Tuesday, December 05, 2006

Tokyo, Japan for New Years 2007!!!!!!!!!

I will be staying at the Kent Hotel in Tokyo for New Years 2007!


Address : 1-21-7 Kabukicho, Shinjuku-Ku, TokyoHotel
Location : City
Area : Shinjuku

Here is what is stated about the Kent Hotel:

For those who enjoy being at the heart of a nightlife district, this hotel , Kent, Tokyo is perfectly located close to four cinemas and Shinjuku's most famous theater, Koma Gekijo. The surrounding game centers, clubs, bars and restaurants are open till the wee hours of the morning, but the hotel serves as a comfortable oasis amid the nightly churning of Kabukicho. Rooms are small, simple and clean. The front desk and lobby entrance are adjacent to Milano Cinema.

Here are some reviews of the Hotel:

The location is excellent, just few blocks from JR station...a lot of people got drunk nearby bars at nite.

SAVE,SOFT,near Shinjuku Prince Hotel & JR! SMART Reception!

Here's what people say about Shinjuku:

Streams of screaming neon, high pitched shrieking sounds; people, people everywhere - silent and robotic. There's no room, there's no escape - earthquakes yet skyscrapers, it's hot, it's humid, it's calm, it's still for this is Shinjuku - a business and shopping district in the west of Tokyo and the ultimate, overwhelming experience.

Shinjuku has always had a reputation as one of Tokyo's pleasure quarters. After the Second World War, plans to build a kabuki theater never materialized but the name stuck, and Kabukicho's neon-lit streets continue to uphold a reputation for some of the most unfettered nightlife in the city. The area also boasts countless restaurants with excellent examples of virtually every Asian cuisine, and bars of every size and description.

From wikitravel.org:
The Kabukichō (歌舞伎町) district, to the northeast of JR Shinjuku station, is Tokyo's most notorious red-light district - although during the daytime you might not even notice, especially if you can't decode the elaborate Japanese codewords on the billboards. At night it's a different story though, as sharkskin-suited junior yakuza gangsters hustle, girls in miniskirts beckon in customers and adults-only vending machines strut their stuff. Night or day, it's always packed with people, and though outsiders are generally not involved, quite a bit of gangland violence goes on in the vicinity. In addition, the closely-packed mah-jongg and strip clubs are fire hazards that rival Hong Kong high-rises.

Golden Gai (ゴールデン街) (...gai = "...district") is the name given to a few narrow alleys in a block on the east edge of Kabukicho. It's packed with tiny aging "hole-in-the-wall" bars and started as a red light district some decades ago; morphing into some sort of a subversive hangout; and finally now into an odd assortment of tiny bars some up very steep steps. The irony of the place is that while it has become somewhat of a tourist attraction, many of the bars rely on regulars, so strangers wandering in may receive either a frosty reception, cover charge or both. If the door is open and you get a smile go in, it's an experience not to be had anywhere else. Many of the bars have Karaoke and ancient mama-sans, while one has an old man who speaks Spanish and plays flamenco videos on a tiny black & white TV, and who occasionally plays guitar; one of the least friendly has a great collection of Jazz CDs. For those looking for some alternative rock, seek out "Rock Bar: Mother" for an extensive collection of Punk and Metal CD's. If you are put off by some bars look for Bar K, which is always welcoming of foreigners with beers for 1000 yen a mini long neck. Some places charge for Karaoke with coin machines while others like Bar K have it as service but the bar has also to pay for the service so a small karaoke surcharge is sometimes added.
If you only want a stroll around and then escape for a cheap drink, the more contemporary Coin Bar located just before the Golden Gai entrance slightly west as you head back towards Kabuki-cho, sells all drinks for 500 yen and staffed mostly by Filipinas who speak excellent English.
On the west side of the Yamanote tracks, Omoide Yokochō (思い出横丁, "Memory Lane") is a small alley filled with yakitori joints. The tunnel under the tracks near the entrance of Omoide Yokocho is nicknamed gokiburi yokochō (cockroach lane) or shonben yokochō (piss lane). No prizes for guessing why.

Finally a city with some potential.

1 comment:

Anonymous said...

EDWARD YOU WORRY JME TO DEATH!
Love,
MOM