Tokyo

Greetings fellow hobbyists!I am a 52 year old gaigin from the US with virtually no Japanese language skills yet, and though I can read the katakana and hiragana, I usually don't know what I am reading! I'm a newly arrived resident of Tsukuba. Last week, after carefully studying the posts from the experts on this board, I ventured into the Shinjuku/Kabuki-chu RLD, and, as a fairly experienced hobbyist back home, I must say I was rather intimidated by all the "Japanese Only" signs, and the rather cold reception from most of the propriators of the "picture galleries" that I wandered into. After pounding the pavement for an hour or two, I was finally approached by an English-speaking tout who offered to take me to an establishent where I would have my choice of several girls, 16K for the hour--FS. I took him up on the offer, and went with him to a 5th floor establishment near the big blue 747 sign--sorry I can't be more specific, but I'm still quite unfamilar with the area. I chose Yuki, 19, from the book of pictures--she was the one with the biggest tits in the picture book. While the room was a bit cramped, hot, and Spartan, the place was clean, as was the girl, who was fun, receptive to DFK, DATY, provided BBBJ, and nice covered FS. The mamasan, who spoke passable English, did wheedle quite a bit more from me than the original 16K, but in a very jocular, respectful manner, and since I wanted a second round with Yuki, it ended up 30K by the time I was done (which did last the full hour). She also offerered 2 girls for 20K if I came back next time without the tout. (Of course, she would rather not have to pay the commission.) I may take her up on the offer (knowing, of course, that she now knows that she canl probably squeeze more out of me when all is said and done).Later in the evening, I was approached by several more touts--and some very nice looking streetwalkers had now appeared on the scene--including some Europeans. But I was spent for the evening. I think I will explore the area again starting later in the evening next time. The area is near the Prince Hotel, but, as I said, I am not familar enough with the area to provide more specific directions than that. So here are my questions for the experts:1. Can I expect the same kind of fairly decent, trustworthy service from the girls that the touts will lead me to? (In the place I was at, I even took a chance and left my pants with wallet and several thousand yen unattended while I showered--and everything was still there when I returned!) 2. Is it the usual practice in these establishments for the mamasan to try to squeeze more cash from gaijins? As I said, while this was done in a joking and respectful manner, I did find it surprisingly more aggressive than I have run into in other "legitimate" business enterprises. And I thought the 300 that I finally did end up paying was a little steep. 3. Regarding the 'love hotels"--can you get a room there for a regular overnight or two-night stay, with normal check-in and check out times? I was thinking of using one as a base for a couple of days of mongering, combined with other activities, while in Tokyo.4. Does anyone know if there are any escorts, pink salons, or other venues in Tsukuba? (Or, at least closer to the Tsukuba area than downtown Tokyo?) It is a LONG bus ride down there, especially on weekdays, when the traffic is awful!Thanks for your help, and I would welcome any and all advice!

Anyone have any info on strip clubs in Tokyo? General info is appreciated, but especially interested if anyone has had any luck in arranging services outside the club. Please feel free to send me a message if you prefer not to post on the board.Thanks!

About strip clubs:There are many strip clubs in Tokyo area. The foreigner friendly ones tend to be in the Roppongi area and feature women from all over. I recommend visiting the Kama Sutra which is small, but very friendly women. Following that, you can visit Private Eyes, One eyed Jacks and more. Most strip clubs have 'happy hour' prices and I recommend you try that before committing to the full price schedule.In outlying areas you can find other strip clubs that feature mostly Fillipina, Korean and some Chinese women. Rarely are foreigners allowed to the all Japanese clubs - especially away from Tokyo and Roppongi, in general.If you are visiting for business then suggest to your host(s) that you may be interested to see a Japanese cabaret show. Chances are they will treat you to at least a hostess club experience, after a few drinks it's OK to say you'd like to visit a strip club. But let them suggest anything more as it's a bit rude to request something like health club or soap club as a visitor.

