We hit the usual nerdy places like HMV, some other used record store and Mandarake. I even hit Tower Records (well, c`mon... I can`t do that at home anymore since it closed). On the way to Yoyogi Park, there was some kind of reggae festival. I never really saw anyone perform on the stage they had there, but there was a lot of music and tents set up with people selling things.
What I liked a lot better were the street performers. A bunch of folks set up their little amplifiers and mic stands and played for the passers-by. It went anywhere from singers with acoustic guitars to people lip syching to songs to dancers doing routines. As we got closer to the actual park, there were full band set-ups with much J-rock to be had as well as country music, one group that actually had an upright electric piano they dragged out there and a bunch of dancers with 50`s-themed clothes and pompadours doing a dance routine. What was a little more odd were the girls dressed up to look like goth girls in black leather and shocking red hair (or wigs?) who were just there having a bunch of people take pictures of them as they posed. Some were dressed in what looked to me like bright pink stewardess or maid uniforms. The coolest one of all was one guy who was just showing his air-guitar prowess with a fervent intensity as the rock an roll blasted out of his CD player. There were girls surrounding him taking his picture like he was a star (which undoubtedly he was for that brief moment).
I got to walk through Snoopy Town. That sounds cooler than it really was. It is basically a Snoopy store.
Bagley and I actually split up while in Shibuya and I headed back through the park and through the city. I checked out Tower Records(as mentioned previously) and I actually found a new CD that I wanted that didn`t cost $40! New CD`s and DVD`s are ridiculously expensive over here. I`ve heard that is the reason so many releases have bonus tracks on them here so you will be enticed to buy them instead of the much cheaper imports. I checked out a music store, but realized I didn`t have the money or the ability to carry a guitar around Japan and the subsequent flight home, so no instruments for me. I then walked around trying to find the train station for a while and eventually stumbled upon it and headed back to the hotel.
I never mentioned that I ate at Outback steakhouse last night, did I? Well, I`m trying to get my digestion back in order so I had a good ole` steak. I wanted one more `safe` night so I hit the T.G.I. Friday`s tonight. I know... you can all stone me when I get back for wasting my Tokyo time at a bad American franchise, but the Jack Daniels Chicken was awesome! Just what I needed.
3 comments:
I would love to see you try to get a guitar through customs. :D
I would never stone you for having American food while in Japan. The first night there I ate at that McDonald's attached to the hotel. In a place where almost everything is different, you need a little comfort food.
No stoning here...I'm guilty of both the McDonald's in the hotel AND the Outback. We were greeted at the door with a very familiar "Hi Y'all!" (the hostess was from Hawaii) and enjoyed our gi-normous steaks and American bourbon with no guilt. Rin is right - you need comfort food sometimes.
Actually, at the Friday`s I was served by the cutest little waitress who was one big smile, wearing her black cowboy hat and the Friday`s uniform. She tried so hard to say `Jack Daniels Chicken` and `Pepsi`. It was cute.
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