Returning to Japan: My Fifth Adventure Exploring Tokyo and Beyond

In the fall of 2024, I returned to Japan for the fifth time. Choosing Japan Airlines once again, I landed at Haneda Airport in Tokyo, which I’ve found more convenient than Narita due to the proximity to central Tokyo. By completing the arrival paperwork during the flight, immigration and customs were a blur. Once in the arrivals area of Haneda, I picked up a new Welcome Suica card near the Tokyo Monorail gates, loading it with 5,000 yen. Before I departed the airport, I went down to the second floor of the terminal to locate one of two eki stamps available.

As with my trip in 2023, I opted for the Tokyo Monorail to travel from Haneda Airport to Hamamatsuchō Station. The ride lasted around thirty minutes, and offered glimpses of nearby hangars, ports, Tokyo Bay, and the sprawling cityscape of Tokyo. Once at Hamamatsuchō Station, I transferred to the Yamanote Line for a fourteen minute ride in the direction of Akihabara. On the previous trip, I made the mistake of taking the train in the opposite direction, which extended the journey by an hour.

Upon arriving at Akihabara Station, I stepped off the train and made my way to the escalators leading down to the first floor. With my suitcase in tow, I stood on the left side, observing the familiar practice of leaving the right side open for those in a hurry—a norm in Tokyo that contrasts with the customs in Osaka and the United States. Once on the first floor, I rolled my suitcase toward the south exit and tapped my Welcome Suica card on the nearest sensor. Just steps from the south gate was the JR-East Hotel Mets Akihabara, my favored hotel in the area.

The JR-East Hotel Mets Akihabara check-in process was as simple as the previous year. No human interaction was required. I scanned my passport on a touch screen panel, entered basic travel information, and received my room key from a machine within five minutes of arrival. My room was on the eighth floor, and overlooked the southern entrance to Akihabara Station and nearby shops. It was my third time staying at the hotel in three years but it felt good to have the view once again so soon.

After a shower and a change of clothes, I stepped out into the streets of Akihabara. Just down the block from the hotel, I made my way to Nadai Fuji Soba, my go-to spot to eat. I ordered a bowl of white rice, topped with tonkatsu and fried egg. To my surprise, the price had dropped since my last visit. The flavors, however, remained unchanged. The crisp tonkatsu paired well with the rich egg, which offered the nostalgia and comfort I had come to expect from Nadai the past few years.

With a full stomach, I continued the tradition of visiting Mandarake on the first night in Japan. Mandarake has eight floors full of merchandise, which I love to browse. Each floor has an abundance of a certain type of merchandise, such as manga, physical media, and even dolls. The top two floors are dedicated to toys, which is where I decided to start. Per a tip I had read online, I skipped the staircase and took an elevator to the eighth floor. I was on the lookout for new and old Zoids kits.

Unlike previous years, the Zoids selection at Mandarake was limited. Of note was the Desert Type Shield Liger, which was a rare variant. I passed on the Shield Liger and walked down to a lower floor of Mandarake which sold manga and comics. Although Dark Horse lost the rights to Alien and Predator, I wanted to see if there were older Japanese versions being sold that I had not bought previously. Both collections of Aliens: Defiance in Japanese were available but I decided to leave empty handed.

Before I returned to the hotel for the night, I walked from Mandarake to a favored arcade in Akihabara called GiGO 3. The building, once operated by Sega, had transitioned ownership in recent years but still retained vibrant energy and a familiar layout. My favorite game, The Typing of the Dead, was tucked away on the sixth floor. One match cost 100 yen, and usually lasted ten minutes or more. To stay alive in the game, I was required to type words and characters before zombies were able to damage me.

After a few rounds of The Typing of the Dead, I played a round of The Keisatsukan 2 before I wandered the arcade’s other floors. Each floor offered something unique, from rhythm games with flashing lights and booming soundtracks to claw machines stacked with plush toys and limited-edition prizes. On the fifth floor, I spent a few minutes watching a group of players challenge each other at a row of fighting games.