As 2025 drew to a close, the days grew shorter and warm light spilled out into the streets ✨ 
We decided to stay in Tokyo for the duration of the break and enjoyed some downtime in areas old and new. Can you spot Mrs IKIMASHO? 
It was nice to get lost on purpose, discovering new winding streets… 
And quirky little corners here and there. 
From the very old… 
To the very new. 
On the first day of vacation we went out for lunch 
It was a nice start to the break 
It was also nice to spend most afternoons in various coffee shops, just reading and watching the world go by. 
I spotted a celebration at the temple… 
And my wife poking out to say hello. 
Local vibes… 
Everywhere you look. 
We took a trip out to Jimbocho to look at some second-hand books. The orange penguins always catching my eye… 
My own book list from 2025. Once again I read 22 (third year in a row with that number, strangely.) 
Looking forward to reading some more good books in 2026 
We often have a craving for Vietnamese food. While you can’t get it 100% authentic here in Japan, this spot in Kawasaki did a decent enough version of bun thit nuong. 
While at Toranomon Hills, we noticed a big group of Christmas trees sitting in the middle of the plaza. There were seats all around them in a kind of chill-out space. Mist was blowing out of the trees, smelling like pine, and there were sound effects of a river. It was totally random, and yet somehow it worked. I know some of you might roll your eyes and think that Tokyo is just a concrete jungle and the best they can do is stick a couple of trees inside a building, but I liked the aesthetic. It was nice seeing people sitting around, chatting and eating their lunch in this space. We bought coconut ice cream and sat there, and I realised that being off work isn’t necessarily about filling the time with something else. It’s about being off work – not having to get up at 5:30am, and having the freedom to sit around a tree eating ice cream if you want to. 
The ice cream looked aesthetically pleasing… 
As did this neighbouring shop selling vases and flowers. Colours, colours everywhere… 
Including this random wall in Yoyogi. 
Our little Tokyo apartment got dressed for Christmas 🎄 
And I managed to throw together a small Christmas lunch for my wife and in-laws. 
On Christmas Day I caught a bus in the evening up to Ibaraki to spend some time with Mrs IKIMASHO’s mum and dad. Just as we were crossing the border from Saitama, the fog rolled in and the bus seemed to be floating on clouds; the mist mingling with streetlamps and the neon from expressway ramen shops. It struck me as a rather random place to be on Christmas night.
The next day, the skies cleared and turned the deep blue you tend to associate with this time of year. The further north you head in Kanto, the more rural it becomes – and while the Tsukuba area of Ibaraki is certainly more built up than it would have been even 50 years ago, you don’t have to go far to find rice fields and mountains.
Throughout this part of Kanto, it’s not uncommon to see traditional rural Japanese farmhouses still being used as houses. Unlike places like Kawagoe that deliberately preserve houses in order to attract tourists, these houses are the real deal – often in nondescript areas in the middle of nowhere. The ‘building’ you see here is actually a gate into one of these houses and they really are a dream to look at.
Houses like this would have been built around 1800, most likely by a rich farmer who owned large amounts of land. Wealthy farmers at this time often married into samurai families. Walking past these houses, I thought about how they were built during a time when Japan was closed off entirely to the outside world. This house was built not to be preserved, nor to impress outsiders: simply to be lived in, worked in, and passed down. The people who built this place could not have known that one day, someone from the other side of the world would stand quietly outside its gate, with nothing to do but notice it.
It’s fair to say that rural Japan is a lot more weathered, but it has an undeniable charm because of that. 
Saying that, this little mannequin at a zebra crossing was slightly terrifying. 
The stonework on this torii gate was extremely old… 
And the wood of this temple even older. 
The view from the family apartment in Tsukuba 
An amazing lunch in a local place. I got grilled saba mackerel and tuna sashimi… 
While my father-in-law opted for a giant tuna head 👀 
The lazy winter season has allowed us to roam peaceful lanes in Tokyo… 
And imagined ones in paintings. 
Friday night adventures in the shopping arcade ❤️ 
Comfort in familiar surroundings 
Wishing you all a happy and healthy 2026. Here’s to more quiet wanderings.
Justin
IKIMASHO! 
Thanks for sharing! Loved the photos..I want to ride a bike down the last street! 😀
Most enjoyable , almost felt like a short break in Japan. Thank you.
thank you for connecting us to life in Japan.
blwyddyn Newydd Dda from Wales