Harajuku, Shinjuku, and Roppongi

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This past weekend, Eve and new Australian friends Donna and Lauren (who also live in Fukushima) went to Tokyo for Saturday night.

Eve and I headed over to the Harajuku area of Western Tokyo for some shopping in the boutiques. In our 20 minutes travelling there on the subway, it had started pouring rain, so by the time we came above ground in Harajuku, there were wet tourists and umbrellas everywhere. We decided to huddle under our umbrellas and press on through the streets.

Harajuku is famous for its “Harajuku girls” who dress up in Halloween-type costumes and hang out on the streets and in the near-by Yoyogi Park. Being a Harajuku kid is all about standing out and being different. There are groups that dress up as Rockabilly’s, Goth club kids, and those who just put on the most visually offensive outfit you can imagine, full of stripes and polka dots and neon colours. The current fashion theme of the moment for the Harajuku girls is an Alice in Wonderland baby-doll sort of costume. We saw several shops catering to them in Harajuku along with other fashions and several stores which sell only women’s socks.

After Harajuku, it was off to Shinjuku for dinner at an Italian restaurant with a Japanese friend. There isn’t much to see in Shinjuku- it is the business area with modern skyscrapers and neon lights in the western portion, while the other half of Shinjuku is the red-light district and bars that are run by the Japanese mafia. It was good that we had a male Japanese friend with us as the area was unwelcoming and we saw few tourists.

It was then onto Roppongi- the club and bar district of Tokyo where young Japanese and foreigners come to dance the night away. We met up with friends of Donna who teach English in Tokyo. The clubs were mostly filled with foreigners and non-Japanese tourists. It was here that we met the most people and everyone spoke English (unlike in Fukushima where gesturing and pointing is how you get by). We managed to stop by 6 bars between 10:30pm and 5am. I don’t think it’s something I would do again since the music was terrible and not to my tastes (Rap and Hip Hop only, except for one bar that played Bryan Adams).

This week is going to much more relaxing. I also have a job interview for a part-time job teaching English on Wednesday, so wish me luck!

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Photos

Sumida River
Crossing the Sumida River into the heart of Tokyo.

Harajuku
On a rainy day, the unmbrellas all come out on one of the side streets of Harajuku.

Shibuya Crossing
Waiting to cross the world's busiest inersection...

Shibuya Crossing 2
Another shot of Shibuya crossing where you are surrounded by no less than 6 video screens blasting music and ads at you.

Shinjuku
Standing in the glow of the neon lights that light up all of Shinjuku

Roppongi
After a night of dancing, the streets are empty from traffic, but hundreds of people are still walking about as they exit the many bars. In the backgroun dyou can see the Tokyo Tower.

Vending Machines
Among one of the many vending machines in Japan, I found one that sells hot french fries. They weren't that bad!

Comments

[heather albright]

how was the interview?
I missed the pictures this time, but at least I know it is not the fault of my computer! What an experience for your Sat. night, did you buy any items at the boutiques? Let me know how it went for the job interview. All is well here, will look for more info soon! Love Heather