This year’s Flowers by Naked (at the same Coredo venue that hosts Art Aquarium during the summer) was better than last year but not as engaging as the first year I saw it. The art of projection mapped animation has taken such huge strides in three years that it kind of amazes me how wowed I wasContinueContinue reading “Flowers By Naked 2019”
Tag Archives: Awesome Stuff To Do
A Prickly Day At The Hedgehog Cafe
Turn down the volume on your squee-meter, unless you want to lose a little more of your hearing! Check out the little prickle monsters you can snuggle up with at Tokyo’s new Hedgehog Cafe… Okay, snuggle might not be quite the right word. As you can see, they’re not exactly covered in fluff The reason it’s called theContinueContinue reading “A Prickly Day At The Hedgehog Cafe”
Wading Through A Sea Of Stars & Flowers
It was the last day of the DMM Planets attraction out in Odaiba today, but if you missed your chance to roll up your pants & wade around in a cloud-like sea of flowers and goldfish with a kerbillion and a half other people, here’s what it was like: My favorite part of the thing, though, was the CrystalContinueContinue reading “Wading Through A Sea Of Stars & Flowers”
The Waterfall Made Of Light
Summer illuminations at Tokyo Midtown delivering all the goodness! This waterfall made of animated LEDs is conveniently paired with a pop-up mojito stand, so you can ooh and ah at the light-up while getting lit up yourself. Which would you rather do: Enjoy the serenity of a cascading river while sipping a cocktail? Or swat mosquitoes while smearing on blister cream after a pesky hike? Naturally,ContinueContinue reading “The Waterfall Made Of Light”
Because Who WOULDN’T Want A Cocktail Served In A Smoke-Filled Skull?
And that’s just the tip o’ the liquid nitrogen, flash-frozen iceberg at the Codename:Mixology bar! Because although no snozzberries were detected on the menu, this place definitely delivers the Willy Wonka of cocktails. Blue Cheese Vodka Martini? Check. Libation that tastes exactly like Thai Tom Yum soup, only better? Already standing in line for seconds. Industrial centrifuge + fresh tomatoes + basil-infused ginContinueContinue reading “Because Who WOULDN’T Want A Cocktail Served In A Smoke-Filled Skull?”
Haunted Prison Restaurant? Yes, Please!
Abandon sanity, all ye who enter here! Do you even have to ask? Of course Tokyo has a restaurant where you get locked into a cell and made to drink cocktails with eyeballs in them! The creepiness grabs hold of you the second you figure out how to get through the hidden door and head downContinueContinue reading “Haunted Prison Restaurant? Yes, Please!”
Giant Faux White Herons
It’s not every day I nip out to the local shrine for a little photo taking and run into gaggle of women dressed as eight foot tall birds. Japan can be weird, but it’s not usually this weird! They were performing a thousand-year-old dance called Shirasagi no Mai, which means (unsurprisingly), White Heron Dance. It was originally performedContinueContinue reading “Giant Faux White Herons”
Catch Your Own Noodles
Next time you hoist a brew over the sad story of the one that got away, nobody is going to believe it was a NOODLE. But if you want to snag a tasty bite of nagashi sōmen, that’s just what might happen when you try to scoop the slippery little dudes up with your chopsticksContinueContinue reading “Catch Your Own Noodles”
Magical Food At The Ninja Restaurant
I have to admit, until last week I’d never been to a restaurant where my waitress brought me an egg, set it on fire and turned it into a chicken. Apparently, when the waitress is a ninja, this is no big deal. A minor exertion, in fact, after conjuring up a drawbridge so we couldContinueContinue reading “Magical Food At The Ninja Restaurant”
Holiday Lights Just Don’t Get Any Better Than This!
Forget the plastic Santas and bobbing dwarves mistaken for elves – let’s skip right to the computer-choreographed field of lights that pulses and ripples to wintry electronic music! The display at Tokyo Midtown this year is jaw-droppingly spectacular, with shadowy shapes that flicker across the twinkly landscape like clouds passing in fast motion, punctuated byContinueContinue reading “Holiday Lights Just Don’t Get Any Better Than This!”
King Of Tattoo Returns!
I knew studying kanji would come in handy someday! The big character on this gentleman’s neck is the one for “nine” and the ones running down the front are Chinese, not Japanese, but the characters are the ones for “fleeting dreams.” I’m quite sure it’s an idiom rather than something that can be easily translated,ContinueContinue reading “King Of Tattoo Returns!”
The Jellyfish & Shark Bar
Now you don’t have to trek to the aquarium in Ikebukuro to see your favorite wiggly and bite-y creatures of the deep – right next to Ebisu station is Medusa, where you can sip the beverage of your choice while being mesmerized by the glow! Additional entertainment may be had by perusing the Standard LiqueursContinueContinue reading “The Jellyfish & Shark Bar”
Sit Down Stand Up
One day last fall, as I was walking through Yoyogi Park on my way to fall off the slackline, I saw this guy standing by a tree in a vaguely medieval-looking costume. In America I’d have hustled by, careful to make ZERO eye contact, sure he was either a member of a rabidly proselytizing religious cultContinueContinue reading “Sit Down Stand Up”
Where To Get The Most Killer Profile Pix Ever
My friend Hiro deals with a pesky infestation of ninjas. Follow the directions posted on the wall next to each life-size, optical illusion painting at the Trick Art Museum in Odaiba, and your life will instantly look way more exciting than it actually is! A deadline sneaks up on the novelist Defying gravity with rigorous ninjaContinueContinue reading “Where To Get The Most Killer Profile Pix Ever”
Only In Japan 