Osaka, a city firmly rooted in Japan

The best thing to do in Osaka is try to get a sense of the culture those in Kansai (Osaka/Kyoto/Kobe area) are so proud of. This means eating a lot, perhaps drinking too much, spending a bit of time watching the local TV, maybe checking out a Hanshin Tigers baseball game, and taking a break from the days of sightseeing you have probably just or will soon do in nearby Kyoto.

Three central areas that offer a good introduction to Osaka are Umeda (the hub of rail transportation in Osaka with hundreds of restaurants and great shopping), Shinsaibashi/Namba (shopping by day, drinking and eating by night, with a lively youthful culture), and Tennoji (time capsule of 1960s Japan, run down working class area of Pachinko parlors, cheap food, thick with atmosphere).

Quick Tips:

Japan is expensive! For accommodation be prepared to spend a minimum of ¥5000 per person per night, though you may get away with less. Solo male travelers have the famed capsule hotel option, and at ¥3300/night including access to the (always) attached public bath and sauna, they are the cheapest option. For couples (you must be a couple, no more, no less) the cheapest accommodation in Osaka are the 'Love Hotels' (around ¥5,500), which are usually clustered around the periphery of the city center and are convenient to get to from your office in the afternoon or to stop by on the way home after drinking with 'co-workers'. This is not an option to stay multiple nights in the same location though. Business hotels are the next step up, priced around ¥8000/night/room. Stepping up from there you have the usual choice of five-star hotels, and the very special Ryokan (traditional Japanese Inn).

The price of eating is up to you, and the options run from convenience-store Onigiri at ¥100 to high-end Japanese beef at ¥21000 per person.

Best Way To Get Around:

Public transportation is extremely efficient, though somewhat expensive. However, the seats are cushioned and heated in the winter. Umeda, Shinsaibashi/Namba, and Tennoji are all within 20 minutes of each other by subway. This is easily the best way to get around the city, though trains do not run 24 hours, so pay attention to the time of the last train if you are out late! Past train time your options are limited to how far you can walk or how much you can spend on a taxi.

L'Arc-en-Ciel (there is also a very popular boy band of the same name) is one of the more popular cafes located in the depths of Umeda Station, and can be a good place to rest with some coffee and a piece of cake (¥800) or sweet waffle (there is currently a bit of a waffle boom in Japan). Coffee shops have long been an important part of urban Japanese culture, however there is a big stylistic difference between the coffee shops frequented by middle-aged businessmen (known as 'kissaten'), and those popluar with young people ('kafei').

Kissaten are populated by housewives and retired people during the day, and, depending on the neighborhood, businessmen and hostess girls looking for extra gifts/cash at night. Cafes are new, clean, Euro-oriented, and fashionable in a pleasant way. L'Arc-en-Ciel falls squarely in the 'cafe' category, and the clientele are predominately young, single, working people, who incedently smoke just as much as their parents, even more in the case of young women.

For a smoke-free cup of coffee your choices are vending machines or Starbucks (which has maintained its non-smoking policy abroad). For a cheaper cup of coffee try the Japanese chain Dotour. For ¥180 you can enjoy a great glass of super strong, bitter ice coffee that tastes a bit like Vietnamese iced coffee without the condensed milk.

L'Arc-en-Ciel is two levels beneath the "Big Man" screen in Umeda Station. Again, this is a great time to ask the information girls which way to go. If it's too crowded (weekends are busy) or not what you are looking for, there are numerous other choices nearby, and wandering around you will doubtless run into them.

Umehatchi, along with all the good restaurants in Japan, is a 'senmon-ten' (specialty shop), where the customers, chefs, and waitresses all know what the order is going to be, and generally if this is not the case, the food will suffer. The sushi chef does not make soba, and the soba chef does not make takoyaki (bits of octopus cooked in balls of dough).

Umehachi makes tonkatsu (breaded fried pork), and it's pretty damn good. Okay, there is a bit of variety in how you may eat the pork, either on rice or straight with a side of shredded cabbage (there is always shredded cabbage served with tonkatsu, and science has determined there is a beneficial chemical reaction that occurs with the combination). And while Umehachi boasts high-quality pork from Kagoshima, the price remains extremely reasonable compared with other Tonkatsu shops in Osaka.

Donburi, or 'rice bowl', can be one of the most satisfying meals in a country where portions are not super-sized (just like the people!).

