Long before Bill Murray and Scarlett Johansson got “lost in translation,” Tokyo had a reputation for inscrutability. But having called nearby South Korea home for well over a year, my husband and I felt confident we could navigate the city during our first visit in December.

That’s how we ended up standing in the middle of Shinjuku Station, suitcases in hand, bewildered as to how to even buy a ticket. Thousands of rush-hour commuters streamed past in every direction as we searched in vain for English lettering on a map of the subway network. Only later did we learn the station is the world’s busiest transport hub; nearly 4 million people use its 36 platforms every day.

Fortunately, we had to look helpless for only a few minutes before a young Japanese businessman asked if he could assist us. It turned out we only needed to travel two stops, but without the help of the friendly young man — who introduced himself as Ryo — we would probably still be standing there, the only stationary figures in a pulsating sea of people.

Given the island nation’s rejection of Western values for the past few centuries, it isn’t surprising very little English signage exists, even in Japan’s 13 million-person capital. But despite the unfamiliar characters and customs, we discovered during our three-day visit that Tokyo’s quirky charms and eager-to-please citizens easily overcome any barriers to communication.

One of the areas most overwhelming to Westerners, the Akihabara Electric Town, has undergone a major rebranding in recent years, from geek culture ghetto to major tourist attraction. With the support of the government, the neighborhood’s many manga shops, arcades and electronics emporiums have come to represent the epitome of “Cool Japan.”

When we visited the area on a Sunday afternoon, we found the sidewalks clogged with teenagers poring over maid trading cards (maids, not unlike the geishas of ancient times, serve food and make small talk in contemporary “maid cafés”). Girls in giant bows and petticoats promenaded down the pedestrian boulevard like Little Bo Peep, while Sailor Moon look-a-likes attempted to lure passersby into manga shops.

Transfixed by the flashing lights, we wandered the maze of pachinko parlors and claw machine arcades. The surrounding shops hawk everything from electrical wiring to squeezable Obama dolls to comic books full of nude characters holding plates of donkatsu (fried pork cutlet). A maid called to us from a second-floor balcony, only to scuttle away as soon as I picked up my camera.

Ducking into one of the many lunch counter-type restaurants, we pointed at a few illegible menu items and hoped for the best. It turned out we had chosen a soba noodle restaurant, serving bland bowls of spaghetti-like noodles in clear broth. On our way out, our stomachs still rumbling, we noticed the other diners repeating a phrase as they left: “Gochiso-sama deshita” — according to our guidebook, “It was a real feast.”

Savoring the irony (rather than the food), my husband repeated the phrase. The owner smiled in appreciation.

Uneo Park © Lucian Milasan | Dreamstime.com

As titillating as Akihabara is, not all of Tokyo was built as a shrine to overstimulation. In sprawling Ueno Park on the city’s northeast side, we discovered a silent haven of tucked-away temples, koi ponds and brilliant foliage (seeing Tokyo’s trees in shades of red, yellow and orange was a spectacular surprise in the middle of December). Old people pedaled past on bicycles, and a group of men and women in socks and slippers shuffled through a traditional dance.

Leaving the park, we spent the afternoon exploring the narrow alleys of the surrounding Yanaka neighborhood, historically home to Tokyo’s shopkeepers and artisans. Old houses, diminutive coffee shops and food stalls continue to exude a shitamachi (merchant class) feel. On our way through Yanaka Cemetery, the final resting place for 7,000 of the city’s citizens, we stopped to warm our hands with cups of hot saké from a street vendor. It was thick and sweet, its texture reminiscent of baby food.

Save for a fat orange cat sleeping on top of a gravestone, the cemetery was nearly empty. Countless wooden sotoba, or grave markers, clattered together in the wind. At the far end of the grounds, a young man was showing his son how to clap and pour out water at a Shinto shrine, practicing a form of animism as old as prehistoric times. Tiny strips of paper, inked with fortunes I couldn’t read, covered the temple’s entrance.

