When Abbey and I heard that our friends from the U.S. Ali and Rohma would be coming to Tokyo over winter vacation, we knew that we were going to meet up with them.
But there was one problem: Tokyo is pretty far away from where we live in Gifu. And since the bullet train is pretty expensive, we had to go by bus.
That meant only one thing — night bus to Tokyo!
After Abbey finished work on Christmas and the day after Christmas (they’re not holidays in Japan!), we got packed up and went to our local train station at 7:00pm. In order to get to the bus that would get us to Tokyo, we first had to go to the nearby city Nagoya, which was about an hour and a half away by train.
Here’s me, bundled up with my train ticket prepped and ready in my mouth…
…and Abbey, with her massive bag that she’d made herself specifically for this trip.
The determination to buy lots of cute Tokyo goods burns brightly in her eyes!
We arrived at Nagoya Station before our bus, so we had dinner at a restaurant called Yabaton, which specializes in miso-flavored fried/breaded pork. I think I enjoyed it?
And here was our night bus!
We climbed aboard, fell asleep, and then six hours later at 5:00am…
…we were in Tokyo! Unfortunately we didn’t take any photos because we were so tired, but I’d never seen Shinjuku station so empty. Usually it’s filled with thousands of people, but at 5:00am, it was a ghost station.
A dramatic reenactment of my reaction to seeing no one at the busiest train station in Tokyo.
Abbey and I met up with our friends we’d be staying with in Tokyo, took a nap, and then went out to the best restaurant in Tokyo and/or the world: Shakey’s!
Starting off strong with a plate of corn/mayonnaise pizza,
basil chicken, Hawaiian, and marshmallow strawberry.
Oh yes. Ohhhh yesssss. Suck down that sweet, sweet Shakey’s.
A few plates later, finishing off with some dessert pizza:
chocolate mint, banana chocolate, and apple/walnut.
Nothing breathes life into you after a seven hour bus ride quite like lunch at Shakey’s.
A few hours later, we met up with our friends from the U.S. Ali and Rohma, and we went to the Pokemon Center in Nihonbashi.
Abbey taking the classic Snorlax selfie.
The outside of the Pokemon Center was very cool,
showing snapshots of every game in the series.
You can see how far down it extends, each generation getting more colorful and detailed.
Besides the Pokemon Center itself, which is basically just a giant store full of Pokemon goods, the Nihonbashi store also had a Pokemon Cafe where you can eat lunch/dinner. Getting a seat there requires a reservation made more than a month in advance… which thankfully we’d done!
Abbey proudly showing off her reservation prowess at the entrance to the cafe.
The inside of the cafe was beautifully decorated with Pokemon stuff everywhere, such as this Pokeball flower mural on the wall…
…shelves of cool Pokemon stuff…
…Pokemon statues at nearly every table…
…and of course, Pokemon placemats!
You can even order a latte with the picture of any of the original 151 Pokemon drawn on it. I wonder which one gets the least amount of orders… maybe Electrode? Sandslash?
While we waited for our orders to come in, Abbey posed with some Pikachu friends.
Dinner has arrived! The Pikachu is an egg omelette filled with rice, with chips for ears, carrots for cheeks, and seaweed for eyes. Tastes just like you’d expect a Pikachu to taste.
Abbey ordered a Charizard latte, fulfilling one of her lifelong dreams.
After we finished eating and we went to pay for our meal, the clerk behind the counter told me that if we waited for just a few minutes, a “certain Pokemon” would be making an appearance. Well we weren’t going to say no to that, so we returned to our seats, waited for a few minutes, and then…
…who arrived, but a real-life Pikachu!
They’re so much bigger in person.
You can see our video of Pikachu bouncing around here.
The next day started off with me, Ali and Rohma doing a creative writing livestream from their hotel room. It was a crazy time, and you can check out all the insanity here.
After the stream ended, the three of us went to Akihabara, the holy land for Japanese geeks and nerds.
And in keeping with the Akihabara geeky spirit, this is me explaining to Ali on the way
why the recent arcs of One Piece pale in comparison to the original ones.
Ali wanted to find a horrifically-embarrassing anime girl shirt in Akihabara, and I’d say we found a pretty good one.
Oh yeah, work that SWEET SUCCUBUS!
We went to the Gundam cafe in Akihabara, which also offered character lattes like the Pokemon Cafe, though this one just looked a tad sadder.
One shop was selling Magikarp taiyaki (a fish-shaped waffle filled with sweet bean paste), so we got some.
Ali went for the chocolate-filled kind, letting it drip out of the waffle-fish, just a big bite into its disgustingly delicious innards should.
Not sure exactly what was going on in this photo, but Ali was definitely rocking the homeless look throughout Tokyo.
Later we met up with Abbey, and the four of us went to karaoke. Karaoke in Japan is very different than in the U.S. You rent a private, soundproof room, and you get to choose from thousands of songs (in Japanese or English) on a tablet.
For Ali and Abbey, who love to sing even when they’re not renting a small room in Japan, it was a dream come true.
A shot of Ali belting out something beautiful.