Hatsuki is a Donburi senmon ten (specialty shop), and while most donburi shops offer a variety of fried meat or tenpura to top off the hefty bowl of rich Japanese rice (rice grown domestically in Japan is heavy, high in calories, and about five times the price we pay for rice in the US), Hatsuki further limits the choices to the most classic of donburi options, Oyako (parent-child), and Don (pieces of chicken and delicious soft-cooked egg on rice). This is the best place to eat Oyako Don in Osaka, and is worth the trip, though, not unlike pizza, bad donburi is often still pretty good.

So if you don't have the time to trek out to KitaShinChi, there are numerous donburi shops around Umeda or Shinsaibashi, easily identifiable by the plastic food models in front of the stores.

Kaiseki ryori is the highest form of Japanese food, and the most expensive. It is creative, delicate, subtle food like no other, and has been the inspiration for the Nouvelle cuisine of France. It is perhaps the only kind of food in the world where you feel it was worth the $150 (without drinks). Generally a meal consists of dish after dish after dish of food you have never seen or heard of before, appearing at just the right pace across an evening. Sake is the best drink to accompany any kaiseki meal, and it's generally dry and served cold. Kyoto probably has the best kaiseki culture in Japan, though many of the best restaurants do not take walk-in customers (you must know the owner), and would set you back upwards of $1000 per person anyway.

Nihon Ryori Kagaman, located in the upscale night scene of KitaShinChi, is one of the best kaiseki restaurants in Osaka, and can make for a truly unforgettable (if expensive at ¥15,000 per person) evening out. The chef takes a daily fast boat to the fish markets of nearby Awaji Island to purchase the best possible ingredients, and makes a policy of minimal preparation to ensure freshness (even soup stock is made at the time the order is received). Lunch is reasonable, where for ¥3,000 you get a choice of a Soba Kaiseki set or a seasonal lunchbox. Ordering is easy (always by course) and is divided by price.

Nihon Ryori Kagaman has a counter on the first floor, and it's always interesting to watch the chef prepare the food, though the semi-private tatami rooms upstairs are in many ways nicer. If you are in a party of four or more you may be able to sit on the Japanese-style open-air terrace. Try and get somebody who speaks Japanese (at your hotel maybe?) to call ahead and make reservations.

Located across from the Osaka Aquarium and along the same subway line that takes visitors out to Universal Studios Japan, The Suntory Musuem's primary attraction is the building itself, completed in 1994 by Tadao Ando, a native of Osaka one of Japan's most famous and influential architects. Without any formal architectural training, Ando developed a signature style using plain reinforced concrete, relating to traditional wood/plaster Japanese architecture in its elegant simplicity and respect for the qualities of the material. He was awarded the Pritzker Architecture Prize (architecture's highest award) in 1995.

The building houses an art/design bookstore, a museum with changing exhibitions (usually focusing on design, and usually worth seeing), and an Imax movie theater (20 meter high screen) showing the usual Imax films.

Much of the building can be viewed free of charge, though if you wish to view the exhibition or the Imax feature admission, prices are as follows: Museum only: Adult ¥1000, HS high school/college students, seniors ¥700, middle/elementary school students Ǵ. Museum and Theater: Adult ¥1600, seniors ¥1,400, HS high school/college students ¥1,100, middle/elementary school students ̠.

The Suntory Museum is a 10-minute walk from the green Chuo line Osakako subway station.

Most visitors to Osaka de-train at Umeda station (JR Osaka station) and are immediately thrown into the multi-level subterranean complex. This is challenging to navigate, not least because of the intense barrage of people from all directions. Fortunately near the main exits of JR Osaka station there are clearly labeled information kiosks with English-speaking staff equipped with maps, phone books, pamphlets, and a detailed knowledge of nearly every shop and restaurant in the vicinity. They can also provide you with useful accommodation and attraction information for the city as a whole. Take advantage of them while you can.

Much of the activity in and around Umeda station has the sprawling Kinokuniya bookstore as its hub. The "big man" screen, near the entrance to Hankyu Railway Umeda station, is where most people arrange to meet, and the area can get densely crowded after working hours when people of all ages meet friends to head out into the evening. The bookstore itself has a good, if expensive, English language selection. A good resource to pick up is the Kansai Time Out magazine (http://www.kto.co.jp/index.html), which has up-to-date listings of festivals, flea markets, bars (that non-Japanese and English speaking Japanese frequent), as well as articles that give unique insight into the region.

