Seven reasons why you should go back to Tokyo (or visit for the first time)

Our Delta airlines flight touched down at the Narita airport a little past one on a Thursday afternoon in July, probably the earliest flight that gets into Tokyo from Manila. On a workday, the international hub, though not quite a ghost town, is not as packed as, say, Hong Kong’ terminals during midweek. Getting through customs was fast. By 2 p.m., we were aboard an airport shuttle to the city.

Tokyo, bright and sunny, is eerily quiet. The human traffic expected on the city streets is curiously absent. But it’s nearly 4 p.m. by the time we get to Tokyo and check-in at the Hilton in the heart of Shinjuku; so close to end of the day, people are probably finishing up at the office, waiting to clock out. But where are the tourists? Summer has just started in Europe and the US; Tokyo should be teeming with Western travelers.

The lobby of the Hilton shows more promise, on these dates packed with a curious mix of American musicians, Scandinavian businessmen and Chinese tourists. For the first time since March, reveals general manager Jamie Mead, the hotel is near to 90 percent occupied.

Here at the Hilton, we see how, a few months after what has been called the 3/11 disaster, when the northeastern part of Japan was beleaguered by the most powerful earthquake to hit the island nation in history, followed by a tsunami and a nuclear plant meltdown at Fukushima, Japan is slowly picking itself up, welcoming the tourists that are slowly trickling in (it all started with the Koreans and mainland Chinese, says Mead), taking part in a nationwide energy-saving campaign (guests barely notice it but lights are either dimmed or turned off in certain areas in the hotel, air conditioners have been lowered in elevators and corridors and intentionally set at 24 degrees in all the rooms), and generally adopting a positive outlook. At the Hilton, at least, Tokyo, is rediscovering its vibrant reputation.

In the first few weeks succeeding 3/11, Tokyo, about 200 kilometers away from the epicenter of the earthquake, and its residents had to put life on hold. No one went to the streets or to the shops or to the dining establishments. No one went anywhere, actually. Aram Dikiciyan, a German photographer who has been living in Tokyo for seven years, recalls how, in the two weeks after the quake, his favorite restaurant would call, asking him to just come in for lunch, dinner, or even just a drink. There were rumors of restaurants closing or lowering their prices. Clubs, which were usually swimming in champagne spillage by the end of a weekend, had spotless floors. Multinational offices moved further down south to Tokyo, taking with them their expat executives. The Chanel makeup store in Omotesando, the prime shopping area in Tokyo, closed down.

Tokyo was suffering.

And while Tokyo residents weren’t going out, tourists weren’t coming in either. Tokyo, for the first time in ages, was quiet and empty, its neon lights only glowing over the heads of locals and a few hardy business travelers.

In mid-July, however, though Shinjuku and Shibuya weren’t as bright as before and Harajuku on a Sunday morning wasn’t sardine-can crowded, Tokyo seemed better. Tourists were slowly coming in, flights were filling up again (also due partly to airlines like Delta offering good deals to Tokyo) and the smiles of staffers in charge of welcome were less-forced.

Despite radiation and aftershock scares, Tokyo is again slowly proving itself worthy of a visit, resiliently giving reasons why it is still a must destination.

* * *

Delta Airlines flies to Tokyo daily. Call 841-9800 for reservations.

Log on to www1.hilton.com for more information on Hilton Tokyo.

1. First-class service in a first-world setting — Japanese technology and culturally-mandated polite civilities has translated into amazing infrastructure, excellent customer relations and some of the best service in the world. The Delta Airlines lounge in the Narita airport should be proof enough: a dozen of the latest Mac computers are readily available for customer use and shower facilities are offered for weary travelers. At the Hilton lobby restaurant Marble Lounge, my server comes back within a minute of ordering to inform me that the vegetable pasta that I had wanted had chicken stock, and asking if I would like the chef to make meat-stock free alternative instead. Though I had mentioned in passing that I was vegetarian, I had not specifically asked if the pasta was vegetarian-friendly. Most restaurant staff, even in five-star hotels, wouldn’t even be conscious of this requirement.