A video of all of us singing in English and Japanese!
(Prepare your ears for an auditory FEAST.)
After a long night of screaming out anime opening themes and 80s American tunes, Abbey and I woke up the following day to a beautiful, traditional New Years Japanese meal that our had friends made.
We started off with soba noodles topped with meat.
The noodles’ long length symbolizes wishing for long life in the New Year.
Plus ozoni, chicken soup with mochi; kamaboko, pink and white fish cake; kuri kinton, candied chestnut; kumquat, beans, and more!
Of course, no traditional Japanese meal would be complete without some niboshi, little dried fish… otherwise known as Winstons!
Abbey enjoying some of the delicious Winstons for breakfast.
After breakfast, we headed out. Abbey was so jealous of the Magikarp taiyaki we’d gotten without her in Akihabara that she had to stop for some of her own.
“Do you feel better now, Abbey?”
“Yesh!”
After that we met up with Ali and Rohma to go to Tokyo Tower, which was home to a very special place we wanted to visit.
Along the way, Abbey picked up a baked potato from the potato truck. They’re the ice cream trucks of Japan, playing music as they go around the neighborhood!
Tokyo Tower is filled with tons of touristy stuff.
Abbey even got her picture with the real Hello Kitty.
But then we arrived at the reason we’d come here: One Piece Tower!
Yes, three whole floors dedicated to my favorite anime/manga: One Piece!
It’s like the Disney World of One Piece… and it was FREE to enter on New Years day!
We made out like pirates.
Abbey posing with the Straw Hat crew’s ship, Thousand Sunny, in the entrance area.
So beautiful, sailing into the sunset.
A glowing mural at the entrance, showing off the whole crew. It’s like we’re all really together *blush*
A den-den mushi (“snail phone”) from the series designed to look like Tokyo Tower. Abbey was very impressed.
The signatures from everyone in the crew. I love how Luffy’s signature is just ore (“me”), Zoro’s is katana (“sword”), and Chopper’s is a hoof print.
Abbey contemplating life together with Nico Robin.
Abbey and Ali doing “the pose” together with Franky. SUUUPERRR!
And me, finally meeting my idol Luffy in person! Please, take me aboard with you, Luffy-senpai!
Each crew member had their own attraction. The money-loving Nami had a casino…
…and the sniper Usopp had a shooting gallery.
Here’s Abbey trying her hand at Usopp’s game. Can she take down the five marines, and then hit the bull’s eye on the flag in under a minute?!
Zoro’s attraction was very… edgy.
Abbey waiting in line for Zoro’s game, showing off her Carue duck bag. Yes Abbey, we’re all very impressed.
The line for Zoro’s game showed off all the famous swords from the series. Ali was spellbound, as you can see.
Unfortunately we couldn’t take any video during Zoro’s game, but you basically stood in front of a screen and swung a sword, slicing cannonballs before they hit the ship. If you destroyed enough of them quickly, then the final boss would appear: a Kuma Pacifista robot. Do some fancy movements to execute Zoro’s 36-pound-cannon attack on the robot, and you win!
I, of course, managed a flawless victory that had everyone applauding and in tears. Alas, I have no proof, so you’ll just have to take my word for it.
We spotted Ao Kiji’s bicycle. A very cool item that shows just how much detail/thought went into the planning of the Tower.
The entrance to the exhibition area that showed off lots of scenes from the manga/anime.
It was like a One Piece museum!
The wall of those who have fallen. It included such memorable sacrifices as Bellemere, Dr. Hilluluk…
*sigh* …and Pell. The fact that Pell survives his sacrifice is one story decision I wholeheartedly disagree with, as I am very clearly demonstrating here.
Abbey dared to sit in the seat-hand of Kuma, a decision she looks like she immediately regretted.
Pictured: Abbey and Ali mourning the loss of Gold Roger at his famous execution.
Not Pictured: Ali knocking over the velvet rope posts, causing a massive clatter, and having the eyes of every Japanese person focused on him.
Before we knew it, it was time for Ali and Rohma to continue their Japan adventure without us in Kyoto and Osaka. This is us at the Tokyo station saying goodbye, as millions of commuters passed us by and shed tears from our beautiful display of friendship.
But before Abbey and I left Tokyo, there was one more thing was had to do.
.
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.
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.
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Another trip to Shakey’s!
Ohhh yes. Shakey’s has curry (considered kid’s food in Japan), and it is exquisite when dolloped on pizza.
Shakey’s so good it makes you spontaneously sprout cat ears, floating cherries, and space hearts.
And after that, it was time to go back home to Gifu. Tokyo was exhausting, the dry air singed my skin into a granular desert, and Abbey and I probably gained about 10 pounds from all the Shakey’s, but it was worth it. Ten out of ten, would pour curry all over Tokyo again.
If you want more stories from Japan, then join us when we stream on Twitch every Sunday, Tuesday, and Thursday.
Hope to see you next time, friend!
Scott Wilson is the author of the novel Metl: The ANGEL Weapon,
forthcoming March 2019.
Insert image: Pakutaso