Another resource I strongly recommend is one of the ubiquitous "where to eat now in Osaka" kinds of magazines. These magazines are, however, in Japanese, though through the copious use of mouth-watering photos and cute icons (date spot, family spot, late night) coupled with the Japanese penchant for extreme detail (the magazines specializing in Ramen have specific charts plotting saltiness, firmness of noodles, etc), these magazines can give you a sense of what the restaurant is about, even if you are unable to read the description. Pick one up and see what you think. You can always ask the information kiosk girls where the places are. Popular titles include the magazine-sized Gurume Gaido (Gourmet Guide), and the pocket-book sized Tabe Aruki Osaka (Eat Walk Osaka).

Three of the large Japanese department store chains, Hankyu, Hanshin (yes, same companies as the railways, and in fact often these companies develop new rail lines and then build department stores to draw the people out there via the new transportation) and Daimaru have branches in Umeda. These can be very good places to get Japanese tableware, as the selection and prices tend to be good and the design much better than what is generally exported. Most of the clothing in these department stores tends to be expensive Japanese (Isse Miyaki, Costume National, etc) or expensive European brands, and the prices are no better (they can be even higher) than elsewhere. Just before the New Year (Japan celebrates New Year according to the western calander) all stores, including expensive designer brands, make available as yet unsold merchandise via the "Fuku Bukuro" (Luck Bag). Each completely opaque bag (the contents of which can't be seen or pre-viewed or felt or guessed at in any way) has indicated a general idea of the net worth of the merchandise contained (eg ¥20,000 - ¥30,000) and the price (eg ¥7,500). Good luck!

One aspect of the Japanese department store that sets it aside from its western counterparts is the food floor, always located in the basement. It is the closest Japan comes to the hectic outdoor markets of southeast Asia, and it can be every bit as crowded and colorful, and is well worth exploring. There are specialty shops of every kind from sugar sweets pressed into seasonal forms (for use in the tea ceremony) to Chinese pork buns to fish eggs to Daigaku potatos ("University" potatos, pan fried potatos with honey, supposedly a common form of student sustenence). These basements are always a great place to grab a quick cheap snack, are easy to navigate, and the selection can satisfy the adventurous as well as the yearning for something more familiar (the bakeries tend to be excellent).

Umeda has a huge selection of restaurants, coffee shops, cake shops, and fast-food (Makku Donarudo Hanbaga). Again, as Umeda is a chaotic maze, the information kiosk girls will be happy to point you in the right direction if you indicate to them what kind of food you are craving. There are a number of relatively famous places to eat, but Hagakure Udon (white-flour wheat noodles) stands out in particular, and is guaranteed to be better than any udon you have had elsewhere.

Located a 10 minute walk to the west of Umeda station, the 40-story Umeda Sky Building http://www.skybldg.co.jp/ichiban_e.html is (according to the website) "the world's only pair of skyscrapers connected in midair". It tends to satisfy the image many have of a wealthy, ultra high-tech, super-modern Japan. Completed in 1993 with the last trickle of Bubble Economy cash, financed by the Sekisui House corporation (the largest of western Japan's pre-fab housing companies where land owners can choose the model of home from catalogs and model-home viewing parks, the final selection delivered in factory-made pieces and assembled, generally replaced every 20 years or so) the building has become an architectural landmark, and offers the best 360-degree views of the carpet of beige-grey concrete that the bulk of Osaka is comprised of.

After paying (¥700 adults, ¥500 junior/HS students, ¥400 elementary school students, ¥100 infants) little time is wasted anywhere without a view. The elevator by which visitors reach the 35th floor is on the exterior of the building, and with glass on three sides it gives the uncomfortable impression that you and a few strangers are standing on a small exposed platform speeding ever higher.

From the 35th floor we funnel onto an escalator situated in a glassed-in steel frame that runs diagonally from one tower to a point between the two towers on the "Floating Garden". The Floating Garden itself (weather permitting) tries its best to inspire more vertigo through "A Thousand Nozzles" that spray mist into the space directly outside the viewing platform, shrouding secure-looking structural supports in a "sea of light blue clouds".

The contracted architectural firm Takenaka (large companies are the center force in modern Japan) used a unique high-rise contruction method designed to save space surrounding the construction site. According to Takenaka's web site (featuring photos of the Umeda Sky Building construction), "The Lift-Up Method entails the construction of a permanent column (or a temporary column) beforehand, which is then used as a counterforce column to lift up large frames that have been assembled on the ground", an amazing feat considering the "Floating Garden Observatory" that bridges the two skyscrapers "in mid-air" weighs 5,000 tons. The building also features some advanced "Earthquake Resistance" and "Vibration Control", (structural engineering enthusiasts can get details here), technology that is now being implemented in some west coast buildings in the United States.

