An American Man on the Road, Part 2
1377 Words
So this is Japan, huh?
I can see the airport personnel and immigration officers politely welcoming me in only a way the Japanese can.
As I get through Narita Airport, I must devise my plan of action.
First off, I will visit Tokyo – specifically the Akihabara district – for good deals on hardware and electronics.
Long before it became the Mecca of anime and video game culture, Akihabara was known as the place to go to for hobbyist electronics. And it still retains the distinction to this day.
And then... I must look for a good place to stay in a town somewhere near Tokyo, because even staying at a small, bare-bones room in the capital can cost a pretty penny.
Considering that Tokyo is one of the most expensive cities to live in the world, this comes as no surprise to me.
I must also search for good deals at used hardware shops in the town I'll be staying.
All in all, I'll stay in Japan for a week – which should be more than enough to accomplish my two goals.
My first itinerary: Akihabara.
It's just a train ride away.
I can just doze off in the bullet train in order to get that jet lag off my system.
Set the alarm on my watch... and done.
Forty-six minutes later...
I promptly wake up and alight the train.
And here I am. The paradise.
I wish Lianna were with me, getting all delighted by the sight of several advertisements depicting school idols, cute visual novel characters, and characters players are raring to get in mobile game random draws.
But all the same, she's smiling down on me, enjoying what I do best.
As I walk through the streets, I can see several people wearing peripherals that serve as proof of devotion to their own chosen characters, girls in French maid uniforms handing out pamphlets advertising the maid cafes they work at, and foreigners happily walking away with bags full of goodies of their own choosing.
With this busy environment, I can easily lose sight of where I should be heading first.
Fortunately, the map app on my phone shows me the way.
I should head for a branch of a popular store that specializes in used hardware, as the half-Japanese girl told me beforehand.
Ten minutes later, I'm here at the store.
I expect it to be large.
But not this large.
OK, then. I must try not to get deep into the used hardware rabbit hole.
The first floor is dedicated to laptops.
The prices here are too tempting, as even laptops with fifth-generation multi-core processors are being offered at prices lower than the ones I see in local listings back in my hometown.
Most likely, these laptops came from office liquidations.
I should get one with a quad-core processor and a mobile graphics chip that's capable of playing some e-sports titles at 720p.
Fortunately, I stumble upon one.
It just costs 3,000 yen, or a little over $28.
OK. It's now settled. I'll nab it for sure.
The second floor is dedicated to desktop PC hardware and everything related to them.
Most of the time, the desktop units I see are OEM ones with proprietary motherboards, so re-casing them can be a bit of chore.
If the units come in custom cases, they are usually 10-year-old dual-core units that have no worth beyond being bases for retro gaming PCs or dedicated console emulation machines.
In the midst of an apparent bust... I see a diamond in a rough.
It's a PC that looks like a lunchbox, with handle and all, and it carries the rare triple-core processor.
The case itself can accommodate at most mATX-sized motherboards and ATX power supplies, and the price of the entire unit comes at a respectable 1,500 yen, or almost $9.50!
This is a definite keeper, as I'll use the case for a build that calls for portable power using ITX motherboards.
This discovery motivates me to find some components that are within the “price-performance” paradigm.
The other loot I acquired from the store's second floor are an ATX compatible OEM system, a 22” monitor, a 500GB hard drive, a fifth-gen desktop processor, RAM, and motherboard combo, a graphics card, and a sturdy-looking case that can accommodate three 120mm fans on the front.
The third floor is dedicated to miscellaneous tech-related stuff.
I can spot headphones, mice, keyboards, routers, game controllers, and the occasional speaker systems.
Most of the headphones on sale are in need of new ear pads, and I know someone who can make them, so I have an obligation to help him and his business.
The third floor acquisitions are five headphones, a controller, and a mechanical keyboard that's missing some key caps.
I walk away from the store 30,000 yen (around $283) lighter, but I know I'll make a profit out of the items I bought when I get home.
After a hearty lunch, I resume my tour of Akihabara.
After two hours' worth of sleuthing, I acquired some games for older systems as well as some figures of my favorite game characters.
The figures will be a great complement to the game collection I have, and the games themselves also deserve shelf space, despite them being in another language. I can look up online guides to get through that language barrier, anyway.
The games and figures allot for a total of 20,000 yen ($189).
Alright, then.
Of course, I can't go around the city carrying all my loot, and I can't simply stay in even the cheapest unit in Tokyo, because I don't want to bleed money too fast.
So, after a quick SOS from the half-Japanese girl, I get a recommendation.
“Why don't you stay at an apartment unit in the nearby town of Sango-minato for the meantime? The landlord eagerly welcomes foreigners who want a respite from the hurly-burly of Tokyo.”
She then shows me the directions to go the town I've honestly never heard of until now.
So, it's just a two-hour bus ride away? Nice.
And buses usually have room for people who have too many stuff to carry.
One bus ride later...
I'm off to this coastal town, which should be as nice as its name indicates.
***
“Nnnnnggghhhhh! Who's the cheapskate trying to use my streaming account without me knowing it?!”
Harumi opens her storytelling session on a sour note.
On a Friday.
The sourness even spills over to the next day.
I could do nothing but nod and say “uh huh” on her hour-long Friday tirade.
Fortunately, on a Saturday afternoon, she's able to calm down, as she discovers the culprit.
It's none other than the landlord himself.
He explained that he forgot the password to his own streaming account and thus had to resort to using Harumi's in desperation.
And thus, her “recently played” playlist consists of nothing but old soap operas, which are definitely not her type.
Harumi eventually forgives him for his transgression.
As I bear witness to the amicable settlement of the case, Harumi, the landlord, and I hear some knocks on the door.
“Hello! Is this Yuuki Apartments?”
It's a voice that clearly belongs to an American, due to his accent.
The three of us head outside to see...
...a black-haired, brown-eyed man who's around the same age and height as me, carrying a bunch of bags and boxes.
The landlord then greets the American in our native language.
“Konnichiwa. Hajimemashite.” [Good day. Nice to meet you.]
The American then introduces himself before bowing.
“Soren Orr desu. Yoroshiku onegaishimasu.” [I'm Soren Orr. Please be kind to me.]
His way of speaking Japanese is almost flawless, as there are no traces of his heavy American accent.
Not bad for a first try, if I say so myself.
Harumi, the landlord, and I then introduce ourselves and bow afterwards.
Now it's the landlord's turn to speak the American's language.
Since Harumi and I both take mandatory English classes, we can evaluate how he can communicate in a foreign language.
“So, Orr-san, what is your occupation?”
“I assemble and repair computers for a living. Actually, I came here to make a rest stop while on tour of Tokyo and nearby places for deals on used PC parts.”
“I see. You are most welcome here.”
Despite the landlord's thick Japanese accent, Soren is still able to comprehend him.
The landlord them accompanies him to an empty unit on the second floor, which is the same floor Harumi and I settle in.
And seeing his baggage on the floor, we ask him, in English...
“Can we help bring your things inside?”
He gaily responds, “Yes, please. I'm kinda tired.”
We all waste no time showing the American man named Soren Orr a sample of Japanese hospitality.
- Writer
