then back to gaytown, shinjuku ni-chome. i first went back to Dragon, but not much activity there. i said hello to the bartenders i met the prior evening, had a beer, and headed out on my way. next stop, advocates. on thursday night, advocates had maybe 15 people, and some tables set up on the street corner. last night? easily 150 people, spilling into the street in every direction, gogo dancer on the bar, and dj set up out front. nice. i ran into lewis from the other night, and met some other of his friends. daniel and michael are both new yorkers (daniel lived in brooklyn and michael in harlem) now living in tokyo, and have been together for 8 years. i met their friend daniel, a new yorker living in england and visiting tokyo. i saw a tall, cute boy that i recognized from the subway, so struck up a conversation with him - jake, from iowa, on a teaching fellowship in tokyo through the end of the summer. unfortunately, i must admit that i don't remember the names of the other boys i met - shame, some were great examples of japanese sexiness. however, i do remember the names of some great lesbians. naomi, from australia, living in tokyo now for 6 years. and tamara, from jamaica, whoa goregeous, living in tokyo for 3 years (there were a few others i met, but i don't recall their names). apparently, some of the gay bars are very mixed (gay and lesbian) and the two populations are really cohesive. in general, i loved the scene at Advocates - hundreds of gays from all over the world, everyone friendly, and many a sexy man in a kimono. oh, and a lesbian in a catwoman suit.
after a few hours of drinking and carousing, i went with daniel, daniel and michael to Annex, a small dance club around the corner. i mean small. but from the start, when i saw a Murakami painting behind the bar, i knew i would have fun. and fun i did! a good mix of pop remixes (i actually liked Give it to Me, remixed by paul oakenfold) and japanese pop. boys dancing everywhere. met a way cute guy named Hiroyoku, but unfortunately for my chances of flirting, he didn't speak any english, and my japanese ends at arigato gozaimas. this is also the bar that got me drunk. up until then, i was doing fine with beers and the occasional vodka/red bull shot (the shots bartender took a liking to me and was being rather liberal with his pouring). but as i am at the bar at Annex, and chatting with a japanese named Jorji (?), he reaches over, takes a bottle of Macellan scotch and pours easily 3 shots worth into my beer. not to be one to back down from a challenge, i of course drank it (not the best mix, beer and scotch). anyway, about 10 minutes later, while dancing to an 80s remix, i felt the drunkedness hit. all good, i had a blast, danced until the bar closed, and took away some incredibly fond memories.
today is my last day in tokyo. i am going to get some lunch and head to yoyogi park to see what has been called the freak parade (or as marcia the bartender put it, the williamsburg of tokyo). tonight, after a dinner with nari, i am getting on a bus to mt fuji to make the overnight climb (ascend at night, be at the top for sunrise). i will blog about that tomorrow afternoon or evening from my hostel near fuji, if i am not permanently affixed to the nearby onsen (japanese word for hot spring).
No comments:
Post a Comment