and other bright red undergarments, these are supposed to bring good luck to the wearer.
We walked the length of the street in both directions enjoying some traditional rice crackers as a snack. It really is like stepping back in time a few decades and experiencing an older less touristy Tokyo.
Please click on the images once and then a second time to view in full detail.

08/05/2018 A day out on the last remaining street car line in Tokyo. Part 3 Omokagebashi to Koshinzuka

After a very pleasant and peaceful stroll around Kansen-en garden, the exit left us close to the next station on the line rather than the Waseda terminal, being an old tram line the stations are often close together. So we rejoined the tram at Omokagebashi station which was also in the middle of a busy road and traveled along the line back through Higashi-Ikebukuro and onto Koshinzuka station which was where the next destination of our exploration of less well trodden Tokyo was located.
It's a very interesting view from the windows as you travel plus a lot of the track has been lined with rose bushes to brighten things up after the sakura has finished.

08/05/2018 A day out on the last remaining street car line in Tokyo. Part 2 Waseda Terminal Station and an Edo era garden.

We decided to first take the tram from Higashi-Ikebukuro a few stops to one end of the line in Waseda where there is the terminal station. A guide leaflet seemed to indicate that there was a garden close by the Waseda University that should be worth exploring. It was a dull and cloudy day with a constant threat of rain but luckily it held off and stayed dry most of the time. We bought 400 yen day passes from the driver as we boarded the tram, it was busy with students heading to the University campus in Waseda so standing room only. It trundles along at a slow-ish pace and you can see plenty of Tokyo passing by through the windows, parts of the track are exclusive for the trams passing between various buildings but other sections pass along roads and Waseda Terminal Station is in the middle of a busy road. Waseda was bustling with students , it was lunchtime and they were queuing at popular restaurants or strolling across campus, we strolled around a little before finding what looked like an old garden next to a shrine. It turned out to be Kansen-en Park an Edo era garden dating from the 1770s in a classic style with a gourd shaped pond and a fake mountain at one end, it's name means something like Sweet Water apparently because a natural spring of good water filled the ponds.