After leaving my friend, I decided that I would just wander for the rest of the day. I decided to take the train to Shinjuku, and then I planned to walk down to Shibuya. These are the two of the more popular neighborhoods in Japan, and I really enjoyed spending time there when I was in Japan last time.
This time, however, was a bit different. Perhaps I am getting older, and more cynical and tired of flashing lights, but instead of enticing me, these things turned me off, and I could only equate them in my mind with trivial consumerism. Since I was not on this trip to buy anything, perhaps the novelty value of these sorts of things has worn off. Even some of the sights that I really enjoyed seeing last time were not as enjoyable this time.
One thing that I did get to see in Shinjuku that wasn't here last time was the Norman Foster designed building. I have a bit of affection towards this building for a couple of reasons. The first is that, although Norman Foster is not my favorite architect, I do appreciate a lot of his work, and they are quite distinctive, as he seems to have his own distinct style such that you can always tell you see a Norman Foster Building. The other reason I like this building is because the last time I was in Japan, I saw it while it was still being constructed. Even half completed, I could tell it was a Norman Foster building, and I was disappointed that I never did see it completed... So this is how it looks within the city.
From there I walked down to Meiji Shrine. This is one of the most serene shrines in Tokyo, being in the middle of Yoyogi park. Seeing it there this time, though, it seemed a bit like "been there, done that." It also seemed like last time there were fewer people, but that probably isn't the case; it might be that last time, being overwhelmed with the new experience, I felt like I was the only one there.
One place where it is difficult to feel like I am the only one there is Harajuku. It is basically across the street from Yoyogi park, and it's one of those popular places where kids like to go, and is even famous amongst kids in America. I suppose that I have moved from kitsch to niche. That is, I used to be amazed by all the kitsch things in Japan (perhaps simply because the were new to me). But now that I have already been here, and I am interested in other aspects of Japanese culture, I have moved into more niche interests, like butoh dance or postwar memory. It is those things that have really seemed to excite me during this visit to Japan, while a lot of the more typical things seem to be a bit of a let down.
The one thing that wasn't such a letdown this evening, though, was rediscovering Tower Records. In America, Tower Records went out of business a couple of years ago, and then all the rest of the biggest music stores followed suit. I am sure that there were a number of factors, but one had to be the fact that so many people steal music and get it for free today, thus stores were not getting the money they should. It made me wonder why Japanese people were still buying music and dvds. Then I wondered, who does that thought say more about? Does my question say more about the Japanese people who are not stealing what is so easy to steal? Or does it say more about me for questioning why Japanese people aren't so inclined to steal?
In any case, since I was wandering around a bit bored, I decided to go into Tower Records, and see what I could see. My spirits were instantly lifted! I forgot what it was like to be in a record store. I saw all kinds of music that I hadn't seen before, and I was able to listen to new sounds coming from different places. I am sure that I can do this online without record stores in America, but I really like seeing the records in front of me, and I am not sure how to discover something online if I didn't know where to look; in a store, I just wander around, and displays pop out in front of me. It was great!
Even though I didn't buy anything (I wrote down plenty of things that I will steal when I return to America), I left the store happy and in a good mood. Even though it was a Monday night, I was determined to find a bar or restaurant that played live music. Preferably, this live music would be played by musical instruments. I was really searching for some music that sounded different from the Japanese female pop singers whose nasal auto-tune singing I seemed to hear everywhere.
Well, I suppose that I wasn't that determined because I didn't find a place. What I did find was a guitar store. After leaving Tower Records, I had the itch to play or hear some music, and this was only spurred by my stay in Los Angeles, where I was able to play my old guitars that I had not played in years. I asked the shop keeper if I could play a guitar and he said sure. I pointed to the Paul Reed Smith guitars that I had always loved, but are way too expensive for me to own. He told me that these were the only guitars I could not play. I was disappointed, so I just pointed to the next guitar standing on the floor. I couldn't even tell you what kind of guitar it was. He plugged the guitar into an amp, and let me play. I really had fun, and this seemed to be a great way to finish the day. After I was done twiddling around, I gave the guitar back to the guy. He then offered to let me play the Paul Reed Smith guitar I was eyeing before. This made me feel good, because I came to the conclusion that he wouldn't let just anyone play the PRS guitars, but after he heard me play, he decided that I was worthy. It's cool to be recognized by your peers.
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