I started my journey on Saturday to have a bit more time there, because the official BT started on Monday. The first night I stayed with Rie & Florence at Rie’s aunt & uncle’s place in an outskirt of Tokyo. The uncle is running a tiny French restaurant so he was well excited to meet my French college Florence … He cooked the most amazing 5 dishes meal, backed fresh bread (an total exclusion to get that with your meal) and opened his finest wine for us!
It was amazing how lovely they treated us.
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The next day I moved on to see the city and to find my capsular hotel I checked in advance to know where to go … cause as ya know you can’t read things here. That was also the case with my hotel I tried to find. I was totally confused from all the explanation I got from different people I asked & my little map I ‘designed’.
When I finally thought I would be there – running around the block for the fifth time – I decided to ask again. The guy looked around sad he doesn’t know where it would be. Then we turned around at the same time and we both saw the sign written in ‘Katakana’ …
Last year my mate Felix san and I stayed in a 70’ old school capsular hotel close to the 21_21 museum …
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This time I decided to do it again. Even most of the Japanese people who you tell about where you stay it laugh about it. I did it again, because it is cheep and always well located. This time I had to work in the office in Shibuya so I based choose my capsular hotel right in the middle, next to Shibuya Station. It was slightly more modern and a bit more expensive around 3.400 Yen ~ 25.- Euro.
But it’s still a tube you're sleeping in!
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So heres the deal...
The hotel has four levels and in each level around 100 capsules. The uppers floor is the reception, the changing room & a kind of Sentō, a bath area everyone uses. Ok unfortunately not everyone … this capsule hotel was only for men. Most of them are only for men so it’s well boring. Most men who using them are businessmen who missed the last train, got too drunk to get back home or they have a really early meeting the next day. I couldn’t find any other foreigner staying in my hotel, so I felt a bit like an alien … a bit strange feeling was that everyone left the bath & sauna when I entered. So I had a huge marble spa bath just for me!
WICKED.
°°°
Shibuya it a super nice area in Tokyo there you find the famous scramble crossing. It’s the one where you feel like in a shoal … so many people are crossing this intersection every time the signal turns from red to GO!
I’ve seen it so many times and still its unreal …
No wonder that all the scramble crossing YouTube videos are rate with five stars …
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On Sunday I wnet to see an exhibition by Ai Weiwei, a Chinese artist who exhibits in the Mid Town Center in Roppongi one of Tokyo chic areas. It’s a cool building cause you can do the ‘Skywalk’ on the 50th floor to see the monster city in its total stretch.
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First I went to see the cultural event and then the entertaining part.
After all the exhibitions I decided to see the crazy TOKYO bike culture! The Japanese are crazy about fixed gears and Tokyo is like a big exhibition space. You find on almost every light post a beautifully customised two-wheeler. But you also find the most dilly & strangest bicycles ever …
To see some of the crazy shops I went to see W-Base, Carnival and the DEPT shop. They have a lot of nice things sitting in there showcase. But I quickly had to discover that Tokyo is not cheep … but there was no excuse so I had to by a rough piste crank from Carnival to start up the new bike I’m building step by step & bit by bit.
When I entered the shop, a girl approached me and asked if I need any help? She introduced her self as Momo. Her English was surprisingly excellent … after she explained me about the shop and the Tokyo scene I told her about Yoshi, a fiend from Nagoya who was living in San Francisco the last couple of years. I met him in a surf, bike & snowboard shop in Nagoya close to my home. After I mentioned his name she smiled at me and say ‘Yea Yoshi, he is a very good friend of mine !?' – Just a little later her phone rang and Yoshi explained her that there is a weird German in town she should meet to show around …
That was a big laughter!
The guys from W-Base and Carnival are pretty cool geezers!
Those guys know what & how to ride!
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The next two days where dedicated to the business trip. Which turned out very very wet and stormy … it rained and rained and rained. And I didn’t have to sit in the office and work on any computer stuff, I had to get out there to explore Tokyo and prepare a research presentation. So I went to different places for my investigation. I saw the outline exhibition in the 21_21 museum and lots of other places like the Tokyo Opera City Tower where I checked out a Coop Himmelb(l)au, the ICC Open Space and a Le Corbusier exhibition.
That was the only way to avoid the crazy weather out there.
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It was funny, cause after work I got a call from Valentin, I guy who I studied with in London, if I have time to have dinner. Val came to Tokyo that day to exhibit in the 100% Design. So we went for dinner just before I headed back to Nagoya.
°°°
I should go there ... I assume he doesn’t speak Japanese!?
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