Debunking or exacerbating the myth that Japan is an expensive country.  

It’s been a pretty pricey one this week … 

Saturday

Unless you’re the owner of a high performance machine, leaving your bicycle on the streets of Tokyo poses little risk from theft. Where there might be risk though, comes from the city itself, officials of which may (emphasis on the ‘may’) come and impound your two-wheeler. What ensues then is a trip to a city facility, mind numbing bureaucracy, and a small fee/fine.  

To avoid this risk one could always look out for some ‘coin parking’ (コインパーキング) - anytime use parking facilities that will keep your steed safe from the city (and we mean that more in ‘official’ terms).

Made use of one such facility on this day. 100 yen for 12 hours.

Sunday

Why not jazz up the dystopian vibe of Japan’s penchant for donning a surgical mask at the first sign of a cold (or on those days when you just don’t feel like talking to your colleagues).  

We saw these Sailor Moon jobs in Roppongi Hills

A pack of 3 - 410 yen

Monday

Get domesticated in Japan, and you may well find yourselves grappling with a 10 kg bag of rice from the supermarket. It would probably take more than a year to get through this kind of quantity back home. Here though, me and someone else can polish off 10 kg in a couple of months.

The cheapest bag in our local supermarket - ~2,500 yen

Tuesday

Despite having bought rice the previous day, post-work cooking appeared as a massive pain in the rear. Opted for a curry instead.

It’s one of life’s small pleasures to discover a solid curry join in Japan, even more so when it’s still only a Tuesday.

This naan, salad, yoghurt and two-curry set clocked in at around 1,000 yen. We asked for normal strength on the hot stuff. Better go for medium or above next time, as the scale was set to Japanese palates. Fair enough one supposes. Still, we’ve discovered potential with this one!

Wednesday

Wednesday saw us taking a sneak peak of the new Tokyo Ramen Kokugikan Mai ramen, err, ‘zone’ in Aqua City, Odaiba. During our couple of hours sniffing around we polished off 3 dishes apiece. Actually, polished is the wrong term. By the last dish, this ramen slurper was close to a toilet emergency (a reflection on quantity rather than quality, we hasten to add)!  

The three dishes that just about got consumed - 1,100 yen / 1,200 yen / 850 yen. Total - 3,150 yen

Yep, that’s a little pricey. Are they worth it? Go see for yourselves. Here’s our post on this published the same day,

Ramen Relaunched: Tokyo Ramen Kokugikan Mai Ready to Reopen

Thursday

Thursday night was spent in the planning stages of a (personal) Golden Week jaunt to the mountains. We’re thinking Hakuba. Can’t think too long though otherwise everything will be booked up!  

Two nights, three days, hotel and transport - setting aside 30,000 yen per person

Friday

Hooters for lunch. Yes, still not sure how we (sorry, I) feel about this. It was my first time. What I will say off the bat though, is that they do pretty good lunch deals, it seems to be quiet and spacious, and is a kind of easy, no frills, ordering and eating experience.  

As for the staff. Well, I suppose they look like they do in the pictures, and all salaciousness aside, the service was good.

When we were there, other diners were a mix of tourists looking for a simple menu, a couple who came with their kid, and a salaryman type who took a seat at the counter.  

Sandwich lunch set (with soup, and big cola) - 1,100 yen

This week of expense in Japan - 38,260 yen

How did your wallets and purses fare this week? Drop us a line below.

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