Japan: Donki is both the best and worst store I've ever seen

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Tourism & Travel > Japan: Donki is both the best and worst store I've ever seen

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Did you Japan?
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Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Nanigans posted:

My trip to Tokyo is from October 5-12th, with the 5th and 12th being basically just arrival/departure days. I wanted some input on this very loose itinerary. I know there�s a big Chinese holiday that ends near the beginning of my trip, so I hope it won�t impact things too much.

Things in bold are kind of non-negotiable, unless there�s a really good reason to skip. I�m going with my wife and best friend. We�re all in our early 30s and are mostly interested in eating good food, anime/game culture, shopping for cool souvenirs and funky/hipsterish clothes, nature, and architecture.

I guess that�s a lot, but at least my friend and I are pretty big weebs, so we�re going to enjoy it all. None of us are big drinkers, but we�ll happily partake now and then. I also have a lot of parks on here. Obviously if there�s one or two you all think are heads above the rest, we�ll go there since I know my list is pretty long.

Our AirBnB is in Sugamo which seems firmly in the central North part of Tokyo, so I tried to plan our days in terms of West/East Tokyo to avoid too much travel time.

Day 1-3 Sunday-Tuesday: West-side � Ikebukuro, Shinjuku, Shibuya, Harajuku

- Sunshine City
- Jujo Ginza
- Shinjuku Gyoen Park
- Godz Bar (a heavy metal bar my friend wants to visit
- Mikado
- Omoide Yokucho
- Kabukicho
- Kichijoji
- Inokashira Park
- Tatemonoen
- Kagurazaka � We watched a video on this area and it looks too cool to miss
- Scramble crossing
- Okushibu
- Don Quixote
- Nakameguro
- Katsu Midori sushi
- Shimokitazawa � My wife is really interested in all of the vintage clothes here
- Yoyogi Park
- Meiji Jingu
- Togo shrine

Day 4-6 Wednesday � Friday: East-side � Ueno, Akihabara, Tokyo, Roppongi, Shimabashi, Asakusa, Akasaka, Odaiba

- Ueno Park
- Ginza Uniqlo
- Sega arcade
- Super Potato
- Imperial Palace � Wife wants to book a tour of the inner garden
- Tsukiji fish market
- Roppongi bars (wanted to go to Abbey Road, a Beatles bar)
- Sensoji and Nakamise temple
- Tokyo Skytree
- Hie Shrine
- Joypolis
- TeamLabs Planets

Again, any input is welcome. I�m not crazy enough to think I�m going to hit every single thing on this list or not get distracted by something cool every two minutes. I just wanted y�all�s thoughts on what�s a �must-do�.

God, I want to get so fat in Tokyo.

If you want to see the fish market you have to get up and get there really loving early, so be prepared for that. on the positive side the sushi in the the restaurants next to it is the freshest I've ever had.

# ¿ Mar 16, 2019 14:09

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# ¿ May 16, 2024 04:54

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

MY WAIFU and I are going to Japan for vacation from March 24-April 7. First 5 days in Hiroshima (where she's from), a couple of days in Kyoto, then the rest in Tokyo. She's from there but it's been 20 years, and so have I, so I don't really need the typical "what the heck to do" recommendations, but if there's anything special going on around those areas in that time, I'd like to hear about it.

# ¿ Mar 17, 2019 12:46

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Stringent posted:

Gonna be prime cherry blossom season so just do that the whole time imo.

Yeah, I'm super excited. That's one thing I've always wanted to see but have never been there at the right time.

# ¿ Mar 17, 2019 13:11

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Yeah look into Ghibli tickets on line. You have to buy them in advance. You also have to set a date and time. Foreign sales go up 3 months before and sell out quickly. Or if you know someone in-country they can get them one month in advance at Lawson.

# ¿ Mar 18, 2019 10:46

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Nanigans posted:

Yeah, but I heard backpacks are a big no-no for crowded trains.

I need to look into messenger bags.

Messenger bags are way more convenient yes. But as long as you don�t actually wear your backpack in the train and take too much space like a dork you should be fine. (Take it off and carry it)

# ¿ Mar 24, 2019 23:36

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Part 2:

Find someone in country willing to go to Lawson and buy tickets for you.

# ¿ Mar 28, 2019 01:10

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Speaking of toy shopping where are some good places in Tokyo and around akihabara? I�m looking for cool nerd things like Godzilla and sci-fi stuff and not so much gundam and bikini girl statues with huge boobs which is all most places seem to stock. Planning to go to the Bandai Akiba and tamashii nations places and probably yellow submarine in shinjuku but are there other good places to shop?

