Japan Day 6. Akihabara tech, used iPhones, cafe maids and Tokyo Hands
On the last day, the main part of the group went to Hakone, the valley of geysers and Lake Asi. And three brave men, including me, went to conquer the Tokyo hardware stores.
Many people know that the mecca of Japanese electronic retail is the Akihabara area. That's where we headed. The first was a small shop with used iPhones and iPads. I don't know what unknown force makes people return iPhone or iPad shortly after purchase. But devices of the latest brands are available in "indistinguishable from new" condition with a discount of about 30%, and with a store guarantee. Prices are around $500 for an iPad 2 with 16Gb, and $450 for an iPhone 4 with 16Gb. See photos for details (prices in yen).
The second store was Yodobashi. This is a huge supermarket of equipment, on 6 floors there is nothing. Probably, you can spend no less time in it than in the Hermitage. For interest, I photographed two showcases completely dedicated to spikes for audio components, and linings for these spikes (see photo).
Another famous store is Tokyo Hands. There are several of them around the city, we were in the largest one. It is difficult to describe what is sold in it ...Probably, everything for the home and creativity. I was struck by the huge department of goods for woodworking. Dozens of types of knives, various types of wood, blanks of hundreds of sizes and configurations. Such rubbish is being sold that it’s hard to even imagine what it is and someone needs it. For example, a device for examining the inner ear (see photo).
We had lunch at the Maid Cafe. Our guide, who has been living in Japan for two years, admitted that he himself goes there for the first time and does not quite understand what it is. Entrance and one hour inside costs 1000 yen ($13), food is paid separately. The room is all pink. A girl dressed as a maid playfully squats down near our table and, naively blinking her eyes, asks what we will order. The menu is not impressive and we stop for spaghetti.
Stealthily watching the rest of the visitors ...Most of them are strange young people under 30, although there are girls. Even one family came with a child of 4 years old. In the cafe, almost no one eats, little by little they communicate and look at the waitresses. In addition to delivering orders, they sometimes offer children's games in the style of "ear-ear, nose-nose and heart - wow-wow. " Some orders of the waitress "celebrate" together with some rhyme...A photo with a maid-waitress costs 300 yen ($3.5)...We left with the feeling that a rude Slavic peasant would not understand these amusements.
On the way from Akihabara, we looked into slot machines. A huge complex of 4 floors is almost completely packed with young people. What is there just not here - from ordinary boxes with manipulators that take out toys, to hefty machines for 8-10 players playing at the same time. There is also a horse racing hall (see photo).
photo), in which races take place on one hefty common screen, and dozens of players sitting in the hall control the horses. There are also machines for very young children (see photo).
In the evening we again went to the clubs. Surprisingly, even on the night from Sunday to Monday there is where to go. On the Internet, they read about Atom all in the same Shibuya area. Like Womb, the club has 3 floors with different dance floors. They won’t let you in without a passport, even if you have a stake on your head, you had to return. There are fewer people (it's still not Friday), pop music, mostly young people, more Europeans. However, we still liked it.
4 hours of sleep and ...we leave for the airport. Feelings are muted by haste and fatigue. To say that I liked Japan is almost an understatement. No matter what, we must come back here again.
