Wild night that could have been wilder

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Great night last night, and I was able to wake up and see the am. Not bad work for a saturday.

Went early clubbing in Shibuya last night with Shack and Alia and some Japanese DJs that they knew. Met the infamous DJ Aso who is drunk 24/7 but can get you into places for cheap and on guest lists. There were a few more DJs that Shack had me before. The club was 5-9, morning for most club goers. Worked out for me because there was another round at 10:30 that I had been invited to so when I left the house I was planning on doing both.

First club was small, nice. I like hte smaller venues which is why I've been attracted to bars more and more. You can't talk to people all that much at clubs, especially in a language that you aren't used to. We were the only 3 foreigners there which made is a big hit. We'd start talking in barely audible Japanese and everyone loved us. Met some cool guys from Nippon University and a guy that goes to a university about 15min walking from my house. Probably try to meet up with them in the future. Japanese people, especially students, have such a chill and open attitude to other students. We are a novelty, here for a year and gone, and they probably do this with a new group each year, but there is an element of respect to that I don't feel meeting other students, at least initially, in America. Drink were included with admission at 2000 yen so a good time was had by all.

When the club ended at 9, there was some time to kill so we all just massed outside until some japanese person made a decision. I love this country but I can't take japanese decision making. Especially when its freezing out. Weather has gotten really cold recently. Eventually most people went into a "coin bar" with 300 yen drinks but it was much to "bro" and american for me. After talking to some random people in Shibuya with Shack and Alia and met up with the 10:30 club crowed, we decided to go our separate ways because we already had a pretty heavy night. Shack and I decided to hit up local bars because theyre just fun. Hope he gets his up on a blog.

Not only was I able to catch the last train to my house but I also got to have a great time with some local people in a bar with a sweet selection of alcohol but also an espresso/cappucino machine. They had guinness, limoncello, cappuccino, and bombay gin on the same menu as well as some food and snacks. I pass this place every day and night but never went in, but like I said, my japanese is good enough to do some "real" practice. There are students I know that don't do this...go out with Japanese people or go out ever due to work and what not. It's too bad because A. Japan is fun B. Is good practice and C. There is a big difference between a study abroad and school. Grades are a gift at Waseda when they transfer to your home school. Anyway, this bar was chill, and I was needing a place to chill. Small place, 6 stools behind a counter crowded with bottles and records. 3 small tables downstairs and a narrow flight of stairs up to a slightly larger room for parties and such. There was a nice crowd of regulars in and I enjoyed talking to all of them. What surprised me the most is that they were all young. Oldest person in there was 33. Big difference between Shimoda where i was talking to 60 year old taxi drivers. I got a feeling that I could meet some interesting people there because they were young and their Japanese was understandable (unlike old men). They also did me the favor of correcting my pronunciation when I would sound to "american" which is something I've been looking for. Yet again, there was the mixed feeling of novelty, respect, and surprise that an American walked into a small local place and started talking. For the good times, practice in real Japanese, and the good feeling of becoming a "regular" I'll be back at this place often. Not to mention by foot its 30 seconds from my house, there are no trains to worry about, and I can go there, drink late, and wake up the next morning rather than the evening

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Comments

[·ãï]

Fail
Unfortunately, the bars in my far-flung suburb turned out to be closed by the time I got home. I might need to look for a local joint a little bike-hop away in a younger, staying-up-later corner of town. Or maybe I'll come with you to your place sometime.