Gay Tokyo, Japan.

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Gay Guide to Tokyo, Japan

Tokyo gay Guide

May 2013

Shinjuku ni-chome is an area in the special ward of Shinjuku in Tokyo, Japan. Ni-chome is approximately a ten minute walk from JR Shinjuku Station along either Shinjuku or Yasukuni Avenues. Shinjuku-san-chome Station (M-09 or S-02) on the Tokyo Metro Marunouchi Line or Toei Shinjuku Line, or Shinjuku Gyoenmae Station (M-10) on the Marunouchi Line are within a few minutes walk of Ni-chome. Ni-chome is best known as the centre of Tokyo's gay scene.
Estimates of the number of gay pubs, clubs and bars in this area alone range between 200-300. In fact, it is frequently said that Ni-chome has more gay bars per block than any other place in the world. Nevertheless, the gay village covers only a small area of a few square blocks centred around Nakadai Street.
Besides the bars, the area is also home to restaurants and cafes, shops, saunas, hotels, 'host bars' (bars where patrons can meet hustlers), cruising spots, massage parlours and brothels of varying sizes and legality. Establishments vary in size, but many are limited to ten or fewer seats. There are no gay clubs in Ni-chome that can hold more than one hundred customers. Large gay events that attract several hundred, or several thousand people, are held at different times throughout the year outside the area. Bars tend to be segregated by "scene" - for example, there are bars that cater to the bear community and their admirers, or that "specialize" in S&M, muscular men, young men, and so on, and usually by gender as well. Many of the gay bars in Ni-chome do not permit female customers. The few lesbian bars that can be found do not permit male customers. Mixed venues are few. At most bars in this area, patrons usually sit at a counter and chat with the bartender...

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...Karaoke is also popular, and gay monthly and pornographic magazines can be read at many establishments as well. Those who visit these small bars are usually regulars; since many bars operate on the bottle-keep system, many customers may have their own bottle at their favourite bar. Loyalty to bars is returned by the bars organizing outings to onsen, hanami parties, picnics, gay sporting events, and so on. Many bars maintain large photo albums of customers, for customers, often taken at such events.
While most bar owners ("Mamas" or "Masters") are accommodating to new customers and to non-Japanese, the scene is largely geared towards regular, Japanese-speaking customers, and some venues discourage or prohibit non-Japanese from entering, regardless of their Japanese language abilities. A handful of establishments, in contrast, specifically target foreigners with advertising and information in English. Four bars, Advocates, Arty Farty, Dragon and GB, are particularly popular amongst foreign men, as well as the Japanese men who are attracted to them. Advocates in particular, though a very small bar, is known for the large crowds, both Japanese and non-Japanese that spill out onto the sidewalk and surrounding street on weekends. These bars do not offer bottle-keep service.
Cruising does occur at some small bars and at the larger clubs, though more often takes place at cruising spots called hattenba. Ni-chome is also the site of some of the festivities related to Tokyo's gay pride parade and various other gay festivals and activities.

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