Jonelle Patrick's Only In Japan
Every day, stuff you'd never see anywhere else.
One of the most entertaining things you can do in Tokyo is wander around the city after the sun goes down, if you know where to look. The wizards of … Continue Reading Every year, in every season: These lovely Tokyo sites light up at night
It’s time again for the best free holiday light show ever! Here are this year’s Tokyo Illuminations offerings, some of them even better than before: • TOKYO MIDTOWN This year’s … Continue Reading The Best Tokyo Illuminations 2017
This has to be the most gorgeous walk in Tokyo. If you start at twilight, you can see the entire Tokyo waterfront slowly light up like the best holiday light show ever! Here’s … Continue Reading How To Walk Across The Rainbow Bridge!
It’s that time of year again! Tokyo’s Illuminations are free, and they never disappoint! Here are my favorite places to see them. New this year! NAKAMEGURO One of my favorite places to … Continue Reading Where To See The Best Holiday Illuminations In Tokyo!
Last night I went to see what I thought was going to be a modest art-light event on the Yokohama waterfront, secretly expecting that the photos from past years were exaggerating the quality of … Continue Reading 「Yokohama Smart Illuminations」: Wow. Just…wow.
Every once in a while, Japan so wildly exceeds expectations, it’s hard to put it into words, so I’ll just show you pictures of last night’s Oeshiki Ikegami festival instead. Special thanks … Continue Reading Festival Of 10,000 Lanterns
Part laser light show, part aquatic extravaganza, Art Aquarium is the newest take on the old idea of keeping cool during the steamy Japanese summertime by contemplating goldfish bowls. Over … Continue Reading Art Aquarium
Asakusa is always entertaining by day, but it’s totally stunning at night. From theatrically lit temples to glittering reflections on the Sumida River, this neighborhood never disappoints. If you’d like to … Continue Reading Diva In The Spotlight: Asakusa At Night
Turn down the lights, hire a bunch of cute hosts, and keep the drinks coming, and it shouldn’t matter what your club looks like, right? Actually, no. Designing host clubs is a … Continue Reading Inside Tokyo’s Wildest Host Clubs
Oh no, don’t think you can put your feet up and flip some channels after the sun goes down during cherry blossom season – thanks to the current craze for “illuminations,” … Continue Reading Cherry Blossoms Lit Up At Night: My Favorite Spots!
Tokyo isn’t a beautiful city, except when it rains at night. Then the neon flows into the streets, brighter than liquid gold. • Read a novel set in Tokyo…
If Electric Town makes your heart beat faster during the day, just wait until nighttime! Crowds of Forever Alones and idol worshippers alike are drawn to its pulsing neon, mesmerized … Continue Reading Akihabara At Night: An Electronic Jewelbox
I guess all over the world, little islands of warmth and light attract the nighthawks for a cuppa and some companionship. I chanced across this Hopper-esque scene while taking pictures … Continue Reading Tokyo Nighthawks
It’s still rainy season in Tokyo, but that just means more opportunities to take beautiful pictures at night! Here’s Tokyo’s beloved orange replica of the Eiffel Tower, shining through the … Continue Reading Tokyo Tower, On A Rainy Night
It’s rainy season in Tokyo right now. But the steamy, gray, days turn into magical warm nights, the pavement shining like a river of melted neon… • “A wonderful blend … Continue Reading Tokyo Streets At Night, Shining In The Rain
By day, the Sumida River is a busy thoroughfare of boats and ferries, but at night it turns into a magical sea of sparkles. If you’d like to ride the … Continue Reading The Sumida River At Night
I’d whipped out my camera to capture some arty-farty reflections of the Shibuya neon on cabs stuck at a traffic light, and when I looked at the display YOWZERS there … Continue Reading I Thought I’d Seen Tricked-Out Cars, But…!
In Kabuki-chō, the day starts when the sun goes down. The streets are thronged with those who are looking for a good time, and those who are looking to provide … Continue Reading Tokyo At Night: Kabuki-chō
Tokyo isn’t a beautiful city by day, but at night it’s transformed into a glittering jewel. This is the view from Odaiba, as the dinner boats set off down the … Continue Reading Tokyo At Night: Odaiba
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 … Continue Reading Holiday Lights Just Don’t Get Any Better Than This!
Yeah, yeah, I know – leaves glowing in autumnal splendor, fall evening clear and crisp, moon shining bright, pond like a mirror, and the photos are sure to wow the … Continue Reading It’s Really All About The Sticky Rice Balls
I hope the patrons of this little all-night bar in Nishi Azabu don’t take the name too literarily, or the bartender/owner will find himself without repeat business. Which would be … Continue Reading A Perfect Bar For Bananafish
If you’re beginning to yawn when you see yet another park filled with tiresome clouds of of fluffy pink cherry blossoms…wait until dark! Every night this week, all along the … Continue Reading Glow In The Dark Cherry Trees
Remember how I was talking about shoebox-sized businesses here in Tokyo? Well, around the corner from Eat A Peach in Shimokitazawa is the Apollo Jazz Bar. As you walk by … Continue Reading Live Music for Eight
When I made my hatsumōde (first shrine visit of the year) to the Nezu Shrine this morning, it did not disappoint. New Year’s is observed with all kinds of traditions in … Continue Reading Celebrating New Year’s, Japanese Style
On the last night that the fall leaves were illuminated at Rikugi-en, we stumbled across the mitarashi dango stand. In a little hut beneath the maple trees, this man and … Continue Reading Little Blobs of Heaven on a Stick
Tonight I was hurrying home from Akihabara, the famous electronics district, when I was caught in a downpour. It was raining so hard that even people with umbrellas stopped at … Continue Reading Akihabara In the Rain
