TOKYO: GINZA

Our first exposure to the Ginza area of Tokyo was to have dinner at a bustling Italian restaurant called The Kitchen Salvatore Cuomo Ginza. The food was decent, but the service left much to be desired. We experienced a long wait for our meal, and they played loud heavy metal rock music. Eventually, Scott's dinner came out but we still had to wait another ten minutes for mine to arrive. As a former New Yorker, I have no problem expressing myself and in this case, I pulled out Google Translate to communicate our dissatisfaction to our waiter. That restaurant was a bit of a misstep, but we needed a break from all the Japanese food we had been eating for the previous two weeks. A couple of evenings earlier, we had enjoyed a much better dining experience at another Italian restaurant, Rigolletto Wine and Bar, which we would definitely recommend.

Ginza features all the major stores, and of course, my favorite Italians including Brunello Cucinelli, Loro Piana, and Zegna. Beyond the big city glamour, the real takeaway is how clean the streets are and the absence of honking. We traveled all over town using the subways, which are equally spotless, and everyone is very polite. No one talks on a cell phone or eats on the train.

I particularly loved the sign below instructing people not to try to retrieve anything that might have fallen onto a track.