La Borracha: Authentic Mexican Food in Takasago

If you are looking for good Mexican in Fukuoka, this should be your first stop.

La Borracha is a Mexican restaurant located in Takasago, just off of Nisseki-dori Blvd. and not far from Yakuin and Watanabe-dori. The restaurant’s founder lived in Mexico, learning how to cook authentic local cuisine before returning to Japan to share it with everyone. The result is genuine Mexican dishes served together with a wide selection of tequila and cocktails.

The atmosphere of the restaurant itself makes it worth the visit: a dark room lit up by multicolored lights and illuminated tequila bottles, accented by elegant furnishings and Mexican music, whisks you off across the globe to Central America. The romantic feel also makes it a superb date spot.

While it’s not as budget-friendly as Mexican cuisine found in the United States, its quality makes it worth the price–after all, in Japan you either have to pay a little more or settle for poor-quality food when it comes to Mexican cuisine. And because the food is so tasty here, it’s well worth the price.

In addition, the narrow streets of the Takasago/Shirogane neighborhoods are lovely for taking a stroll before or after you eat. The area is packed with unique restaurants, bars and shops, as well as a few beautiful, old-style houses.

La Borracha is 10-15 min. on foot from Yakuin Station on the Nishitetsu Omuta Line and Nanakuma Subway Line, and about the same distance from Watanabe-dori Station on the Nanakuma Subway Line. It’s only about 2 min. on foot from Takasago bus stop (bus no. 61 or 62). Its location on Google Maps can be viewed here, and you can check out their website here (Japanese only). You can also call them at 092-534-3544. Menus are available in English and Japanese. Hours are 5:30 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. (last order at 12:30 a.m.).

Hakata Hanami 2012: Cherry Blossoms in Fukuoka City

Cherry tree in Maizuru Park

Despite the recent snowfall and frigid temperatures, the season for cherry blossom viewing is drawing near. The best time for viewing cherry blossoms in Fukuoka in 2012 will be April 4 to 13 (subject to change depending on the weather). Here are some popular spots for viewing blossoms in Fukuoka City:

Atago Shrine
A hilltop shrine with a great view of Hakata Bay and the surrounding city.

• Location: 15 min. walk from Muromi Station (Kuko Subway Line)
• Approx. number of Cherry Trees: 2,000

Maizuru Park
A large park with lots of space for picnics, with the remains of Fukuoka Castle as a backdrop.

• Location: 7-10 min. walk from Ohorikoen Station (Kuko Subway Line)
• Approx. number of Cherry Trees: 1,000

Nishi Park
A hillside park, known as one of the top 100 cherry blossom spots in Japan.

• Location: 10-15 min. walk from Ohorikoen Station
• Approx. number of Cherry Trees: 1,300

Uminonakamichi Kaihin Park
Cycling, disc golf, and seaside strolls combine with beautiful cherry blossoms in this massive multipurpose park.

• Location: Transfer from the JR Kagoshima Main Line at Kashii Station, and take the JR Uminonakamichi Line to Uminonakamichi Station (park entrance and bicycle rentals just outside the station)
• Approx. number of Cherry Trees: 2,000

Minami Park
Cherry blossoms and greenery tucked away in a quiet corner of town.

• Location: 15 min. walk from Sakurazaka Station (Nanakuma Subway Line)
• Approx. number of Cherry Trees: 1,400

Forest City Aburayama
The beautiful Mt. Aburayama provides laid-back hiking trails and amazing scenery (including an unparalleled view of the city and bay from the summit). The addition of cherry blossoms makes it even more stunning.

• Location: Take bus #13 from Tenjin (急行 / kyuko express bus) bound for Hibaru Eigyosho, or bus #113 from Hakata Station (急行 / kyuko express bus) bound for Hibaru Eigyosho, and get off at Aburayama Danchi-guchi (油山団地口) bus stop (takes approx. 30 min. using either bus). From Aburayama Danchi-guchi, it’s about a 1 hour walk to Forest City Aburayama or a 15 min. taxi ride, but there are special buses that go up on weekends (buses don’t run late and they arrive about every 1.5 hours–bus schedules are shown in Japanese on Forest City Aburayama’s website).
• Approx. number of Cherry Trees: 2,000

Note: “Approx. number of Cherry Trees” statistic taken from http://www.innovade.co.jp/en/seasons/04/hanami/fukuokashinai.html

Off Broadway: Fukuoka’s Best Burgers?

