[2019-10-05]
Following a magical morning at Ghibli Museum and being still tired from the previous night, I devoted my afternoon to sleep at my friend’s home in Hamura, unknowingly of what expected me the following hours.
My friend planned to show me the party side of the city, walking around the busiest night districts. Something I wasn’t expecting for my trip — not being much of a party person. But still interested and also happy to enjoy time with my old friend.
(We started drinking before leaving the house, so I have some cloudy memories. I can’t remember the exact establishments we visited, but I can recommend some general areas to wander around and get fun, and some safety recommendations. Also, I didn’t carry my camera, so all these photos aren’t mine.)
Shinjuku
First, we took the train to Shinjuku Station (the world’s busiest one), to go for a walk between the dodgy alleys of what, a decade ago, was considered the most dangerous Tokyo neighborhood: Kabukicho, the (in)famous red-light district in Japan. Nowadays, after many raids over yakuza-controlled businesses, it’s safe to say it’s pretty safe.
There, you’ll find the famous Golden Gai area, where narrow alleys (Yokocho) are full of small bars and restaurants; but it has become so popular that it also became somewhat of a tourist trap, and you may find better and cheaper bars in other Yokocho (alleys) around Tokyo.
Similarly famous in Kabukicho are the Host and Hostess Clubs, where attractive young men and women, respectively, sit and interact with you, serving drinks, talking, listening to you, and, sometimes, flirting. You are required to buy them drinks along with yours, and most of the time they have very high prices. Besides that, these places have a seriously shady reputation. There are stories of tourists that woke up (after being possibly drugged) without money or with thousands of dollars spent on their credit cards. Also, there have been places related to trafficking in other Asian countries.
Knowing all this, I didn’t want to be near those places, but my friend got lured into one. A big overfriendly foreign guy invited us to the club. It looked pretty empty from the entrance, but the guy insisted that many people were partying inside. We had to pay ¥2000 (around $20usd) at the entrance just to realize that it was totally empty. Feeling deceived, we still tried to enjoy and got a table; then, two women (hostess) joined us.
Nonetheless, it was a fine experience. The woman who talked with me was kind and I got to practice my Japanese. Also, I told her about my plans, and she was amazed and interested (although now I think it was probably just her job: to be kind and interested in my story). The only problem was that we had to keep spending drinks on the four of us, and they kept asking for more. My friend was enjoying it, but I stopped him; I didn’t want to stay there much more. I don’t even know how much he had to pay — he didn’t let me help him to pay the bill.
My recommendation is: if you want to experience it, go, knowing the risks, and with enough money. But try to find some known place, not the first one that you get lured into by some stranger.
After that, we took a train, this time to Shibuya Station.
Shibuya
Back again in this place that didn’t get to captivate me the first time. My friend was happy to show me the Shibuya Crossing, so I didn’t complain. Although this time, it was full of people drinking and littering everywhere.
It’s not easy for me to recommend anything around here, apart from the Hachiko Statue; this area is full of fashion stores and restaurants.
We went to a konbini for beers, and my friend introduced me to one of the best snacks you could find in Japan: The American Doggu, a corn dog but with fish sausage (something that I learned a year later). It tastes amazing and is one of the cheapest foods you can get: just ¥100 (~1usd). It’s offered with an amazing sauce dispenser that pours tomato and mustard (it’s difficult to describe, please see the gif, although it has a hot dog).
I loved the American Doggu from the start! And I recommend it to everyone; you can get it at any konbini around Japan.
Roppongi
For our last stop of the night: the party district of Tokyo.
And after wandering around and checking the clubs, we ended up in a little one where some Latin music was playing. It was full of Japanese people, and they were very welcoming to me (my friend is half Japanese, so he blended easily).
Although I was a bit ashamed, we tried to dance with some girls; we had fun with them and, I ended up receiving a little kiss from one of them; I was happy and confident but embarrassed.
Later, a woman caught my eyes and invited me from afar. I got close, expecting to dance with her, just to discover that she wanted to offer me some extra service for the night at a nearby love hotel. I thanked her and refused the offer, and I tried to keep dancing with her, but she left me alone. Also, I figured out that my friend had left me alone too.
I kept drinking beer and just dancing alone (I was already a bit drunk). Then some men approached me and asked the usual questions (where I was from, what I’m doing in Japan) and we keep talking and dancing, then I discovered myself surrounded by a huge group of drunk Japanese men. We kept dancing, drinking, and laughing until we were kicked off around 5 or 6 am. It was a really fun end for the night.
My friend didn’t reply to my messages or pick up my calls. And I ended up singing with a random guy with a guitar, in a corner of a street in Tokyo, while the sun started to show between the tall buildings.
Some songs later, the woman who offered me her services, appeared with a worried face; followed by a tall tourist bothering her, trying to convince her to go to a love hotel. I saw him grab her and tried to drag her away; so, being that drunk, I intervened.
The man only spoke English and assured me everything was alright, that they were just discussing where to go. He didn’t expect me to ask her in Japanese; obviously, she wasn’t ok and said that she only wanted to go home now but didn’t know how to get away from that annoying guy. I told her that everything was ok and that she could go home now; and before that guy did anything, I stood between them and stopped him.
I can’t lie, I was a bit scared, I didn’t want to be in trouble without starting my journey. She thanked me and scaped, then I told the man to chill out and invited him to sit with the guitarist, but he left a bit impotent.
I just felt glad that the woman was walking away safe. But I keep thinking about this issue. Situations like this, of harassment, happen a lot in any neighborhood around the world. The worst thing is that many times, people just ignore it. I understand that, in some cases, dangerous people may be involved, and everyone should avoid those risks. But there are also times that it’s easier to (maybe anonymously) report the situation and get help.
After many tries, I finally talked with my friend, just before taking the train home. Then, we went back together to sleep all day.
[2019-10-06]
We woke up really late and hungry. So, we went out before I had to pack my bags and prepare myself for the following morning, (when I would be again alone, in the preface for my long journey).
Don‘t hesitate to ask any questions in the comments below.
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