I have been looking into animal cafes (of course!). While there are a number of cat, bird, and rabbit cafes throughout the city so far I have only been able to find one dog cafe. Perhaps that is a good thing though or I might have to visit them all.
I hope to spend a pleasant afternoon at Dog Heart.
Random otaku stuff around Tokyo, part 2
Random otaku stuff around Tokyo, part 1
Random signage around Tokyo
This is a small museum that showcases the history and process of making anime that I’ll be checking out. It’s not far from the center of Tokyo (and is in fact fairly close to the Ghibli museum) and it is free!
Maybe! There is an event called the Best of the Super Juniors going on two nights while I’m in Tokyo. The name on the matches that has my attention is Kushida, a devoted Back to the Future nerd.
Last time I was in Japan, I had no interest in professional wrestling. In the two years since, I have come to appreciate it a bit. If I don’t get to a live show, I’ll at least be hitting the merchandise store that’s a stone’s throw from their Tokyo venue.
https://www.njpw1972.com/tornament/22400?showCards=1
There are lots of anime goods stores, and many pop-up stores for specific series throughout each year. Not every series can get a permanent shop, but Sailor Moon now has one. Located in the Harajuku district, one of the most fashionable and trendy in Tokyo, shows just how much of a cultural icon Sailor Moon is. I can’t wait to check it out!
You may have heard tell of Japan’s wonderful public transportation system, you may not know that especially in the Tokyo area there are multiple lines run by different companies which include trains, subways, buses, and monorails. But luckily, you can buy just one card for riding them all instead of buying tickets for each. These cards are called SUICA. There’s also similar cards from different companies and they all work the same way, example PASMO cards. You load them like any other metro card and your fare is deducted as you exit. Interestingly, credit cards can’t be used to fill the card, only cash.
You can also use these cards at a lot of different areas within in train stations like lockers and vending machines! Places that show the smart card logos accept them.
It’s important that I remember that unlike the NYC subway system, Tokyo systems calculate price by distance traveled so you always want to check that you have enough on your card. But you can always do a fare adjustment at the end of the journey if you were short.
Last time I was in Tokyo, I didn’t make use of this because I had a JR Rail Pass which granted me essentially unlimited access to the JR company’s trains, so I took them exclusively. This time I won’t be buying a Rail Pass because I’m not traveling outside of Tokyo.
While this was supposed to be a Tokyo only trip, I’m hoping to make a one day journey to Yokohama to enjoy their legendary Chinatown and check out the Cup Noodle Museum among other sights.
Yokohama is a quick 30 minute train ride from central Tokyo. The main train station is right near the waterfront which has many attractions so it makes it a very simple journey.
https://tokyocheapo.com/entertainment/yokohama-day-trip/
https://www.japan-guide.com/e/e2156.html
As I’ve come to expect from Japan’s train system, there is a convenient, comfortable, and easy way to travel from Narita airport to central Tokyo. The N’EX is an express train from the terminals to main Tokyo stations with reserved seating, places for baggage, and a short 1-hour travel time.
This train is exclusively for foreign travelers. In fact, you have to purchase tickets in the airport and show a non-Japanese passport. I used this train last time with my JR Rail Pass, but I won’t have that this time around. Still, the roundtrip fair, if you are staying 14 days or less, is a great deal.
Plus, the train looks futuristic as hell.
Thanks to lots of help, I was once again able to find some interesting doujinshi (fan-made comics) events occurring in the Tokyo area during my trip.
Last time, I went to events that encompassed many different titles. This time I’m going to a couple of focused events, Popuketto Rebroadcast ポプケット再放送 for Pop Team Epic and Splaket 11 スプラケット１１ for Splatoon. They are happening on the same day in the same building so it should be simple to check out both.
I’m also hoping to check out an event highlighting retro games Game Legend 28 ゲームレジェンド28. I’m really curious to see what will be popular! Also I gotta appreciate a retro game festival that has their website still on Geocities.
