10. Get up really early — go to the Tsukiji Fish Market (the largest fish market in the world) — grab breakfast with fishmongers; they will tell you what’s best that day
9. Walk around the Akihabara “Electronics” town in Tokyo — check out the latest and most advanced electronics on the market; you will be five years ahead of your friends!
8. Excursion to hot springs in Hakone in the fall/winter. Stay at a traditional Japanese ryokan (Inn) — dip in the outdoor hot springs; a very Zen-like experience
7. Christmas Shopping in the Ginza district – see the over-the-top decorations through December 25 — and then see overnight change to traditional New Year’s decoration
6. …and while you are in Ginza – eat great sushi at Sushidokoro Ou – new (opened May 2012) yet traditional simple, good sushi without the need for 3-month wait (at Sukiyabashi Jiro)
5. Visit Meiji Shrine right before the New Year’s and see the priests and assistants in traditional wardrobe busy getting the shrine ready for the New Year’s celebration
4. Go visit the Imperial Palace on January 2 (every year, the same day) – see the Japanese royals greeting the New Year with its “subjects” — just like visiting the Buckingham Palace except you actually have the royal family greeting you from the balcony
3. Go hike Mount Fuji — the symbol ofJapan, the tallest mountain in the country (yet not as tall as Mt. Rainier…)
2. If you are with kids — go to Tokyo Disneyland –no trash on the ground and Mickey Mouse and Snow White speak Japanese
1. Take Hatobus Tour of Tokyo– translates Dove Bus. This bus has been in operation for more than 60 years — see Tokyo transform from the days of Godzilla to the High-Tech Metropolis
