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One of the famous areas in Japan would definitely be Ikebukuro. Mentioned in countless anime, and infamous for the nightlife. 564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡriA5jJMiiq
Me and my friends met up there, and walked the whole day. Keep in mind, my legs can't take much due to that accident. Even though I was wearing braces for both my legs, damn they hurt. Even my friends who had no issues with their legs were limping by the end of the day.564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡGxJXx052N0
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So, what did we do? Of course, we visited ANIMATE. Both branches - the first one had a few collab cafes that we didn't find interesting, as well as cosplay services where you can try cosplaying with a photoshoot.564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ4jmWfqGjBX
The main branch... oh boy. We went through each story in the building. Oh boy, I didn't know one whole story would be dedicated to BL manga. Hahaha. Luckily, there were other men there, so we didn't feel too out of place. I couldn't find any Gintama volumes... but I definitely recognised a lot of manga as well as manhwa that they sold. I bought some Gintama merch at the store that took up one story - expensive...564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡQLMxMzGKSk
564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡZTeBLH7nO3
Anyhow, we went to a BOOKOFF (second hand store) afterwards, and stayed there for a while reading manga... in Japanese. Of course, I spent 20 minutes searching for Gintama, and another 20 minutes reading different volumes. While I obviously can't understand most of it, I recognised each panel from the corresponding scene in the anime. We also saw a Pokemon card being resold for over $4300 usd... damn. I think that's more than what we spent for the entire trip. (We didn't go to Disneyland or anything, cos that's overrated. Or is it? I went to Disney in HK, so...)564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡiAczGGsuGB
564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡ5sC2f4HkrG
And the highlight of the trip, Sunshine City! A "city within a city". We didn't explore ALL of it, of course... but you know, I gotta visit the Pokemon floor. And so I did! Unfortunately I couldn't book for the Pokemon or Kirby cafe in time...564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡfq0BeiyBWq
The Pikachu sweets cafe was pretty, but the bad reviews were there for a reason. 90% of my drink was ice, smh. But it was great looking around the Pokemon-themed floor, and though nothing caught my eye at the Pokemon centre... we caught some boy bands performing by chance haha. It was hilarious watching them meet and interact with fans. 564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡIbAjU8WOZz
(This was 90% ice... shame.)564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡuPVvim2LVz
564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnGnAUkS9d2
My legs were so sore that I sat on the ground while observing the idols. At some point, I decided to take a video of them, but just before I took a video, one of the members looked up, and seemed to make eye contact with me. The first thought that popped into my head was, "Am I... not supposed to take a video?" despite others clearly taking pictures. I just had the idea I was doing something very wrong. We ate dinner at Sunshine city! Pretty good, but nothing spectacular, so no pictures.564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡzJJoKKeluo
564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUjPHlg7znN
Oh, I had to mention we ate ramen at a local chain! Not very famous, but it's called Ichiryuu. Delicious and cheap. I've tried Ichiran and many other ramen places in Tokyo, but something about the msg in the Ichiryuu ramen was so good. 9/10. A little biased because I really want to eat ramen rn.564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡH0CFVebGhC
564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡUH6XhVNI3b
Finally, we hurried to the Sanrio cafe. I got the sesame Kuromi(?) cake, and it was nice. Again, pricy. 564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡeYqkEYvhvu
564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbAiq32WLhZ
Ah, how could I forget! The amazing sumikko gurashi themed capcom cafe we went too for dessert! (Yes, a lot of dessert all in one day lol) 8.5/10. Very delish.564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmvGznjJ4eK
The pudding came with the plate. Yes, you could take the plate home... it was around 2200 yen?564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡdbaDvKPoqj
564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡS076n3h0pV
So in the end, we tried to look for the Ikebukuro nightlife west of the station. The main streets had many pretty girls and boys handing out flyers to attract customers, but we wanted to see the "seedy" red-light district. 564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡRH3jojfBuF
...We ended up wandering into deserted streets that were probably prone to Yakuza visits instead LOL. Disappointing... I would've liked to visit a love hotel just for the lols sometime.564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡqGZvn1wN1E
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Damn, this is getting lengthy so I'll just list the places we went to!564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡg1rVsL3rHT
564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡv3YP6hJQPB
Maidreamin idol cafe! We paid for a performance of Yoasobi's "Idol" by a maid. (very) expensive... taste was good though! 7.5/10.564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡoi12k541YN
564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡq5ZFWZKS5o
Mister donut! A self-serve donut chain. It was pokemon themed for this period of time! All donuts were delicious. I had the snorlax, gold-flaked chocolate, and the original donut. 8/10.564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡc3Yv97cE04
564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡxsQAoxz3sS
Tokyo Skytree! Just a mall with the tower you can go up.564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡVpBRhibPmD
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We went to the Shibuya crossing! What did we eat again? Ah, right, Ichiran ramen. All these ramen chains are intended for single people, with the barricade between you and the next seat. You don't have to talk, and order by a machine. 8/10.564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡCBd7fLFu52
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Some restaurant near the Ebisu station that was honestly fire... 8.5/10.564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡp6HyQdBR0y
564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡYmelHnoXzQ
Harajuku street - takeshita? Nothing special, just touristy... AHHHH A popup store of a band I like is gonna be there... but it's too late L564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡNS9Fabk1uS
564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡbapsuKVSrx
Extra: Since Sukiyaki outside is expensive af, we had homemade sukiyaki at a friend's house in Japan. Delicious! Raw egg is a thing in Japan, and don't underestimate the power of raw egg on rice... damn... 564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡmJIQew5u0j
Oh yeah, we also went to TeamLab. We accidentally missed two rooms, rip.564Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡnxphVAcdNt
