Tokyo Day 10: Ikebukuro & Shinjuku

On arriving at Okachimachi station this morning, I spied a place selling little panda-shaped taiyaki. There were a few different fillings you could get like Belgian chocolate, custard and red bean paste. They were so cute, and ridiculously reasonably priced, so I got a bag of 12 for Caz and I to share. I still want to get the traditional fish-shaped taiyaki at some point, but how could I pass these up? I mean, look:

Today, we were going to Ikebukuro, mostly for the Pokémon Mega Center, though there were other places we wanted to look at. Afterwards we planned to go to Shinjuku to have a proper look at it (we’d only briefly been there on Day 3). Ikebukuro was a straight shot from Okachimachi on the Yamanote Line, so it was an easy journey.

Inside the station itself are a veritable shit-tonne of shops, and there was one I was specifically looking for – the KitKat Chocolatory. Japan has an obsession with Kit-Kats, and they create so many bizarre and interesting flavours. This shop was apparently where you could find some of the unusual flavours, albeit at what I would call ‘tourist prices’.

We looked for it in a chocolate/cake/sweets-filled paradise. There was so much delicious food on offer that I wanted to buy it all. I felt like I was going into a sugar coma just looking at the beautiful displays. A lot of it was Valentine-themed for the upcoming holiday so it was impossibly cute. Lots of hearts and flowers, pink and red and white. I got myself a little heart-shaped jam biscuit for myself to have on the day. It’s called self-care.

The area where the Chocolatory supposedly was is so big and confusing and we couldn’t make head nor tails of the map, so we eventually just asked a staff member to point us in the right direction. Turns out we couldn’t find it because it’s actually just a small counter now, and doesn’t look like what I’d seen on Google. I felt like a wally. The lady at the counter was warm and welcoming and talked us through the flavours that were available. After some consideration, I went for a yuzu flavour, as I was interested to try the fruit and this was the closest I’d come so far. Caz went for a passionfruit one, due to our undying love for Pornstar Martinis.

Ikebukuro is the biggest station ever, it felt like there was literally no escape. After a quick Google search, I found out that it’s in fact the third biggest train station in the world, so that explains a lot. It was really confusingly laid out and we had to walk for ages to get outside again. For a while I thought we’d be stuck there forever. So we were a little stressed by the time we got out into fresh air. We decided to sit on a nearby wall and eat our Kit Kats. We allowed each other a small piece of our own so we could sample both flavours, and they were really nice. The sun was already shining and it was looking to be another warm day. Soon enough we were laughing about the endless terminals and side corridors of Ikebukuro station, and our ineptitude at cardinal directions.

We noticed a lovely hedge sculpture depicting a trio of owls. The second character of Ikebukuro (袋) sounds a lot like fukurō, which is the Japanese word for owl. Because of this, the district adopted the owl as its mascot. You can find so many owl themed shops, cafes and statues in the area – it’s fun to see how many you can spot while walking around.

There was a nearby pharmacy, where we got some cold & flu relief for Caz. She’s feeling naff, but still no fever or other Covid symptoms, which is good. We spent time looking at the ridiculously packed shelves in the pharmacy, trying to discern what each thing was for by just using the few Japanese characters we recognised and the diagrams on the boxes and bottles. Like supermarkets, other countries’ pharmacies really interest us so it was a lot of fun.

We walked under the train tracks, through a whimsical pastel-coloured tunnel, and made our way to a nearby place I’d read about called Milky Way Café. We were shown to a little table right next to the window, so we had a great view for people-watching. The café is really cute, with little tiny lights in the ceiling that look like twinkling stars and a blue-and-silver colour scheme. There were paper table mats horoscopes on them that you could take home. I love that a lot of places we’ve been do this simple souvenir!

On consulting the menu, we decided to try an ‘amusement soda’ each. Caz had orange and I had a strawberry float. They were absolutely huge and so tasty. We wanted to have something light before having the desserts we came for, so Caz got some chicken Caesar sandwiches and I had some gorgeously seasoned potato wedges. All of the dishes and cups (and even the salt and pepper shakers!) were star-shaped, which tickled us. It was so cute!

The original thing that drew me to the Milky Way Café was their special zodiac sundaes. I’m not a follower of astrology or horoscopes but I really liked the unusual idea and wanted to try it out. The sundaes that corresponded to our star signs wouldn’t have been our first choices out of all of the ones on the menu, but we had to remain ~true to ourselves. We also stuck to the zodiac signs we have at home, as the Japanese dates were slightly different (I would have been Pisces in Japan, and Caz would have been Aries).

My ‘Aries’ sundae had vanilla and chocolate ice cream, sponge cake, a crepe, chocolate, banana, fruit cocktail, corn flakes and star-shaped cookies. It was garnished with chocolate syrup, whipped cream, and a ramune-flavoured sweet. Caz’s ‘Taurus’ was soft-serve ice cream, green tea and vanilla ice cream, fruit cocktail, flour dumplings and star-shaped cookies with agar, black honey, ogura bean paste, and whipped cream. There is literally no such thing as a boring sundae in Japan!