Broadway Burger

Nothing beats a good-quality hamburger, and no matter what country you are in, good burgers are usually found at bars. Fukuoka is no exception: Off Broadway on Oyafukodori serves some of the best, if not the absolute best, burgers in town.

Off Broadway was one of the first bars geared toward non-Japanese (“foreign bars”) in Fukuoka, and it has about two decades of history in the Oyafukodori neighborhood of north Tenjin.

For a mere 1,000 yen, you can have a famous Broadway Burger complete with thick, top-quality beef, lettuce, tomato, onions and mushrooms, with a side of tasty fries. Their other menu items are equally amazing. In addition, Off Broadway has happy hour from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m. (just after the end of may other bars’ happy hours), with beer and wine at 300 yen a glass. In fact, there is an extremely wide selection beers, liquors and cocktails, including hard-to-find Long Island Iced Tea variations and a four-liter tower of beer!

Off Broadway has live music and hosts DJs regularly on weekends, while regulars flock there to chat with old friends on weekdays. It’s very welcoming to expats and overseas visitors, and most of the staff members can speak English, making it a great spot if you’re new in town or just passing through.

Hours are 7:30 p.m. to 3:00 a.m. from Sunday to Thursday, and 7:30 p.m. to 6:00 a.m. on Friday and Saturday. They can be reached at 092-724-5283, and a map to the bar can be found on their English-language website. Their menu can be viewed here.

Oyafukodori: The Street of Wayward Children

Oyafukodori, the Street of Wayward Children

Oyafukodori (親不孝通り) has changed dramatically over time, and it is a place almost every local has an opinion on. Most people you ask will tell you something along the lines of “Oyafuko is dangerous–don’t go there.” But the dangers of the past have almost all disappeared, leaving an eclectic neighborhood struggling to find its identity again.

Oyafukodori Blvd. itself is only 400 meters (1,312 feet) long, extending northward from the north side of Showa-dori Blvd., opposite the terminus of popular Nishi-dori. Oyafukodori (often just called Oyafuko) can refer to the street as well as the neighborhood the street lies at the center of. Although not all parts of Oyafukodori have Tenjin addresses, the area is considered by locals to be the northernmost part of the greater “Tenjin” area,the commercial and entertainment center of Fukuoka City.

Kieth Flack, one of Oyafuko's popular nightclubs

In fact, Oyafukodori has been a commercial center for hundreds of years, serving samurai patrons back in the Edo Period (1600-1868) and eventually students and young artists. Buses and streetcars used to run by the south end of the street, and two major prep schools (Kyushu Eisu Gakkan and Mizuki Gakuen) were opened on the north end. The combination of heavily used public transportation routes and students passing along the street on their way to the schools resulted in the opening of many business catering to young customers. A free-spirited youth culture developed, which was aided by low rents drawing poor students in their 20s to apartments in the area. Disco gained massive popularity in Japan during the bubble era, and Maria Club–the most popular disco club in Kyushu–drew massive crowds to the area. Other clubs and bars, karaoke parlors, restaurants, arcades, coffee shops and izakaya were opened, and street musicians and artists flocked to Oyafuko to express themselves and take part in this energetic culture. Starting in the late 1980s, Fukuoka’s first “foreign bars” catering to non-Japanese also opened in the area, two of which (International Bar and Off Broadway) are still in business today.

As you can guess, most of the prep school students weren’t attending classes very often, which led to the street being nicknamed “Oyafukodori” (親不孝通り) meaning “Street of Wayward Children” or “Street of Unfilial Children,” because the youth were skipping school while their parents paid expensive tuition fees. Unfortunately, gatherings of rebellious youth led to increases in crimes, which didn’t get better after the economic bubble “burst”–at this time, many businesses closed down or moved out, while fuzoku businesses (sex trade businesses, often dominated by gangsters) moved in, taking advantage of low rents. Violent crimes in the area gave Oyafuko its bad reputation, and because of that many people incorrectly assume the term “Oyafuko” refers to no-good criminal youth (another possible interpretation of 不孝, or “unfilial”).

The Anmitsu Hime theatre is one of Oyafuko's many unique establishments

The municipal government has attempted to improve the image of this northern Tenjin neighborhood by changing the kanji characters used to write the street’s name from 親不孝通り to 親富孝通り, which means just the opposite of the original name–”Street of Incredibly Filial Children.” Then they took down he former street signs and simply tried to erase references to “The Street of Wayward Children,” but the neighborhood’s deeply embedded history and unique culture ensured that the original nickname stuck.

