Shopping
Fukuoka Guitar and Music Shops
Aug 5th
There are lots of good music and guitar stores in Fukuoka, Japan. Right in Tenjin there are three that come to mind. The first two are right next to each other. One is in the Tenjin Core building on the 7th floor, and the second one is right next door in the IMS building. If you want a good guitar only shop there is one on Watanabe Dori (Street) just past Daimaru near the 7-11, sorry I don’t remember the name. I just picked up a Made in Japan Fender Telecaster and a small Fender Amp at Shimamura Music in the IMS building the other day. If you are bored and want something to do, it’s a blast to go to a music store and play around with the guitars, drums, and keyboards 
.
Enjoy the slide show:
福岡、ギター、音楽
A Trip to Costco in Fukuoka Japan
Apr 4th
We went on our monthly trip to Costco the other day to pick up the usual stuff and grab a couple slices of cheap pizza. Brought my DSLR and snapped a few pictures along the way.
Took the Fukuoka Urban Expressway to Costco the other day and snapped some pictures along the way. So check them out:
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Fukuoka Super Flea Market
Jan 4th
The Super Flea Market is once again happening at the Yahoo! Fukuoka Dome on the following dates!
January 10th Saturday 10:00~17:00
January 11th Sunday 10:00~17:00
January 12th Monday 10:00~17:00
You don’t want to miss this event!! You never really know what you are going to find, seriously!! You have to make your way to the Fukuoka Dome to check this out at least once if you are in the area. Also make sure you bring some money because you will most likely find something that you want to buy.
Tenjin Chikagai
Dec 1st
Tenjin Chikagai (Click for larger Image)
The best thing about the Tenjin Chikagai isn’t the shopping! The best thing about the Tenjin Chikagai is the ability to avoid in climate weather by staying underground.
Have you ever really looked at a map of the Tenjin Chikagai, which is an underground shopping area underpass. If you have you will quickly realize that there is an exit at just about all the best areas of Tenjin. You can pretty much walk from the Nishitetsu Tenjin station to Oyafuko Dori (Street in Japanese is “Dori”), and every where in between. I believe it was my good friend Tom that showed me some of the best entrances/exits in and around Tenjin. The two seasons that really put the Tenjin Chikagai at work are the rainy season and winter. If you are lucky enough to work in Tenjin then you know what I mean. You can pretty much go to work without an umbrella if you live close to the subway or Nishitetsu line. Just jump on the train, get off and tenjin, study the map to find the best exit, and then you are at work nice and dry.
If you don’t work but love to hang out and shop in Tenjin then the Chikagai is also your best friend, when the weather gets bad. Let’s face it Tenjin is all about shopping and the last thing you want to worry about is the weather when you have your bonus in your hand. There are shops in the Chikagai and of course exits to most of the best store in Tenjin like Tenjin Core, Mistukoshi, Solari, and Bic camera for the geeks and technology otakus out there.
The secret to mastering the Tenjin Chikagai is to think about the main places you frequent and then figure out the closest exit and try to remember that map in your head. I usually do the north, south, east, west thing. What I mean by this is I figure which 4 corners of Tenjin that I would most likely want to visit and find the corresponding exits.
- South: Back of Nishitetsu Tenjin Station
- North: Closest exit to Oyafuko Dori
- Center Point: Tenjin Core
- East: Closest to my Bank
- West: Closest To the Akasaka Side of Tenjin
HawksTown
Nov 15th
Hawks Town consists of the Yahoo! Dome, Hawkstown Mall, and the JAL Resort Sea Hawk Hotel. Yahoo! Fukuoka Dome is home to the Softbank Hawks a Japanese professional baseball team. It also features concerts for Japanese and International artists. Yahoo! Dome also features expos and shows such as the Fukuoka Autosalon Car Show and the Fukuoka International Car Show. Yahoo! Dome has one unique feature in that it’s a dome and it’s not a dome. It’s a dome but the roof can be opened so it can be turned into an outdoor area as well.
Hawks Town Mall is right next to the Yahoo! Dome and is a favorite place of Fukuoka Locals and travelers. It has over 100 shops that consists of clothing, restaurants, game centers, movie theater, and coffee shops. Hawks Town Mall is the home of The HardRock Cafe Fukuoka and Zepp Fukuoka a smaller concert venue. Hawks Town Mall is a great place visit for several reasons:
- Great place for dinner and a movie
- Lots of parking
- Easy to get to using Public Transport or a bicycle
- HardRock Cafe
- Arcade, Bowling, and Battling Cages
- Spacious and un-cramped shopping.
JAL Resort Sea Hawk Hotel is an excellent hotel and resort! I have had the pleasure of staying in one of their posh rooms and attending a wedding in one of their chapels. The service is second to none, the view is amazing, and the rooms are just plain nice. Inside the hotel there are restaurants and shopping as well as a “green house” type room with lots of plants. It’s basically a resort in the middle of the city. Rates aren’t as bad as you would expect if you get package deals through travel agencies or Japan Airlines (JAL). Even if you aren’t staying in the Sea Hawk Hotel you must stop by and check it out. While there take an eleveator to the 36th floor and check out the view of Fukuoka, it’s amazing and it’s free!