My 'Aries' sundae

Because we’d been quite late out of the hotel, and took our time at Milky Way, we had another museum booby. This time we missed our booking at the Samurai Museum. I was quite gutted because I really wanted to go there. I hope I can do that someday, because it sounded super interesting.

Down the street a bit from Milky Way was a Sega arcade building. We stopped in there for a bit. Caz soon found a claw machine with big, fluffy Gengar plushies and decided she had to win one. I wandered around and looked at the other machines, but didn’t see anything I really loved so returned to see how she was getting on. The Gengar she was after was now right near the drop box.

A girl who worked there sidled over and asked if Caz would like her to stand the Gengar up again, as it was lying in an awkward position. We thanked her and she left – I could see her keeping her eye on us though. When another couple of coins failed to grab the plushie, she came over again and rearranged it. This happened a couple more times until Caz finally won. Then the girl working there started clapping, and a boy (who was also applauding) came over with a bag for Caz to put Gengar in. That girl essentially gave Caz the win and I have no idea why - it was so sweet of her and really made our day!

After that exciting interlude, we took a walk to Sunshine City mall which was only about five minutes away on foot. Ikebukuro is a really built up and city-like area of Tokyo, so it was really interesting to walk through and look around. I was especially pleased about the suspended roads that snaked above us in some places.

The reason we were going to this specific mall is because it’s home to the Pokémon Mega Center, the largest Pokémon store in Japan. On the way to it are lots of Pokémon-themed wall murals and a set of themed Gachapon machines. There was also an area especially for Pokémon Go players to congregate, which is cool. We were getting super hyped as we approached. 

Personally, though, it was nowhere near as large as I was expecting it to be. There was a distinct lack of the cool snacks and things that I’ve seen written about (like Pokémon Nori and a huge variety of sweets) – I was most excited about picking up lots of themed treats, so I was a bit disappointed by the small selection.

Overall, I found it to be much the same as the one near the Pokémon Café. I’d recommend just going to one or the other, unless you’re like a die-hard fan and have to see both. There are so many stores around Tokyo that you should just aim to visit the one that’s easiest to get to for you. It was the first time I’d felt genuinely disappointed by something here. It gets talked up a lot, and (for me) it didn’t really deliver.

However, it’s not a complete loss! There’s a place right across from the Center called Pikachu Sweets. It was only opened in December last year, and it’s an offshoot from the Pokémon Café. It is so cute! The place itself is decorated in pastels, with little Pokémon sprites around the borders. The staff wear caps with Pikachu ears on, and all look so cute. There are tables that you can stand around to eat, or you can take the stuff away with you (there’s ample seating in the shopping mall itself).

They sell mostly cake and desserts, with a selection of different drinks. Like a lot of places in Japan, there are usually special seasonal products at different times of the year. The menu is on their website, with the year-round things as well as the specials. We got a Pikachu cupcake each, and I got a latte because it came in a cup that has a Pokéball pattern on it. For some reason, the latte art on top said ‘Congratulations’ and all of the staff applauded me when it was handed over. I had no idea what was happening but I was so pleased! Caz got an Eevee cup cosy, too.

At this point Caz decided to go back to the hotel, as she was still feeling coldy and the medication had begun to wear off. I went to check out LOFT, a stationery chain. There is a flagship in Shibuya, but after the 109 nightmare, I didn’t feel like going in there. Instead, this smaller shop was ideal as it wasn’t crowded at all. As I’ve mentioned in the past, stationery is a weakness of mine, so going into a shop selling only that is risky behaviour. I had a nice wander around the shelves, and emerged with some new notebooks, pens and some Pokémon organiser stickers. It’s a really great shop, and I hope that one day I can brave the flagship.

As I emerged from the mall, I saw a bridal shop across the road. Nothing unusual, except that there was a bride and groom Pikachu on the shop sign. It was so cute that I had to snap a photo. Kind of wish I’d gone in now; after a quick Google, I’ve found out that they provide Pokémon-themed weddings!

On my way back to the train station, I stopped at Don Quijote. I seriously can’t resist popping in there, there’s so much stuff to look at. I got some snacks to take home for family members including matcha-flavoured Kit-Kats, sake-flavoured Kit-Kats, some chocolate coins that look like 5¥ pieces, big packets of Puccho chewy sweets, and sakura-flavoured Pocky. I’m planning on making up some little ‘goodie bags’ to bring a taste of Japan back home. I also got myself some of the Puccho and Pocky, as well as a little keyring with a Shiba dressed like a samurai on it.

