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Anything going on for new years?
The Tokyo Metro runs all night on the 31st, but the JR Yamanote line does not, so don't assume every line is covered. If you want something low-key and genuinely local, look into the okera-mairi at a few shrines where you burn the first fire of the year and drink the roasted sake, it's a small ritual rather than a big festival. Asakusa's Sensoji draws a huge crowd, but the side streets toward Kappabashi stay quiet enough to actually walk. Budget for a taxi if you're out past 2am, they surge hard and you'll wait a while at any major station.
Tokyo's New Year's Eve trains are the real hack here. Most lines run all night on the 31st, so you don't have to worry about the usual 1am cutoff like the other reply mentioned. That means you can stack stuff, do a shrine at midnight then wander somewhere else after. Also worth knowing: lots of smaller neighborhood shrines do a quieter hatsumode with free amazake, and honestly those beat the famous ones if you just want the vibe without being crushed.
Oji Inari Shrine in Kita ward does a kitsune procession on New Year's Eve where people dress as foxes and walk from the shrine through the surrounding streets toward the station. It's tied to the old legend of foxes gathering under the enoki tree there, and the costumes are genuinely impressive, not a tourist gimmick. Starts around 11pm and wraps up well before the last trains, so it's easier logistically than the big shrine visits. Worth the trip up to Oji if you want something you won't see any other night of the year.
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Where can I find crispy, pan-fried bacon similar to a certain international style?
if u have a costco membership the kirkland thick cut is the move, 4 packs of 500g for around 2500 yen and it crisps up proper in a cold pan. for smaller runs, precce in azabudai hills & the basement at isetan shinjuku both carry imported US & danish brands in the chilled case, just read the label for "thick cut" or "smoked" and not "loin". also worth knowing japanese bacon is often wet-cured so pat it dry before frying or it steams instead of crisping
kaldi coffee farm is hit or miss but their smoked bacon from denmark shows up pretty regular, the 200g pack runs about 600 yen. what actually works better for me is asking the butcher counter at peacock or life to slice the block bacon thick, like 5mm, they do it for free and it crisps way better than the pre-packed stuff. also fwiw cheap bacon crisps faster, the fatty supermarket kind at 300 yen a pack works fine if u cook it from cold in a dry pan and pour off the fat as it renders.
tbh the gyomu super store brand bacon is surprisingly decent for crisping up, its not thick cut but if you cook it low and slow it gets pretty crunchy. the key is the dry cure vs wet cure thing, wet cure steams. also check hanamasa if you have one nearby, they sell big packs of american style bacon thats actually smoked and firm.