Anyway, after hunting down a few Japanese people to help us (who never seem to accept that simple Japanese we can master ‘Akayu Onsen wa doko desu ka?’ (Where is Akayu Onsen?) I try, ‘Koko!’ (Here) he replies. I think his reply actually meant ‘In this town’, not in relation to where we were standing! Anyway, he wasn’t much use, but luckily some Japanese ladies were nearby and one of them jumped on her bike, thinking she knew where the bus stop was and she was soon back telling us it was OK - we hadn’t missed the bus! She was a true lifesaver, as we could well have been enjoying the sights and sounds of my little town for the whole weekend!
The night bus was about 7 hours. Not that bad, it seemed to pass quite quickly although I didn’t get much sleep - they’re not the most comfortable modes of transport, but it was cheap.We arrived in Tokyo at about 5.30am - with plenty of time to head to the Tsukiji Fish Market - one of the biggest and most famous Fish markets in the world. There were some huge huge fish! And it was so busy - you really had to be careful or else these speedy carts would drive into you and do you an injury! After gawping at the amazing fish on offer at the market, we went to one of the local sushi restaurants for some fresh breakfast sushi! It was so delicious! Me and Siobhan eat Sushi for Breakfast!
The busy fish market
Sushi and Warm Saké for breakfast!
After our fishy escapade, we ventured on to Tokyo’s neighbouring prefecture, Chiba, for the Tokyo Game Show. It was an interesting event! I had it suggested/recommended by Lewis Packwood of another JET blog written a few years ago that I found on the Internet. It was very Japanese - hosted in the ‘Makuhari Messe’ - a huge venue, the Game Show is the largest in the world and took up more than one of the halls at the venue.We saw lots of new games soon to be released, people could play demos and previews (and queue up for up to 80 minutes just to try them - not for me thank you!). The most interesting thing was all the Cosplay. Cosplay is an abbreviation of ‘Costume play’, where people dress up as their favourite game or animation characters. They don’t skimp on the detail either! There was a whole area for people to pose and take photos. Me and the gang got bored of watching all the other Cosplayers get all the attention, and so we decided to start our own series of poses in a Cosplay fashion, right in the middle of the Cosplay area. We managed to draw a little bit of attention, but probably for all the wrong reasons! Nevertheless it was funny and impromptu! Our fantastic Cos-play action poses!
Part of the Tokyo Game Show in Makuhari Messe
This is the future! Glasses that you can't see out of!
If I had a Cos-Play award to give, they would have gotten it!
Improvisation de la Cos-play
Action pose!
After the Game Show we went back to Tokyo and spent some time trying to find some accomodation for me, Siobhan and Emily. You see, me and Siobhan had gone down with the intention of going to Osaka the day after - only to discover that it was VERY EXPENSIVE to do such a thing - especially for one day. So, we had to look for a place to stay. Chrissy and JoeyD were staying in a new and very cheap hostel/hotel in Shinjuku, near the centre of Tokyo. I rang up and they said they had no more rooms left and we should try ringing later to see if their are any guests that don’t turn up. Anyway, we really needed a shower so we tagged along with Chrissy and Dave. Once we got there, they offered us the chance to stay in the meeting room on the tenth and top floor. It turned out to be great! Spacious, nice couches, and a fantastic view of Tokyo! And for about 14 quid each per night! I’m going back there again!
The view from the 'Penthouse'
We freshened up and rushed off to catch one act at the Kabuki-za in the Ginza area of Tokyo. Kabuki-za is an old theatre that runs traditional Japanese Kabuki plays. Kabuki-za is the only theatre to adhere to the traditional form of Kabuki, by having an all male cast. It was very emotional and dramatic. They seem to speak in a rhythm, which makes it even harder to understand anything they are saying, but the special effects, costume, make up and scenery were very impressive! We just went to see one act, which last about 1hr / 1hr 30 mins and only cost us about £4 each!After the Kabuki theatre, we were STARVING and went for some Mexican food! The nice thing about the bigger cities is that you can find allsorts of international cuisine much easier. However, typically, its often not quite how you recognise from when you eat it back at home. Also, when it comes to international food - portions are typically a little on the small side (personally for me anyway!) nevertheless, the food was very good and we had a nice meal together.
Kabuki-za theatre
Whilst most of the gang went back off to get some much needed sleep, me and Siobhan wanted to go off to Shibuya before meeting a friend of mine who was also in Tokyo that I met at the Tokyo orientation a few months back. SHIBUYA IS SO AMAZING! The most famous area of Tokyo that commonly appears on TV back at home. It is huge, colourful, noisy and bustling - but the balance of everything going on is just right - not too much! We crossed the famous Shibuya crossing and went to check out all the colourful neon lights on the streets around the centre of Shibuya. This was at about midnight, and shops were still open and there were still loads of people walking around! Even at 1/1.30am when we were making our way back to the hotel, people were having their haircuts in the Shibuya salons!
Shibuya crossing
Another moment of joy for me was when I saw a Donner kebab van at the side of the road of the Shibuya centre. It actually said Donner kebab! Unfortunately I’d had my fill of Mexican, and wasn’t in the mood for a Donner, but next time I’ll be back!
Mmmm...donner...don't worry dad I'll take you there!
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