specific shinjuku questions

[deepbluevibes]

for those of you who visit shinjuku or live in it...

- have any internet cafes you reccomend?

- have any arcades you reccomend?

- have any cool spots to hang out at/see things you reccomend?

- have any resturaunts that are good that you reccomend?

- have any malls that you reccomend?

i have a decent list of shinjuku stuff already, but usually in any given spot the locals know the best deals or spots better than any book could so... please help? ;_;

[I ARE 1031]

for those of you who visit shinjuku or live in it...

- have any internet cafes you reccomend?

- have any arcades you reccomend?

- have any cool spots to hang out at/see things you reccomend?

- have any resturaunts that are good that you reccomend?

- have any malls that you reccomend?

i have a decent list of shinjuku stuff already, but usually in any given spot the locals know the best deals or spots better than any book could so... please help? ;_;

I don't have any to recommend. Maybe you should study first so you can ask the locals in correct Japanese.

[deepbluevibes]

I don't have any to recommend. Maybe you should study first so you can ask the locals in correct Japanese.

Ok..? been studying since May..?

I know in california if you ask just any random person where the best arcade is in modesto, maybe 1 out of every 20,000 people will know what i'm even *talking* about. the same probably goes in tokyo. so it's not as cut and dry as that.

"*place* wa doko desu ka" would be the simplest one. just saying "where is *place*"? so yes, i'd know how to ask.

[I ARE 1031]

So you are saying California is just like Tokyo? Why even go then?

[deepbluevibes]

So you are saying California is just like Tokyo? Why even go then?

are you enjoying being a smartass? seriously, why even post then?

if you are too stupid to even get that that was a comparison, then you really shouldn't even be posting here.

People eat in every country in the world. does that mean that every country in the world is the same as every other country? no. In every country in the world people die. are they all the same? no. in every country people play video games. are they all the same? no.

i'm saying, people have different tastes. asking a random local about a hidden, in the back alleys, rarely known place only to the hardcore gamers/internet users/resturaunt conniseuers/etc. is not going to get you anything.

now really, if you don't have anything useful to add, go post somewhere else. i'm not going to respond to your posts anymore, and i'm getting sick recently of having to defend myself here. i liked coming here because people were helpful and realized that in fact, this is a new experience for me, so i would like to know as much as possible from the people *who are there* or who have learned a lot about it.

going on the internet and learning about it or searching for it is going to produce 95% false results. waste of time and effort. but if you don't want to answer my questions anymore, don't. for those of you who still want to, know that i appreciate it deeply.

[hapacheese]

- have any arcades you reccomend?

Shibuya has better "normal" arcades overall, but if you're insisting on Shinjuku, then try Joypolis. It's the giant Sega arcade that has all kinds of weird stuff (not just normal cabinets, but big ass stuff, too). It's through the Minami-guchi (South Exit) of the JR Station.


- have any cool spots to hang out at/see things you reccomend?

In Shinjuku? Hm... Well, if you want to see all of Tokyo, go to the Nishi-guchi (West Exit), then go to Tocho (the big government building that has the twin towers). You can go all the way to the top and get a 360 view of the city.

There's also Kabuki-cho just outside Higashi-guchi (East Exit), which is always entertaining.


- have any resturaunts that are good that you reccomend?

Hmm... I don't actually know the names of the places, nor would I be able to explain how to find them =\


- have any malls that you reccomend?

What's the obsession with malls? Like I said, there aren't really any malls in Japan in the way we think of them in the US. There are shopping districts or underground shopping areas, but just walk around... there's a store every 5 ft. One I would recommend, though, is Sakuraya in Shinjuku. It's a bit hard to find, but ask anyone where Sakuraya is, and they should be able to tell you. There are two really close together... one has electronics, and the other is games/figures/toys/etc. The second one is the one I'm talking about. Really impressive collection of just *stuff*.

[deepbluevibes]

hapacheese, i gotta say i seriously appreciate you and henjin. you guys are helping me out but being realistic w/it also. seriously, thanks tons.

and the mall obsession is because im shopping for a ton of friends while i'm there.

[hapacheese]

You'll find plenty of places to shop. If there's any economy that's *not* failing in Japan, it's the pop-culture-based economy.

[deepbluevibes]

now just to find out about internet cafes...

