In Japan, January is an occasion when old traditions are used to celebrate new beginnings. During the coldest time of the year, Japanese people stay warm by spending time with friends and family around a nabe, a tasty nutritious traditional Japanese hot pot containing plenty of delicious vegetables and meat, and participating in special events together.
The new year is just as much about preparation as it is about celebration. The mind, body, and soul must be ready to face any challenge to ensure that each day on the new calendar would be the best it could possibly be.

To prepare the mind, Japanese people are reminded of the importance of fire safety through the spectacular Tokyo Fire Department Dezomeshiki, a major exercise performed by firefighters yearly at Tokyo Big Site. Firefighters show off their skills in a traditional acrobatic performance called “hashigonori” since the Edo Period (1603-1867) during a ceremony.
To prepare the body, the Kangeiko, or “Mid-Winter Training,” takes place in judojo across Japan such as KODOKAN. This workout is held in the frigid early mornings of the coldest time of the year in aims of toughing up the body and mind.
To prepare the soul, there’s the Hatsugama. This large-scale tea ceremony celebrates the beginnings of a new year and is said to be one of the first tea ceremonies to be practiced throughout Japan at the start of the year. It is also a more festive New Year’s event, differing from the usual solemn events.

Of course, there are other ways to keep oneself warm. In Tokyo, most of stores have a winter sale in January and February, like hunting for winter sales at Odaiba‘s “Odaibargain” event, the Roppongi Hills Winter Sale, the Nihombashi Takashimaya Clearance Sale, or even the Ginza Six Winter Sale. In addition to these, Made-in-Japan products will also be on sale.

In the run-up to the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020, Japan has set its sights on completely revitalizing and modernizing large swaths of its already impressive capital. Throughout 2019, the poster boy of this redevelopment has been Shibuya Station and its surroundings, but it is hardly the only part of Tokyo that is being revamped as we speak. We introduce these ones as examples; an overview of the developments on waterfront, Nihonbashi, Toranomon, and Shinjuku area.

Nearly every major Japanese city lies on the coast, so efforts are underway to improve the infrastructure around Tokyo’s waterfront, notably, in the form of the new Takanawa Gateway Station, which will open in spring 2020 on the Yamanote Line. The“msb Tamachi” development project should also conclude around the same time with the completion of the luxury hotel and two high-rise buildings, including the Tamachi Station Tower South. Finally, special attention is also being given to Takeshiba area next to Kyu-Shiba-rikyu Gardens, and the construction of the large business and entertainment complex “WATERS takeshiba” in order to reinvent the entire area as an international business hub.

If you are interested to see how these projects will turn out, wait till you see Nihonbashi. The Nihonbashi Revitalization Plan has already resulted in the opening of the COREDO Muromachi shopping complex, the transformation of the Nihombashi Takashimaya into an important cultural property, and the completion of the Nihonbashi Boarding Dock in 2011. As for the area’s future, there are already plans to begin construction in 2020 to take the Metropolitan Expressway underground and the onced covered Nihonbashi Bridge will be freed and will become the centerpiece for the new waterfront plan.

Ongoing constructions of an additional new station (Toranomon Hills Station) on the Tokyo Metro Hibiya Line which will begin operations right before the start of the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020 and Toranomon Hills Station Tower (tentative name) which will integrated with the station, will reached its final completion in 2023. This 49 story (approximately 265m) high tower includes offices and hotels and will become a new international business hub.

There’s a chance we’ll also see an opening of a 48-story tower being built on the site of the former SHINJUKU TOKYU MILANO movie theatre in Kabukicho 1-chome, which, when completed in 2022, will house a hotel, a cinema and restaurants.

New Takanawa Gateway Station http://www.jreast.co.jp/e/

msb Tamachi https://www.mitsuifudosan.co.jp/english/corporate/news/2018/0427_01/

WATERS takeshiba https://waters-takeshiba.jp/ (Japanese)

Nihonbashi Revitalization Plan https://www.mitsuifudosan.co.jp/english/corporate/news/2019/0829_02/

Toranomon Hills area https://www.mori.co.jp/en/company/press/release/2016/04/20160413143000003197.html
Contact: koho@mori.co.jp

Kabukicho 1-chome project https://www.tokyu.co.jp/image/news/pdf/20190805_1.pdf (Japanese)

It is no secret that Japan takes great pride in its food, but what good is a delicious meal if you have no one to share it with? That is why the Tokyo Metropolitan Government and the Tokyo Convention & Visitors Bureau have teamed up with popular gourmet and restaurant guide GURUNAVI to create the “Tokyo Food Culture Experience Project” to promote the best of the best cuisine Tokyo has to offer.

Special Tokyo Bishoku or "Tokyo Premium Restaurant Guides" pages on GURUNAVI 's website serve up useful information on all of the best places to grab a bite in major hubs across the city. Approximately 60 restaurants and 30 hotels across the Toshima, Taito, and Ota wards in Tokyo are participating with even more expected to join. From Japanese food to Western food, each restaurant offers a unique take that can only be found in Tokyo. The Tokyo Bishoku web pages are conveniently available in 5 languages (Japanese, English, Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese, and Korean) so that everyone can come to the table and share a meal together.

