Not really my cup of tea. It’s no different than an American mall. Only vastly larger and spread over maybe a
50 block area. And with a hundred times the stores you’d expect, and multiples of the same product lines.
But the voltage of all the electronics is different than in America, so almost everything will require a converter.
Still, if it’s electonic, you’ll probably find it. There are people who sell only vacuum tubes. Weird stuff.
This isn’t seasonal lighting. This is the way it looks all the time. What isn’t seen here are the crowds of people.
Real crowds. The sidewalks down Chou Dori are fifteen feet wide easily. Completely filled with people, moving briskly.
Some of the shop windows are marvelous art, some are huge well-considered promos of what’s inside, most are
just dense arrangements of brightly-lit stuff. You’ll see things here that won’t appear in America for three years.
At the corners, hundreds of people cross, all watching for drivers distracted by the lights. On Sunday,
the streets are closed to vehicle traffic. I made my rounds twice during the day, and once at night,
looking for laserdiscs and gifts. Comfortable shoes are a must. Think of it as a trek.
You can’t miss Deji-ku’s Gamerz store down by the station.