Walking through the torii, or gateway, to the quiet and serene Konnoh Hachimangu Shrine in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward — minutes away from the hustle and bustle of Shibuya's main "scramble crossing" — and being welcomed by a blond and blue-eyed Shinto priest seems almost surreal.

But once Florian Wiltschko starts talking, it is easy to forget that he is an Austrian, and that he started his career at the shrine two years ago.

"It was a calling," says Wiltschko, a "gonnegi," or priest, in a clear-toned voice.