Tokyo: Takadanobaba Station & Asakusa Station — Guide Masa

Title: What's a One-Day Private Walking Tour of Tokyo Like? A Licensed Guide's Report on Tsukiji, Kappabashi, and Asakusa

The guests were a group visiting Japan from Europe, all visiting Japan for the first time. [Japan Guide Agency (JGA Inc.)](https://www.j-g-a.org/) arranged this private one-day tour of Tokyo.

The group had arrived at Narita Airport the previous night and taken a taxi to their hotel. Customs procedures took some time, so they reached the hotel around 4:00 p.m. Although exhausted, they took a walk around the hotel area the night before and enjoyed teppanyaki. Some of the guests were not very fluent in English, while another member of the group spoke English very well.

This tour was a one-day guided experience during their visit to Japan. The group planned to stay in Tokyo before traveling on to Kyoto, Osaka, and Nara, then returning home by air from Kansai Airport. For today, the request was to "take a general walk around the city to get a feel for the traffic, atmosphere, and overall vibe." The tour took place under clear skies in weather that was warm, almost hot.

Since the guests wanted to buy a "Welcome Suica Card," we first went to the Ekitabi Concierge at Shinjuku Station. After the purchase, following their wishes, we headed to Tsukiji. I explained "the history of the fish market from the Edo period" and "the difference between Toyosu Market and the Tsukiji Outer Market." They asked questions and made comments such as, "Do all Tokyo residents come here to buy fish?" and "It's crowded, but it seems like there are a lot of tourists after all." They said they wanted to try some food and ended up buying and sampling grilled beef skewers and matcha ice cream.

Next, we went to the Kappabashi Kitchenware Street. The request was, "We really want to buy a kitchen knife," and "if possible, we'd also like to buy scissors for a hairdresser." We strolled slowly along the street and in the end purchased two kitchen knives, though we could not find hairdressing scissors. One comment was, "German blades are also famous, but the sharpness is different — Japanese ones are superior."

Then we went to Asakusa. Starting from the front of Kaminarimon Gate, I explained "the history of Senso-ji Temple and the transition from Edo to Tokyo," "what the five-story pagoda is for," "what Buddhism is," and "the difference between Buddhism and Shinto." We took commemorative photos at Kaminarimon and various other spots and strolled slowly through the crowded Nakamise shopping street. There were questions such as, "What are the main religions in Japan?", "How many Buddhists are there in Japan?", "Besides Buddhism, what other religions do people believe in?", and "How many Christians are there?" There was also a question: "We see many people wearing kimono within the temple grounds — why is that?"

The guests also made comments and asked questions such as, "It's quiet on the trains — no one is talking loudly," "The city is clean and there's no litter on the ground," and "It's surprising that the public restrooms are clean and free of charge."

I saw the group off at Takadanobaba Station, ending the tour.

Click here for more details: Kappabashi Knife & Kitchen Town Tour with Licensed Guide

Tour Report by Masa

Guiding career:
Guide work started in July 2022. A guide focused on FIT compliance.
FY2022 results: 17 cases, FY2023 results: 97
Destinations: Various places in Tokyo, Hakone, Kamakura and Nikko
As a recent group travel record, in October 2023, we have a track record of guiding a group of 33 people from Singapore to Narita Airport transfer plus sightseeing in Tokyo.
Self-introduction:
In the past, I was stationed in Canada, the United States, and Mexico as an expatriate of a Japanese bank for over 11 years.
Since I have been mainly involved in the financing business in the United States for a long time, I think I am able to provide interpretation and translation services related to business and finance.
I am a certified CPA in the United States.
In addition, for three years from April 2016, I will be engaged in Japanese-English translation work (part-time), and I can also handle translation work.
Although I don’t have a qualification in Spanish, but I think I can handle day to day conversation in Spanish without any problems.
My hobby is trekking and from time to time, take a walk around mountains near Tokyo like Mt. Takao, Tanzawa, etc. I think it is possible to provide tourist information here as well.
Since April 2015, I have been working as a Tokyo Metropolitan Tourism Volunteer and Tokyo Metropolitan Disaster Prevention Volunteer.
One more, I have a separate house near Asuka Village, Nara prefecture, and I stay there for a total of about 30 days every year and have been enjoying sightseeing personally in the vicinity. Therefore, I think in the Kansai region, especially in Nara, Asuka, Yoshino, Koyasan, Kumano Kodo, etc., where I think I will be able to tour guide with confidence.