Takeshita Street – wacky in the extreme

Been there, seen it, done it you may think? Perhaps you have, but that is a comment that really can never be true unless you have walked the length of Harajuku’s Takeshita-dori – both ways – and lived to tell the tale.

In more ways than one, Takeshita-dori is Tokyo’s teen heaven – and by teen that means Teen with a capital T.

Any older than about 18 here in Tokyo’s equivalent of a million European and American street corners, minus the wealth of zany shops, and you will be looked upon as a thing of the past, a relic to be put away in a museum.

That said, as close to the grave as your DOB may place you, Takeshita is more than worth running the gauntlet of a thousand stares by the capitals rebellious, primarily female youth.

Shops full of the latest teen (read: girly) fashions – and there is more than enough weird stuff to go around here – as well as gimmick-cum-accessory outlets peddling oddities you will never use, and never see again are everywhere; think a single grain of rice with your name written lengthways using a laser!

Crepe shops galore, Viking sets (an all you can eat concept in Japanese) and far too many cramped little places selling idol / pop star pics, key rings and the like can leave the uninitiated dizzy.

Fear not, the return trip will reveal more of the same and could well lead to a burst blood vessel if you take it all too seriously, but as with so much else in Japan, no space is left unused, so just when you think you have seen everything there is to see – glance upwards at the second floor rooms of so many of the buildings. Guess what! More of the same – much, much more!

Blood vessel throbbing yet?