Tokyo 2017 Day 5: Ikebukuro

DAY 5: 15 JUN 2017

Snowy owl at Ikefukuro

The day started late as we were all dead beat from the travelling.

We decided to make our way to Ueno for more tidbit shopping before exploring Ikebukuro!

Unagi Don

This time round, we decided to explore the back lanes of Ueno and we chanced upon 

this shop that specialises in unagi (eel).

They were having a promotion for their unagi don and we decided to try it out.

We ordered the unagi don which was priced at around 1000 yen.

It was served with a generous portion of unagi!

Thereafter, we headed back to Ikebukuro.
There were a lot of animal cafes in Tokyo compared to Singapore.
We decided to visit one of the unique animal cafes here: Owl cafe!

We visited Ikefukuro, an owl cafe located in Ikebukuro.

Each session lasts for an hour and it costs 1400 yen per person which comes with a drink.

As there is a limit to the number of visitors per session, and it will be good to make

a reservation at least two days in advance.

I emailed them in English and they responded within a day!

Upon arrival, you will be asked to place your bags in the baskets at the entrance

and sanitise your hands and shoes before getting up close with the owls.

There were so many owls, all of different species.

You are allowed to pet the owls as well as carry them during your visit.

We were a little scared to touch the owls at first, so most of us started with the smaller owls.

There were only one or two feisty owls and the rest were all cool with us.

My favourite was definitely the snowy owl.

Young and playful, he was the only one unchained and was free to roam around the cafe.

During our visit, there was a staff available to introduce the different owls and their habits and characteristics in English.

Out of the three of us, I was the only one brave enough to perch an owl over my arm.

I chose a smaller owl of course (:

After our visit to the owl cafe, we headed to Sunshine City, a megamall in Ikebukuro.

Pokemon Centre

There were tons of retail shops and restaurants in the mall.

One of the major attractions for tourists is actually the Pokemon Centre.

The Pokemon Centre is a retail shop for Pokemon fans which offers a wide array of 

plushies and souvenirs.

Most of the prices were steep, but you can find affordable items there too.

We continued to walk around the mall and its vicinity before heading for dinner.

We decided to go for a Japanese BBQ dinner at a restaurant 15 minutes walk away

from our accomodation.

My mum and brother patronised this restaurant when they visited Tokyo a few years back.

It is definitely expensive, but we decided to have a good Japanese BBQ meal during this trip.

I couldn't remember the name of the restaurant, but the patrons here are always Japanese.

It was difficult to communicate and you need to be clear of what you want and point

at the correct item on the menu.

Charcoal BBQ

We ordered beef and it was the best cut I have ever tasted.

It was so soft that it melted in my mouth and the meat was really juicy.

The bill came up to S$120 in total for the three of us.

The portions were definitely small as we just wanted the experience once again.

Thereafter, we headed to Gindaco for some takoyaki!

I missed this a lot as they used to have an outlet at Ion Orchard a few years ago.

Glad to have a taste of it again when I was in Tokyo.

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Click here for our Day 6 adventures,

or retrace our steps here for our Day 4 adventures!

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