September 2009
Guide: Yukiyo Itahana
Route: (Sep.19) Shinjuku – Kagurazaka – Akihabara – Asakusa – Ginza; (Sep.20) Harajuku – Yoyogi Park – Asakusa; (Sep.25) Ginza – Shinbashi – Odaiba

I heard about the Tokyo Free Guide website very close to our travel date, but decided I would give it a try & write, even though it was past the suggested date that I should write by. Within a couple of days I received a reply by email directly from Yukio, a 68 year old retiree. His English was very good, & he was available for us to meet the morning after we arrived in Tokyo , which was great for me. I later wrote him to say that perhaps our group might be a bit bigger than I originally thought. I was traveling with a modern dance company, we were performing at the Aoyama Round Theatre. When they heard from me about Yukiyo they were all very excited & everyone wanted to join! Yukiyo’s response by email: “Welcome, welcome. The more the merrier.” I knew I was going to like him.

Yukiyo met us at our hotel lobby, after introductions & giving him a small gift I had brought with me (a beautiful photo book of Tel Aviv) we headed out. We did all the regular tourist stuff the first day- the observatory in the Municipal Government building in Shinjuku, Akihabara, Asakusa, Ginza . It was so great being with Yukiyo, having him teach us how to use the metro, how to order food in restaurants, & just the great conversations we had with him. At the end of the first day, even though we had only agreed to that one day, he offered to meet us in the morning & continue our exploration of Tokyo . Read the rest of this entry »

December, 2008
Guide: Michiko Yamawaki
Route: Tea ceremony at Hotel Okura – Shinbashi

Dear TFG,

My girlfriend and I had one of the best experiences thanks to our guide Michiko. We began our tour with a warm welcome and a quick preview of our tour. Machiko was a wealth of knowledge and explained all of our questions without hesitation.

We began our tour with a quick preview of the subway system, while heading to a traditional tea ceremony. We arrived at the facility which I believe was the Okura Hotel. We were greeted by our host, who’s name eludes me now, and were explained the proper ritual practices. The tea ceremony was interesting. It shows the devotion to ritual as well as the honor that goes along with it’s tradition. We were treated as if we were at home. I gave many gracious thanks to our host and we left with a feeling of fulfillment.

Unfortunately we were pressed for time and had to cut our tour short BUT we did the next best thing, lunch. Michiko took us to this great little restaurant were we at dishes that made our mouths water just by looking at the menu. It was a wonderful experience and when we return to Japan we would love Michiko to be our tour guide.

Thank You TFG and Michiko Yamawaki for making our tour so memorable.

Regads,

Alex and Andrea from Miami