There are a number of restaurants/cafes in the building, many located in the basement, which in a movie studio-like fashion emulates the streets of Edo-era Osaka.

To get to the Umeda Sky Building from Umeda station, and to keep the journey to an easy 10 minute walk, ask one of the information kiosk attendants to point you in the right direction.

For those on a tight budget the observation floor in the Hankyu 32 Ban Gai building in Umeda station is free, though to get the best views (and these are not as good as views at the Umeda Sky Building) you must eat at one of the many restaurants (French, Italian, Japanese, cake shops/cafes). However, the ¥700 you would have spent on admittance to the Floating Garden Observatory will cover more than half the cost of lunch.

The Osaka Aquarium's central organizing theme is the relationship between the "Ring of Fire", (the seismic/volcanic belt that surrounds the Pacific) and the "Ring of Life" that exists along this belt. Visitors to this very popular, family-friendly attraction move along past aquariums that simulate various regions along this Ring of Life, spiraling down and eventually encircling the mammoth central aquarium, home to a number of large animals including a whale shark (deservedly the poster-fish of the aquarium), bluefin tuna, and beautiful eagle rays.

Benches are available in prime locations, and given the rather steep (¥2000 per adult, ¥900 children 7-15, ¥400 ages four to six) entrance fee, you are encouraged to take your time in the presence of these elegant creatures. While the whale shark, partially because of its size, gets the most attention, the vivid collection of jellyfish and martian-bizarre giant spider crabs (which live in total darkness at depths of 200-400 meters) are just as spectacular.

To get to Osaka Aquarium, take the green Chuo subway line to Osakako station. From there the five minute walk is clearly marked.

Tennoji is the center of "Minami" (south) Osaka, and is the best place to experience the true working class, hard-drinking, pachinko-playing spirit that persists in this die-hard "local" city. It is the fabled land of Yakuza, love hotels, vice, and hard lives that is popularized in the Japanese psyche through Manga series Minami and Naniwa (the old name for Osaka), and through 1970s Yakuza movies. While high-ranking Yakuza are smart enough to avoid conspicuous neighborhoods like Tennoji, street level Yakuza are in abundance, and though they pose little danger to the visitor, it is best to be careful when taking photos of people in this area.

The central focus and a true icon of Osaka is the TsuTenKaku tower, an emblem of a country emerging from the devastation of World War II (Osaka was bombed flat). Japan has no shortage of observation towers, symbolizing aspirations (and whatever else you may wish), but Osaka's TsuTenKaku and Tennoji in particular seems to have survived any further development the tower was intended to inspire, and instead preserves in an authentic way the feel of 1960s Japan. In recent years the city has made an effort to "clean up" the Tennoji area, and has built the conspicuous, family-oriented Spa World (hot-spring hotel) and Festival Gate (amusement park), though Pachinko and Mah Jong players still outnumber those soaking in the multi-themed bathhouse/hotel, and theaters still projecting pornography have the customer base to remain in business.

If you are visiting Tennoji on a Saturday or Sunday afternoon you will have the chance to see a carnivalesque array of characters (out-of-work performers, aged female impersonators, drunk semi-homeless) singing sad Japanese folk song Karaoke (Kara"empty"te"hand" - Kara"empty"Oke"short for orchestra") at outdoor stands (yes, they sell jars of Ozeki 'one cup' sake, the favorite drink of the down and out in Japan) located on the walkway straddling the zoo between JR Tennoji station and the TsuTenKaku area. This is not to be missed.

Another recommended highlight is the pedestrian walkway between the red Midosuji subway line station Doubutsuenmae station (the most convenient entrance to the area) and the Tsutenkaku Tower. Filled with cheap, local stand-up counter restaurants, GO (east-Asian board game) and Shogi (Chinese-Japanese chess) parlors, and fortune tellers. Not far inside the pedestrian street, off a side alley to the right (if you are heading away from the subway station) there is a traditional indoor archery range where men and women of all ages come to fire arrows into targets mounted on a sand wall along the far side of the room. Visitors are welcome as long as they don't break the atmosphere of concentration.

The Onsen (hot spring) has a special place in Japanese culture. There are books, magazines, and package tours centered around Onsen, and it is the premiere way to relax in a society where words like "gaman" (endure/bear) and "ganbaru" (strive your hardest) are heard almost daily by everyone in the society from the time they enter preschool until the time they retire. Relax, like Enjoy and Work, are state-of-mind verbs in Japan, meaning they are to a certain degree decided upon states of being, often aided by props (the tie around the neck during Work, the tie around the head for afterwork Play.

