Japan trip report

[svyturys]

I spent two weeks travelling in Japan which was my first trip to Asia. I have always been tempted by Asia and fancied Asians, however, I did not have a chance to visit until this year. Picking destination wasn't that difficult because this time of year is not particularly pleasant in South east. So I headed East. My first choice, China, proved to be a bureaucratic nightmare. Obtaining the visa involved so much paperwork, and the whole process was made so difficult that I changed my mind and booked a flight to Japan. And here I was, first time in Asia.
I can only say good things about Japan, as the welcome and hospitality were superb. Before the trip, I had read and heard quiet a few stories about nasty racist Japanese but did not experience myself anything like it. Maybe a bit, but I will explain this later. Japan is a beautiful country with stunning landscape and probably the best preserved cultural heritage in Asia. Manners are second to none, efficiency as well. Truly quality Asia. I visited Tokyo, Osaka, Kyoto, Hiroshima and a couple of smaller places such as Kamakura and Miyajima. The Japanese government has devalued its currency thus turning once punitively expensive country into very affordable one. You can easily eat for ┬г3-5, ride city transport for ┬г1 and hotels outside of Tokyo and Kyoto are not more expensive than anywhere else in Asia. In Hiroshima I stayed at a 5* hotel with stunning views for less than ┬г50. Not as cheap as Thailand, but far from expensive Europe. And nobody trying to rip you off.
Now the boys. Young Japanese guys are gorgeous. They are stylish, confident and sexy. I love their longish hair. Middle aged men aren't that good looking though. Japanese work extremely hard. They don't even see their family much. A lot of time is spent socialising with friends and that means drinking. I guess I could attribute the rough looks of 35+ salarymen to alcohol. But who can blame them with such a massive work load?
The easiest way to meet is JackD. Loads of guys of different ages on it. Language barrier is a problem though. Japanese are crap at English but again, they don't really need it. I received loads of messages but only managed to meet a few - tourism was still my main goal in Japan. On the second day, I met this beautiful Chinese boy. I couldn't properly see his face on his profile but when I met him, I was pleasantly surprised how good looking he was. However, he met me with a slight cockiness. I even suspected him being an escort. But soon all this bad boy attitude evaporated and he turned into such a sweet guy. He claimed he never had a white guy before. We cuddled and kissed in his hotel room, and more later. I was mesmerized by the cuteness of this chap. And was still shocked how quickly he changed from cocky to sweet. Well, apparently Chinese are rough diamonds :). It's just a matter of knowing who to polish them.
There are loads of gay bars and sex places in Japan's major cities but they only busy on weekends. Blame it on Japan's long working hours. But on weekends they go crazy. Entertainment districts packed with small bars, restaurants, brothels and other places truly come to live on Friday and Saturday. If you ever go to Osaka, visit Frenzy bar. A place popular with expats. In Tokyo I would recommend Arty farty ( if you not too old), Annex, Advocate and Dragon bar. Drinks are ┬г4-5.
The problem with Japan is that, in addition to poor English, there are lots of places that do not welcome foreigners. They bluntly declare: Japanese only. The places I mentioned above are pretty big and all welcome foreigners. You get a good mix of locals, tourists and expats. The locals in those bars generally fancy foreigners. It's easy to pull. Lots of good looking young Asians and whites. Arty Farty is lots of fun, despite being overcrowded and short opening hours. No money games here. It's a rich country.

The problem with Japan is that, in addition to poor English, there are lots of places that do not welcome foreigners. They bluntly declare: Japanese only.Japanese are rascists? Who would of thought! Has anyone told a747?

[a447]

Great report, Svyturys!

[cottmann]

Japanese bars are very small and thus cater exclusively to particular types of clients. Thus, anyone who doesn't match the particular market niche of a bar is unwelcome, whether they are Japanese or not. If the bar-owner allows customers who don't match the bar's market niche, then he/she will lose the regular clients on whom the bar depends. Some bars are Japanese-only because that is the way the other customers want them to be. As to why this is, as the OP noted, most Japanese do not speak English - other any other foreign language - well, and they are terribly afraid of losing face if they are spoken to and cannot reply. Fear rather than racism is behind many of the Japanese-only signs. If you want to meet Japanese, go to a bar that caters to Japanese who want to meet foreigners because the bar is there to meet the needs of the Japanese clients after all

[a447]

You've hit the nail on the head, Cottman. It's not racism at all but some dumb fucks here are very shallow thinkers.

I'm just about to post my gay Tokyo experience in a new thread. I'll put it in the Global Forum.

[Smiles]

Thanks Svyturys and Cottman for this thread.
I'd heard of the concept of "type" bars (not rascist bars) but here on this thread some much more detailed firsthandedness.
I had a Japanese kind-of-boyfriend in the late 90's in Vancouver. We ended up parting ways for numerous reasons (me 50, he 22 ;) ), but he was a wonderful guy ... sweet-natured and wildly sexual. I was lucky I guess that he spoke fairly good english, myself speaking zero Japanese except for the standbys "kanichi wa" and "hi": gets old quickly. He also related to me the way of the world regarding Japanese gay bars.

[a447]

He also related to me the way of the world regarding Japanese gay bars.

I'm surprised you didn't immediately rush of to Japan, Smiles!

