BLOG -- My trip to Japan -- ADVENTURE PART 3 (Shibuya, Shinjuku)

Here's the last part of my "Adventure" segment. Next entry will be on Japan Eats. 

There is nothing in common with these last two areas, besides their name starting with "Shi", and that they are prime locations for certain video games (Shibuya for The World Ends with You, and Shinjuku for a couple Shin Megami Tensei games, I think... [please correct me if I'm wrong!]).

SHIBUYA

DAYS SPENT: 2.5

OVERALL THOUGHTS: Shibuya is totally a fashion area. I've heard that the place tends to be on the pricey side, and it can be, depending on where you go. One of the main things I had to check out at Shibuya (besides all the fashion), was the Hachiko statue. A friend suggested that I take a picture of it, because he regretted not doing so. After reading Hachiko's story, seeing it was placed on one of my top to-dos. 

PLACES VISITED:

Shibuya 109

This is a 7-storey (or was it 9?) clothing haven for ladies. There were tons of different clothing and shoe shops, and in varying styles and varieties. Most of the prices were also reasonable, though a little on the higher range. If I had set a larger budget for clothes, I would have tried way more of the clothes inside. I did end up spending a lot of time in one shop that carried goth wear. I bought some, too!

109 Men's

This is pretty much the same as Shibuya 109, except that it was for men's clothing. Some of the styles there... were quite nice! If I could, I would totally buy some of the clothing there and wear it for myself. ;)

Karaoke-kan

This is a karaoke place that had really, really cheap rates when you karaoke on weekdays before 5 PM. I read about it in a guide and I had to check it out. Unfortunately, the guide failed to mention that I'd have to order at least 1 drink to karaoke before 5 PM. It was worth it in the end. 

I ended up karaoking 2 times: once with my sister for an hour; another time by myself for three hours. Karaoking with my sister for an hour ended up costing about 500 yen. Karaoking with myself for three hours ended up being... 800 yen! Sooo cheap!

The place also carried a couple of Western songs that I have yet to find in karaoke places in Toronto. They also carried a bunch of Japanese songs that I have been wanting to sing at an actual karaoke place (instead of at home in front of a computer, listening to it on Youtube).

Seibu

This is a food hall, which will be covered in my Japan Eats blog entry (link will be added once I post it).

Sushi no midori

This is a sushi joint. I'll go into more detail in my Japan Eats blog entry (link will be added once I post it).

Kimikura Noodles

This is a ramen joint. I'll go into more detail in my Japan Eats blog entry (link will be added once I post it).

Miami Garden

This is a restaurant serving Italian foods. I'll go into more detail in my Japan Eats blog entry (link will be added once I post it).

OTHER PHOTOS:

I think this is a memorial for Hachiko. It's just outside of 

Shibuya station, Hachiko exit.

Hachiko statue! I like the way the sun is shining so brilliantly on its back.

A designated smoking area close to the Hachiko statue.

SHINJUKU

DAYS SPENT: Almost everday after 5 PM

OVERALL THOUGHTS: So Shinjuku was pretty much our home base. Whenever we'd get back to the hotel, we'd bum around for a little while and then we'd venture out to Shinjuku, since it was within walking distance. It also became our hotspot for having dinners, so a number of food places will be covered here.

PLACES VISITED:

Calico Cat Cafe

Yup, we visited a cat cafe. A cat cafe is almost like a petting zoo, but for cats. You can also order drinks and snacks to eat while there.

Once we entered the cafe, we were instructed to wash our hands thoroughly, put our shoes in a shoe locker, and to put our jackets and bags away before touching any of the cats. I'm glad that they enforce this sort of thing, to make sure people aren't spreading any sicknesses to the cats.

Inside was a large sitting area with probably over 10  cats. And you can just go to any of them (provided they aren't asleep), and pet them. You can also pay 300 yen to buy cat food to lure them to you.

I'm not much of a cat person... so I probably didn't make the most of my time there. If I petted any cat, I would do it soooo gently, with these thoughts running through my mind, Am I petting properly? What if the cat doesn't like this? How would I be able to tell??

When we left, we had to sanitize our hands again.

Disk Union

This is a used music / disc store. The store is actually spread out across 5 different locations, each one carrying different genres and media types. I ended up checking out 2 of the locations, one that carried Japanese pop, and another location that carried soundtracks and movies.

Isetan

This is a very high-end designer store. Verrry high end! I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw the prices on some of those items. One pair of heels that had really beautiful leafy straps was... about 400,000 yen! That's even more than my entire budget for Japan! It was absolutely crazy.

The only reason why I wanted to check out Isetan was for their basement food hall. It's called e.a.t. Paradise, and it will be covered in the Japan Eats blog entry (link will be added once I post it).

Artnia

This is Square-Enix's cafe. I'll go into more detail in my Japan Eats blog entry (link will be added once I post it).

Capcom Bar

This is a Capcom themed bar. I'll go into more detail in my Japan Eats blog entry (link will be added once I post it).

Bamiyan

This is a restaurant offering Chinese foods. I'll go into more detail in my Japan Eats blog entry (link will be added once I post it).

KFC

KFC is KFC. I'll go into more detail in my Japan Eats blog entry (link will be added once I post it).

Royal Host

This is the restaurant attached to our hotel. I'll go into more detail in my Japan Eats blog entry (link will be added once I post it).
 

OTHER PHOTOS:

A random statue while walking to Artnia.

The front entrance to Robot Restaurant -- this really flashy restaurant 

where robots are playing musical instruments, and other things. 

We didn't go inside, lol.

Another shot of Robot Restaurant.

One shot of Shinjuku at night.

Another shot of Shinjuku from the hotel window.

That's it for this entry. Thanks for reading!! Next blog will be about the places I've eaten in Japan. That one might take a while to post, so please bear with me.


You all have a good weekend and take care! :)