Talk:Tokyo/Shibuya

in the Sleep section it is stated that: Shibuya is also surrounded by love hotels. Can anyone explain this love hotel euphemism. Is it Japinglish for a red light district, honeymoon hotels, a quick marriage and wedding chappel area like Las Vegas has or something else? -- (WT-en) Huttite 08:11, 5 Apr 2004 (EDT)

Love Hotel is a bit of a euphemism, I suppose the more accurate term would be sex hotel. They can be found in and near red light districts, but most are not. Many of them are often clustered around highway interchanges or main train stations out of the city and back to the suburbs. Basically you can rent a room by the night or the hour. They are generally clean, safe, and very private. Some have fantastic themes like castles, Disney, sports, whatever. Think about the housing shortage that plagued post-war Japan for years, and the way people still live in extended families. If you are 28 years old and still at home, do you really want to bring your mate back to your folks' house? Or, if you are a married couple in a 40 square meter apartment with your two grade school children, do you really want to get down to it?

Thus, the love hotel. They can be seedy, but mainly they are just practical and fulfill a social need. I guess I need to really write them up in a more traveler friendly way, but school is keeping me busy these days.

(WT-en) Ted 21:19, 8 Apr 2004 (EDT)

Thanks for the explanation. How you explained it sounds pretty good to me. I have put your explanation in Japan under the Sleep heading as a subheading for Love hotels as I thought that would probably be a good place to stick it. -- (WT-en) Huttite 22:05, 8 Apr 2004 (EDT)

Gee, Ted, thanks for ruining the mystery; I thought my very minor addition to the Tokyo page would convey the answer. :)

I think all of the 'Stay' stuff under Tokyo should be moved over to 'Japan'. And we can also add minshuku, which aren't very common in any city, but worth experiencing. -- (WT-en) Paul Richter 23:22, 8 Apr 2004 (EDT)

Book 1st

This listing was recently deleted. All I could find on-line was there were plans to move the store from this location to Shinjuku in fall 2008. Can anyone confirm this has happened and update the listing?

• Book 1st. (Bunkamura-dori), [1]. One of Tokyo's largest bookstores. Carries a good range of foreign language magazines, add to a huge array of venues to eat and drink.

(WT-en) Shaund 12:13, 23 September 2008 (EDT)

The pink cow

It seems to have moved to roppongi ?