Tokyo Haze #1

Time to give a little bit of insight into my trip from Japan! Each of these Tokyo Haze posts will cover one day over the course of my Tokyo trip and will be in chronological order. I have decided to omit the first and last days as those were my travelling days. So, without further ado!

AKIHABARA!

I've always wanted to go to Akihabara. I mean, being a fan of animes and JRPGs, who wouldn't? So it was only natural that for my first day during my first trip to Tokyo, I would beeline for the hub of otaku culture.

Akiba is about everything you can imagine it'll be and then some. I'm not so much an arcade sort of guy but you can't help but to learn about the arcades because of Akiba. I would suggest not to play there however as they usually cost quite a bit more and I believe some of them to be quite unfair. I'm not speaking from personal experience but from what I've heard.

Most things in Akiba open at 11 but it's pretty safe to get there even by 10 as some stores do open around that time. Also, travelling to Akiba before 10 or 11 hits the sweet spot of having fewer people to bump into but just enough to add to the whole flair once you actually do reach there.

As the Akiba station is rather big, I'd recommend exiting to the closest exit and then find your bearings from there. It's just less hectic and you actually get cellular reception (for internet) outside. If you do want to aim for the closest exit, just look for the Electric Town exit. You'd still have to walk but it's only a small distance from the station regardless.

That poster was plastered across the exterior of the station. You can imagine how big it is and really, that's quite a culture shock even for a person who isn't phased by it whatsoever. It's incredible but it was at this point that I realise that this was just the tip of the iceberg.

It's worth pointing out that closeby to the station lies the Gundam Cafe (famous for the toilet apparently!). I did not go in as I am not a Gundam fan but it was still pretty cool to check out one of the many themed cafes around the place.

Is The Order a Rabbit also seems to be very popular, celebrating something that I'm not quire sure of as the anime's second season ended a while ago and there has been nothing announced (in English) that I've seen. Regardless, seeing all these giant posters and promotions of lolis is definitely impressive.

Finally, my first destination came into view. I knew there was an Idolmaster shop somewhere in Atre 1 of Akiba and it didn't take long for me to find it. Sadly, most of the merchandise going this time around are related to Side M. While they still do carry things for the original series and Cinderella Girls, they aren't quite as abundant as I wanted them to be.

Stepping into the street, you could tell that it's the haven made for people like us. It was simply incredible and quite breathtaking. Just watching an anime trailer play out on a screen the size of a building for everyone to watch was simply amazing.

I also happened to find the Sega arcade! It was right at the corner of the street I entered. I didn't take any photos of the interior of the places as most of these shops have a no-photo policy. Of course, that hasn't stopped prime bloggers like snwlprd but hey, I didn't want to get in trouble so quickly.

Most of the items in the arcades all pertain to Love Live Sunshine as the second season is currently airing and while I do want Dia merch, most of the prizes were prize figures (no duh). And really, I don't quite like prize figures...even if they are of Dia. As for the little things, gambling for those isn't exactly a sound decision per se.

Another big thing trending in Japan currently is of course, Fate Grand Order. The sensation is everywhere as even adults play it during the commute to and from work. And of course, even Radiokaikan would promote it too. If you didn't know, Radiokaikan is one of the must-go destinations in Akiba. Aside from having a multitude of hobby stores selling every type of item, it's also the home of one of Amiami's largest retail stores.

You can interact with this thing!

A signed poster of The Idolmaster: Cinderella Girls. I was SO tempted!

As I said, a lot of shops and things to see! I believe I spent a good 3-4 hours just browsing through everything. Mind you, I said browsing. Not even buying! After Radiokaikan though, it was really just a bunch of standalone shops all very close to one another but still selling a bunch of stuff that it isn't feasible to even browse them all in a day.

Another themed cafe at another location.

Miki's birthday! Celebrated at the Kotobukiya store.

After everything, it was really just a matter of taking a light stroll through the night, catching the views and sights that I missed during my merch excursion.

The only vending machine in the world to dispense figures.

And of course, to end the day, the Square Enix cafe! I didn't actually eat there (they were fully booked) but hey, the outside was pretty neat.

BTW, apparently, I spent the whole day only browsing around the outer areas of the main Akiba street. Yup, I did not know I wasn't even on the main street. It was both stunning and incredible. It definitely was only the first day!