While numerous cheap (¥300) public baths pepper lower-income neighborhoods in Osaka (in the past apartments came equipped with toilets but no bathrooms), Spa World (Japanese language web site - http://www.spaworld.co.jp) sets itself apart with deep, well-accessed natural hot spring water and fantastic themed settings. The hot springs themselves are divided into two main "zones", Asia (including Islamic, Persian, Chinese, Japanese Hinoki wood bath, Indian, Japanese outdoor bath, and a "Japanese Rest" area), and Europe (including Roman, French, Greek, Finnish, Spanish, German, and "Grotta Azzurra" blue cave bath). The themed baths are well done in a kind of Vegas style with landscape murals on the walls or starry nights painted on the ceilings in the "outdoor" settings, all of which adds to the fun. If giving the subtle sensation that you are sitting in an exhibit at the Natural History Museum (non-Asian foreigners can get stared at a bit in Japanese public baths and traditional onsen, but thematically speaking they should fit right in the Islamic or European "Zones" here).

There is also an excellent gym/fitness facility available and a kid-oriented swimming pool with waterslides and fountains. Note: the 'Rules' at Spa World say "No Tattoos", though this is a common roundabout way of reserving the right to refuse service to Yakuza. It is much easier to say "sorry kind sir, no tattoos allowed" than "sorry no gangsters here". Foreigners with tattoos, as long as they don't resemble the large traditional Japanese tattoos, will not be asked to leave.

Spa World is a bit of a splurge. Bathing with a three hour time limit is ¥2,400 adult/weekdays ¥2,700 adult/weekends and children under 12 are ¥1,300/1,500 respectively. Spa World does offer accommodation and can be a good option for a night or two, as the prices include use of all baths and recreation facilities. The rates range from ¥16,000/night up to ¥54,000 per night, though the scale is complex depending on the number of people, weekday, weekend, Japese-style room, and Western-style room. A good family option could be the Japanese-style room, sleeping four people for ¥20,000.

Festival Gate (Japanese language web site http://www.festivalgate.co.jp) is, along with Spa World, one of the new developments in the rejuvination effort of the long-neglected Tennoji neighborhood. It's a family-friendly, clean amusement park surrounded by what is otherwise one of the few "rough" neighborhoods Osaka has to offer (it isn't dangerous by American standards). There is enough here to keep both kids and adults entertained, and Spa World is just across the way if you need to chill afterwards.

Festival Gate is clean and compact compared with the sprawling amusement parks found in places like southern California, all squeezed into eight floors of fun. Highlights include Sega World (video games you won't see outside Japan for a few years), Delphin Arena (a local Osaka pro-wrestling arena where matches are held on the weekends--call 06-6635-1100 for details), Bridge (a non-commercial alternative music space--call 06-6634-0080 for details), Dios Fall (a 45 meter free fall ride, ¥500), and Delpis The Coaster (roller coaster,¥ 700).

There are also a number of restaurants in the complex, including Italian (where you can get the Japanese favorite spaghetti with salmon roe), gelato, various cafes, donburi (usually called "rice bowls" in English), and the Japanese fast food hamburger chain Mos Burger (see menu here, view diagram of Mos Cheese Burger here), far superior to its American counterparts, my favorite eating place at Festival Gate, and a must-try for any visitor to Japan (a country-wide chain, don't make a special trip to Festival Gate).

Spa World and Festival Gate are a five minute walk from the Doubutsuenmai station on the red Midosuji subway line, or a 10 minute walk from JR Osaka Loop Line Tennoji station.

Universal Studios Japan attracts mainly Japanese, Taiwanese, Korean, and Chinese tourists. Many westerners--especially North Americans--give it a miss, however it can be used as bait/reward for your child's quiet endurance while visiting temple after temple in Kyoto. Be warned that it is extremely popular (all of Asia no longer has to go as far as LA), and lines for attractions can be very long.

The attractions are movie-themed rides, 3-D movies, and studio sets organized into themes (eg "New York", The Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man™-The Ride), and can be a lot of fun, even for adults. The emphasis is definitely on the thrill, but for extra imaginitive young kids (who tend to believe in Jurassic Park) there is the milder world of Snoopy Studios.

Admission: Over 12 years old: 1 day pass ¥5,500; 2 day pass ¥9,800; Under 12 years old: 1 day pass ¥3,700; 2 day pass #165;6,700.

