Tokyo is a city that never ceases to amaze. You will find the wackiest, most whimsical, most breathtaking, and most vibrant places that will surely blow your mind. Each corner, which is a blend of modernity and history, has both skyscrapers and historic temples, global cuisine and traditional Japanese dishes; similarly, while it is home to renowned museums, the city has a lot of unique museums that are worth a visit.
Kite Museum
This splendid museum is the creation of a former restaurant owner who collected over 3,000 kites from the Edo Period, which was from 1603 to 1868. There are 100 kites on display now, including interesting prints of samurai warriors along with Indonesian kites, which are produced out of dried leaves that give it very distinct look. Your eyes will be washed over by a burst of differently-hued kites that instantly make the heart flutter with joy as it is reminiscent of the childhood freedom that everyone experienced.
Meiji University Museum
Situated in the Meiji University in the Capital, this museum is a solid mixture of criminal materials, archaeology and commodities, which is present in the basement of the building. As you traverse your way through the museum, you will first stop at the space dedicated to traditional Japanese handicrafts, including bamboo work, washi paper and indigo dyeing, to name a few. Then, as you move forward, you will witness the torture procedures in the 18th century on law offenders like haritsuke, ishidaki gougu and gokumon.
Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum
Imagine a fun museum day that also includes eating the most sumptuous food. Well, this is actually a reality at the Shin-Yokohama Ramen Museum, which is dedicated to curating the history of the staple Japanese dish Ramen, which is cherished and loved worldwide. You can see the many life-size models of the wooden ramen shops that have 380 ramen bowls from Japanese restaurants across the globe and also a collection of instant ramen noodles. There are daily ramen-making workshops as well, and you can enjoy a hearty bowl at the seven different stalls selling ramen from varied regions in the country.
Bunshin Tattoo Museum
This museum is brewing with creativity as it is packed with materials related to the art of traditional Japanese tattooing, which is curated by the legendary Horiyoshi III. ‘Bunshin’ is the ancient word for tattoos and is a testimony to the history of this ancient art, which was seen on Prehistoric clay figurines. Though tattoos are often seen in a negative light by several societies, this museum is breaking away from the same, focusing its spotlight on its cultural aesthetics and beautifully presenting the heritage of tattooing.
Ghibli Museum
If you are a lover of Studio Ghibli movies or animated movies in general, then this is the museum of your dreams, which is located inside Inokashira Park. Upon entering, you will be greeted at the ticket counter by Totoro, the loveable life-size cat, and then you will find items from the Ghibli movies like rough drafts, research documents, and much more. You can also learn how animated movies are made in an insightful exhibit. Just make sure to book in advance, as tickets get sold out fairly quickly.
Cup Noodles Museum
This open-air restaurant is another gem in the city where you can enjoy the most creative cup noodles and their variations and slurp away the blues of the day. It pays homage to Momofuku Ando, who was the inventor of the cup noodles, by enjoying his delicious invention. You can make your customised cup noodles at the Cupnoodles Factory, which has four different soup bases with 12 toppings to choose from. Besides this, the Noodle Bazaar features noodles from across the world and some amazing desserts too.