[megaversal]

Here's a link to my favorite Internet cafe company's Shinjuku branch: http://www.media-cafe.ne.jp/branch/shinjuku/index.html

I never went to that one, but the others I've been to (Osaka, various other Tokyo locations) have free drinks, cheap food, are open 24/7, have a great overnight rate, and overall aren't that expensive. You can read manga, watch videos, sleep, shower, or whatever else it is that you need to do there.

[Henjin]

hapacheese, i gotta say i seriously appreciate you and henjin. you guys are helping me out but being realistic w/it also. seriously, thanks tons.

I didn't think I was all that helpful, but hey, glad you think so. ;)

And have you seriously only been studying for about 5 months? Oy. I studied Japanese for 2years before I went and I still made a fool out of myself. I'm no genious, but I'm not exactly an idiot either. Heh. Ah, you'll have fun. Heheh.

And yeah, you'll find the best stuff in the little stores. The malls have stuff (and because I procrastinated, I got a lot of gifts at places like Daimaru. :D ), but probably not what you're looking for.

[B MacD]

Deepblue,

You seem really focused on Tokyo, which is fine. Its a great place and quite exciting. But if your schedule allows, I'd really recommend going to Kyoto or Nara. Especially Nara actually, it will give you a completely different perspective on Japan, compared to Tokyo. If you're ambitious enough, you could even do it as a 2 day trip or so. It will require some early mornings, but I doubt you came all the way to Japan just to sleep.

B

[deepbluevibes]

Deepblue,

You seem really focused on Tokyo, which is fine. Its a great place and quite exciting. But if your schedule allows, I'd really recommend going to Kyoto or Nara. Especially Nara actually, it will give you a completely different perspective on Japan, compared to Tokyo. If you're ambitious enough, you could even do it as a 2 day trip or so. It will require some early mornings, but I doubt you came all the way to Japan just to sleep.

B

Yeah, we'll only be in japan for 10 days. So, we're not leaving tokyo, period. sorry :-/ plus my dad is going along who has absolutely no grasp of the language, culture, or anything of that sort, so tokyo is going to be mindblowing enough for him as it is, and i've already got down 100+ locations to possibly visit in tokyo during the 10 days so... yeah.

plus, i'm not really a nature person whatsoever. :-/

[deepbluevibes]

Here's a link to my favorite Internet cafe company's Shinjuku branch: http://www.media-cafe.ne.jp/branch/shinjuku/index.html

I never went to that one, but the others I've been to (Osaka, various other Tokyo locations) have free drinks, cheap food, are open 24/7, have a great overnight rate, and overall aren't that expensive. You can read manga, watch videos, sleep, shower, or whatever else it is that you need to do there.

awesome, thanks tons. will try to translate page with altavista, lmao and then somehow get the adress...

and henjin, yes i started taking lessons from scratch from my teacher around May, bought some vocab/phrase books around August, and i'm only on my 7th lesson out of 40 from my teacher. ;_;

Also, how did you do with Katakana? thanks to Slime Forest (this game that's advertised, i forgot where though) i learned all the katakana (basic ones, besides the crazy ass stuff like dzu or whatever) in just three days, perfectly memorized. it's weird. 0_o

[PopCulturePooka]

For Shinjyuku, I'd really just suggest exploring it. Give it a day or half a day and wander all around it. You'll find more awesome shops, arcades and restaurants that way then following anyones guides or books.

Find your own truths. What I always say.

[nice gaijin]

shit, I wrote a response and then lost it... giving quite specific info too! sorry, it's your loss...

To be honest shinjuku is not my favorite place in Tokyo. I recommend checking out Harajuku (good for shopping), Shibuya (people watching), Ikebukuro (I can't put my finger on it but it's one of my favorite places in the city) and other places like odaiba (it does have what we'd call a mall, and fujitv), asakusa (tourist trap), akihabara (good for a half day... and only a half day) and Ueno (museums, some shopping, nice parks). Never saw roppongi, so I can't really comment on that.

Seriously, if you are just going to stay in the city, see the city, not just one section. I'd also recommend visiting Yokohama if only for a day, it's a nice break from the craziness that is Tokyo. If you have a rail pass I'd say go for it and check out Kyoto and Nara, but if not, the cost doesn't warrant going that far out of your way.

