Second time around in Akihabara

So this morning, the plan was to scope out for good gifts to take home. The kitschier, the better. So, the best place for that seems to be Akihabara Electric town- which is within walking distance of my hostel. Best news of all! Sunny skies!! I'm on the 5th floor, which has a nice balcony! 

Holy crap, am I conceited with this giant picture of me. 

Anyhoo. 

It's close to 7am before I venture out.  I thought I learned my lesson to not go out so early, but here I'm an early bird.  So I thought that a calculatedly leisurely stroll, a couple stops at convenience stores for emergency rice balls and cheap coffee, 

Grocery stores,

(Some beautiful 15$ melons. )

random pictures here and there,

(Who wouldn't want their first drink to be a hello kitty cocktail??) 

(I didn't know Leo preferred Jim Beam?!?)

(And the mountains and mountains of prepared fried tofu!!!! Never touch oil again!!)

( I think those hulking vegetables are Daikon radishes, against cherry tomatoes for scale. Or were they real tomatoes??)

and over priced coffee would put me at Akihabara around opening time. Omg, no.  I had to drink (er, it was more like don't touch) over priced coffee for over an hour until it got closer to 9am, when a few shops opened up. 

And then, LET THE DUTY FREE MADNESS BEGIN!!!!

Some traditional Japanese dolls. 

And a ceramic version. 

Not sure what I was going for here. Let's chalk it up to Mari-neko insanity!!!!!

Hmmmm, as if I wasn't already sold on nunchucks. Then they put Bruce Lee on them. Very difficult to resist. 

I'd like to buy the 1,129$ rice cooker please!  (Seriously.  There were two. Both top and bottom fourth from the right). 

I might consider eating one of these weird burgers - they're DESSERT burgers. Yes, that's lettuce and tomato. I think it's a CLT: cruller, lettuce, and tomato. I think they also added a donut in the middle. 

A crosswalk in Akihabara. 

And some dude who was dressed up all cool like to make up for the zilch cosplayers I saw in Harajuku yesterday. 

This maid's outfit for dudes might actually fit me as I have closer to a large Asian man's frame rather than a standard Asian lady's physique. I like how they give the anime guy stubble and the model guy a beard. They actually had a wide array of costumes like this for guys. I maybe should have taken a picture of "sexy nurse". It's pretty cool to see a society that's open like this.  

Okay. Social commentary over. 

Next entry should be about my walk to Loving Hut for lunch.