Today’s Oyafukodori is at a low point: most popular nightlife and shopping is now centered in central Tenjin and Daimyo, with notable growth in Imaizumi to the south of Daimyo. In short, the Tenjin “scene” is gradually migrating south, progressively farther from Oyafukodori. On the bright side, low rents have drawn small shops to Oyafuko in recent times, and as far as the music scene goes it is still home to most of Fukuoka’s best nightclubs and live houses. There is a wide selection of bars in the neighborhood, too, including a large number of foreign bars. Oyafuko may have hit hard times, but there is still hope for its future.

The Wayward Children have all disappeared, as has the violence and crime, and in their place is a small group of people that still believes in the street’s magic. The steady pulse of Fukuoka can still be felt in this old northern-Tenjin neighborhood.

Oyafukodori at night

Debut of the Osaka Insider Guidebook–and My First Published Work!

Some of you may remember my Osaka Insider blog, and ongoing project that eventually led me to start writing a guidebook. After much hard work, I have finally released my first published work, Osaka Insider: A Travel Guide for Osaka Prefecture!!

This unique guidebook covers sightseeing destinations throughout Osaka Prefecture, both famous and unknown. Written by a Japanese-speaking American expatriate and former long-term resident of Osaka, it offers an unbiased and in-depth look into the best things to see and do in Osaka, whether you are a first-time visitor or local resident. The addition of ramen and okonomiyaki guides, festival and event information, rail and walking maps, general sightseeing information and tips, essays by the author and more make this the single most comprehensive English-language guide on Osaka Prefecture to date. It’s the guidebook that no visitor to Kansai should leave home without. Come to Osaka and discover the best-kept secrets of Kansai!

Currently it’s available through my online store and also at Amazon.com. It’s same price either way! For customers in Japan, you can still purchase it through the American Amazon site even if you have a Japanese credit card–the slowest international shipping option is very affordable, although it will take a little while to arrive (overseas express shipping options are also available). If you happen to live in or visit the Fukuoka area, I would be happy to sign your copy personally.

I have also created a Guidebook Maps page, which was designed to be used in conjunction with this guidebook. This is especially useful if you have internet access during your time in Japan.

One of the biggest motivating factors behind this project was the warm and support and encouragement I have received over the years from my readers, and for that I thank all of you. For those of you who have never visited Kansai, or those who heven’t spent much time in Osaka, I hope you will consider purchasing Osaka Insider: A Travel Guide for Osaka Prefecture and discovering more of the great things it has to offer!

Green Fukuoka City Loop Bus: A Convenient Way to See the City’s Sights

For visitors to Fukuoka City, the “Green” bus provides an easy way to travel between the city’s famous sights and central districts. Its route connects JR Hakata Station, Gion, Nakasu, Tenjin, Ohori Park, Fukuoka Tower, the international ferry terminal (at night), a number of museums, cultural and historical sites, and more!

Green buses arrive every 30 minutes on weekends and public holidays, and every 40 minutes on weekdays. The first bus departs from Hakata-eki Kotsu Center (the bus center adjacent to JR Hakata Station)  at 9:00 a.m. daily, and the last bus departs at 6:30 p.m. on weekends and holidays and 6:20 p.m. on weekdays. Buses departing from 5:30 p.m. onward follow a special nighttime route that takes you to spots around town with good night views.

Additionally, a “Green Pass” is available for 700 yen (350 yen for children) that gives you all-day unlimited use of Green buses–not a bad deal when you consider that one ride normally costs 250 yen. The SUNQ Pass and Fukuoka Taiken Bus Ticket (website in Japanese) can also be used to ride Green buses.

While Green buses may not come as often as regular city buses and trains do, their route is extremely convenient for visitors who don’t know their way around the city (the Fukuoka city bus system (website in Japanese) can be difficult to navigate at first).

Check out the printable daytime/nighttime route map (PDF) or visit the English-language website for more information!

Note: Image provided by Wikimedia Commons.

Top Ten Japanese Character Mascots

In Japan, yuru-kyara (character mascots for PR purposes) are designed for just about anything you can think of–cities, prefectures, companies, brands, projects, events, sports teams, products and more. This list is a ranking of my personal favorites, chosen from the hundreds (if not thousands) that exist throughout the country. I also list the top three worst yuru-kyara at the end of the post.

#10: Barii-san
Barii-san is the kind of simple mascot that people like, complete with an adorably stupid kind of huggability. Acting as the mascot for Imabari City, Aichi Prefecture, he is apparently a portly bird of some sort, and his accessories represent local Imabari products (the haramaki stomach band is made from towel material, as towels are a major Imabari product, and the ship tucked into his haramaki represents the town’s shipbuilding industry).