[erbiumfiber]

If you need tons of Japanese gifts, the best place to go in all of Tokyo is Oriental Bazaar in Harajuku, right on Omotesando. Two stops on the Yamanote line from Shinjuku. Next to Oriental Bazaar is a store called Kiddy Land filled with toys and stuff.

A really great place to spend the day in Tokyo is on O-daiba- an island built on fill- there's a cool little train with no conductors that takes you there. Lots of arcades and a Joypolis with rides even. Check out the guide books for O-daiba and buy the day pass so you can go to a bunch of different places all around the island...

Umm, I work in Shinjuku and have for nearly the past 2 1/2 years and, unfortunately, there's nothing I can recommend for tourists. OK, MAYBE the Tokyu Hands at Takashimaya Times Square- they have trinkets to take back to the States. Minami-guchi, cross the street, go left to the New South Exit, a walkway takes you into Takashimaya (boring department store) which is connected on the far end to Tokyu Hands. Which is also connected to Kinokuniya, a giant Japansese bookstore. On the fifth floor are English books (which will not be of interest to you, coming from AMerica where you can get a ton of that) and also a big section with materials for learning Japanese- which you might be interested in. Best I can do, sorry.

[nice gaijin]

haha the oriental shop (which I affectionately call the gaijin gift shop) was one of those specific examples i gave in my lost post...

The train to Odaiba is a Monorail that starts from Shinbashi and a day pass is about 800 yen, and includes the ferry ride. If you ride the monorail or ferry more than twice it's worth it.

kinokuniya is seriously cool and huge, but I prefer book-off and the other used book stores with their ridiculously cheap prices.

[EIJI]

Deepblue, do you know "Okonomiyaki"?
"Okonomiyaki" is Japanese-style pancake containing vegetables and other foodstuff.

I’ll show you my favorite “Okonomiyaki” restaurant is located at “Yoyogiuehara”.
Yoyogiuehara is just one stop on the Odakyu-Line Express from Shinjuku.
#Map A one-minute walk from south exit of the station.
http://my.gnavi.co.jp/kanjisan/map/kanjisan_map.php?gShopID=a231300&lay=0&cpn=1
#Address kobayashi Bld., 1F 1-32-18, Uehara, Shibuya-Ku/〒151-0064 東京都渋谷区上原1-32-18 小林ビル1F
#Tel 3460-5989

This “Gokiraku-tei” is actually small, but its “Okonomiyaki” is very good.
And you could cook “Japanese food” by yourself. :)
Let’s enjoy!

[Henjin]

Did someone say SHINBASHI!!! Heheh. I was walking around Kobe yelling that.
I also bought some stuff at a Tokyu Hands over there. Relatively cheap touristy stuff.

And I had gotten a lot better w/ Katakana by the time I went to Japan (2 yrs of study, remember?) I still have to sound words out a couple times when I first see them, though.

[stsparky]

You'll enjoy Harajuku which is close enough to Shinjuku, and for your pals you can shop in Kiddyland (7 floor up and 2 floors down - filled with toys).

And Popeye's in the place for your InterNet Cafe needs. You'll understand that a laptop is an unneeded extra weight once you use it.

Omotesando Dori is the perfect street for you and your dad to stroll down. There's a glasses frame shop near the station by Meiji Dori that you can buy soft glasses cases at for the adults in your life.

You need to visit the Mori Building in Roppongi for a 360° vista of modern Tokyo. - Sparky

[nice gaijin]

lol eiji don't give someone an address in tokyo and expect them to actually FIND the place! :D

Another recommendation I'd make is check out Loft, it's a nifty department store in (I think) Shibuya. It's also nearby a large arcade and several internet cafe's. Avoid Ichi Maru Kyuu (109) unless you want to gawk at some kogyaru and ganguro; trust me, there's no worthwhile shopping there for you or your dad.

[hapacheese]

One of these days, I'm going to go to Japan on *vacation* (gasp!) and take my fiance with me. My goal? Take her through Shinjuku/Shibuya/Harajuku/Kichijyouji and make her try on all the kogyaru fashions we can find. She's basically Moeko at age 28, so seeing her in kogyaru fashion will be worth the price of admission alone.