# ¿ Mar 31, 2019 10:17

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Pollyanna posted:

gently caress, I still need to figure out wireless internet options for the trip. Supposedly it�s like $220 for out of US 4g for us for the whole time, or some poo poo. I�m p sure the wireless routers are cheaper but we�d have to return them n poo poo and

Were using this (linked below) and it�s loving awesome. Unlimited data and it�s decently fast. It�s also worked everywhere we�ve gone, even at full speed on the Shinkansen. You can pick them up in the airport but we didn�t have a lot of time to get to Haneda so we had them send it to the hotel and we picked it up there. It came with a self addressed envelope for return that we�ll just drop off with the hotel when we leave. Couldn�t be easier.

Supposedly they might throttle your usage after 250gb but even with taking a shitload of pictures and syncing and everything across four devices we won�t even come close to that.

https://www.gmobile.biz/softbank/inbound/

Doctor Zero fucked around with this message at 23:35 on Mar 31, 2019

# ¿ Mar 31, 2019 23:32

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

peanut posted:

Take a break from the internet when you're outside of your hotel room.

*I can forgive maps and looking up places to go.

We gotta share these pictures of our meals, man.

# ¿ Apr 1, 2019 01:51

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Furious Lobster posted:

I've been using Tabelog to plan out my next trip to Japan later on this year and have noticed fairly large discrepancies between the domestic site and foreign ones like Tripadvisor for example. I'm much more inclined to trust the Japanese sites but does this dissonance play out with Michelin stars as well? I'm not sure if it's all nihonjinron or that Westerners have differences in pleasing palates?

I don�t understand. They are both 4/5 stars. Where�s the difference?

# ¿ Apr 1, 2019 23:06

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

How do you find your palate in relation to what native Japanese like? Have you had a chance to evaluate that? Because real Japanese is different than American Japanese, as you would expect. If you find that you like things like natto, ume, tsukemono (the little pickled veggies) etc then go with the local reviews. The best restaurants I�ve even been to in Japan are either little local places that friends brought me that I never would have found by looking on the web, or things that I�ve just randomly walked into because I was hungry and it looked interesting. But then my palate tends to like the real stuff better.

On that note I recommend leaving some room to explore and wing it rather than mapping everything out ahead of time.

# ¿ Apr 2, 2019 00:05

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Unless you�re some ultra rich celebrity I would completely ignore Michelin ratings tbqh

# ¿ Apr 2, 2019 01:36

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Thanks for the recommend on Madarake. That thing was the most dire looking monolith of a toy store I have ever seen in my life. A lot of it was kind of overpriced (or to be fair, what I could also get it for in the states) but I did find some sweet Patlabor figures I�ve never seen before so it was worth it!

Oh, and anyone else planning to go there, if you have dust allergies wear a surgical mask.

# ¿ Apr 3, 2019 00:59

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

So wait. Is this Hub you guys talk about a British pub? :confused:

# ¿ Apr 3, 2019 06:22

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

So is it like the best British pub in the world or something? IDGI

# ¿ Apr 3, 2019 06:53

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

harperdc posted:

It�s a chain of mediocre British pubs found throughout Japanese cities (especially Tokyo, and especially near major train stations) and a common place for foreign dudes to pick up Japanese women.

And now the joke is dead.

Ahh sorry my married clueless self ruined the joke. :ohdear:

# ¿ Apr 3, 2019 10:52

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Kulex posted:

Japan thread: What's some good poo poo to go see and do in Osaka?

Things I did last time in Osaka:

Go to Universal

Visited the housing museum

Hit up Shittenoji, Tenmangu, Osaka Castle

Had a disappointing meal in a hotel in Umeda

Evenings in Dotonbori

Strolled through Den Den Town at night

Got drunk in a speakeasy on the eve of my birthday because the mixologist kept giving me free shots inbetween drinks

Consequently puked just outside of Shittenojimaeyuhigaoka station

And in my upcoming trip I will probably:

Hit up Shittenoji again (going with some first timers) and see some different Temples/Shrines

Spend some time in Namba

Check out Shinsekai

Aqauarium

I will be travelling with a friend and my 16yo nephew.

I hear there�s a young danish girl that needs consoling...

# ¿ Apr 4, 2019 10:29

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Went to Ghibli yesterday and I have to say all the hassle was ... yeah worth it. Assuming you love Ghibli that is. If you�re only mildly interested it probably wouldn�t be but my me and my wife and her friend really lived it. It was crowded sure but since they limit the tickets it wasn�t obscenely so. And the weather was gorgeous.
Also haha we very nearly went in that bird cafe too.

Pollyanna posted:

Yeah, we�re 4/13ish~4/26ish. Tokyo 13~18, Hakone 19, Kyoto 20~23, Osaka 24~26. Sucks, but there�s always beantown

We�re leaving Tokyo next week so missing you by a couple days but wow you guys are from Boston too? We should have a Boston goon meet when we�re all back.

