The streets of Tokyo are quite often a colorful delicatessen of delicious and bizarre eye candy. So, we’ve decided to start a periodic column providing you with some select highlights from some of the random curiosities we’ve spied whilst out and about in Tokyo.

PatLabor in Harajuku

robot

You know you’ve lived in Tokyo too long when a giant robot figure being transported on the back of a large truck rolls past and you don’t upload a photo to the interwebs. This was actually the second time I saw this robot in a couple of days, and since it’s not actually that uncommon to catch a glimpse of some gargantuan Gandumesque figure, I didn’t hurriedly snap a photo with my cheap smartphone the first time. This particular chap is called PatLabor apparently, and is the most retweeted thing I’ve ever uploaded to twitter.


Cats #1 – Police Neko

neko-police

The world needs to take a leaf out of Japan’s book on policing drunk driving. This poster on the streets of Shibuya is a police warning about drunk driving, it features a feline character know as Nameneko urging drivers that, “Drunk driving is unforgivable. Stop the road accidents!!”.

Cats #2 – Pile of Persian Cats

pile-of-cats2

Suggested Activity
Samurai Experience in Tokyo
One of the coolest things to do in Tokyo! Discover the samurai practice of Kenbu Tachibana Ittoryu, a special sword performance. During your class you’ll dress up in a samurai outfit and train with a katana (single-edge samurai sword). A photo shoot is included, Great experience for families and children!

There’s a chap in Tokyo who wheels about a stroller containing about six persian cats, and as soon as he stops the crowds of photo snapping young Japanese women chirping “kawaii” descend like ganets on a discarded sandwich at the beach.

close-up-cats

Cats # – Cat Study House

This is a study house for your cats, a bargain at 12,800yen!

cat-study-house


Dogs #1 – Skating Dog

In the Sunday same afternoon at Yoyogi park we spied, a skating Dog:

skating-dog

Dogs #2 – Doggie Bag

And a dog being carried what I can only describe as a “doggie bag” (note its feet can’t touch the ground)

Suggested Activity
Japan Rail Pass
The JR Pass is a 1 week pass that allows unlimited travel on Japan Rail lines throughout the country. This ticket is extraordinarily good value for long distance and inter-city travel. *Restrictions: Can only be purchased by temporary visitor visa holders not already in Japan. ...

doggie-bag

Dog #3 – Will You Be A Dog?

A face mask cosmetic product found in the store Donki:

will-you-be-a-dog


Here Comes The Rain Again

Rainy season has just begun in Tokyo, so about 6 weeks of humidity and intermittent drizzle await – yay! However expect at least a few nice sunsets, plus it’s firefly season.

rainy season sunset

And some epic cloud formations (click for the full panorama):

epic-sky

That’s it for this “Out and About in Tokyo”, stay tuned for another one soon!

Written by:
Chris's Tokyo favorites are: Tomoe Sushi, Borne, Udagawa Cafe Suite
Filed under: Editorial
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