Today was our highly-anticipated trip back to Tokyo, headed via Shinkansen to remm Akihabara, a hotel right next to Akihabara Station!

It went well and according to plan. With a somewhat shaky start, taking a while to get settled on the Shinkansen, but having gobbled down some Ekiben, I soon conked out for a good majority of the trip!

Upon arrival, we got settled into the remm Akihabara, a quaint, well-equipped hotel. The room was small, as expected, but the amenities and location more than made up for it. I’m probably more excited than I have any right to be about it, but they had a RAIN SHOWER! HOW COOL IS THAT!

Soon after, our group leader, Stephen Jacobs, led us to Mandarake, a famed anime and manga shop known for its variety of rare secondhand items. It was crazy to see the amount of merchandise they had in that place, a treat for almost anyone obsessed with anything! And I mean anything. The streets of Akihabara were absolutely packed with absolutely crazy stuff. Couldn’t stop looking up!

Next, we visited Super Potato. Hidden away in a sketchy-looking hallway off the street, it’s this massive retro game store. The nostalgia factor was off the charts, with walls of classic games and consoles stretching back decades. The top floor even had a few game cabinets, and was fully decked out with vending machines and air conditioners! Still think it’s insane how Japanese buildings fit so much in so little.

After all the exploration, a bunch of us got hungry and decided to check out Yarou Ramen. This place had a Japanese-only ticket system, which was a bit of a hurdle for some of us (even me), but eventually we managed to order our food. Luckily, that trouble was so worth! The ramen was out of this world! I have to say, it was my favorite meal I’ve had here so far. They even let us customize a fair bit. I put on a bunch of spicy tenkasu.

Post dinner, a few of us roamed the bustling streets of Akihabara and ended up in a massive games complex. The first few floors were filled with claw machines (didn’t win anything, as to be expected, haha). Above, there were rooms full of online and rhythm games, all accompanied by the blare of music and sound effects. It was a sensory overload but in the best way possible. The top floor was a treasure trove of retro games. Wonderful to look at, but I didn’t particularly feel the urge to devote myself to anything.

Our next stop was Don Quijote, a discount chain store that sells just about everything. It was a bit of a maze inside, and quite the hell of “way too much visual information.” Despite the confusing layout, it was pretty neat seeing all the stuff they had for sale! I was on the lookout for a Gengar plushie but unfortunately, they didn’t have it in stock. My search continues…

On the way home, we made a detour to Book-Off. I managed to snag around 10 volumes of Jojolion! Sadly, I think the last few volumes would be a real hard find.

Once I was back at the hotel, I took advantage of the downtime to pick up an umbrella (with the weather not seeming to let up this week) and do some coin laundry. On the way there, I was able to look out at the beautiful Kanda river. Damn.

Once again completely beat, it’s lights out!