Sensoji (also known as Asakusa Kannon Temple) is a temple located in
Asakusa, a central part of the Shitamachi. Shitamachi ("downtown") is the
old town of Tokyo.

The legend says that in the year 628, two brothers fished a statue of
Kannon, the goddess of mercy, out of the Sumida river, and even though they
put the statue back into the river, it always returned to them.
Consequently, Sensoji was built there for the goddess of Kannon. The temple
was completed in 645, making it Tokyo's oldest temple.