Japan Day 1: Tokyo
April 2, 2025
After a very rainy arrival (I’m talking wind-blown horizontal whipping you in the face kinda rain), we were happy to wake up to just a drizzle this morning. Newly motivated to leave the hotel room, we started off with our favourite morning ritual: coffee.
Taoca Coffee
We were delighted to visit Tokyo’s only Taoca coffee location. Started in Kyoto, this popular and modern coffee shop was an experience like no other. We had never seen a pour over bar before (see image below):
Though we were tempted to get a cup of every single bean, we managed to resist and limit ourselves to four.
First, I tried Geisha coffee (Lot: 299) for the first time. These beans were from a farm in Panama founded by a fellow Canadian! The coffee was masterfully extracted for a complex, smooth finish that was satisfying down to the last drop.
Next, we moved on to the Sakura blend, a seasonal blend created for the local cherry blossom season. Easy to say this was the most floral coffee I’d ever tasted and it was delicious. Bag of beans? You know we got some.
A darker roast was used to make a cappuccino that was equally delightful and smooth.
After conversing with the barista for quite some time and getting to know the store, we were very lucky to be offered a cup of house blend on the house! The cup was made in a beautiful self-cleaning automated machine (see below).
Even the house blend was wonderfully extracted!
Brown Rice Tokyo Omotesando
Next, we went for lunch at Brown Rice Tokyo Omotesando – see my review at the hyperlink. It was a serene, aromatic experience. We even met a fellow North American who was traveling from San Francisco. We shared photos of our pets and recommendations for coffee shops. Stay tuned to see our next stop tomorrow!
Team Labs – Planets
Team Labs was an experience of a lifetime. This fully immersive art museum was both physically and mentally engaging, joyful, and loads of fun! If you are looking to feel like a child again, this is the place for you.
From drawings that come to life in 3D animations to walking barefoot through water exhibits, your attention will be fully captured by the present moment and all the colourful surroundings. All the exhibits were well staffed and organized, making it easy to proceed through the museum. I was very impressed by how so many people managed to move through the exhibits without difficulty.
If you are visiting, I would recommend doing the exhibits in the order that we did: Athletics Forest, Garden, Water, Open Air. Doing the physical activity first was very grounding, and then each exhibit became more peaceful after that.
Vegan Ramen Uzu
Afterwards, we had dinner at Vegan Ramen Uzu that you can read about at the hyperlink.
Akihabara/Anime District
As a big-time childhood anime fan, going to the anime district was a must while in Tokyo. We opted to go at the end of the day for scheduling reasons, but it’s important to note that most stores close there at 8 pm. I’ve been given the advice to go on Sunday afternoon when the roads are closed for shopping, which would probably have been better. However, I do think it was cool to see the street lights in the dark!
We visited a couple toy shops but ultimately spent most of our time at the Mandarake Complex. This anime store is 8 floors and buys back anime merchandise of all kinds from manga to CD/DVDs to dolls, each organized onto a different floor (see below):
We ended up coming away with a few goodies, including my all time favourite anime Sailor Moon manga!
After a long day, we made it back to our hotel and getting ready to leave Tokyo for our next adventure in the morning.
Good night!
Celiac CJ
Celiac CJ 