# ¿ Apr 4, 2019 23:18

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Johnny Truant posted:

Oh I thought you could purchase them at a physical location, and that made it easier.

You can but the person still has to be in Lawson at a particular time and they are still competing with everyone else in the country. When our friend bought ours she couldn�t get them for the first day we wanted to go because they had sold out and she was right there at 10 on the 10th. Make sure you give several alternate days and times if you convince someone to do it.

# ¿ Apr 5, 2019 14:42

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Soricidus posted:

Yatta! I�ve been coming to the country for years and my nihongo has finally been declared jouzu desu ne

They tell everyone that no matter how terrible you are. HTH

# ¿ Apr 9, 2019 12:20

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Soricidus posted:

i know thank you. the joke, insofar as there was one, is that nobody told me it before so I must have been really very bad indeed

unrelatedly, loving lol at google maps transit directions in this country. "sure, you could take the train ..... but have you considered this uber clone instead? it�ll take four times as long and cost 20 times as much, why not give it a try?"

Oh! I thought you were joking. I wouldn�t have sounded like a dick. Yeah congrats! :unsmith:

Also just so you know the next level is they start to ask you to say things and marvel at the fact you can use ohashi without stabbing yourself in the eye. Makes you feel like a talking dog.

# ¿ Apr 9, 2019 13:20

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Pollyanna posted:

Oh man I can�t wait to embarrass myself. Cause I will. And I will enjoy it.

It�s your goddamn god given right as a gaijin. :colbert:

# ¿ Apr 9, 2019 17:48

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Nanigans posted:

Can I get a nice view of Fuji from an observation deck somewhere in Tokyo?

Pretty much any building over 15 floors if the weather is clear. We went to the Tokyo Skytree and it was awesome, but the weather didn�t cooperate. It was sunny but not clear enough to see Fuji. I�ve also been Tokyo Tower, Roppongi Hills, and the aforementioned Metropolitan building and they all give nice views of the city.

# ¿ Apr 9, 2019 18:08

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

highme posted:

Because she doesn't want to eat meat, and no.

Does she eat seafood? My wife and I are both in the same situation and found it surprisingly hard to find food without meat. You�d think there are wall to wall sushi places but not really and even then there are a lot of dishes that just have meat with them. Some places would leave the meat off some places wouldn�t. You�d have to ask each place. We did find some places that would leave off the pork from ramen but I�m quite sure the broth wasn�t vegetarian. But we both do it because we don�t want to eat animals and not because of religion so it was a little easier.

Oh and the vegetarian means on JAL suuuuuuuucked.

That�s one thing the US has is lots of veggie options.

# ¿ Apr 10, 2019 20:23

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

oh fine, I'll post my Fuji pic take from a Shinkansen.

# ¿ Apr 11, 2019 00:55

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Forgot to mention that if you like curry, then CoCo Ichibanya now offers vegetarian curry.

Honestly, you'll be fine, but you'll just have to study the menu before you decide to go in a place.

# ¿ Apr 11, 2019 01:02

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Pollyanna posted:

I�ll just put down the dormy I�m staying at if I can�t pick it up.

Yeah do that. We had it shipped to the hotel. It was fine.

# ¿ Apr 12, 2019 12:50

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Where you going in Tokyo?

Nex looks like it came right out of Mass Effect so...

# ¿ Apr 12, 2019 20:38

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

field balm posted:

Thanks for the detailed response! My partner is very excited about the okonomiyaki in Hiroshima which she says is excellent, I've never really had it so I will make sure to indulge. Nabe looks great too! I kinda figured that barcades wouldnt be a thing, what with all the actual arcades.

Thanks for the brewery names too guys. Keep 'em coming!

Yeah Hiroshima okonomiyaki is the best IMO.

Also, I recommend going to a Musashi at some point in Hiroshima, either while out shopping or as something to grab and take back to the room. They have bento and stuff, and it's loving delish. Hiroshima only though.

For a fancy lunch, we went to Alambic with my mother-in-law and it was really good as well. http://www.alambic.jp/shops/sanbi/

Doctor Zero fucked around with this message at 11:58 on Apr 13, 2019

# ¿ Apr 13, 2019 11:52

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Pollyanna posted:

No schedule besides Tokyo 5 nights and then Hakone-Kyoto-Osaka. As for current status I am eating Family Mart salad and you guys weren�t kidding about everything being small here.

The tuna and egg sandwiches are awesome.

# ¿ Apr 14, 2019 12:06

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Furious Lobster posted:

Thank you.

We went to Nikko this trip. Totally worth it. Recommended.

