A Cafe, Love and a Government Building

That how Love Stories start,... maybe not.

Yesterday I was awake very long I only slept 1 or 2 hours, then I decided to stay awake until breakfast, it really tastes better in the morning especially kinda fresher.

I also tried the boiled eggs for the first time, they are awesome, I guess I never had such great boiled eggs.
After breakfast I went back to bed to sleep a bit - I slept until 1PM, but that's OK, vacation is for relaxing either.

After finally leaving the hotel I used the Hanzomon Line until Otemachi and then the Marunouchi Line until Shinjuku to go for the Artnia Cafe - the Square Enix Cafe / Shop.

On my way I found a small shrine, there was also a small path to get to the shrine, I tried to get a picture of a completely empty path, I made it, cost me 10 min. of waiting.

One of my bullets points on my list of things, that I was aiming for, was a Kitsune and a Tanuki, I'm so happy I accomplished this multiple times already, it's to image, why I couldn't any doing the last two trips.

The Cafe was very easy to find, thanks to my preparations and the App, they offered some merchandising of their well known brands like Dragon Quest and Final Fantasy.

It was not as spectacular as I expected, but that's OK, I was hoping to see their Sephiroth, which I saw picture of in their old shop.

I headed back to Shinjuku, especially Kinokuniya and Book Off, these stores were directly on my way, so I had to go in.

At Book Off they have a discount of 20% on all books, except those for 105 Yen (a lower price is not possible)

The Trusty Bell (in Europe this RPG-game is called Eternal Sonata) Game Guides are out of print said the Kinokuniya worker when I asked for these articles.

There was a second Book Off for today, those, that I'm visiting now, I only visit for research about which Book Offs should be visited and which not. I don't which this district was still Shinjuku, at least I just eastwards from the Kinokuniya. It's a small one with only one floor, but this floor is full of high cupboards, even too high for me to take the upper books, small japanese women won't have a chance to reach these books.
I rate 3/5 STARS.

Now I was only going to make 2 small films in front of the Metropolitan Government Building and one infront of the LOVE Sight in front of the Hilton Hotel.

There's not much to say about these things, the MGB was the highest buildingin Tokyo before the Skytree was built, if you have to choose, which building to use for a skyline picture, Tokyo Tower, Skytree or MGB, choose the MGB, it's the cheapest and the other two can both only be seen from there.

I don't know, why the LOVE sculpture exists, maybe in public life there's not that much love shared, I don't know, I mean in New York next to the Rockefeller Plaza there is one, too, maybe Tokyo just wanted to get even.. XD

That's all for now, I'll rest a bit and will try to change and also prepare my bio rhythm for my flight back and for my visit of the Tsukiji Fish Market tomorrow or the one day later.

Completing the lists

Today I skipped breakfast - I was tired, so I slept a bit longer.

I left the hotel for Shibuya to go for the game guide for Dragon Quest Monsters Joker 2 Professional, which I didn't find during the last days or at least only in a very bad shape for almost the full price.

But today I was lucky, I instantly found it in the Maruzen Book Store next to H&M in Shibuya.

Because of getting up so late and skipping breakfast I was kinda hungry, so I went to Freshness Burger afterwards, the Freshness Burger tasted almost like the Mos Burger, especially the sauce seemed similar.

Beeing in Shibuya, a short stop at the Book Off and the Mandarake is always possible.

On my way to Kinokuniya, which is located at the 5th floor of the Tokyu Plaza, opposite the JR station, I walked by the Shibuya 109 Building, where a huge Monster Energy Drink Promotion was held, it kinda tastes like children's tooth paste.

At Kinokuniya I found the last 2 artbooks from my list, the artbooks for Devil May cry (1-4) and the latest Devil May Cry Game. I also saw a 5x5x5 Rubik Cube, which I won't buy before finishing the 4x4x4, they offered a guide for it. too.

Asking for an english Rubik Cube Guide made me "torture" 3 workers there, the first one was a sales representative, who was arranging his products in the shop, he actually was no worker from Kinokuniya, but at the first moment he seemed like one, so I asked him, he then rushed away, trying to help me, I felt bad, because while he was gone, I remembered, that he had no name tag or so and that he seemed to be a sales representative and no worker, I felt ashamed, but then he arrived with 2 persons, one for translation and the other one for the question: DO YOU HAVE AN ENGLISH RUBIK CUBE GUIDE, TOO?
Yes, Rubik Cube is here - he pointed at the cubes they sold, but was instantly stopped, because this answer didn't match to the question, both hushed away, meanwhile I kinda started to understand the pictographic instructions. I also bowed to the sales agent thanking him for his help, the problem is, in Japan, when you bow they rebow, and when you rerebow, and infinite "CIRCLE OF BOWING" is created, which almost happened.

Then the woman came back trying to explain "SOLD OUT, NO STOCK" or so with her hands, I offered the phrase: Sold Out? - She nodded at me.

To finish the day, I had a coffee at Excelior Caffe and went back to the hotel.

My item list is finally completed now, the sight seeing list has some yet open bullets, which I can hopefully close within the next 4 days. (Tsukiji Fish Market, Square Enix Cafe and some other spots to film)

Shinjuku added 4kg to my baggage..

Today I went to Shinjuku.

I took the Hanzomon Line until Aoyama-itchome, then I changed for the Toei Oedo Line until Shinjuku.
The Toei Oedo doesn't belong to the Metro, so I had 100 Yen extra to change the lines.

I left the train at Yoyogi station to get to the Book Off which is near the station, a very small Book Off with only 1 floor and a small product range, but never the less I found something.

Then I went up some stairs to the Tokyo Time Square Plaza, went into the Eddie Bauer store, but left it very soon, because the prices were a bit too high.

Then I went streight to the Kinokuniya after taking some pictures.

There I bought some guide books from Fire Emblem and Last Story I also asked for the Fire Emblem Awakening artbook and a Guide book for Tokyo Jungle, they didn't have it there but at the Main Store in the eastern part of Shinjuku, so they preserved these items for me.


At the Book Off I saw a sign of 2 other Book Offs in Shinjuku, one I already knew, but not the second, so I began to search for it, it should have been close to the JR station and almost next to the Yodobashi Camera store, maybe it was but I didn't find it so I went back to the JR area and headed for the eastern Book Off and Kinokuniya.
I also passed a huge place, where many people meet and which seems to be the border between the skyscraper district in the west and the amusement district in the east.

Around 150 m from there was the Book Off, on the lower floor there were stores where they offered clothes and accesoires, like the Suit Company and others.
On the 5th floor Book Off started, they had an enormous range of products, many game guides, games DVDs, CDs and so on, I got kinda stuck at the game guide section and couldn't decide which to take, finally after I guess 1 hour I took a guide for Decidia Final Fantasy 012.


The Book Off was followed by an empty stomach and the will to fill it, so I went to restaurant area under the Kinokuniya, which was only a few seconds away, I had great curry, it was the stamina curry, very very tasty.
As fast as it was served it was eaten for 700 Yen, very awesome one.

There were 2 things left on my list, visiting the Kinokuniya and there shop called Forest, where the artbook was already waiting for me and the Artnia Square Enix shop, which I forget after the Forest but that's OK, so I have one more reason to get to Shinjuku again.

I headed back to the hotel very early today to ensure enough sleep and to relax a bit.

I guess that's all for now.

Tomorrow it's time for rest of Akiba and maybe the Artnia Square Enix Shop.