I’ve already been back in Singapore for a couple of days, but I still have a few posts about my Japan trip that I’ve yet to finish. Posting about Japan while I’m back home in Singapore does make me feel a little depressed though.
With Akihabara, there is also Nakano Broadway as another famous otaku hotspot in Tokyo. I have paid multiple visits to Akihabara, but this was my first time visiting Nakano Broadway. As with all first times, thoughts of excitment such as “What treasures would I find here?” kicked in.
When I first entered Nakano Broadway, the first floor greeted me with normal shops. There was absolutely not even the slightest hint of any otakuish aura.
It was only the second floor and above where the magic starts to kick in. Rows of shops down the aisle selling products of the category “OTAKU”. If Akihabara is the heaven of Otakism, Nakano Broadway is the miniature condensed version. Many things that I couldn’t really find in Akihabara could be found here, and that gave me an adrenaline rush which felt the same as my virgin Akihabara visit. Still, I had to resist grabbing stuff I saw in the first few stores. If I didn’t, I would probably be broke halfway through.
She’s probably a closet female otaku
Like Akihabara, all stores here follow the strict rule of no photography. I was armed with a compact camera, so I could still steal a few photos. Windbell, on the other hand, had a much harder time since his DSLR was far bulkier as compared to my “handgun”.
Mini DannyChoo ^^
Take photos you must not
Sorry for the absence of bishoujo figurines. Those were under the vigilant watch of the shop attendants.
No one was in this store since there were no bishoujo figurines anyway
The only photo I had with Bishoujo figurines
I would have bought this if I was a female, or if I had a cosplayer girlfriend
I’m laughing so hard at all those rabid Haruhiists who bought this at S$180 from a certain local shop
That’s about all the photos that I took, since it was quite dangerous. I got caught taking a photo of a Miku cosplay set, so I had to delete the photo to avoid getting into futher trouble. The best way to get out of such situations is to talking fast in English and act like you have totally no understanding of Japanese. It always works, since most of the shop attendants are really afraid of another other language except Japanese.
Although Nakano Broadway wasn’t where I bought my first doujinshi, it was where I did majority of my doujinshi purchases. Mandarake is simply full of awesomeness and win!
To be frank, I actually like Nakano more than Akihabara, simply because it’s much more condensed. I don’t have to walk far between shops, and that saves a whole lot of time and energy. I’m definitely coming back for a second visit if I ever go to Tokyo again.
I remembered spending half a day at Nakano Broadway, and it really wasn’t enough. But then, I doubt that my wallet could sustain the multiple purchases anyway lol.
Hehe…Yet another Must-visit Place once I get to Japan huh? ^.^