Tokyo
Tokyo was invigorating.
The Asakusabashi neighbourhood where we stayed had a buzzing nightlife. The area around the subway station was filled with narrow bars and tiny restaurants spilling out onto the pavements and side streets. Small tables were laid outside on the adjacent alleys for added restaurant space. Late on a Friday night when we arrived, we saw plenty of office workers having a late dinner with drinks, stumbling around or chatting loudly. Amidst their racket, a few couples were quietly having dinner.
One of the other neighbourhoods that had a distinct character was Akihabara. It was a massive anime and manga filled area we spent 5 hours in. I was completely mentally and physically exhausted by the time we were done. The entire experience was overwhelming and overstimulating. Loud music, anime clips, store sounds and more chimed everywhere we went.
It was also in Akihabara that I made my first and last visit to a “Maid Cafe.” I had never heard of this cafe concept before our trip! It seems to involve female servers dressed in maid outfits serving you food and performing. We went to @Home Maid Cafe which was a completely bizarre experience for me.
The cafe actually comprises an entire building and each floor had a sort of mini-cafe with different servers (“maids”) from what I could gather. All the servers were women in French maid costumes. Most of the guests were men.
We had to participate in little singalong cheers before eating and could request a small drawing on our food/drink by the server. The food was quite mediocre but it was clear that no one was there for a gourmet meal. There were performances involving the servers on a small stage dancing a routine with strobe lights flashing. There was a sign stating that you weren’t allowed to ask the maids probing questions about their personal lives and photos weren’t permitted except of our food.
After that bewildering experience, we spent hours walking around the Akihabara neighbourhood which spanned multiple street blocks. Many store buildings housed one specific anime company selling a vast range of animé and manga merchandise from key chains to comics and figurines. Given the size of the neighbourhood I would have expected it to be less densely packed but every street and store alike was filled with locals and tourists.
It was in Akihabara that we first discovered Don Quijote- a discount chain retailer. It was a multi-story madhouse. At first glance it seemed to be similar to Mustafa in Singapore. It sold everything: clothing, cosplay outfits, Kit Kat flavours exclusive to Japan, food, stationery and household goods, shoe wear, sex toys, and more.
We attended Mass on Saturday evening at the Franciscan Chapel Centre where the congregation and the entire chapel was packed. Dinner after was at Afuri Roppongi which we had chanced on the way to church. We placed our orders at a vending machine inside the small restaurant before finding a seat. Both the yuzu broth ramen and the dry ramen noodle bowl accompanied by a dipping sauce were interesting! The citrus flavour cut through the richness of the broth. I liked how tender the meat for both bowls was.
One observation I made in Japan was that we could rarely walk in a straight line to get to our destination. In many cases, to turn left, we had to head right. To go uphill, we had to head downhill before looping back around. It was always a winding path that led us to our end point. In Shinjuku station for example, we tried to find the right exit and ended up wandering from exit to exit for 30 minutes before giving up and leaving out the nearest one we saw.
We were curious to see what the bar scene was like in Tokyo and found what seemed to be the sole female-only karaoke bar called Gold Finger located in Shinjuku.
Gold Finger was filled to the brim with patrons and a pretty fun experience. We arrived near the end of their happy hour where an all-you-can-drink menu was in effect till 9:30 PM. The happy hour meant everyone in the already narrow small space were packed like sardines. Because of our limited Japanese, it was difficult to speak to anyone in the bar.
As luck would have it, we bumped into a few patrons who spoke English- a Dane, a Nederlander, and a Singaporean. The Dane happened to be fluent in Japanese, and after a few loud renditions of karaoke, showed us all around the LGBT scene in the neighbourhood. She pointed out discreet lesbian bars and the best gay clubs. We walked by a number of fabulously dressed drag queens on the side roads before ending up at Honey Bunny, a narrow basement bar that fit maybe 15 people, where she knew the bartenders. We talked the night away there.
Of the other noteworthy meals we had in Tokyo- I have to mention the conveyor belt sushi restaurant we stumbled upon at Katsumidori Seibu Shibuya right by the famed Shibuya Crossing. The filling feast was mouthwatering for the price tag of just under 5,000 yen for 2 people. Thankfully given the restaurant’s size- the wait of over 25 people in line sped by in under 30 minutes. The restaurant even provided around 2 dozen seats neatly arranged in a snaking line along the corridor for waiting patrons. It had a no reservations, first come first serve policy. The fewer people in your party, the quicker you were to be seated. 2 person parties frequently skipped dining groups of 4 or more much to our good luck. We enjoyed 16 plates of various types of sushi.
After dinner, we discovered a great bird’s eye view of the Shibuya Crossing from the free viewing deck atop Magnet by Shibuya 109. There was barely anyone there too! That same we checked out Ginza which we both deemed to be quite posh, filled with mostly rich Japanese and Chinese tourists.
One thing I appreciated so much about Japanese culture was the conscientiousness demonstrated throughout our trip. During our time in Tokyo, we bought a few pairs of Onitsuka Tiger sneakers, and because it was a rainy day, the staff wrapped each of our paper shopping bags in neatly folded plastic covers. When eating out, restaurants tended to have square baskets for your purses/bags below your seat so you wouldn’t have to put your things on the floor. The customer service ethos was unparalleled.
We managed to check out the new Tsukiji Market, rebranded as Toyosu Market. It was vast and new enough that some areas were still under construction.
Omakase at Sushi Daiwa in Toyosu Market was another fantastic sushi and sashimi experience. The line wasn't too long; we waited only about 30 minutes. Every piece was delectable with one exception. We were disappointed by the quality of the otoro. The otoro at Katsumidori Seibu Shibuya was better. The piece I had at Sushi Daiwa had a tough tendon running through the piece and Christine's contained a bone.
In terms of the Japanese palate, I noticed most dishes were seasoned lightly compared to say the Korean or North American standard. When we had cup noodles for dinner, they were much less savoury than the ones from the same brands sold in other countries. Even when we enjoyed a Kobe beef kaiseki on one of our last nights, the beef was paired with sides that accentuated its natural flavour profile, instead of being overwhelmed by competing tasting notes.
Transit wise- the transportation system was punctual and perfectly reliable to the minute. Everyone lined up in an orderly manner to get on or off. In most countries I’ve been to, peak hour tends to be around 5 to 7 PM. In Japan, we only experienced hordes of office workers heading home around 9 or 10 PM. It was a common sight for us to see red-faced, tipsy men in business attire on the trains home after 11 PM.
My last few thoughts: as a visitor, you definitely saw that Japanese society thrived on the orderliness and uniformity of everyone and everything. Office workers all dressed identically. Staff in any establishment ranging from restaurants to retail stores bowed when you entered or exited to thank you for your patronage. Everyone we met was tremendously polite. The appearance of homogeneity in Japan is an entire topic that could be discussed separately.
I thoroughly enjoyed Japan. It felt like an excellent balance of old and new. I’d go back in a heartbeat.
