Tokyo in One Day: Asakusa Sensoji Temple & Ginza Station — Guide Masa

Title: What's a Rainy-Day Private Walking Tour of Tokyo Like? A Licensed Guide's Report on Asakusa, Rikugien, Yanaka, and Ueno

The guests were a group visiting Japan for the first time from Europe. Seven days earlier, they had arrived at Narita Airport and immediately traveled to the Kansai region. After visiting Kyoto, Nara, Osaka, and Hiroshima, they came to Tokyo yesterday. In total, they were staying in Japan for 21 days. From tomorrow they planned to explore central Tokyo and the surrounding areas before returning home by air. In Tokyo, they were staying at a place in Akihabara. They said, "In Kansai we couldn't really enjoy the cherry blossoms, so we would like to take our time seeing them in Tokyo."

The tour took place under a steady light rain throughout.

First, we walked directly to Sensoji Temple. Starting from the front of Kaminarimon Gate, I explained "the history of Sensoji Temple and the transition from Edo to Tokyo," "what the five-story pagoda is for," "what Buddhism is," and "the differences between Buddhism and Shinto." We took commemorative photos at various spots, including in front of Kaminarimon and the five-story pagoda. The weeping cherry blossoms on the temple grounds were beginning to fall. Despite the rain, the area was crowded with tourists absorbed in taking photos. Amid the crowds, we strolled slowly along the Nakamise shopping street.

There were questions such as "What are the main religions in Japan?" "How many Buddhists are there in Japan?" and "Besides Buddhism, what other religions do people follow?" There was also a question: "We see many people wearing kimono on the temple grounds — why is that? Are they all Japanese?"

We went to Rikugien Garden in Komagome, entering through the Somei Gate. The weeping cherry trees had already turned to green leaves. I explained "the history of Rikugien Garden." Despite the rain, quite a few visitors were there. They said they loved Japanese gardens.

We then went to Nippori. In the rain, we strolled while I explained the history of Yanaka Ginza. They said, "It's fun because we can imagine Tokyo of long ago."

Next we visited Nezu Shrine. Passing through the grounds of the Inari shrine, they eagerly took photos. They said, "We also went to Fushimi Inari in Kyoto, but there were so many worshippers that we couldn't enjoy it." The azaleas were still just a few beginning to bloom.

We moved on to Ueno Park. The cherry blossoms along Sakura-dori were beginning to fall. They said, "Even so, the view of the cherry blossom avenue is wonderful. In Kyoto and Osaka we couldn't take our time seeing the blossoms."

We then went to the Tokyo National Museum. Part of the building was closed for renovation work. They said they loved history, and were surprisingly knowledgeable about Japanese history as well, knowing quite a lot about figures such as "Oda Nobunaga" and "Tokugawa Ieyasu." They seemed especially fond of the hanging scrolls.

There were comments and questions such as "The trains are quiet," "Tokyo is clean throughout the city with no litter," "The public transportation network is well organized," and "It's surprising that all the public toilets are clean and free."

At their request, I saw them off at Ginza Station, where we parted ways.

Click here for more details: Tokyo Customized Private Tour in 1 Day 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.