All this talk of famima food is making me wish I had bought another suitcase and loaded the gently caress up with that poo poo and Choco Pies. The packaged pancakes with the butter and syrup in between is goddamn genius.

And what the gently caress happened in the US? The only Choco Pies they sell are the awful dry as dirt made-in-Korea poo poo. I can�t find authentic stuff anywhere. Even in the real Japanese markets. :sigh:

# ¿ Apr 17, 2019 01:23

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Grand Fromage posted:

Korean choco pies are the authentic ones. They were copied from moon pies brought by GIs during and after the Korean War. There are Chinese and Japanese knock offs and they all range in quality.

Are you sure? I thought Lotte was a Japanese company.

Regardless the Korean ones are dry gross poo poo and if the delicious moist ones made in glorious Nippon are going away I will be despondent.

# ¿ Apr 17, 2019 22:46

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Grand Fromage posted:

This is something you can say in Korea to make Koreans mad if you're ever in the mood. Lotte was founded by a Japanese occupation era Korean and Koreans consider it a Korean company, but the HQ is in Tokyo. In any case, choco pies started in Korea and were invented by Orion, which is an unambiguously Korean company, so the Orion version is the original. Lotte copied them a few years later.

Ah good to know. That actually really interesting.

# ¿ Apr 18, 2019 00:19

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Grand Fromage posted:

You don't need a list, Korea invented everything and Japan therefore is trying to steal everything.

'struth. Pavel Chekhov should have been Korean.

# ¿ Apr 18, 2019 01:18

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

peanut posted:

My dad has visited me in Japan 4 times and has still never used a washlet or public bath because ??? He's not quite as bad as those guys who don't wipe because touching (their own) man's butthole is gay, but… kinda…

When we got back from Japan I ordered a washlet and installed it the next weekend because after two and a half weeks in Japan I just couldn't handle not having one anymore.

# ¿ Apr 20, 2019 14:19

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Pollyanna posted:

My parents and I had a huge fight in our Airbnb so I�ve been there buddy.

Edit: Tourist hanko it is!

Remember, it starts with は not ま! :eng101:

caberham posted:

There are cheaper mechanical ones or get a Korean or chinese washlet

I wanted a Toto, but they didn't fit our toilet, so I got a BioBidet. It's pretty great, and was quite a bit cheaper than the Toto.

# ¿ Apr 21, 2019 12:31

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

When we landed in Hiroshima, the people in the rows behind us, literally would not let me get out of my seat to get my bag and kept moving past me. I looked at my wife like "WTF" and she said, "Chinese tourists. Push into them." and so I did. Sure as poo poo, any time we ran into a group of rude asians that would cut in line, or bodily push past you, invariably they were Chinese.

There's my borderline racist story about my time in Japan.

# ¿ Apr 23, 2019 03:04

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Johnny Truant posted:

So how is the Tokyo Skytree for a touristy kind of attraction? Annnnnnd my friend mentioned an aquarium but I forget if it was in Tokyo or Kyoto..?

My trip is now in less than 2 weeks and holy hell can I not wait.

Skytree is neat and I don�t regret going but as mentioned there are other places you could go as well. The line was 45 minutes which was pretty much the limit of our patience. You can get express tickets but they cost more and was starting to get to the not really worth it range unless you really want to go.

There are some other things and touristy shopping to see nearby so it�s probably worth a morning if you go when the weather is good.

# ¿ Apr 24, 2019 15:35

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

Johnny Truant posted:

Ah thanks everybody, it was the Osaka one I was recommended by a colleague, I just couldn't remember! And thanks for the Skytree tips, sounds like we'll kind of play it by ear depending on the weather.

I'll try one last time, but anybody got recs for a romantic restaurant somewhere in Tokyo? We scrapped the Ginza Steak idea and are in search of something else. Just wanna try to have a nice anniversary meal, no real specifics other than I guess preferably Japanese cuisine?

The outdoor cafe at the Godzilla hotel (Gracery) in Shinjuku is great for that �dining right behind the head of a kaiju� romantic feel. And the food was good.

# ¿ Apr 24, 2019 18:04

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# ¿ May 16, 2024 04:54

Doctor Zero: Sep 21, 2002; Would you like a jelly baby?
It's been in my pocket through 4 regenerations,
but it's still good.

My understanding is that unless you actually are Japanese, you will never be no matter how long you�ve lived there or how well you speak the language. Ever. You will always be an outsider. I�ve seen rants by people who have lived in Japan for 20 years about this and I want to shout �if you�ve lived there that long you should loving know this by now!�

At least when you are a visiting talking dog you are a novelty and people want you to leave with a good impression of the country.

# ¿ Apr 24, 2019 22:10

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Tourism & Travel > Japan: Donki is both the best and worst store I've ever seen

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