As a kid, for the longest time the term ‘Harajuku’ only meant Japanese girls dressed up in quirky little outfits. But as I got older, I soon learned that Harajuku was actually a district in Tokyo known for Japan’s youth culture and fashion (so young me wasn’t that far off).
So when the day finally came to actually visit this magical place, you’ll understand why I was excited when I finally found myself in Harajuku. The only problem was that I got there a little too late (9PM is late apparently)
So, I tried again the next day.
I arrived at the Harajuku JR Station in the morning. The first you see as you step out of the station are the huge crowds hovering around the station, and of course, the famous Takeshita-dori’s sign.
As I got closer to the shops along the streets, I spotted my first Harajuku Girl who was casually strolling down the street with her baby doll dress and umbrella. Understandably, I squealed like a little pig (but in a cute way).
My rule of thumb when it comes to shopping is to “never shop with an empty stomach” — you just become agitated by everything, which in turn disables your ability to look for great bargains.
So, after lunch at Wolfgang Puck Express, I was ready to take on the heavy task at hand – shopping. As we looked around at the small shops along the road, nothing really caught my attention, well not until, I finally saw it. It was ironically the giant Daiso that stopped both me and my mom in our tracks. I don’t know how many hours we spent in that Daiso, it wasn’t like we didn’t have a Daiso back in KL because we do… Daiso guys, it’s like a black hole.
After Daiso, one thing I noticed as we walked further into the street was how there were a lot of African guys who spoke perfect Japanese trying to lure in tourists into their shops. If you’re wondering what sort of stuff they were selling, just close your eyes and imagine the randomest thing you can think off. Got it? Yeah, they have it.
While I was glad that they weren’t trying to push their stuff on me, at the same time I didn’t really appreciate the unwarranted catcalls/suggestive sexual movements displayed by said salesmen. Sigh, with a great butt comes great responsibility…
Although I noticed a few of those second hand luxury items store, but the selection was pretty “meh” compared to what we saw in Shibuya, so I skipped out on that and just focused more on the local shops instead.
Anyway, I finally found a store that was calling my soul. It was a shoe store that sold all types of shoes. Look, I’ll say it up front, I have an addiction to flatforms. I don’t know why, I guess I’m forever stuck in the 90s. If you’re wondering how many pairs of shoes I bought in end, the answer is seven. Who in their right mind needs seven pairs of shoes? Me, apparently.
**main image retrieved here
