Ueno（上野）: Culture + Commerce

A girl walking under a striking series of gates in Ueno Park.

A map of my Day 1 walking tour.

Source

I only went to Ueno（上野）once during my Tokyo trip, yet I wish I had made time to go again and more thoroughly explore the area. There's plenty to see in the district; most of the sites like the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Museum, Ueno Zoo, and Shinobazu Pond are situated within Ueno Park（上野公園）.

I spent most of my time at Ameyoko（アメ横）, arguably the commercial center of Ueno, but I wish I had focused more on Ueno Park. However, by the time I reached Ueno, it was already late afternoon. Visiting Tokyo in late winter has its perks as it's not peak tourist season. Nevertheless, you have to accept the much shorter days. I think visiting the park in the morning would be a great compromise.

Ameyoko (アメ横): A Sweet Tooth's Paradise

Ameyoko's North Entrance.

Source

On my first full day in Tokyo, I visited Sensõji Temple, Kappabashi, Ueno, and Tokyo Character Street. Aside from the large Ueno Park, I believe Ameyoko（アメ横）is the most well-known tourist spot in the Ueno area. From Asakusa, I walked to Ueno, then took the train from Okachimachi to Tokyo Station.

A man selling chocolate and other candies.

On day 1, I was out and about for nearly half the day. Unfortunately, somewhere between Kappabashi and Ueno, my portable charger and wi-fi device both died! As a result, I was unable to send pictures and videos on my phone to my Dropbox, and my phone was too full to take pictures. So, I was left with my cheap, nearly decade old point-and-shoot...which also ran out of batteries! Thankfully, I was able to score new ones from the Yodobashi Camera (an electronic store chain) close to Ueno Station.

Ameya-Yokochõ（アメヤ横丁）—Ameyoko for short—is situated along the metro tracks between Ueno and Okachimachi stations. It used to be a marketplace for goods from America （america; アメリカ） right after WWII; however, these days Ameyoko sells discounted clothes, street food, dried goods, and sweets. Candy is a popular item sold in the area, and I doubt you can find it cheaper in any other part of Tokyo.

Kappabashi-dori (合羽橋): A Foodie's Dream

Kappabashi street sign.

Whether you own a restaurant somewhere in Tokyo and need a few items to run your business properly or are a foodie who loves to collect beautiful dishes and utensils with which to eat and present your creations, Kappabashi-dori or Kitchen Town is the place for you! However, if you aren't a chef, entrepreneur, or self-proclaimed foodie, you might still find Kappabashi-dori interesting due to the sheer volume of goods related to the restaurant and food preparation businesses present there. I cooking and food styling are my hobbies, so Kappabashi-dori was high on my must-visit list.

Source

Seven Uniform seems to be the
biggest uniform shop on the street.

While many of the businesses in the area are on Kappabashi St., Kitchen Town actually extends to several of the alleys that branch off from the main road. On foot, it's about 15 to 20 minutes away from Sensō-ji Temple（浅草寺）in Asakusa（浅草）. There are many interesting shops in Kitchen Town, but an exploration of the area only needs about one hour.

The jury seems to still be out on how Kappabashi received it's name. It either comes from the word kappa（合羽） or raincoats as people on the street used to hang them out of their windows, or Kihachi Kappaya （合羽屋喜八）, a merchant led the efforts to build the Shinhorikawa River. However, the shop owners of Kitchen Town agree that the mythical Kappa creature is the mascot of the area, and the animal is seen in several locations on the street.