I think Its time to spend a day in Harajuku, as per request of my not-so-tubby-anymore Asian companion Wesley Kobashigawa. The great thing about today is that it is raining, just like i hoped it would. I feel like japan isnt as great if its not raining, because it adds this extreme sense of reality. The only problem about the rain here is that it is tropical type rain, so its still muggy outside. Hopefully it will rain tomorrow when i leave for Aomori. First objective of the day was to get some breakfast, which was easily completed at the nearest kissaten. One thing I love about Japanese breakfast is that toast here is about one inch thick. It's crunchy on the outside, yet soft on the inside. Along with a cafe latte, it was the perfect breakfast to start my day. Right after that I transfered to the Yamanote line, which is now taking me to Harajuku.
Well, harajuku is everything I remember it to be, plus more. There are clothing shops on every corner and girls are runnnig everywhere to pick up the newest fashions. I myself am waiting in line to go into what appears to be a shonen jump clothing store. I saw the line and thought I might as well see what everyone is so hyped about. After all of this shopping stuff, I am definitely going to do something imprtant.
That clothing shop I went to was so amazing. they made these pop culture custom graphic t's for about 15 bucks a piece, but all of the designs have to do with classic Japanese video games, tv shows, or manga. It's kinda the same thing as Johnny Cupcakes I guess, but without the food innuendos. I ended up buying three shirts that I really liked, as well as a 30th anniversary shonen jump comic about curry. After that, I stopped off at the one shop that my friend Wes begged me to go to.....condomania. I'm sure you can tell by the name what it's all about. They sell hundreds of different kinds of condoms, some of them adorned with pokemon, gundam, and hello kitty. I looked around for a bit but didn't buy any because they were so damn expensive. I would've loved to have gotten a pikachu condom. Oh well! After walking around harajuku for a bit, I realized how starving I was. I mean I was really hungry. So I travelled all the way back to Tokyo station, which took about half an hour, and ended up going to this sushi place that this girl recommended. It was definitely the most filling meal I've had here so far. the restaurant was located in the food center of tokyo station, south of yaesu central gate exit. After stuffing myself with many different types of fish, I went back to akihabara to do some more shopping. I was probably there for a good two hours, getting lost inside the 7 floor shopping malls. After looking rigorously through the selection of video games and toys, I decided to pick up some very unique items. I got a pair of Monster Hunter cat gloves, which are essentially plush cat paws that go over your hands. They will definitely be used for the upcoming halloween season. After all of that shopping, I decided it was time to go back to asakusabashi . I stayed at the hostel for a good hour, checking my email for the second time and watching the news. Japanese news is so much different than American news. The national station focuses on local events, which I found to be very unusual. Anyways, after staying at the hostel and catching up on interwebz business, I decided to go out and get some food. I started walking down edo street, and suddenly came upon the most amazing thing. The residents of asakusabashi were having a traditional street festival. It was so amazing to watch, and I got some great footage of it too. The feeling I had while watching the festival is too much to explain, moreso than when I saw Tokugawa ieysu's tomb. I seriously almost started crying. It was that amazing to watch. To see a group of people perform dances that have been around for over a thousand years is both amazing and awe inspiring. I can't think of another group of people that has maintained their culture as the Japanese have. I'm pretty sure I sat and watched the festival for a little over 45 minutes. Not once did it become boring though. After leaving the festival, i continued on my journey to find something to eat. It was at this point that I came up with a most wonderous Idea.....Follow the businessmen, and they will lead you to good food and drink. And so they did, and I had another very filling meal. I ordered a stir fry beef and vegetable mix that came with soup, rice, and tsukenono. Along with that I ordered a lemon sour, which I believe was a mix of sparkling water, whiskey, and lemons, and a pint of asahi beer. Both were a great choice for washing down the food. What started out as a pretty dull day, turned into something extraordinary. I can't wait for tomorrow to come, when I begin my journey to the north. Aomori, here I come.
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