On the east side of Tokyo, travelers can experience the city’s frenetic spirit. In the Ameyayokocho neighborhood, you’ll find seedy-looking love hotels, pachinko parlors, and chatty street vendors. When the chaos becomes too intense, escape to nearby Nezu and Yanaka, two historic districts where the artistry of imperial Edo culture lives on. —Marie Doezema

Photo courtesy of Jose Fuste Raga/Age Fotostock. This appeared in the September/October 2010 issue.