Japan,Regarding love hotels, you can't do a 2-night stay as far as I know. You can stay overnight after a certain hour depending on availability but it's strictly a short-term stay only. I don't know of any love hotels where you can check in and check out two days later. You might scout around in your favorite area next time for a business hotel or check the Internet. The Tokiwa in Nippori comes to mind because it's convenient to the Joban line for you.About the trustworthiness, somebody here with more experience can answer that question because I'm curious about this, too. What do you do with your wallet and other valuables when you leave a room to shower? CJW, Sojourner, et. al? I've left some valuables (cash, camera, etc.) in a coin locker at a station prior to my mongering but that's a hassle. I was thinking of taking a plastic bag or some sort of purse with me where I can put my wallet and having it within view during the showering.I'm not sure how long you're going to be in Tsukuba but the new Joban express train from Tsukuba City Center to Akihabara (45 minutes) will be operational in about autumn 2005. That will be great for any mongerers based in Tsukuba.You're right about the bus into Tokyo from Tsukuba. It really sucks when it hits the central Tokyo outskirts on weekdays. Going back leaving Tokyo seems OK most of the time once you get out of that snarl.You might think about grabbing the Joban line out of Arakawaoki or even a Super Hitachi out of Tsuchiura to get into town if you've got a car in Tsukuba. Otherwise, it's a hassle to get to Arakawaoki or Tsuchiura stations unless you want to pay for a taxi or ask a friend for a ride since everyone who lives in Tsukuba seems to have a car.

Japan,1. In general, Japan is safe. I have never had a problem with my wallet and other valuables. I would use extra caution in the Chinese- and Korean-operated places however. I suspect the place you visited may have been a Chinese operation. 2. In my experience, in Japanese establishments, it is not common to increase the price beyond what was originally agreed. Ordinarily, everything is laid out clearly on a system menu and everything is explained. I visited a Chinese massage place in Kabuki-cho last year that matched your experience, although I think my total was only about 16K. They wanted to charge extra for everything and kept changing as negotiations went on. It was like ordering a sandwich from Subway (I refuse to eat at places that involve more than a dozen decisions) except even more complicated. 2,000 yen more to choose the girl from a photo album, 15% more for a credit card fee, etc., etc. Then when I eventually got the charge she had added more for some other items I didn't understand. The girl was pretty but all I received was a clumsy hand job even though I had been promised a "body massage" by the woman at the front desk. I don't plan to return. 3. I think the love hotels have a 2-tiered pricing structure, "rest" and "stay." "Rest" is an hour or two. "Stay" is all night but you must check in later in the evening, I believe after 11 P.M. I don't think you can reserve multiple consecutive nights at a love hotel, or make any reservations at all for that matter; you just show up and it's first come, first served for the rooms. For multiple nights you will have to leave and check in again each night (after 11 P.M.). Most love hotels have the system clearly labeled on the sign boards outside or in their lobby.4. Never been to Tsukuba and I don't know anything about the nightlife, but next time you come to Tokyo try taking the train vs. the bus. I expect it will be much faster. Looks like the JR Joban line express is 40 minutes from Tsuchiura station to Ueno. At Ueno transfer to the JR Yamanote line and go to Shinjuku, which will take about another 20 minutes. Just make sure that if you want to get back to Tsukuba that evening you leave in time to get home before the trains stop.

Hello - A japanese website translation tip:Just paste the following jscript into your browser, then drag to the 'links' bar. Then, whenever you want a rough translation of a japanese webpage, simply hit this 'link'. It will load the page into the Babelfish translator automatically.javascript:void(location ='http://babelfish.altavista.com/babelfish/urltrurl?lp=ja_en&url=' +escape(location.href))Note: you might have to paste it into notepad first, then copy to your browser.

