Since I left behind my souvenirs from the Nikon Museum, the first step item on our list was to brave the rush hour train again and head back to the museum. Once I arrived at the Nikon Museum, I was walked to the security office to go over the details of the items lost. This allowed me to really put my very limited Japanese and resources to the test. After about fifteen minutes of talking to the security officers through the use of google translate conversation feature and my pocket wifi providing the necessary data connection, I had fully conveyed my missing items to the officer. We then took a long walk down an underground hallway to the security locker room and about five minutes or so later, I was provided with my items. I filled out a form with all of my info and then I was on my way. While this was definitely not an ideal situation, I did a lot of growing in that situation and saved myself from having to repurchase any of the souvenirs. The security officers who assisted me were all more than accommodating and very polite.

With the unplanned stop in Shinagawa out of the way, we then made our way to Harajuku. Lex was super excited about this stop because she really wanted to go to the PomPomPurin Cafe. We got to Harajuku and were met with some of the largest crowds we had experienced in one place so far. Looking down Takeshita-dori Street, the crowd seemingly went on forever through the narrow street full of shops, street vendors, and even the occasional person trying to hustle you. Oddly enough this reminded me of walking in the Fisherman’s Wharf in San Francisco on a crowded weekend afternoon. So congested. There was everything you could shop for in this little street. Inexpensive stores, boutiques, and every kind of food you could possibly ask for. Eventually we found our way to the PomPomPurin Cafe up a tall staircase. It was located on the third floor of a small building (after a couple days in Tokyo we’ve learned that food may be either above or below the ground floor). Lex was elated to be here. Maybe even happier than being at Disneyland. For those of you like myself who had no idea who this character was…

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“…a boy golden retriever is unmistakable in his trademark brown beret. … He loves milk, anything soft, and his mama’s cream caramel puddings. He has a talent for napping and doing ‘purin aerobics’, and can make friends with anyone.”

https://www.sanrio.com/categories/pompompurin

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The food here was delicious and consisted of Japanese comfort food such as Omurice and Hamburg Steak shaped like the Kawaii Sanrio character PomPomPurin. This cafe also included an adorable gift shop with several Sanrio character plushies besides PomPomPurin. Luckily Lex didn’t over indulge in the gift shop.

Following our lunch and mini photoshoot with the PomPomPurin characters, we continued down Takeshita-dori Street to look for other finds and explore the sights of Harajuku. We eventually stopped at the New Balance store where we picked up some comfy walking shoes. The customer service here was amazing, which is ultimately what led to us buying their shoes. With new shoes in hand, we started to head back toward the Harajuku station when we got distracted by Cow Cow Kitchen, a dessert stand right outside the station. We had the most delicious cheese puff before heading back on the train to explore Shibuya.

Navigating Shibuya station felt even more challenging than Shinjuku. Trying to follow the right signs out of the correct exit to visit Hachiko and the cross the famous Shibuya Scramble. Tokyo’s train stations in general are complete mazes to the unsuspecting American. I am pretty certain this is why it took us so long to find the correct exit to Hachiko. It could also be because this particular station was above ground and crossed over multiple intersections.

After snapping a couple photos at Hachiko we walked down Center-gai to have a look at the various shops, restaurants and entertainment choices. This day was completely unplanned, so strolling through this area was relaxing. We eventually made our way down the street towards Daiso. If you’ve never been to Daiso, you’re missing out. This place is the Japanese equivalent of Dollar Tree, but with better quality items. We headed out of Daiso, and made our way to one of our favorite Japanese stores: Don Quijote. This wasn’t your standard Don Quijote, this was a MEGA DONKI.

The discount department store was 7 stories high, and contained every possible department you could ask for. Popular among the locals for having everything you need and equally popular with tourists for being an inexpensive place to buy souvenirs and Japanese cosmetics tax free. No trip to Japan is complete without a trip to a Don Quijote.

After hauling all of our goods out of the MEGA DONKI, it was time to close out our last day in Tokyo by making our way to Akihabara. This area of Tokyo was so neat and it had everything we imagined from the various animes we’ve watched and video games we’ve played. The first thing we looked for right out of the station, was the giant hall full of Gachapon. This was truly incredible. An entire shop full of toy machines stacked three tall, and covering virtually every surface of the store. So much fun just to browse and so cheap you felt like you could buy them all! I can see why so many people get hooked on collecting these, they’re way more exciting than the blind bag toys we have in the US.

With a few Gachapon in hand, it was time to continue down the street to look at all the otaku shops that Akihabara is known for. There were so many stores, anyone who’s watched even only one obscure anime will find collectors items for their show of choice. Also lining the streets of Akiba were women advertising for the ever popular Maid Cafés. Adorned in kawaii maid outfits, they made the idea of springing for the experience very tempting. We passed this time, but maybe on our next trip to japan we’ll partake in this unique Japanese experience.

Finally down the street we made it to the place I was looking forward to most in Tokyo, BicCamera. As a gearhead/electronics fanatic, I was very excited to stroll through the wonders of one of Tokyo’s giant electronics stores. This place had everything you could possibly want and then some. It was seven levels of tax-free shopping for those who love electronics. As fascinating as this giant store was, prices were equivalent to shopping at a BestBuy. Next time we go back to Akiba, I’ll look for some second hand stores instead to see what kind of bargains I can get by shopping off the beaten path. I better brush up on my Japanese.

Next time, follow us on a voyage on a romance car and to the beautiful seaside town of Odawara. Thanks for reading!