[deepbluevibes]

shit, I wrote a response and then lost it... giving quite specific info too! sorry, it's your loss...

To be honest shinjuku is not my favorite place in Tokyo. I recommend checking out Harajuku (good for shopping), Shibuya (people watching), Ikebukuro (I can't put my finger on it but it's one of my favorite places in the city) and other places like odaiba (it does have what we'd call a mall, and fujitv), asakusa (tourist trap), akihabara (good for a half day... and only a half day) and Ueno (museums, some shopping, nice parks). Never saw roppongi, so I can't really comment on that.

Seriously, if you are just going to stay in the city, see the city, not just one section. I'd also recommend visiting Yokohama if only for a day, it's a nice break from the craziness that is Tokyo. If you have a rail pass I'd say go for it and check out Kyoto and Nara, but if not, the cost doesn't warrant going that far out of your way.

Oh, I definitely intend to see a ton of tokyo. The thing is, the reason I asked about Shinjuku is because that's where our hotel is, so after a long night, i wanted to know where an internet cafe was to update my stuff (i want to keep a journal of this), to talk to my friends back in the states, etc.

wanted to know where a resturaunt was so before i left out for the day i could get something to eat near my hotel (it's the New City one, btw) and etc. is why i asked for all those locations.

[deepbluevibes]

lol eiji don't give someone an address in tokyo and expect them to actually FIND the place! :D

Another recommendation I'd make is check out Loft, it's a nifty department store in (I think) Shibuya. It's also nearby a large arcade and several internet cafe's. Avoid Ichi Maru Kyuu (109) unless you want to gawk at some kogyaru and ganguro; trust me, there's no worthwhile shopping there for you or your dad.

EIJI, thanks for the location ^^

nice gaijin, i learned how to read adresses a few days ago and i have a bi-lingual atlas, i tried finding a few locations myself and i was right on them so it's not that hard. =P gimme all the direct adresses you want.

[Henjin]

maps.google.co.jp should find them... And they have high-res satelite images of Tokyo (not so much for Kobe). *shrug* Worth checking out.

And how long are you going to be in Japan? I thought I'd want to find an internet cafe or something and talk to my friends/family too, but I didn't have the time. If you're only here for a week or two, I say enjoy the time and don't worry about keeping your friends up to date at home. You can always talk to them later, and it's more fun to tell all your stories (Word I learned here: お土産話 "Omiyagebanashi") when you get back. :)

[PopCulturePooka]

EIJI, thanks for the location ^^

nice gaijin, i learned how to read adresses a few days ago and i have a bi-lingual atlas, i tried finding a few locations myself and i was right on them so it's not that hard. =P gimme all the direct adresses you want.
Holy shit.
Now THERES a skill you can use to impress Japanese.

Many Japanese themselves freely admit to not being able to figure where places are on address alone.

[Henjin]

I'm sure it's a little different finding the place on a map and finding it on the street... In the place where the streets have no name...

[I ARE 1031]

are you enjoying being a smartass? seriously, why even post then?

if you are too stupid to even get that that was a comparison, then you really shouldn't even be posting here.

People eat in every country in the world. does that mean that every country in the world is the same as every other country? no. In every country in the world people die. are they all the same? no. in every country people play video games. are they all the same? no.

i'm saying, people have different tastes. asking a random local about a hidden, in the back alleys, rarely known place only to the hardcore gamers/internet users/resturaunt conniseuers/etc. is not going to get you anything.

now really, if you don't have anything useful to add, go post somewhere else. i'm not going to respond to your posts anymore, and i'm getting sick recently of having to defend myself here. i liked coming here because people were helpful and realized that in fact, this is a new experience for me, so i would like to know as much as possible from the people *who are there* or who have learned a lot about it.

going on the internet and learning about it or searching for it is going to produce 95% false results. waste of time and effort. but if you don't want to answer my questions anymore, don't. for those of you who still want to, know that i appreciate it deeply.

Who writes all that? Your examples were nothing like mine. You cretin.

[hapacheese]

Yeah, where the streets have no name.
(and if the song were about Roppongi)
Still feeling that buuuuuurning down low...
That buuuuuurning down low...
I wouldn't go there...