Japan,Your experience in Kabuki-cho sounds like some similar experiences that I have had there at Chinese/Korean massage parlors. It sounds fairly typical. I have had the mama-san do the haggling with me, or I have had the girl do it, if she spoke English well enough. Those places are hit or miss. I have had very good times, and rather mediocre and lackluster times. You might want to check out Hino Maru (see many posts on this board on the subject). It is located behind the Korma theatre.[quote] 4. Does anyone know if there are any escorts, pink salons, or other venues in Tsukuba? (Or, at least closer to the Tsukuba area than downtown Tokyo?) It is a LONG bus ride down there, especially on weekdays, when the traffic is awful![/quote]I have been to Tsukuba many times. I don't think there is much in the way of mongering there, at least not that I have found. However, there are some places in Tsuchiura, not far from the train station (search this board for posts), though I have not visited them personally.As for the bus vs. the train. I have used both from Tsukuba to Tokyo. The train is faster and more comfortable, but if you add in the time and cost to get from Tsukuba to Tsuchiura, the bus is often comparable. I usually stay in Tsukuba Center, very close to the bus station, and so the bus is very convenient. Some of the buses make fewer stops than others, too.Please post your reports, especially if you find anything in Tsukuba or Tsuchiura.Have fun!V.

Soujourn,Thanks for the website translation tip. It works great in Netscape and Mozilla, too. You just need to create a bookmark manually and then hit the bookmark when you're on the Japanese page.

Viagrant,I've stayed in Tsukuba many times, probably at the same place(s) you have (Dai Ichi and Grand Shinonome) and there seemed to be a real lack of mongering places in and around the area behind the city center where all of the restaurants are near the old Expo center area. I think Tsuchiura is probably going to be a better choice but I've never explored the mongering but my friends and co-workers have told me of their soapland experiences near the station. What Tsukuba does have is a ton of love hotels (motels, actually, because everyone has a car there) all over the place.

Thanks for your help!Viagrant, I will check out the area in Tsuchiara that you mentioned! Is there any specific place there that will accept a greenhorn Gaigin like me, with almost no Japanese? Today I passed a place in Tsukuba called the Philippines Show Bar. Does anyone know anything about it? It seems the admission is 4-5K. I think its a strip club, but I'm not sure. What kind of action can one expect in a place like that? Is there any possibility for FS in the strip clubs, for a gaijin with almost no Japanese? In general, is FS available in the strip clubs, and if so for how much?

Hello everyone!I am new to this board. But I quickly made this site one of my favorites hehe. I heard of this one place in Tokyo thats an Escort service "Asian Typhoon" the # is 070-5369-8563/03-3410-5661. If anyone has tried it or can give it a go, please let me know how they are?

Homer69,[quote] I've stayed in Tsukuba many times, probably at the same place(s) you have (Dai Ichi and Grand Shinonome) and there seemed to be a real lack of mongering places in and around the area behind the city center where all of the restaurants are near the old Expo center area. I think Tsuchiura is probably going to be a better choice but I've never explored the mongering but my friends and co-workers have told me of their soapland experiences near the station. What Tsukuba does have is a ton of love hotels (motels, actually, because everyone has a car there) all over the place.[/quote]I have stayed at the old Dai-Ichi hotel (now the Okura hotel). I agree that there seems to be a lack of mongering places in Tsukuba, though I, too, have noticed many Love Hotels in Tsukuba, so something must be going on (just not for gaijin?).I have only visited Soaplands in Yoshiwara in Tokyo. If you visit a soapland in Tsuchiura, please post.V.

A publication detailing the opportunities for paid sex was published a few years ago - maybe called "THE TOKYO PINK GUIDE". Does anyone know where I can get a copy?What information does it contain?

The Tokyo Pink Guide is pretty dated and out of print. Used copies are hard to come by and Amazon has a few starting at US$50 or so. It's pretty interesting reading and even mentions Hinomaru but most of it is not applicable to today's scene. I don't think no-pants-shabu-shabu caberets are popular today, if they even exist, for instance. It gives a view from the end of the bubble (very early 1990's).It was published by Tuttle and you might be able to find a used copy in Jimbocho. I haven't been to Jimbocho in a few months but there are some places there that might have a copy.

Dogz,The Tokyo Pink Guide can be found be searching used book sites on the web, including Amazon. Just type used books in the search bar. However, the prices being asked are rather high, ie. $200. I found one on Amazon for $50.Someone stole mine but never mind.Although it is interesting to read it is way out of date. Almost every named establishment mentioned is no longer open. I have been thinking of rewriting it and bringing it up to date but I'm not sure my writing skills are up to it. If any members are interested in a joint project such as this let me know.Max