It was getting dark and I was still a long way away from home (in this case, home was my hotel back in Shinjuku). I decided to have dinner in this town before heading back.

Alley in Takahatafudo

This alley in Takahatafudo is lined with bars and eateries.

Tiny bar with only standing space

Tiny bars such as these were pretty common. It was so cramped and small that there was only standing room available to customers!

Set dinner

Dinner was at a Japanese restaurant. I had a ladies’ set meal that was supposed to include strawberries. But what I got was just kiwi.

Yummy breaded stuff

Yummy breaded prawn and chicken.

Miso soup with shells

My miso soup had shells in it that resembled tiny clams. They aren’t clams, are they? Anyone knows what they are?


Then, it was another long trip back to Shinjuku where I had drinks with Beni at hub, a popular chain of English pubs in Japan. Life is good!

This also marks the end of my two-day solo travel in Japan. Over the two days, I realised that Japanese are not as shy as we make them out to be. I lost count of the number of Japanese men who tried to chat me up on the streets; there were at least 5 a day. For such a polite people, they sure are outspoken!

The sleaziest of the lot:

  • In Shibuya: An elderly man walked right past and whispered “kawaiiiiiiiiii” in a low and creepy voice. It spooked me for about half the day.
  • In Shinjuku: A fella named “takashi” (who’s half Turkish, half Japanese) openly asked if I would sleep with him. The nerve!
  • In Ueno: A nerdy-looking Japanese dude opened with “can I eat?” I asked, huh? After much difficulty finding the right words, he asked again “can I eat with you?” (I was so glad he didn’t say something else!) Then he proceeded to tell me (with much difficulty) that he came from England and could speak English. Ha!

Okay, according to my friend Beni, there was the possibility that they were really trying to recruit me into their porn business. Whatever!