#9: Gibo-chan
A recent entry into the character mascot arena, Gibo-chan is the mascot for the Edo-Tokyo Museum. Apparently he’s an ornate wooden post…? At any rate, he’s apparently quite popular in Tokyo, especially among the kids.

#8: Morizo and Kikkoro
This pair of mascots were the official mascots of Expo 2004 in Aichi Prefecture. They are both some kind of forest spirit, with Morizo (right) being the older, wiser one and Kikkoro (left) being the younger, curious one. I think anyone can enjoy these green blobs of cuteness.

#7: Nishikokun
I’m at a lost for words every time I lay eyes upon Nishikokun, the unofficial character mascot for Nishikokubunji. It’s like…some sort of pendant with spandex-clad legs coming out of it. Watch this video to get a better idea of Nishikokun’s unique appeal.

#6: Burubeh
Burubeh is the mascot for Kodaira City, Tokyo Prefecture, the birthplace of blueberry cultivation in Japan. It’s a giant blueberry licking his lips, whose leaves (?) look like a hula skirt. What else can I say? Pure genius.

#5: Hikonyan
This feline mascot was created to commemorate the 400th anniversary of the construction of Shiga Prefecture’s Hikone Castle, one of Japan’s greatest fortresses. Hikonyan was one of the first yuru-kyara to gain massive popularity, and he has made a number of television appearances, spawned a line of products and amassed a large fan following. The “nyan” part of his name is a play on words, as nyan is the Japanese onomatopoeia for a cat’s meow and also resembles the diminutive honorific suffix -chan (this is combined with the “Hiko” from “Hikone”).

#4: Domo-kun
Domo-kun made his debut in 1998 on NHK and has been a popular mascot since. His mouth is permanently locked open, and he can’t really speak (he just makes strange sounds that only his friends understand). He lives in a cave and has a plethora of strange companions, including an alcoholic bat, a tea-drinking rabbit, a fashionable weasel and others. Domo-kun’s biggest appeal is that you can’t look at him and not smile.

#3: Noppon
Noppon is the mascot of Tokyo Tower, created to celebrate the landmark tower’s 40th anniversary. There are actually two Noppon: the one pictured above, and his younger brother who wears red. There is no other word except “awesome” to describe what looks like a giant penis wearing overalls with a lightning rod on top.

#2: F-Man
…speaking of which, the next mascot comes from my town, Fukuoka. F-Man is the mascot for local English-language magazine Fukuoka Now, and his variety of superhero-like poses, ridiculous appearance and borderline-inappropriate name make him an instant classic. Aside from the propeller mounted on the long, orange thing protruding from his head, what would you venture to guess F-Man’s super-power is?

1: Kumamon
Another Kyushu local, Kumamon is by far the coolest mascot in Japan to date, and he was voted most popular in the nationwide Yuru-Kyara Grand Prix 2011. This half-deranged, drug addicted, potentially violent bear is also irresistibly adorable. His simple style and strong personality make him the ideal character mascot in Japan. Kumamon was created to draw tourists to Kumamoto Prefecture with the opening of the Kyushu Shinkansen in 2011, and according to his profile he’s a public employee working for the same prefecture’s government. Posters and advertisements featuring Kumamon have appeared in locations all over Japan, and he has made a number of appearances in the media.

Special Mention: Worst Mascots

#3: Shirakamisanka
Generally speaking, your mascot should not look like a giant mound of green poo. And as you can tell by the car behind Shirakamisanka in this picture, it is quite a big mound indeed.

#2: Torimocchan
Torimocchan is the mascot for Yamanashi Prefecture’s chicken giblets. However, his creepy eyes makes him look more like a pedophile than anything. Keep your kids away from Torimocchan.

#1: Sento-kun
I don’t know where to begin describing all that is wrong with Sento-kun. The most prominent shortcoming is the unsettling, “rapey” aura that surrounds him. Then there’s the fact that he was created to honor the 1300th anniversary of historic move of the imperial capital in 710 to Heijo-kyo (now known as Nara)–they honored this momentous event by creating a Buddhist monk character with antlers jammed into his head (to represent the free-roaming deer of central Nara), a blasphemous decision that drew protest from numerous local monks. Furthermore, most characters in Japan are created inexpensively, by regular employees in their free time, whereas Sento-kun was designed for a large fee by an actual artist. In the end, almost everybody was creeped out and/or offended by this monstrosity, but that didn’t stop the Nara PR folks from putting his image and life-sized statues, not to mention costumed mascots, all around the Kansai area.