When I came out of the subway, it took me a few minutes to get my bearings and just to take it all in! Once done, I scouted out the bronze statute of Hachiko. Hachiko is a famous dog who waited at Shibuya station at the end of each day for his owner, and continued to do so after the owner's death for years. I thought it was such a sweet story and was quite pleased to find the statute.
I wandered around for a bit, heading into 109- another hot spot for teen fashion that reminded me a bit of Laforet in that it had bunches of little boutiques, but not so in that the fashion was much, much edgier and more trendy. All the sales girls were dressed to the hilt in not very much, all very short and tight. Plus, they were quite tanned and had lots of big, curled hair. If 109 is any indication, big hair and tans are definitely back! That and short shorts. I felt old. It was definitely a place for teenagers.I even attempted a little bit of shopping myself! I wanted some bath bubbles for the big old bath here at the Mandarin, so I went into Lush (Lush always makes me think of Jessica Puma Altro...she sent me home from Miami once with a bunch of yummy Lush things from her own cabinet and I've been hooked ever since...going into Lush is a little like a hug from Jessica). Well, next thing I knew, I was walking around with my hands wrapped in saran wrap so that I could shop while the face masks went to work on my hands! It was fun, even more so when the sales girl talked to me in Japanese so that I had no idea what the desired effect was supposed to be. She gently rubbed it off, smiling and nodding and looking at me expectantly, so I smiled and said "Mmmmm. Nice." She repeated this back to me multiple times in fits of giggles. I have no idea why I am so funny, aside from the fact that I am an almost six foot tall woman, clad head to toe in pink and yellow like a big crazy piece of candy topped off with a head full of banana cotton candy hair. I think I stuck out more in Shibuya than ever before!
I did manage to find Center Gai as well. It is a pedestrian street and the place where the "Center Guys" hang out- these are the fashionable young guys dressed up, as my guide book puts it so well, like "a cross between a biker, a cowboy and a front man for an 80's hair band". It was a little street, but given that it was early morning, very quiet and, sadly, I saw no "center guys". However, it's clear that their girly equivalent, the "mamba", are working at 109.
Lastly, before hopping back on the train to head home to get ready for dinner, I got a quick bird's eye view of Hachiko crossing.
It's not perfect, what with the reinforced glass, but you can get a feel for how busy the street can be!
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