Akihabara: Don't Bring Your Wallet

May 4, 2004 10:15am (Shimodate)
May 3, 2004 9:15pm (Ottawa)

All in all I loved my visit to Akihabara yesterday it was like stepping into a stereotype!

High tech gadgets, videogames that westerners will never see, manga everywhere, overcrowding, neon lights, fashion trends that ravers would reject, EVERYTHING!!!

I learned a efw lessons about navigating and surviving in Akihabara:

- PDAs are always on the second floor.
- Escalators will go up at every level, but never down.
- If the first floor of a store is anime, then every other floor is porn. Scary that....
- Don't bring money to Akihabara!!!

I learned that lesson by purchasing a new organizer while I was there. It was a great deal, and I needed to replace mine anyway, but electronics should never be an impulse buy.

I'm headed for Mito now to chit-chat online, and to download some software for my new toy.

It's a SHARP Zaurus SL-C700. Thankfully tax-free because they assumed I was a tourist. HA!!!

The programs and menus were all in Japanese, but that only slowed me down for about the first hour. Now I can navigate it as if it were English.

Yay for useless talents!!

Unfortunately it won't play any of my J-Pop files because it is not compatible with Windows Media Player. My 80s music is all playable though, it was in MP3 format.

If you're looking for the perfect gift to send me, a CD full of J-Pop MP3s would definately go over well. But please....no Gakt...I hate that guy.