Interesting how things changed, and didn't, from my first impressions when I arrived a decade or so before you in 1991 just as the bubble was bursting. No keitai and no homeless but otherwise not much different, though fewer convenience stores I expect and a lot fewer places taking plastic (as in major hotels and that was more or less it). The lack of keitai made a huge difference in terms of how you planned life, met friends and so on, but that's true of the rest of the world too. Roppongi was equally seedy, though I forget the names of the places I used to refrequent, and there were very few Africans, all the sleaze was done by Japanese, Iranians or people from SE Asia. The big issue I recall was making absolutely sure I did not miss the last train home because the taxi fare was always extortionate at 3am..... a couple of times we definitely avoided that by going to Dennys (I think? or was that in Shinjuku?) for a couple of hours before getting the first train
BTW It seems to me that the homeless started disappearing well before the olympics. As in 2012 ish. I mean sure there were still a few but the numbers all across Japan started dropping in the 2010s
Fascinating reflections—isn’t it interesting to see how much Japan has changed yet stayed the same in many ways?
It’s funny how universal the scramble not to miss the last train has always been, and I remember those late-night stints waiting for the first train to roll around. Hated them.
There may have been a decline earlier with homelessness but I was donating clothes and food to homeless people in Shinjuku right up until around 2018/2019 and I remember lots of them being around in Shinjuku and Yoyogi park. The push to “clean up” before the Olympics was VERY noticeable too. They were there one day, gone the next. I especially recall the Kabukicho area changing overnight in 2019.
Interesting how things changed, and didn't, from my first impressions when I arrived a decade or so before you in 1991 just as the bubble was bursting. No keitai and no homeless but otherwise not much different, though fewer convenience stores I expect and a lot fewer places taking plastic (as in major hotels and that was more or less it). The lack of keitai made a huge difference in terms of how you planned life, met friends and so on, but that's true of the rest of the world too. Roppongi was equally seedy, though I forget the names of the places I used to refrequent, and there were very few Africans, all the sleaze was done by Japanese, Iranians or people from SE Asia. The big issue I recall was making absolutely sure I did not miss the last train home because the taxi fare was always extortionate at 3am..... a couple of times we definitely avoided that by going to Dennys (I think? or was that in Shinjuku?) for a couple of hours before getting the first train
BTW It seems to me that the homeless started disappearing well before the olympics. As in 2012 ish. I mean sure there were still a few but the numbers all across Japan started dropping in the 2010s
Fascinating reflections—isn’t it interesting to see how much Japan has changed yet stayed the same in many ways?
It’s funny how universal the scramble not to miss the last train has always been, and I remember those late-night stints waiting for the first train to roll around. Hated them.
There may have been a decline earlier with homelessness but I was donating clothes and food to homeless people in Shinjuku right up until around 2018/2019 and I remember lots of them being around in Shinjuku and Yoyogi park. The push to “clean up” before the Olympics was VERY noticeable too. They were there one day, gone the next. I especially recall the Kabukicho area changing overnight in 2019.
Great little snapshot into a time gone by, would love to have experienced it.