My first day in Tokyo was, needless to say, quite interesting. As I had mentioned earlier, in an attempt to save money, I decided to walk to Akihabara from Asakusa. Now this is a 30 min. walk with a map, however I wasn't in any rush to get there thus I decided to just start walking in the direction I thought was Akihabara. I think the best way to get to know a city is getting lost. Especially in Tokyo because if it becomes too much for you just head to the nearest train station, which are everywhere, and you'll be able to find a subway map or an attendant who can direct you to anywhere in the city. Also 7-11 are good with directions to train stations or major sites. During this time, I discovered that my favorite part of Tokyo is the alley ways. Within these small streets are markets, shrines and restaurants you wouldn't see by taking the main roads. It brings to mind the poem by Robert Forst in which he says, "I took the road less taken and it has made all the difference."
Here are some photos of some small alleys in Tokyo:
After about an hour and a half of walking in a general direction, I arrived at Akihabara. Anime or game Otaku, this is the place for you. Now, there is a lot of stuff here but all very packed within a small radius. Again, small alleys have loads of little shops with small figures for $5, card shops FILLED with YuGiOh cards, mini arcades, pachinko, a wall of little machines for phone charms, etc. However, there is nothing like walking into a building with 7 floors of arcade games or everything anime related.
Here are some examples of buildings and such:
I got to go into one of the SEGA arcades. Now, if you are a fighting game guru or fan, this is the place to be. However, many seem to prefer to stick to 2D fighters and Tekken rather then Street Fighter. Although I would be highly intrigued to see my good friend Lamar take on some of the players I did see on Street Fighter, I also wouldn't mind checking out how my peeps in San Francisco stacked against the players here in Tokyo. One of the highlights in the arcade was seeing a 8 year old kid completely own the Tako Drum Game (the video is down below). Now, when you see a small kid bring his own set of sticks and completely blow away the score of a 21 year old guy, you know you are in Akihabara, Japan. Another popular game currently in the arcades in the Gundam MMO that they basically have, it seems like LOADS of fun as a Gundam fan but as I was on a budget and had already spent my arcade money on Persona 4 and Street Fighter could not play. This brings me to my next point, keep an eye on your wallet at the arcade. The arcades are windowless, mostly a $1.05 per plat and if you are a really good player will take you far but if you suck (like I do) 20 min. later you can be $11 down the hole. It is easy to get sucked in and lose track in time. However, the fruit of victory is sweet.
Here is some pictures of the inside of some of the arcades:
A very particular thing that you can find in Tokyo is maid cafes. There are maids that advertise their cafes EVERYWHERE. Seriously, just walking down one street I found 7 of them! Now they'll always reject photos but I managed to get a snap shot of one from behind secretly (sorry maid girl!) It doesn't show her face so it shouldn't be a problem right?
Well, this raps it up for part 01 of my time in Tokyo. Sorry this is so late but there is a lot write about and admittedly I am quite lazy...
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