Tokyo: A Seamless Blend of Old and New

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When I think of futuristic cities, I think of the fast bullet trains, robot cafés and cool techie gadgets in Tokyo. In the same breath, when I ponder an ancient city with wonderous mountains, 2,000-year-old shrines and nature, I also think of Tokyo.

Tokyo aerial view. Photo courtesy TCVB

I love Tokyo because it appeals to two worlds—ultra-modern technology alongside unsurpassed nature and hiking trails just a train ride away. I can hop on a bullet train, passing through skyscrapers and neon lights, and then be outside hiking beside century-old shrines and moss covered rocks.

Scenic autumn views at Lake Okutama. Photo courtesy TCVB

Hike on Mount Takao

Only an hour outside of downtown Tokyo, Mount Takao has eight different routes. Located in Hachiōji, in the Meiji no Mori Takao Quasi-National Park, it feels more like an amusement park than an isolated forest. Almost 2.5 million tourists visit this place annually. But the people fade away somewhat once you begin hiking the mountain; popular for its enshrined mountain gods and crow-beaked tengu. The hike also includes a monkey park and flower garden.

Photo courtesy Q2Photo / PIXTA

Soak in a hot spring

Many cultures appreciate the après-hike drink, but after you’ve hiked all day, I looked forward to soaking in a hot spring, which are located throughout the country. Japan has over 3,000 hot spring resorts and near Takao-san, you can relax and refresh at Keio Takao-san Onsen Gokurakuyu.

Get spiritual at a Buddhist temple

One of the Takao trails leads to the Head Temple Takao-san Yakuo-in. Built in 744 by Emperor Shomu, it was the base for Buddhism in the eastern part of Japan at the time.

Yakuo-in Temple. Photo courtesy TCVB

With tons of steps and glorious colours, visitors can also participate in a shugendo, or mountain asceticism, a seventh-century Buddhist practice which involves vigorous activities such as standing under mountain streams in pursuit of spiritual transcendence. Guides are available for this unique experience.

Try traditional dining

At the foothills of Takao, the Ukai Toriyama is a famous charbroiled chicken restaurant. Guests can sit on a traditional tatami mat with shoji paper screens. The menu is also traditional and embodies the simplicity of Japan: chrysanthemum soaked in seasoned dashi stock, charcoal grilled chicken marinated in their secret sauce, ayu trout, or grilled walnut tofu.

Explore Mount Mitake

If you’re searching for something even more secluded, Mount Mitake is two hours from downtown Tokyo and is less touristy. Located in the western edge of the city in Okutama, it is part of the Chichibu-Tama-Kai National Park.

Mitake Gorge. Photo courtesy TCVB

Japanese have been hiking to the Musashi Mitake Shrine for over 2,000 years. The shrine hike is the easiest and only takes about an hour from the JR Mitake rail line. For my hikes, I always brought along two essentials: onigiri (triangled rice wrapped in seaweed) and daifuku mochi (gelatinous rice pastry filled with sweet bean paste). They travel well and you can find them at convenience stores.

Indulge in some forest bathing

It’s about another 70 minute hike to the rock garden, which includes a stream and moss covered rocks. Visitors can sooth their muscles in the Yosawa River, a long-time tradition called shinrin yoku (forest bathing).

Lake Okutama. Photo courtesy TCVB

For seasoned hikers, the hike to Mount Otake, which sits at about 1,266 metres and overlooks the forested valley, is a bit more challenging and typically takes about six hours to complete. If you hike this option, you can also extend your stay and sleep in a minshuku, a family-style bed and breakfast in one of the many rural villages on the trek. It’s the best way to meet locals, many of whom are farmers who serve local produce and meals during your stay.

Experience the opposite in technology-driven Tokyo

For the flip side of all that tranquility, Tokyo is the epicentre of technology.

Visit a robot café

On June 22, 2021, Tokyo’s latest café run by robots officially opened in Nihonbashi. At the Avatar Robot Cafe DAWN ver.β real humanoid robots serve customers. The restaurant brings new meaning to the phrase working remotely as the robots have an altruist purpose. Many of the people operating the robots are unable to work outside of their homes due to physical disabilities. The white plastic robots, OriHime and ORiHime-D, move smoothly along the floor serving your meals. Some are even barista robots who make your coffee.

Ginza 4-chome intersection. Photo courtesy TCVB

Check into a robot hotel

Have you ever had a robot check you into a hotel? Or your door open just by recognizing your face? If you answered no, then you will have to check out the Henn na Hotel Tokyo Ginza in the ultra-modern and funky neighbourhood of Ginza. Feel like you’ve stepped into the future of hotel service with electromagnetic waves that heat your room, or a robot trolly who sends your bags to your room.

Visit the entertainment hub on the island of Odaiba

But the truly coolest techie place in the city is the Odaiba area. Taking the elevated Yurikamome line to the artificially made island feels like you’re speeding into the future onto
another planet! This is an entertainment hub of the city with amusement arcades, and the island has many technology centres, including The Panasonic Center Tokyo where you can play Nintendo on giant screens.

Yurikamome Line (Shibaura area loop portion of track). Photo courtesy TCVB

Dig deeper into robot science

If you’re interested in how robots work, TEPIA Advanced Technology Gallery in Kita-Aoyama has a speech simulator, smile estimator, and even an air-powered glove (for those
with restricted hand mobility). It also reveals the latest in green technology for a more sustainable world. The Robot lab will take you through how it all works; and even though the exhibits are in Japanese, the English-speaking hosts can guide you through.

Visit the National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation

One of the highlights of this area is Miraikan, the National Museum of Emerging Science and
Innovation.

National Museum of Emerging Science and Innovation. Photo courtesy TCVB

Visitors can sit in a robot chair and navigate how it feels to be robotic. Or imagine
what it’s like in space sitting inside the giant amphitheatre dome looking at the stars with
3D glasses. The centre is also an interactive science wonder house. You can enter a cloud chamber to see where radiation floats through the air–these particles reveal much about our
universe. Japan has won two Nobel Prizes in physics, first in 2002 and again in 2015.

Eat fresh-from-the-sea sushi

Because you’re surrounded by water, it only makes sense to have fresh-from-the-sea sushi. Yoshimaru Suisan Aqua City Odaiba serves sushi on the classic Japanese conveyor belts. Choosing from the pictures on a touch screen only increases the cool factor. My stack of plates at the end of the meal was pretty high!

Odaiba Seaside Park. Photo courtesy JNTO

Discover a digital museum for the senses

Leaving the island and reopening in 2023 in Toranomon-Azabudai, a new urban
neighbourhood in central Tokyo, is the incredible teamLab Borderless, a one-of-a-
kind digital museum for the senses. While we don’t yet know what this location has in
store, if the Odaiba location is any indication, we can expect an array of truly unique and
immersive high-tech exhibits that are equal parts thought-provoking and playful.

Kinuta Park. Photo courtesy TCVB

Tokyo has two speeds: exceptionally fast and modern–and traditional and slow. Its fresh
air and mountains are tranquil and serene, while its fast-paced technology displays
another world entirely. No place on the planet can bring these two worlds together so
seamlessly—just hop on the train and you can pick your speed.