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When I was nine-years-old I was struck on the head with a tour-guide book of
Tokyo, a bound publication large enough to cause a major bump on my scalp.
However, the bump was normal; what was abnormal was that ever since the incident
I have known numerous facts about Japan's great capital city. It's as if the
information from the book permeated my brain upon impact.
Go figure.
As far as I know, I never visited Tokyo as a youngster. I may have gone there
when I was thirteen with a family of unknown origin but all of my remembrances
as a teen are suspect since the operation on my inner ear at age twelve. That
operation would have been routine except for the fact that the surgeon had only
five fingers due to a poor choice of gestures at a Benihana restaurant a week
before my surgery.
But I do know a lot about Tokyo. The one in Japan, that is.
First, let me say that this is very big city, one that might be the largest city
in the world, especially when you consider its size. of it. Tokyo includes many
other cities, towns and villages and contains over 17 million people. I could
name them but that would take up too much space.
Akasaka is the high-class area of the city and a great word for playing with
words. Like: A-ka-sa-ka, bak-ala-ka, wok-a-pock-a ... well, you get the idea.
People in Akasaka, though, aren't much for playing with words. They like to
spend money and spend they do when they go to restaurants, stores and clubs.
Everything in Akasaka is overpriced if you compare it with New York City's
Delancy Street, at least.
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Then there is Akihabara, which a lot of people confuse with Abrakadabra. The
latter is not a city in Japan. In fact it isn't a place; it's a stupid word
magicians use, and I don't even believe magicians actually perform magic, do
you? Anyway, Akihabara has the largest concentration of electronics shops in
the world, although I hear talk that there is a neighborhood in Turkey rapidly
approaching that status. If you are looking for electronic hardware, Akihabara
is the place to shop.
Don't listen to people on the street who tell you that
it is better to buy electronic stuff at Shinjuku West Exit because Akihabara
is the place to go shopping in Tokyo for electronics.
Did I mention that I needed stitches when the tour-guide book of Tokyo hit my
head? Because I didn't need stitches and that would have been a lie. What
matters most, though, especially now as I fill you in about Tokyo, is that there
have been many sightings throughout Tokyo of a man people believe is Elvis
Presley.
The question remains, however, that if Elvis Presley did not die, why would he
go to Tokyo? And if he did, would he be interested in electronic hardware
available in Akihabara? I do know this: Elvis would love to sing A-ka-sa-ka,
bak-ala-ka, wok-a-pock-a ... well, you get the idea.
Frank Cotolo can be found hosting the talk and interview programme
Cotolo
Chronicles, every Thursday starting at 9 pm on Network 1KX.