I hopped on the subway to get to Shinjuku, as I wanted to check out Omoide Yokocho, or ‘Piss Alley’. I’d read a lot about the place and wanted to see it for myself. Situated underneath the train tracks is a little warren of alleyways, packed with tiny food places serving traditional and unusual dishes. It’s a common place for locals to hang out after work, get a bite to eat and socialise.

I was seriously happy to see it. As soon as you enter the little alley, a delicious smell of barbecued food hangs in the air, and smoke billows out from the little hole-in-the-wall food shacks. It’s busy and a bit claustrophobic, but exciting and authentic too. This evening, I wasn’t brave enough to stop by somewhere to eat – the majority of places are Japanese-only, and I didn’t want to invade a local space with my limited grasp of the language. One day (I seem to be saying that a lot – it’s a good thing I plan to come back to Tokyo!) I want to be confident enough to get some cheap nosh and beer in Omoide Yokocho.

By this time, I was flagging a bit, even though it was still fairly early. I decided to go to the observation deck at the Tokyo MetropolitanGovernment Building before heading back. To get there, I took a stroll through the business district. It was dark, and lots of people were leaving work, though lots of lights were still on in the high-rise buildings. It was a really awesome area to walk in. The offices were huge and imposing and everyone I saw was well-dressed and professional. I must have looked a bit out of place in my hoodie and jeans. I took a lot of photos as I was walking because of the cyberpunk, lost-in-the-city aesthetic.

When I arrived at the government building, I suddenly felt a bit scared about going in. I’ve always felt this way about official government buildings as it’s always nerve-wracking to go through security, even though I have nothing to hide. Eventually I decided that lurking outside would make me look doubly suspicious and went in.

I followed signs to the lift that would take me to the observation room, but it was cordoned off. I had checked that it was still open, so this was bewildering. Luckily, another very helpful Japanese person appeared in my life and let me know that they were only using one lift this evening before pointing me in the right direction.

Security wasn’t even scary. There was a perfunctory bag-check when you lined up, and then you were allowed into the lift. There weren’t many people there at that time so it wasn’t crowded. The lift takes you to the 45^th floor and you end up in a huge, semi-circular room that offers a slightly-more-than-180 degrees view of the city. The view hits you right in the face, especially in the dark. Tokyo is lit up, glittering and vibrant in the night. I spent so long at each angle I could look from, just staring. Obviously many photos were taken, though I did have to fight with the bright lights behind me trying to reflect off of the window – I’d love it if there was a time of total darkness inside the room.

There was a yellow, avant-garde style grand piano in the middle of the open space near the windows. It’s called the ‘Tocho Omoide Piano’(link) (Memory Piano) and was designed by artist Yayoi Kusama. Visitors are allowed to play it, but I didn’t dare. I only know about two bars of Moonlight Sonata, so I’m not exactly a virtuoso. I wished Caz was with me, as she can play and it would have sounded amazing in there.

There was a little café/souvenir shop back toward the lift so I had a look around there. I found some nice magnets to go into the family ‘goodie bags’, as well as some chocolate balls with a white candy coating (the wrapping had pictures of geisha, samurai and other traditional Japanese folk). I found a cute Maneki Neko magnet for myself, too.

It was a really easy ride back to Okachimachi, as I only had to get the Yamanote Line from Shinjuku station. I stopped in the Lawson konbini on my walk back from the station. I found Japanese Dr Pepper, which of course I had to try, as well as some ice cream mochi. I ate that when I got back to the hotel room, and it’s my new favourite thing ever. For dinner we had food from Mos Burger, which was delicious and I also tried melon soda. It was bright, acidic green and tasted amazing.

I opened the pack of Puccho I’d bought for myself, and wanted to offer some to Caz. I thought the name of the sweets sounded onomatopoeic, like a cartoon gun firing. So I grabbed a few and threw them hard at her yelling, “PUCCHOOOOO!” She was startled but then we laughed for too long and now we can’t offer each other Puccho in any other way.

We were chilling on our beds, just talking and browsing on our phones. We both sort of looked up like something was wrong, though it didn’t register immediately. Then we realised our beds were moving slightly. Caz said, “… Is that an earthquake?” and I answered, “I think it is.” It lasted maybe a couple of minutes, tops, and we both made videos while it was happening. I could see the walls swaying and we were just staring at each other in disbelief.

As soon as it stopped, I went to the Japan Meteorological Agency website to confirm we’d felt an earthquake and get more info about it. Turns out that it was a 5.5 magnitude earthquake in Fukushima, 150+ miles away. It was wild that we felt it all the way in Tokyo. Luckily there is no tsunami risk for Fukushima, which is a relief.

Here’s a screenshot of the details and yes I know my phone needs charging!

We don’t really get earthquakes in the UK, and if we do they’re barely noticeable, so it was really exciting to experience one. They’re so common in Japan so we felt we could add it to the list of authentic Japanese experiences we’ve had here. We were feeling little aftershocks for the next hour after the initial quake, and it was so cool.

Now, after that excitement, I’m off to bed!