Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
198
You can see it in about 20 minutes on your own, but I recommend taking advantage of
free guided tours lead by volunteers, who can explain the function of various things you
might otherwise miss, such as the fly catcher.
Ueno Park, Taito-ku.
&
03/3823-7451.
Admission ¥300 adults, ¥100 children. Tues-Sun 9:30am-
4:30pm. Station: Ueno (3 min.). Tokyo Shitamachi Bus: Ueno Koen Yamashita/Ueno Station.
Sony Building
A popular place to kill 30 minutes or so of free time in the Ginza, the
Sony Building, open since 1966, offers four floors of showrooms, including the latest in
Sony video and digital cameras, portable TVs and HDTVs, DVD and MP3 players,
digital photo frames, laptops, and computers, as well as a small Hi-Vision theater. There
are also a few PlayStations, but true gamers may want to test their skill at
Sony Com-
puter Entertainment, Inc.,
on Aoyama Dori at 2-9-21 Minami Aoyama (
&
03/6438-
8000;
station: Aoyama 1-chome), open free to the public Monday to Friday 11:15am to
7pm.
5-3-1 Ginza, Chuo-ku.
&
03/3573-2371.
Free admission. Daily 11am-7pm. Station: Ginza (B9 exit, 1
min.). At the intersection of Harumi Dori and Sotobori Dori.
Tokyo Metropolitan Museum of Photography (Tokyo-to Shashin Bijutsu-
kan)
This museum has an impressive 22,000 works in its photographic inventory,
ranging from the historical to the contemporary, with about 70% by Japanese photogra-
phers. Exhibitions from Japan and abroad, many on the cutting edge of contemporary
photography, are shown in one gallery, while another features a rotating exhibit of the
museum's holdings (occasionally the permanent collection is usurped by a special exhibi-
tion). I can easily spend an hour here, lost in another world.
Yebisu Garden Place, 1-13-3 Mita, Meguro-ku.
&
03/3280-0099.
www.syabi.com. Admission to perma-
nent collection ¥500-¥700 adults, ¥400-¥700 students, ¥250-¥600 children and seniors; more for special
exhibits. Sat-Sun and Tues-Wed 10am-6pm; Thurs-Fri 10am-8pm. Station: Ebisu (8 min.).
7
Toyota Auto Salon Amlux Tokyo
I'm not a big car fan, but even I have fun at
Amlux. Japan's largest automobile showroom when it opened 20-some years ago, this
sophisticated facility holds its own with four floors of exhibition space containing more
than 70 vehicles (be sure to stop by the information desk on the first floor for an English-
language pamphlet). Everything from sports and racing cars to family, hybrid, handicap-
accessible, and luxury cars is on view, all open so that potential buyers can climb inside
and play with the dials. There are also race-car simulators, a trumpet-playing robot
(weekends only), a play area for toddlers, the Universal Design Corner (with cool gadgets
that make life easier for persons with disabilities and the elderly), and exhibits relating to
Toyota's plans for the future (such as specialty seats to prevent whiplash). As opposed to
Megaweb on Odaiba (see above), which is mainly for entertainment, this is for serious
automobile fans.
3-3-5 Higashi Ikebukuro, Toshima-ku.
&
03/5391-5900.
www.amlux.jp. Free admission. Tues-Sun
11am-7pm. Station: Higashi Ikebukuro (2 min.) or Ikebukuro (5 min.).
6
SPECTACULAR CITY VIEWS
In addition to the recommendations below, another lofty perch is
Tokyo City View,
an
observatory on the 52nd floor of Roppongi Hills' Mori Tower, 6-10-1 Roppongi
(
&
03/6406-6652;
www.roppongihills.com/tcv). Admission here is usually included in
the price of the Mori Art Museum (see earlier). Otherwise, it costs a hefty ¥1,500 for