And, of course, you have those unending buttons in all Japanese loos, proving that when it comes to toilet technology, the country is unbeatable.

2. There are more Michelin-starred restaurants in Japan — most of them in Tokyo — than in France. As of last year, 14 restaurants in Japan, all in Tokyo, have earned three Michelin stars (the Oscar for food and beverage), making the capital the world’s leading city in terms of the French-started awards. Fifty-four restaurants earned two stars (52 in Tokyo; two in Yokohama) and 198 restaurants earned one star (174 in Tokyo). Most of these restaurants are in the city’s luxury hotels: the Conrad has two (for its Gordon Ramsay and China Blue outlets), the Hilton’s Le Pergolese has one star, ANA InterContinental Tokyo Pierre Gagnaire restaurant Karin Chinese Restaurant are also Michelin-starred and the Peninsula Tokyo’s Hei Fung Terrace also has one star.

3. The desserts! — Michelin-starred restaurants don’t really matter to a vegetarian, but a buffet of desserts would, especially to a vegetarian with a mean sweet tooth. The Hilton Tokyo’s Marble Lounge started offering a dessert buffet at four every afternoon, the first such buffet in the city. The central ingredient changes each month; it was mango the month we were there and strawberry the next. This kind of offering is hardly surprising for a country known for its pastry chefs. Japanese pastry chefs are now gaining a more solid reputation than their French counterparts. According to Anthony Legaspi, director of sales for Hilton Asia, Japanese pastry expert wannabes work in France with French chefs without pay just to learn and master the craft, come back to their home country, mix what they learn with Japanese art and aesthetic and come up with mind-blowing desserts.

I’d fly to Tokyo just for a good cream puff.

4. Development is built around nature, not the other way around. – Despite the abundance of highways, high-rises and modern infrastructure in Tokyo and its surrounding areas, there is no dearth of greenery. The architecture of Tokyo has found a way to incorporate development and Mother Nature, more so now in the green revolution. The Conrad and the Hilton Narita have green views from premier rooms. Even the shopping experience has not escaped green architecture; the Gotemba shopping outlet, an hour and a half away from Tokyo, is built on top of hills and is surrounded by forests.

5. For how they can make kitsch palatable – Talking penguins, cats with bows, feathered lashes and mushrooms that stare back should all make you cringe, but when you’re in Tokyo and caught up in the enthusiasm of a people obsessed with anything fantastical, then why argue that Hello Kitty should be made a national hero? The mouthless cat is seen everywhere, from posh Tokyo boutiques to the most touristic spot in Fuji. Hello Kitty has become a symbol of Japanese kawaii that has been globally embraced.

6. Crazy nights with crazier people – People would argue that you haven’t experienced the nightlife in Asia completely unless you’ve partied in Tokyo.

The bar and clubbing scene in the city brings together excess, flamboyance and ka-ching like no other city. These days, the luxuriously-interiored Velours and the similarly-fashioned Muse are still favorites among the moneyed, particularly bankers and executives who want to blow off steam and yen by popping champagne corks and buying up an entire VIP section. Le Baron in Aoyama is more for the fashionable local set, hosting industry insiders who, when drunk, wouldn’t think twice about stripping on the dance floor. Two Rooms, around the corner from Le Baron, is a popular rooftop bar and resto that packs in expats, mostly aggressive traders who prey on Japanese women by the bar. The outdoor terrace, however, seems decent enough and more conducive to less odious ministerings.

7. Because the Japanese are optimistic that you will – Just as they know that they can bounce back from the 3/11 tragedy, the Japanese people are equally, if silently, hopeful that tourism will post positive ratings in Tokyo anytime soon. Signs in airports, temples and public spaces bearing encouraging and welcoming messages tug at heartstrings and remind that Japan, if only for its enduring people, can never be forgotten.