The area of Bunkyo-ku in Tokyo has a wonderful small-town feel to it. It is made up of mostly students (as the University of Tokyo and Bunkyo Gakuin University are located off of Hogo Dori), families, and older residents. Its location makes it somewhat centrally located and very easy to get to anywhere you would like to go in Tokyo, but immediately at your fingertips close by is the Ueno Station, Ueno Zoo, the beautiful Shinobazu Pond, the Nezu Shrine, and the Tokyo National Museum. I stayed at the "Sawanoya Ryokan" the first night I was there, and was very impressed with my very first Japanese-style Inn. I wish they had had a room available for me the entire time I was visiting Tokyo. It was extremely clean and comfortable, and the staff spoke decent English - which is hard to find in Tokyo. It was also very reasonably priced ($44USD/night). I also stayed at the "Hotel Edoya", which was more of an American type hotel, having both "western" rooms and Japanese-style rooms. My western room was very comfortable and clean as well. The area that this hotel was in was closer to the Akihabara area which has more action going on, but is still did not have the crazy action-packed surroundings of other districts. I felt very safe in this area as well (I am a young woman); one evening I took a 25 minute walk back to my hotel from the subway station a little after midnight and never once felt that my safety was in question. I loved this area of Tokyo and would definitely go back again. I would highly recommend that anyone not seeking the constant action and late hours nightlife of somewhere like Roppongi or Shibuya stay in the Bunkyo-ku area. Even if you are seeking more action, just hop the subway and it's not many stops away!