Akasaka and Asakusa

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Akasaka

Today we started the day by going to the National Art Center Tokyo in Roppongi. After getting lost in the sprawling urban design shopping-living-working nightmare complex that is Roppongi Hills we finally found the museum. On the way we had the chance to see how the Japanese prune their trees. The workmen wear thin soled boots with a toe that allows them to climb the tree and grip the branches. So cool.

The museum itself was nothing short of spectacular. The main lobby of the museum is a huge space surrounded on one side by an undulating glass wall. Inside are two inverted concrete cones containing some functions. Coincidentally there was a really nice exhibition of Pointilism (divisionism). Mainly Monet, Seurat, Van Gogh, Mondriaan. Many works were from the Kroller-Meuler museum in Otterlo, NL!

After that we took a look at the 21-21 Design Sight Museum from Tadao Ando. Quite the spectacular building with a vague and confusing exhibition.

We took a walk through the neighborhood of Akasaka to get to a beautiful gem of a museum displaying modern Japanese pottery used for the Tea Ceremony.

Asakusa

Asakusa is a bit of a tourist trap area, but nonetheless fascinating. Many small streets selling all sorts of food, candies, etc. Primarily we went for Kappabashi-dori. This is a street which sells only kitchen ware and dining goods used in the Japanese kitchen. Lacquer bowls, chopsticks, pottery, knives, you name it. And the whole, very long street is devoted to only this! Needless to say wallet was a bit empty when we left.

Shabu-Shabu

Our dinner was in a restaurant specialized in in Shabu-Shabu. In the the middle of the table is a pan with boiling water. Very thinly sliced beef and vegetables are then swished quickly back and forth in the water, dipped in a sauce and eaten. Once the meal is finished, the water, which becomes a broth from the addition do the meats and vegetables, is ladled out into cups with noodles and drunken.

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