Harajuku is most famous for its street style; Lolita and visual K being two of the most popular, but fashion isn’t all this area has to offer. If you walk from the famous shopping street, Takeshita Street, towards the well known Meji Shrine, you can see a variety of Japanese people and foreigners alike.

Takeshita Street is always filled with shoppers and tourists.

Harajuku is also well known for its delicious crepes, the most popular crepe store being Marion Crepe.

Marion Crepes

Inside of the warm, French style crepe you can request basically any filling. Fruit filling, especially strawberry, is the most popular. Every crepe is made fresh, and you can even watch as the shop staff makes it! It is fun to eat crepes while wandering down Takeshita street.

On Takeshita Street there are many unique stores for young people!

Typical shops found on Takeshita street.

Some of the most common shops that can be found on Takeshita dori are clothing shops. There are many brand name shops and others which carry clothes at discount prices. Hat shops, accessory shops, and even sunglass shops can be found squeezed into any available space. And you can even find shops dedicated to your favorite music idols.

This area that is squeezed between the big stations Shibuya and Shinjuku is where the large number of fashionable stores comes together for certain generations.

H&M and Forever 21

At the end of Takeshita street many Western shops can be found. Recently Forever 21 and H&M have taken up residency on the street that runs between Harajuku and Shibuya. The atmosphere is slightly different than Takeshita street, which is a little refreshing after having walked down Takeshita street with all those people.

On the way to Omotesando

While heading towards Omotesando, you can usually see a long line near the Jingumae crossing from Aoyama. This line is for a restaurant called Eggs ‘n Things.
Eggs ‘n Things originated in Hawaii where it was as a casual restaurant. Eggs ‘n Things specializes in breakfast foods; pancakes, omelets and crepes. It became famous for serving breakfast from morning until night.

Outside Eggs ‘n Things

The pancakes are served with a lot of whipped cream! It is delicious, but sometimes it can be a little difficult to finish by yourself. It is recommended to go with some friends so you can all share the wonderful food that Eggs n’ Things has to offer.

Photo taken from the top of the walking bridge near Omotesando.

After leaving Eggs ‘n Things it is easy to reach Omotesando. If the weather is nice, Omotesando is a great place to just talk a walk. In the fall the ginko trees which line Omotesando turn a golden brown, contrasting beautifully with the blue sky.

Omotesando

Cat Street

Once you climb down the pedestrian bridge (it’s bright blue, and can be found near Omotesando) you can easily find Cat Street!

Cat Street is the road that twists from left to right in the center of Omotesando; it is also known as the back streets of Harajuku. The name Cat Street comes from the large number of cats can be found wandering the street. There are many unique stores and designers located on Cat Street. You can also walk to Shibuya using this street, it takes about 15 minutes.

Pain Petit Pas French Toast shop

Pain Petit Pas is a French toast specialty stop which has just recently opened.

The store name comes from French: Pain is bread and Petit Pas means one small step.

Pain Petit Pas mainly offers take out, but within the store there are about ten seats in the eat-in space where you can sit and enjoy eating with friends. Near the entrance you can see the kitchen where the French toast is made. The French toast is made from an original recipe and they don’t use extra unnecessary additives.

If you go in the afternoon, the regular French toast served with thick, sweet syrup is highly recommended. The taste is amazing, and you will surely wonder how it was made.

Back streets near Cat Street

Pancake Days, a pancake shop that is well known from both TV and magazines, is another popular breakfast spot in Harajuku. At Pancake Days the ‘smile pancake’ is the most popular. A lot of people come to enjoy the cute pancakes with the homemade butter and syrup every day. During the weekends it is very crowded, so it is recommended to go at lunch time during the weekdays. It is very relaxing.

Smily face pancakes at Pancake Days

Meiji Shrine

Meiji Shrine is one of Japan’s most famous shrines. At the start of the new year, during New Years vacation, an estimated 3,000,000 people visit for their Hatsumode (lit. the first trip to the shrine during the start of the New Year) to pray for a good year.

This shrine was created in 1920 by over 100,000 volunteers and within the precincts there are over 120,000 trees of 365 different species.

Meiji Shrine

Torii

Although the shrine is located in the center of the city, once you enter by passing under the torii, the atmosphere changes. You can really feel that there is nature in the center of Tokyo!

When walking around inside of the Meiji Shrine grounds you can enjoy many different natural scenes. Depending on the time of day the scenes change, from a bright morning to a serene night view, it is fun and interesting to experience the shrine in different lights of day.

People enjoying the quiet at Meiji Shrine

Recently it has been very popular amongst young people because they can go relax there. In 2010 it was very popular to go to places, such as temples and shrines, which held a lot of spiritual power in order to relax and refresh. The deep green of the various trees and the quiet offer a very relaxing atmosphere, so it is easy to see why Meiji Shrine became such a destination.
Also it is a must see tourist sport for foreign tourists, so the shrine is usually very busy with a large number of people!

The grounds of Meiji Shrine

Wedding procession

Many people get married at Meiji Shrine, and it has become a common place to see weddings.

Harajuku is evolving every day. There are always new ideas, new shops, and new people coming to fill the streets. If you come to Tokyo it is highly recommended that you visit Harajuku.