Akihabara & Koenji

Today we are exploring Akihabara , the geek and otaku district.

Here you will find many arcade buildings, figurines stores , maid café , manga shops and all the electronic gears you can imagine.
If you want to feel the manga and video game culture Akihabara is the place to go to.

I have found a 16go SD card for 5 euro. It’s 3 times cheaper than back home. Also some Mac Book pro half cheaper here. A great place to bring some electronic product back home (just make sure they will work on your devices in your country).

Many small components for any electronic gears. This building was full of it. A geek heaven.

You can even find Donald trump chicken toys ! The sound of that thing was insane.

In the stores here you will often find a section for adult …

Not comment on that. Oh well actually yes let’s talk about it . The collection of pornographic video was insane. I couldnt believe my eyes. This section was taking 20 % of the all store. Guys ^^

Okay now let’s explore the back streets !

 

Til you end up at the end of a small lane and you see this.
Mmmh what could that be? Any ideas people ?
This was a Hentai store. Hentai is a type of manga for adult. You can see some pretty hardcore stuff inside. It felt strange to me so I didnt stay long.

One of the sweet speciality in Japan is called Taiyaki. It’s a waffle with the shape of a fish and inside you have a filling. I went for the “premium custard” one.

This was so yummy. The custard inside was still warm and it has a nice aftertaste of vanilla. I love how you’ll find fresh artisanal food everywhere in Japan. Some might not be healthy but they taste so good !

Akihabara is also home to a phenomenon that is often looked strangely by foreign people. This is the maids cafés ! I thought I had to try this.

In maids cafés waitresses will call you “master” or “princess”. There is nothing sexual in there I swear. The aim of maids cafés is to create a cute atmosphere where you can enjoy the Kawai culture. Waitresses will serve you overprices drink and food while playing little games with you. It was strange to me but still good fun. Will I do it again ? Probably not.

Meeting a sweet gay couple inside the cafés.
I asked for picture with the maids but you had to pay an extra 800yen for it (6 euro) so of course I have not done it.

Okay akihabara was interesting but I had nothing else to do here so I headed off toward my next destination. The small district of Koenji.

Time to take the JR line. After a very long journey i’m arriving to Koenji. I missed my station so I had to come back the other way. I have lost 1 h because of that . I dont know what happened. Sometime the JR trains have express trains that may skip some stations so if you dont pay attention you might end up like me. Lesson of the day never follow blindly you phone.

 

Koenji.  So what is this place actually ? It’s a small district not far away for the busy Shinjuku. There is apparently not much to do or to see here. That’s exactly why i’m here.
Koenji has an interesting history. Not long ago this district was very residential but over the last year Koenji have seen a boom in new instalation. Being a cheap place to live Koenji has attracted many young people. Artists , students and more alternative people. As a result this place has a vibrant vibe. It remided me a bit of  “Bricklane” and “Hackney” in London. Time to explore Koenji.

Koenji has a lot of second hand / vintage shops.

This place felt like being in a small hispter town. The blend between residential area and shopping street was harmonious. It’s quiet yet vibrant.

Welcome to “Floresta Doughnut”. On the left the hedgehog doughnut with a peanut butter coating. Very good. The other one was roasted green tea flavor with sweet potato paste.

A bit later I have discovered a tea shop that really attracted my attention. It was called “Cafe Bunbuku”. Inside the ambiance was cosy. With a background of Jazz music.

I got lucky to be able to try a tea that is apparently rare in Japan. The “Kuro Mojicha” tea. It’s basically made from the bark of a special tree and is known for many health benefit such as increasing digestion. It tasted like lemongrass. I loved it. For the sweets I had a lemon cheesecake that was going well with the tea. After talking for 20 min with the café owner I realise that this place has something different. A more laidback vibe to it.

Okay now back to the streets. I dont know what to do anymore. Being alone can feel lonely sometimes. So I just walked around the streets to see what might come up.

Ehh? A bong shop ? In Japan. Okay this place has something different. Drugs are very severely punished here.

After more walking I ended up under the railway. A cool set up was slowling coming into shape. It’s now evening time and the bars are slowly waking up. The true soul of Koenji is showing the tip of his nose.

I thought okay let’s stop and have a sake in one of these bar along the railway. I really liked the vibe here. Let’s just see what will happen.

Sake and Edamame snack.

This is when my Koenji exploration really started.

A fews sake later and many great conversations with my new Japanese friend , I’m feeling the Koenji high.

Okay now I get it. Koenji is a cool place where people gather together and have some fun. From outside you wont be able to get a true feel of this place. But if you take the time and stop you’ll be reward by great moments.

The area is more alternative than other district in Tokyo and best of all it’s cheaper too. There is also many music venues here. I had a wonderful time in Koenji. The best way to understand Japanese culture is to go where the Japanese go. In a human scale disctrict things are much more organic. You can truely connect with others no matter the language barriere. And if this really bother you  , drink another sake !  Thanks you for this great time guys.

If you travel alone and you want to meet people my best advice will be : go to cafés in  the daytime and to bars at nightime. Be curious , stay yourself and let the magic do his own things 🙂

Cheers , Kanpai かんぱい