Duty Free

After a long hiatus from the Akihabara scene, I returned to my former stamping ground today, to buy some beats at Tower Records inside Yodobashi Camera's cavernous new complex. It was a public holiday, and as soon as I stepped out of the subway station into the crowds and warm sun, I knew I had been away too long. So much energy, so much potential... Akihabara is truly an international city, the multicultural heart of Japan. In particular there seem to be a lot of Indians in the quarter these days, buying entire electronic outfits for their homes, and hunting for bargains in duty free stores. A few years ago I once spotted a Papuan looking family strolling magnificently along Chuo Dori. Not the sort of folk you pass by every day, at least in this part of the world! Akihabara has definitely become the biggest electronics market in Asia, and Yodobashi Camera is large enough to be a city in its own right, with everything you could ever need inside. 

German tourist in Akihabara, as captured by Crowded World (Japan, 2007)

Anyway, I found a CD, and careened home courtesy of my Toei monthly pass, feeling somewhat wistful that I didn't live downtown any longer. The Toei card will help, though. Before too long, I will be back in Akihabara again.

That's a given.