I got off at Akihabara station to see how this district looked. I came here last summer, but as the anime industry keeps releasing new series, what the shops are selling changes so often. I wanted to get in each otaku shop to take pics, but that didn't seem to be allowed. So I just wandered around the streets.
When I got off The Keihin-Tohoku Line, what caught my eyes in the first place was this big anime board. Foreign people would soon recognize this station is the gateway to the anime heaven. I'm not much of a hardcore otaku, but as a Japanese, I am used to seeing this kind of ad.
Unfortunately Akihabara station was under construction. The red words on the left indicate where electronic parts are sold.
This is an ad of "at home cafe" where many maid-related events are held. I think what maids are wearing changes as time goes by. I know what a real maid looks like, as I saw some in a foreign country, but I think the whole definition of "maid" is really different in Akihabara.
This is the front gate of "GAMERS" , which appeared in the anime "Lucky Star". A Seiyuu called "Nana Mizuki" topped the Oricon chart (which is the most popular Japanese music chart) recently, and she performed at the most prestigious music event called "Kouhaku Utagassen" on New Year's Eve. And this shop was playing endlessly the part in the event where she was singing "Shin-ai".She is the first Seiyuu to have won the top slot of the Oricon chart.
The ad on the right is by "Hobby Station", where they sell and buy trading cards. The left part is an ad by COSPA, which sells cosplay clothes, figurines and so on.
Do you know a pinball game called "Pachinko"? You can win some money by getting a lot of silver balls that a Pachinko machine spits out. And in response to the tastes of young Pachinko players, the industry started to feature anime characters such as Evangelion.
This is an ad by Popopure, which has both a maid cafe and an animation studio. You can act like a Seiyuu in this shop. And also, you can take part in producing a short anime.
One of the streets where maids are giving out the brochures of their cafes. I saw some guys being taken to a maid cafe, and I thought if you like to visit such a cafe, it would be better if you go with your friends.
The biggest electric appliance store in Akihabara called "Yodobashi Akiba". You can find any electric devices at this store. And you can have sushi, rice and curry, and coffee at the restaurants in this building.
A maid was giving out the entire map of Akihabara district. On the map there were some ads of maid cafes and salons where you can have your feet massaged by the maids. This is the back of the map and the names of the shops are written in English.
I'd like to write more about Akihabara later on =)
