It was Sunday morning in Harajuku, and I walked past a Christian church. In the doorway were a Western man and woman, the woman with a baby hanging off her, greeting everyone in English as they poured into the church.
I, on the other hand, was searching for a church of my own. Amongst palaces of fashion, such as Dior and Louis Vuitton, I was searching for Next, just a humble British highstreet store, rumoured to be hidden somewhere on Omotesando, Harajuku.
Eventually, I found it! It was tucked away, down a backstreet, just as the map had seemed to imply, literally right behind Louis Vuitton! (Is Next not good enough to be beside Louis Vuitton in Japan?!)
My hunt was fruitful in more ways than one. Next, itself, was a veritable treasure trove of trousers which actually fit me, in sizes I actually understand, and I wanted to buy everything I saw! I settled for 3 pairs of trousers, but came away wishing I had splashed out and bought more. Why can’t Nagoya have a Next? Sigh.
The other treasure was actually on my journey to Next. I spotted a sign which declared ‘model sized footware’. Could they possibly mean ‘regular sized shoes for western people with normal sized feet’?! They did! I made my way to the shop, feeling giddy with excitement, and was greeted by two surprised looking sales girls, who giggled at my delight of finding shoes which actually fit me. Again, I wanted to buy up the shop, but settled on two pairs of ‘No Boundaries’ shoes, one for work and one for pleasure, which are simply gorgeous. The ‘pleasure’ shoes were in the sale too, at 50% off! The shop was called Kotuca, and it turns out they have an online store, (which they told me was in English but doesn’t seem to be…). They gave me the card and asked me to ‘please come again’. I will, of course, even if only virtually!
☆★☆
Tokyo is a strange place. I found myself caught in this mixture of Japanese and English, not quite knowing what language to speak. In the shoe shop, they spoke English. In GAP, the girl who served me spoke English good enough to make smalltalk with, and all the staff in the shop asked if they could help me (constantly) in English too. In Next, they spoke English. But it’s really bizarre. In Nagoya, lots of people speak English, but more often than not they speak Japanese first. In Tokyo, people greeted me in English, people in cafes served me in English, and most of the time my Japanese attempts were ignored. It confused me. I couldn’t live there.
☆★☆
Sat in Lavazza, and Italian cafe, drinking lovely coffee, I listened to a Japanese man speaking in English to a French man. He was talking about Kenny Rogers.
☆★☆
Kiddy Land. Just what it says on the tin. I only went in because I was waiting for Next to open and had an hour to kill (seems these rich folk in Omotesando Hills don’t get up before 11am!). I was struck immediately by the intense cuteness emanating from the store, from the staff, and even from the customers. Five floors of Hello Kitty, Rilakkuma, Snoopy, Disney, Tare Panda, Monokuro Boo, Ghibli… I could have spent all day on just the Hello Kitty floor!
☆★☆
Tokyo’s a funny place. It made me think. It made me shop. It made me use my credit card! But it also made me happy. I guess it was nice to have a little burst of Westernisation, and to have the ease of shopping in English and finding products I’m used to. And I’m delighted to have some new trousers! I’m glad I don’t live in Tokyo, but it’s a nice place to visit. 
3 Comments
Comments RSS TrackBack Identifier URI
Leave a comment
I completely understand what you’re saying about Tokyo. I was surprised by the extent to which Yokohama – also a very major city, with a deep history of foreign communities and international trade – is not like Tokyo in this respect. In Yokohama, people don’t speak English to you first. They don’t automatically give you the English menu. They don’t resist your attempts to converse with them in Japanese. And while I continue to miss Tokyo, to wish I might live there again, to think of it as being one of the most vibrant cities on the planet, the Japanese New York, I find that one aspect – the overwhelming amount of English spoken, amount of other foreigners – to be quite a turn off.
I agree – I think Tokyo is a very cool place to visit, but I am not sure that I could live there. But I love that each time I go there, I am always surprised in new ways!
How much luck have you had at finding western-sized clothing? What sizes do the stores normally stock up to in clothing and shoes? I have been trying to stock up before I leave Melbourne on Thursday, but truthfully, I am sick of shopping and cannot face anymore!
And thank the universe… Japan has lavazza!
Thank you both for your comments.
Chasingsnow, I’ve found that I can buy tops, but if you’re bigger than a UK size 10 (which I am!) you might find it hard to buy pants or anything fitted. I’m lucky that the fashion at the moment seems to be floaty and oversized. However, in Tokyo, I had much more luck than I’ve had in Nagoya. Finding Next was like a dream come true! I was worried that even if I found it, it would be full of small sizes, but it wasn’t at all.