If you are a youth and living in Tokyo, then Shibuya will most probably be your second home.
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On 26th January 2008, My Japanese friend and I took the Yamanote Line from downtown Tokyo to one of the most vibrant and faddish shopping and entertainment district in the west of Tokyo.
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Unfortunately, because we did not use the Hachikō exit, I didn’t get to check out the statue of the famous Akita dog. I mean, how many canine in this world can claim popularity as this dog did? This loyal dog died on 8th March 1935 and his final resting place is in the National Science Museum. Click on the links above and read all about this legendary dog and how they ended up erecting a tear-jerking statue to commemorate his devotion to his master.
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When we exited the train station, I turned around and took a picture of this.
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Then, I took a good look around me.
The next thought that hit me was - "OMG! I am in Barbie Land!"
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I was surrounded by young girls with super heavy make-up, micro-mini skirts and knee-length platform boots. Looking at their heavily-made up eyes, I was pretty sure they had applied at least 10 layers of mascara on their eyelashes! A good friend who has been to Tokyo on many business trips confessed that Shibuya is one of his most favourite places on this planet. Gee, I wonder why… 
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I soon learnt that it is extremely common for young Japanese girls to be offered modelling or photography contracts in this place. All they needed to do was hang out in the streets and wait to be ‘discovered’.
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I actually got to witness 2 young Japanese girls being ‘poached’ by some magazine folks. Here’s a picture of them giving their best pose, hoping to make it big someday soon. Good luck, girls!
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Of coz there are also some ‘fashion disasters’.
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I love the white coat worn by this lady.
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I tried to snap a picture with her facing my camera but she was looking the other way to cross the road. I did see her face later, although I didn’t manage to capture it on my camera. Yes, she looks niccceee. 
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The one below doesn’t look too bad … except for the pink leggings. Oh, check out the boots sold there. The prices are decent too. There are some nice looking ones going for ￥1500 (less than RM50!). The boots are sized differently in Japan. While we go by numbers, they go by S, M, L, XL, XXL and XXXL. I soon found out that the equivalent of our size 7 or 8 is their XXL.
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I cannot even begin to describe the vast sea of humans moving around in this area. Click here for the short video I took to see how crazily crowded it is over there. If you don’t like crowded places and hate the occasional elbowing or shoving, this would NOT be the place for you.
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We only spent a couple of hours there. So, we didn’t get to walk around much before it got too dark. Of the many shopping buildings in the area, my Japanese friend picked Shibuya 109. Here’s its official site but it’s in Japanese peppered with English here and there. It’s not a really big building but inside, it’s packed with shops selling mostly women clothes and boots. I wasn’t surprised to find zero shops selling stuff for men.
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I found out later how they came up with the name ‘109′ for the building. It’s actually rather clever. The Japanese word for ‘10′ is "to" and the Japanese word for ‘9′ is "kyu". Join the words together and you get "Tokyu" - which is the name of the company that owns most of the buildings in the area.
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There are also a few capsule hotels in the area. Unfortunately for me, they are out of bounds for women. Why? I still haven’t gotten round to find the answer to that. Was too busy soaking everything in. Must remember to find out why only men are allowed in capsule hotels in Japan. For better pictures and details of how the famous Japanese capsule hotels look like, read about it here. They are extremely popular amongst young Japanese businessmen who have had a few too many after-work drinks and/or missed the last train home.
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Another famous building in this district is the NHK Broadcasting Center. I found out later that for only ￥200 (about RM6.50), one gets a tour of their studios. Unfortunately, due to the limited time we were there, I didn’t get to check it out.
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Oh well, for the amount of stuff I managed to do/visit in the short 3 days I spent in Tokyo, I couldn’t really complain much, could I?
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That’s it for the update on my afternoon in Shibuya. Stay tuned for my Tsukiji update. I have loads of pictures to share for that. 
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