The best way to get from the waterfront Ginza of Tsukiji and Hama-Rikyu to Asakusa is by boat up the Sumida River. The Sumida is straddled by no fewer than 26 bridges as it courses through Tokyo. You pass one of the business ends of the fish market, flood gates, lots of bridges and working vessels coming in and out of Tokyo Bay. You know you’re in Asakusa when you see the Asahi beer building with its squiggly top. Legend has it that two fishermen pulled a statue of the goddess of mercy – Kannon – out of the Sumida River in 628. It kept returning to them even though they repeatedly put it back in the river. So, the Sensoji Temple was founded in Asakusa as a home for the statue of Kannon.
