Nerdy Travels: One Last Trip to Akihabara

This unfortunately, was our last full day in Japan. Our original plan for this day was to head to a popular onsen in Odaiba. After some consideration on the time we had left we decided against going and decided since it was the last day we would head back into Akihabara to do some more shopping.

The first stop wasn’t Akiba but was actually Shibuya as I had been dying to visit the clothing store Galaxxxy as they have some great fashion pieces including an Osomatsu-san collection which I had been continuously going back to on their Instagram page. When we arrived in Shibuya we first of all visited Village Vanguard. I really love this store as it’s what we like to call “Japan’s version of Afflecks Palace”. The best way to describe Village Vanguard is it’s a massive mishmash of different types of content all put under the same roof. You can find all sorts in it such as merchandise for western cartoons, anime, manga, idol and or rock bands as well as street style clothing. The one in Shibuya had two floors which were great to browse around and at the back of one of the floors they had this incredible looking stage.

After Village Vanguard I set out on my main mission of finding Galaxxy but boy this shop was hard to track down. We wandered the general area Google maps told me to go in and I eventually found it. I actually found it by accident as I turned around and I caught a glimpse of it in the corner of my eye. I think if I hadn’t have turned around I would have never found it. It was quiet in the store but it was decorated so incredibly. The girl who was working in there at the time was lovely. I’ve found that the smaller and more obscure shops in Japan often have the most amazing customer service and for that I am grateful.

After finishing in Shibuya we headed down to Akiba for one last shopping trip. It broke my little heart to know this was my last time in Akihabara for goodness knows how long. I tried to make the most of it though and take in as much as this beautiful culture as I could before I left. Akihabara is such a unique place and is totally different from anything you see in the U.K. I think this district will always hold a special place in my heart!