:D

[Henjin]

lol

Yeah, the whole nameless street thing is kinda crazy, but I don't mind since I like to walk the streets of Japan 'till I get lost. :p

[megaversal]

Holy shit.
Now THERES a skill you can use to impress Japanese.

Many Japanese themselves freely admit to not being able to figure where places are on address alone.

It's true. Because I used to take random train trips, I knew a lot more about the subway/JR/other train systems and the areas around each station than the average Tokyoite. Japanese girls definitely like to be led and since I often couldn't do it when "real" Japanese language skills were needed, my ability to find most places with ease worked to my advantage. Oh yeah, using maps.google.com, maps.yahoo.co.jp, and http://grace.hyperdia.com/cgi-english/hyperd01.cgi to find the place and then taking a picture with your camera (or the camera on your ultra-tech Japanese phone) is INCREDIBLY useful.

[deepbluevibes]

maps.google.co.jp should find them... And they have high-res satelite images of Tokyo (not so much for Kobe). *shrug* Worth checking out.

And how long are you going to be in Japan? I thought I'd want to find an internet cafe or something and talk to my friends/family too, but I didn't have the time. If you're only here for a week or two, I say enjoy the time and don't worry about keeping your friends up to date at home. You can always talk to them later, and it's more fun to tell all your stories (Word I learned here: お土産話 "Omiyagebanashi") when you get back. :)

Well, i have an extremely bad short term memory. Partly due to my heart, and partly just cuz i do, so that's why i keep like.. two journals. one with a tape recorder, and one with a online journal. it's not like actual "what the hell did i just eat today" bad memories, but it's not that good either.

bizarelly enough, stuff from like 10 years ago i can recite perfectly, the time of day, the conversations i had, the weather, day of the week, everything.

[deepbluevibes]

Who writes all that? Your examples were nothing like mine. You cretin.

Apparently, I wrote all of it. Having fun wasting your time?

[Uska]

hm i've been planning my own trip to Japan for next year, any idea what the minimum ammount of money i'll need to spend a confortable 2(maybe 3?) weeks in Japan? I'd like to not just stay in Tokyo, and visit some ppl I know up in Osaka...maybe go to Fukui too(my own reasons :P).

[nice gaijin]

have 2 or 3 grand available, just in case. I was there for about a month and that's about what I spent, despite being frugal and only spending 5 days or so in hotels.

[erbiumfiber]

Internet cafes (two of them) really near Shinjuku station, east exit:

www.manboo.co.jp

Go down the stairs, right under the bridge, first left and right next to the McDonalds.

Also, in general near the east exit of Shinjuku station is a small neighborhood of generally pedestrian walkways and tons of restaurants and pachinko and slots (don't know if they have conventional arcades in them as well). Just to see how silly it is, you should try pachinko. I tried it but I don't get the attraction. I couldn't see where the skill came in. But a lot of people are hooked and it's not like you'll get to play it much in the U.S.

[deepbluevibes]

awesome erbi, thanks.

[erbiumfiber]

OK, I just looked more carefully and the Ma Boo Internet/manga cafe is on the fifth floor above the McDonald's. I thought it was the next door building- the elevator is in the lobby next to (to the right of) McDonald's. There's also another one (same chain) in the basement of a building at the intersection of Meji Dori (a street with a name!) and the street that runs past the Shinjuku south entrance. There's often people advertising both these locations right at the bottom of the stairs outside the east exit.

[Frankey-eh]

Many Japanese themselves freely admit to not being able to figure where places are on address alone.
Like me. :P
Once, I couldn't even find my brother's preschool, and I circled all the way around the neighborhood before realizing it was right next to where I had started from.

[erbiumfiber]

deepblue:

You can rent cellphones relatively inexpensively at the airport, one for you, one for your dad- that way if you decide to go your separate ways and he gets lost, you can be in contact with each other.

Sorry if this has already been mentioned...my coworker did it when his parents came to visit.

[stsparky]

Oh. Find out what the InterNet charges will be at the hotel you are at. Have fun!

[Uska]

have 2 or 3 grand available, just in case. I was there for about a month and that's about what I spent, despite being frugal and only spending 5 days or so in hotels.


oooh really? does that include airline and food and shit? I dunno it seems like it's too little for me for some reason lol

[Henjin]

I spent under $2000 on my trip, including airfare, bus fare, hotel, food, omiyage, etc.