Stunning views from Park Hyatt Tokyo’s New York Bar © Park Hyattt Tokyo

Another oasis of calm in the center of the city is the Park Hyatt Tokyo, where we spent the last night of our trip cocooned in colorful yukata robes, sipping green tea and watching traffic glide by below our 43rd-floor window. Perched at the top of a skyscraper in the Shinjuku business district, the hotel served as a setting for Sofia Coppola’s Oscar-winning film Lost in Translation.

Having seen the Park Hyatt’s impressive amenities in the movie, we were on the edge of our seats with anticipation — and the hotel appeared even better off the silver screen. Guestrooms are appointed in soothing earth tones with green marble, granite and paneling made from rare Hokkaido water elms. In addition to the deep in-room bathtub, guests can soak at the Club on the Park spa, featuring wet and dry saunas, whirlpools and rain showers stocked with Aesop toiletries. From here, a private elevator ascends to a glass-enclosed swimming pool and a fitness center overlooking Mount Fuji.

After cocktails at the 52nd-floor New York Bar, we made our way to Kozue, the hotel’s Japanese restaurant, for what would be the culinary capstone of our trip. Seated next to the window, we could see the soft glow of the city’s radio towers and Christmas displays in the distance. At a nearby table, a group of Japanese businessmen alternately bowed, hugged and toasted one another with foamy glasses of Asahi draft.

My husband, who consistently orders the most exotic item on any menu, opted for the blowfish set: an eight-course ode to the world’s most poisonous fish (prepared in Japan only by highly trained chefs). I chose a more conservative selection of seasonal delicacies like seared mackerel sushi, crispy yams and deep-fried persimmon with cheese. From sashimi to dessert, each dish arrived on a piece of traditional lacquerware from the restaurant’s 4,000-item collection.

Several hours later, dazed by saké and creamy blowfish milt, we watched our kimono-clad server approach the table. “Did you enjoy your meal?” she asked.

I leaned back and sighed. “It was a real feast.”

Tokyo Info to Go

International flights land at both Narita International Airport (NRT ) and Haneda International Airport (HND). Narita is further from city center, about 35 miles; taxis can run more than $225 and take two hours or longer, while the Narita Express departs hourly, is a 60-minute trip and costs about $32. Train and taxi service is also available from Haneda, located only about nine miles from the city center. Subways and commuter trains are the most affordable — and given traffic, sometimes the fastest — ways to travel around the city.

Where to Stay in Tokyo

Claska Stylish spaces created by some of Tokyo’s top designers feature original furniture and unusual architectural details. 1-3-18 Chuo-cho, Meguro-ku $$$$

Park Hyatt Tokyo Occupying the top 14 floors of a Shinjuku skyscraper, the Park Hyatt combines minimalist design with maximum comfort. 3-7-1-2 Nishi-Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku $$$$

Sukeroku No Yado Sadachiyo Guests can sleep on tatami mats, soak in a cypress tub and eat extravagant meals at this traditional Edo-style home. 2-20-1 Asakusa, Taito-ku $$$$

Restaurants in Tokyo

Kozue Contemporary Japanese cuisine is served in one of the city’s most spectacular settings: the 40th floor of the Park Hyatt Tokyo. 3-7-1-2 Nishi- Shinjuku, Shinjuku-ku $$$$

Sukiyabashi Jiro The oldest chef ever to receive three Michelin stars, 86-year-old Jiro Ono perfects the art of sushi at his 10-seat restaurant. Tsukamoto Sogyo Building B1F, 2-15 Ginza 4-chome, Chuo-ku $$$$

Swallowtail Butler Café A female-oriented version of Akihabara’s maid cafés. Personal butlers serve afternoon tea and address patrons as “Your Highness.” Masakazu Building B1F, 3-12-12 Higashiikebukuro, Toshima-ku $$$