[svyturys]

Some bars not only state 'Japanese only' but 'Japanese looking people only' as well. That means, even if you are Japanese but, for example, mixed, you are not welcome. My friend is half Filipino and he cant enter those places. Not that it bothers him. He only likes whites anyway. But this example illustrates that this policy is not all about losing face. Japan had been a closed country for centuries, thus these formed attitudes don't change overnight. A very large part of society is very insular, looking suspicious towards foreigners. In some cases, racism might be behind this.
But don't let all this put you off visiting Japan. It's an amazing place and there are lots of gay places that welcome everyone, as well as a large number of Japanese, very keen to meet foreigners.

[dab69]

Found this link from another forum.
Some face pics are really stunning.

http://kids-jp.com/tokyo/

And to the author/original poster of that link
I would offer a kind thank you. :)

[pronto]

Found this link from another forum.
Some face pics are really stunning.

http://kids-jp.com/tokyo/

And to the author/original poster of that link
I would offer a kind thank you. :)

I realize this thread is two years old, but I will visit Osaka and Kyoto next month, and this mentioned weblink really caught my eye. I wonder if anyone has had any experience with the Osaka Kids Agency, or any other recommendations. Thanks in advance.

[dozzie]

I'll be heading to osaka in feb and wondering if anyone has recommendations for massage (like those in bangkok that provides HE). Chanced upon taiyo and utatane and presumably they accept non-japanese customers. any further advise/reviews? thanks !

[a447]

The main gay area these days is Doyama-cho. It can be difficult to find. And even getting out of the station is very confusing for foreigners and Japanese alike.

You may find many bars /clubs do not welcome foreigners, especially if they can't speak Japanese.

Also, most of the signs with the name of the establishment are in Japanese only, so once you are in the general vicinity you'll have to ask someone. I hope you are not too shy! Lol

And don't forget to bring shitloads of money.

[dozzie]

haha! i am quite a little, especially when language is a problem. how about massages with HE? checked and indeed is quite pricey! Thanks btw

[fountainhall]

Despite knowing the country quite well, I have never bothered with massages! You might want to check the blowing wind site. Although contributed mostly by youngish Singaporeans, it has an extensive Traveller's Hut site with experiences from around the region. The Japan section is most about Tokyo and other sightseeing cities like Kyoto. But at a quick glance I have noted one post about massage with HE in Osaka (although the poster is mainly discussing Tokyo). It is the post around the middle of the page by Guest Karada Tokyo dated 13 December 2016. He says -


I had a go at Karada Tokyo (gay massage m2m with hj at the end). I had the Jihun, he spoke no English. He is quite hot, but boring. He speaks no English, and does not like any eye contact interaction with you. I chose the package, rest 1.5 (12000 yen) and it was supposed to include a cream bubble massage - this was excluded. The service here is not so great. Not clean, confusing. The Osaka branch is way better!
https://www.blowingwind.io/forum/topic/9053-japan-tokyo-fukuoka-sapporo-massage-sauna-places-to-visit-compiled/?page=49

Be warned, though, I have seen one report that the Tokyo branch is now closed. So double check that Osaka remains open. You can also check out these two listed on the utopia site - Health Factory and TAIYO. Incidentally, Health Factory is right next door to what seems to be a great sauna - Hokuoukan.


If Babylon Bangkok and in Nadam in Ho Chi Minh City are the ultimate men's cruising clubs in Asia, Hokuoukan runs a close third. This popular sauna welcomes well-behaved non-Japanese and the crowd, mostly men in their 30s and 40s, is friendly indeed. Bring your passport (in case there are any questions about your age) and leave any large luggage or bags in a coin locker at the train station (sauna lockers are only large enough for a backpack). Five minutes walk from the Osaka Station and the Hankyu Umeda Train Station, in the Doyama gay nightlife area (see general directions above), one block from Lupu bar, on the opposite side of the street from Coco love hotel. Large sign in English. There are also circular, lit English language signs for the sauna on many lampposts in the neighborhood with helpful arrows pointing you in the right direction. Entrance is behind an exterior privacy wall and through two sliding glass doors (touch the electric "door handle" to activate) . . .

Comments from Utopians:

"Hukuoukan is a bit difficult to find, but once found you'll love it. It was my first time to enter a gay bath house and the experience was sexy and hot, literally and figuratively. I entered the dark room on 3/F and, without even time for my eyes to adjust to the darkness, hands were touching me. I was grabbed first by an American. Two gorgeous Japanese guys joined us and it was a hot foursome. Will be back of course!" -- Papi, Aug 25, 2016



http://www.utopia-asia.com/osaksaun.htm


I am not sure how well or otherwise you know Japan and Osaka. As a447 points out, don't expect much English to be spoken anywhere and take a lot of cash (although the ¥ has fallen in value against most currencies by around 15% since the summer). My tip is to get a detailed bilingual map and work out how to get to places from that.

[a447]

If guy at karada is called "Jihun" then I suspect he may be Korean. Jihun is not a Japanese name.

Also, the fact that the place was dirty and he didn't offer the service the customer had paid for also suggest it is not Japanese owned.

[fountainhall]

I've never been for an HE massage in Japan and am sure you are correct. But the Blowing Wind poster did say he was describing the Tokyo branch and that the Osaka one is much better - whatever that actually means!!

[dozzie]

Thanks! Very helpful info,I don't really go to bathhouses/spa so Guess will settle for massages for now. actually will be in Kobe more than osaka but thought it's a stone's throw away, why not?