Tokyo’s Tsukiji neighborhood is home to the world’s largest fish market, which pushes upwards of $5.5 billion worth of seafood each year. Jeremy Zelikovic (Chapman University), Mary Whit Danielson (University of Georgia), and Geoff Allen (University of Arizona) stopped at the Tsukiji Fish Market at 3:30am to see the famous fish auctions that kick-start every day in a city that truly never sleeps.

“We spent the night wandering around Tokyo and arrived at the fish market around 3:30 a.m. knowing it wouldn’t open until 4,” Zelikovic explained. “We traveled through the winding maze of stalls while hundreds of fork lifts flew past us. At first, we walked through a door marked ‘visitors entrance’ and stood there for a moment watching men drag enormous frozen carcasses with large metal hooks. They spotted us and began yelling and waving their hooks at us, telling us to leave.” After a quick introduction to the pace of Tsukiji, Zelikovic and his friends found the registration table and secured a coveted spot at the famous daily tuna auctions.

The market only allows 60 visitors each day at the auction, but after a long day and long night walking through the rainy streets of Tokyo, Zelikovic and his friends gained access to the auction floor, with bells clanging, hundreds of men yelling and hundreds of photos to take

Take a look at some of Zelikovic’s photos from the tuna auction in the photo essay below.

Click here to read more about the Tsukiji Fish Market.