The Tokyo Food Culture Experience Project, which started back in October, will continue to introduce tourists and international residents to restaurants with tasty Japanese dishes until March 31, 2020. Choosing the right place to eat in such a massive metropolis can be an overwhelming challenge, but this project aims to make the Tokyo dining experience as smooth as possible. In addition, participating hotels will be handing postcards to tourists with information about the Tokyo Bishoku promotion and a call center where professionals are prepared to answer questions and make restaurant reservations in English and Traditional Chinese.

https://pr.gnavi.co.jp/promo/tokyotokyo/ (Japanese)

Taito-ku： https://r.gnavi.co.jp/lang/s/en/?asp=pr_tokyotokyo_taito_ku
Ota-ku： https://r.gnavi.co.jp/lang/s/en/?asp=pr_tokyotokyo_ota_ku
Toshima-ku： https://r.gnavi.co.jp/lang/s/en/?asp=pr_pr_tokyotokyo_toshima_ku

There's no doubt that Japan's winter illuminations are an amazing sight and well worth at least one visit during your stay. What makes it even better is that their beauty doesn't end when the year does, as many venues in Tokyo continue to put on their stunning illuminations right through winter.　

The Tokyo nightscape is beautiful at any time, but especially during the illumination period. Trees illuminated with around one million champagne-gold colored lights line the Marunouchi Naka-Dori Street; the “Shinjuku Minami Lumi” decorates trees, hedges, and balustrades with lights. HIBIYA Magic Time Illumination in TOKYO MIDTOWN HIBIYA also has a massive, about 12 meter tall tree that's surrounded by beautiful lights (until Dec 25) and also features light show. Trees in the surrounding area are also wonderfully lit up.

If you're in the mood for something different, then Tokyo Dome City and Tokyo Garden Terrace Kioicho are perfect. The former has chosen to focus on Japanese Style-themed illuminations, with a six-and-a-half meter tall sakura tree that blooms to music, a Tanabata (Star Festival) area with picture lanterns, a festival tower decorated with red lanterns, a light display forming a beautiful wisteria, and – of course – that of Mt. Fuji.
Tokyo Garden Terrace Kioicho chose the theme of "Crystal Winter," and decorated their site with thousands of crystal-inspired illuminations. The crowning glory, however, is the Crystal Tree, which is made of around 48,000 crystals. The natural lighting creates countless rainbows during the day and LED lights at night make it just as beautiful.

Odaiba Illumination “YAKEI” boasts one of the largest tree decoration in Tokyo. The Daiba Memorial tree stands twenty meter high and its surrounding small trees are lit up by a total of 220,000 bulbs. Caretta Shiodome has combined winter with Disney to create not just a display, but an illumination show centered around Disney's “Aladdin.” Finally, there's the TOKYO MEGA ILLUMI at Oi Keibajo Racecourse. Now in its second year, this illumination extravaganza features amazing displays, such as the Aurora Forest, stunning fountain shows, and many more at this oasis of lights.

Marunouchi Illuminations https://www.marunouchi.com/event/detail/21293/
Shinjuku Minami Lumi Press Release
HIBIYA Magic Time Illumination https://www.hibiya.tokyo-midtown.com/xmas/2019/ (Japanese)
Tokyo Dome City https://www.tokyo-dome.co.jp/en/tourists/illumination/
Tokyo Garden Terrace Kioicho http://www.tgt-kioicho.jp/feature/event/illumination/ (Japanese)
Odaiba Illumination “YAKEI“ https://www.odaiba-decks.com/en/yakei/
Caretta Shiodome https://www.caretta.jp/Illumination/ (Japanese)
TOKYO MEGA ILLUMI https://tokyomegaillumi.jp/en/

With the Olympic and Paralympic Games Tokyo 2020 just around the corner, the bounding area of the New National Stadium is set to draw huge crowds. However, the journey is just as important as the destination; here in Gaienmae and Aoyama, are some places that will allow you to savor the sights of nature, along with the trendiest fashion locales.

While many people know about the nearby hot spots like Harajuku and Omotesando, did you also know that there are two other places that have just as much to offer? Gaienmae and Aoyama are both about 15-20 minutes' walk from the New National Stadium, and there's plenty to see and do along the way. The area, in general, is famous as a center of sports, with the Jingu Stadium and Chichibunomiya Rugby Stadium, and of culture, with the Meiji Memorial Picture Gallery for art lovers. However, there's also a much trendier side to the area. The main route from Gaienmae Station to the New National Stadium is a little longer than that from Aoyama-itchome, but – at about twenty minutes – very doable, and leads you to the stadium via the fashionable shopping street called "Killer Street."

If shopping isn't your thing, you can also reach the New National Stadium from Aoyama-itchome along a beautiful road shaded by ginko trees. Whichever route you pick, both offer wonderful sights to enjoy that you won't find anywhere else.

Whether you’re looking for vegetarian, halal or kosher foods, finding the right foods can be tricky. Sure, that vegetable sushi might look vegan, but, how can you be sure? Tokyo continues to adapt and become more diverse on its food options as people from various countries and backgrounds come to enjoy all it has to offer. A big part of this diversity also involves them being able to cater to how people eat; fortunately things are getting easier for them thanks to a variety of Tokyo’s food choice. Here, we look at the current situation of making more foods available to more people in the city.

food diversity https://fooddiversity.today/en