Coming to Japan is akin to visiting a parallel world. As a film I recently watched for class said, when you come to Japan, you see things that are Western. When you look closely at them, though, they are distinctly Japanese. Japan has had a unique history in that they have periodically absorbed large quantities of a culture, and then over a period of time, that culture mates with Japanese native culture, and gestates and transform into something that is truly Japanese. Whether it was due to fear of invasion from China in the 9th century, or because of a need to modernize during the Meiji Restoration, Japan has turned things that were totally foreign into something that fits the Japanese lifestyle, and suits them as though it had always been a part of the culture.

So, once I got here, I saw many things that I had been used to seeing, either from American culture, or simply the culture of the large cities (since I live near New York City). As soon as I tried to interact with the culture, though, I was hit by the cultural differences. It sounds somewhat cliché, but that’s how things were. Even though I had been studying Japanese for two and a half years, I was completely helpless at first, when it came to interacting with people. I was at a complete loss for words and felt totally helpless when, on the second night after having moved in with my host family, they asked me to explain the American electoral system.

Thus, as a case study, I’d like to invite you all to take a look at the life within Den Den Town – Osaka’s Electronics District – through the lens of a series of articles that will be dotting the landscape of the Modern Method Network over the next several days.

For those of you unfamiliar with Den Den Town, also known as Nipponbashi, it’s Osaka’s equivalent of Tokyo’s Akihabara Electronics District. It’s a veritable cornucopia of games, DVDs, electronic equipment, and all sorts of adult-related matter. It’s a geek’s heaven. Some might argue it’s even better than Akihabara, because of the nature of the Kansai region. Because the area is frequently known for business, retailers are more willing to be bargained down to a cheaper price in order to make a sale.

Throughout this spread, I'll be going through a general overview of shopping for anime, games, figures, and some other salacious materials that are available in Den Den Town. I'll also take a look specifically at some of the stores, as well as the whole culture of life in Den Den Town. And just for some contrast, I'll put Den Den Town up against Akihabara, to see how the two capitals of otakudom stand up against each other.

I hope you enjoy the series, and let me know what you think as it's going along. You can contact me at brad[at]japanator.com if you've got any comments/criticism that you don't want to put in the comments.