The Universal Studios Japan website (http://www.usj.co.jp/e_top.html) is in English, is up-to-date, and the best resource on this popular Osaka attraction.

Japan uses vending machines for everything from train tickets (they accept ¥10,000 notes, hard to imagine paying for a NYC subway token with $100), beer, pre-cooked spaghetti, and manga to a high school girl's old underwear [ The Daily Yomiuri. "Dealers of Used Female Underwear Charged." 21 September 1993 (p. 2); Mainichi Daily News. "'Bura-Sera' Vending Machines Stir Local Concern." - Buru (blue) Sera (sailor - refering to the style of the high-school uniform) 12 September 1993. ] (this is rare). The degree to which vending machines replace human interaction (underwear aside) is evident in the substantial percentage of foreign expats who, despite years of living in Japan, do not want or need to speak the local language. For the casual visitor with no specific agenda, the drink machines prove the most useful.

Always note the beer and sake machines in the vicinity of your hotel, as they can come in handy after dinner if you feel like relaxing in your room in front of some first-rate Osaka TV, always a good way to get a bit of insight into a culture. Contrary to North American Suburbia, where youths spend hours waiting around the side of a 7-11 for someone kind enough to buy them beer, and stories of alcohol vending machines in the Far East were laughed off as a near-physical impossibility, the alcohol vending machines are not used/abused by thirsty youth, who associate alcohol with the stumbling, uncool, drunken 'salarymen' (their fathers). The prices of beer and tobacco in Japan are the same in all stores and vending machines nationwide, though alcohol vending machines stop vending at 11pm.

Eight hours later you may be thinking more about the canned coffee, which comes in all combinations, and in winter either hot or cold (the hot cans make good hand-warmers too, and make you wonder why we can't do this back home). Canned creamed corn soup is probably the overall favorite vending machine food, though spaghetti is not uncommon (not sure how this is dispensed).

Convenience stores are a good measure of the general cross-cut interests of a society/people. In Taiwan they smell of medicinal tea eggs. In the United states it's hot dogs and nachos. India doesn't really have them yet, but convenience (konbeni) stores have been fully integrated into Japanese society to a degree not seen anywhere else in the world.

It is common for young people, especially students and single males, to say they live a 'convenience-store lifestyle' (konbeni seikatsu), meaning they basically get most of their nourishment from the 7-11s of Japan. Lawon Station, with the nostalgic milk jug logo (blue and white) is the largest chain, though Family Mart (sun and moon logo) and Circle-K are also common.

Convenience stores are primarily good for two things--easy food/beverages and magazine/Manga browsing. For quick snacks the 'Onigiri' are often the best bet. These are 'triangles' of rice compacted around salmon or picked plum, chicken, konbu, etc and wrapped in nori (seaweed). Once purchased (¥100) don't just rip the wrapper like you might do in America, but carefully note how the nori is kept separate (thereby crisp and dry) from the rice, and how if unwrapped properly (meaning following steps one, two, and three) the nori is suddenly found magicaly surrounding the rice. It's amazing, but can take a try or two to get it right.

The beverage choices are vast, including numerous kinds of hot and cold tea or coffee, a Gatorade-like sports drink called Pocari Sweat, and a fizzy sweet yogurt drink Calpis soda. The magazine/manga rack can give you intersting insight into popular culture reading interests, and feature Manga for all strata of Japanese society. The mens and ladies fashion magazines are also worth checking out, and (as is true in bookstores) the management doesn't mind.

Gacha Gacha is the name (reflecting the sound of the turning handle and dropping toy) given to the kind of coin-driven, toy dispense we usually encounter near the entrances to supermarkets in the United States. Over the past year or so there has been a Gacha Gacha 'boomu' in Japan, and nearly every shopping area or department store will have a room filled with dozens of machines. Many are geared towards children, but the recent excitement is surrounding toys for grown-ups (as distinguished from adult toys). Some of the most popular themes are 'My Elementary School', 'Nostaligic Candy' or 'Chinese Food', where well-crafted miniature models of standard (everybody had the identical desk, bag, etc) elementary school music class instruments, science kits, school lunches, etc are dispensed for ¥100-¥200 depending on the complexity of the item.

There are Gacha Gacha for all tastes and persuasions, from the predictable Pokemon and Dragonball Z to food like sushi or Chinese, to more specific interests like dogs or hospital equipment, so you should have no trouble filling all your gift requirements (seriously, these are bizarre little things, and there is a secondary market for them amongst Japan-o-philes in the US) for just a few thousand yen.