Places deriverative Wants to Go

A unique shrine dedicated to the deified skull of a 17th-century Tokyo courtesan.

This museum celebrates the history of Japanese advertising, from feudal business tricks to modern T.V. commercials.

This cozy café is housed in a repurposed pharmacy originally built in 1927.

This unassuming office building is home to what was once the world's largest pendulum clock.

The original location of the eponymous site of Japan’s Yayoi period is now lost in time.

This retro café is a remnant of Japan’s post-war Argentine tango craze.

Rice balls symbolize fate and relationship at this adorable shrine, which was once dedicated to the Buddhist Devil.

Rumored to be a giant robot in disguise, this colossal chef has been the beloved symbol of Tokyo’s kitchenware district for decades.

Here once stood an opulent state guest house that symbolized the Westernization of Japan.

Stuck in a bygone era, the oldest subterranean shopping street in Japan hides beneath the popular Asakusa district of Tokyo.

Various accidents and illnesses fell upon the developers who tried to remove these historic trees.

No one knows why this family’s graves stayed on the national museum's premises after all other tombstones were relocated.

This atmospheric pre-war building is home to one of the few manually operated elevators left in Tokyo.

According to local legend, an ancient serial killer nicknamed the “Hag” once haunted this pond.

This lesser-visited gallery in a corner of the Tokyo National Museum complex is an architectural beauty dedicated to the ancient treasures of Hōryū-ji.

This “grave” memorializes the 53 rakugo stories that were once banned by the national censorship.

This one-of-a-kind indie publisher-bookshop specializes in archiving historic red-light districts and niche cultural topics of the Shōwa era.

Once known for its eerie appearance, this semicircular monument is all that remains of a Tokyo industrial icon.

Installed in 1965, this whimsical slide has spawned a brood of “octopus mountains” across Japan.

The origin of this bizarre, ghostly idol is a local mystery, even to the temple it calls home.

This church commemorates a venerable, yet nigh-forgotten woman who dedicated her life to the poor in post-war Tokyo.

Home to a legend of the supernatural raccoon dog, a rare wooden structure of Edo, and witnesses of the Tokyo bombings.

Haunted by a giant white snake, this pond is said to bring the rain and pubic hair.

The 650 red and white Japanese plum trees of this Tokyo neighborhood blossom each spring.