Tour to Japan from Novosibirsk "Scarlet Maples"

Tokyo is an amazing place where the heroic history of the past is still invisibly present, intertwined with the technologies of the future. This is the largest metropolis in the world; Tokyo translates from Japanese as “Eastern Capital”. The Greater Tokyo metropolitan area is home to 35 million people, which is approximately a quarter of the total population of Japan! The city itself is so large and diverse that it would be very difficult to determine its center. Historically, it is the Imperial Palace located in the Marunouchi area. In terms of commercial traditions, this is nearby Ginza with its chic shopping districts. The center of business life is Shinjuku, a downtown area built up with skyscrapers. And the epicenter of global fashion trends is the neighboring districts of Aoyama, Harajuku and Shibuya. And these are only the most famous Tokyo places, but there are also magnificent museums, and the beautiful Ueno Park, and the Asakusa temple complex, located in the very center of the city, and the electronic city of Akihabara, and the stunning Takao-san National Park, located on the outskirts of the metropolitan area , in Hachioji. When visiting Tokyo, you can see the latest in technology, architecture and fashion, and at the same time inhale the aroma of old Edo with its narrow streets, Buddhist temples and Shinto shrines.
The Imperial Palace, located in the central Marunouchi district, is the heart of Tokyo. This is where the residence of the Emperor of Japan Akihito is located. The palace is surrounded by a canal crossed by the Nyujubashi stone arch bridge, one of the symbols of Tokyo. More than two thousand matsu pines grow in the palace park; in Japan they are considered a symbol of longevity. Here you will also visit the East Garden of the Imperial Palace, created back in 1603 by the famous master of landscape gardens Kobori Enshu.
Ginza - Adjacent to the Imperial Palace, this shopping district has been the historical center of the city since Japan's opening to the outside world, offering an immersive haute couture experience. The symbol of Ginza is the Wako luxury department store, built in 1894, a masterpiece of the Art Nouveau style. The department store is located at the famous Yong-Chom, the Fourth Crossing of Ginza, a place as symbolic to every Japanese as New York's Times Square is to an American. The hieroglyphs “Gin-Za” mean “Silver Workshop”; silver coins were once minted here, and the spirit of luxury has been in the air here for hundreds of years. Boutiques of the world's leading fashion houses are lined up on Ginza dori street. They are strikingly different from the small shops we are used to. For example, the Chanel flagship building located here is a chocolate-colored parallelepiped ten floors high! Its sleek façade doubles as a huge screen for Chanel fashion shows. Opposite stands a miniature matte skyscraper from Christian Dior, reminiscent of a polished iceberg. And in the area there are no less remarkable buildings from Louis Vuitton, Hermes, Yohji Yamamoto, Cartier, Mikimoto, built by the world's leading architects. Ginza is also home to a host of independent shopping galleries, traditional Japanese boutiques, as well as luxury restaurants and cafes. Finally, it's not just a shopping destination, you can also visit the Nissan Exhibition Center or discover the latest in the electronic world at the Sony Building.

From Ginza you can walk to Tsukiji, the world's largest wholesale fish market. This famous place wakes up the earliest in Japan - at three in the morning! It is here, before dawn, that freshly caught fish arrives from all the oceans and seas of the planet: majestic carcasses of bluefin tuna, luxurious pink salmon, sea shells of all possible types and shapes with their bizarre inhabitants, giant crabs bristling with powerful claws, long-whiskered spiny lobsters and thousands of other sea reptiles. . After the morning auctions, all this food is sent to restaurants in Tokyo and the rest of the world. During your excursion to Tsukiji, be sure to stop by one of the sushi bars located right in the market, such as Sushizanmai Bar. There you can taste the freshest sushi and sashimi from fish freshly cut by the chef right in front of your eyes. Sit at the counter, ask for a foaming draft of Kirin in a ceramic glass and order aburi-toro - sushi made from the fattest part of the tuna, lightly fried on the outside and raw on the inside: this is how the road to gourmet paradise begins!

Shinjuku... Tokyo's downtown is built with stunning skyscrapers... This is where the famous Tokyo Metropolitan Building is located, where the Tokyo City Hall is located. Two huge 244-meter twin towers, standing on a single base, are somewhat reminiscent of Notre Dame in Paris, only enlarged several times! This skyscraper was designed by the famous architect Kenzo Tange and is one of the most famous buildings in the Japanese capital. From the observation deck, the entire city lies in the palm of your hand, and in clear weather from here you can see the peak of Fuji-san - the main symbol of the Land of the Rising Sun, a mountain sacred to every