The part of #DeutschDay to get the most attention by some distance was the solitary on-location place I visited which wasn’t live sport. A hidden German section of a park in Tokyo attracted a considerable amount (by my standards!) of feedback and got me thinking that these special themed days were a good chance to bring attention to a few lesser-known spots in the capital whilst still including some heavily ironic things.

#LionDay began on location at a shrine just a little north of Tokyo Skytree in Sumida ward. Lion statues as deities are common in temples or shrines but certainly not one like this!

For over 100 years, the Mitsukoshi Department stores in Japan have featured London-produced lions outside their front doors but when the Ikebukuro branch closed many years back its lion was donated to Mimeguri Shrine. More details here.

A further 20-minute cycle ride north of there was Lion Mart near Kita Senju station. My wife would’ve loved to look around this compact Asian grocery store but as it was only me, I just bought a can of Carabao, the energy drink from Thailand which sponsors the League Cup in England.

Just round the corner from there was a Ginza Lion Bar beer hall which is part of a chain, presumably originating in Ginza.

Talking of Ginza, that was next as I felt, having seen one lion sculpture at the aforementioned shrine, I should pay a quick visit to the one outside Mitsukoshi Department store.

The imposing statue in Ginza has welcomed visitors since 1914 and it sure has witnessed a huge transformation in the city over that time.

Kik Building near Kawaguchi station in Saitama also has a lion statue and that was the next port of call. It is different in style and has been on this rooftop since 1996.

Note the slightly raised paw which is possibly being used (like the lucky maneki-neko figurines in many establishments) to try and beckon drinkers into the izakaya bars beneath. More details here.

After a shower and rest back home, it was time to continue with the theme and no #LionDay would be complete without a Nestle Lion chocolate bar. It only cost me 475 yen ($3) and might even have been the first one I’ve had this century!

The duo pack says on the side “One for now. One for later.” Nope, I had them both! Rebel.

It was brought a few days earlier (that’s preparation!) from the British Shop in Shibuya which is always a dangerous place to pop into given the high import costs of such items.

Popular snack Tabekko Doubutsu has featured in the two previous themed days and there was no reason why it shouldn’t be included here as it is animal-based and features lions. How many were there in this pack though? Zoom in to the picture if you care to find out!

Lion confectionary is a Japanese candy maker famous for their throat lozenges and herbal drops among others.

That company should not be confused with Lion Corporation, a completely different Japanese company famed for oral care products like this toothpaste which I occasionally use when our supply of Aquafresh runs out!

In the late afternoon, it was time to leave my home comforts behind again. First up was Kimba the white lion which is part of a colourful public wall mural just across the road from the Waseda Exit of JR Takadanobaba station. It celebrates Osamu Tezuka’s characters like Astro Boy and Black Jack.

After that quick stop I was soon back on the train to go the short distance to Shinjuku station where outside the Keio Line ticket gates is this statue of Ren-G, the lion-like mascots created for the 2019 Rugby World Cup in Japan. Ren (white) is the parent and G (red) is the child. Note the rugby ball faces!

Miraion Square in Shinjuku is a common meeting point at the JR East Exit. It’s basically a charity donation box which roars when you deposit a coin in the lion’s mouth.

For the record, the three international football shirts (Cameroon, Netherlands and England) worn thus far all feature lions on the badge.

I never realised how many clubs and countries have lions as part of their badge!

To my knowledge, lions do not feature in any nicknames or badges for J-League football clubs but there is a famous baseball team called Seibu Lions and watching them in the Pacific League was the fairly predictable climax to this themed day.

However, I was there to support the away team Chiba Lotte Marines who erm, roared to a 5-1 victory in front of just over 26,000 people. The cloudy conditions on this evening meant that the Belluna Dome in Tokorozawa (Saitama Prefecture) was not the usual oven it is in the hot and humid summer.

There were a few other things I could’ve done such as visit actual real live lions at a zoo, see the venue showing the Lion King musical, or go to Namioyoke Inari Shrine in Tsukiji which has two large, famous lion head statues at its entrance. A few weeks after this themed day I saw lion ice cream in the convenience store which I’d never noticed before. You can’t always do everything though as time is limited, and it’s probably better to focus on the quirkier sights that have been highlighted in this post.

Click here to read ‘#DeutschDay Delivers Delectable Drinks, Delicacies, Downpours, Dortmund & Distinguished Delights’

Click here to read ‘#OrangeDay: A Double Header of Dramatic End-of-Season Matches’

Click here to read ‘The Lion Bus is the “Mane” Attraction at this Zoo in Western Tokyo’

Click here to read ‘There’s A Rock & It Looks Like a Lion!! I’ll Believe That When I See It!’