Finding a Hostel

Just a few days ago we found out that we have no where to stay our first few nights in Tokyo. So we have been looking at our options as far as hostels and Ryokans go. It turns out there are a lot of inexpensive places to stay in Tokyo, but it seems like almost everything cheap is booked up. After sending out about 10 booking inquiries, we heard some good news from Sakura Hostel in Asakusa. We can get a dormitory style room for our first night, and then switch to a private room the following nights. According to reviews, this is one of the best places to stay :)

Here is a list of other places we have checked out in Tokyo. They all seem really cool, but unfortunately all booked up at this time.

• New Koyo - Ranging from 2500 Yen a night for one person to 4800 Yen a night for two people.


• Ryokan Katsutaro - Offers rooms with or without bath that can hold up to four people. Cheapest room is a single without bath at 5200 Yen, and the most expensive is a room for four people with a bath at 17,200 Yen


• Oak Hotel - Has a special discount rate for ISIC or IYTC travelers. Also offers a discounted price when you book online. Ranging from 6000 Yen to 8500 Yen depending on the room.


• Tokyo Ryokan - Flat rate of 3000 Yen per person per night.


• Andon Ryokan - A room for one or two people is 8190 Yen per night.


• Hotel New Azuma - About 3000 Yen per night for a single room. If you are a group of two that doesn't mind a small sleeping space, you can share the room for 5600 Yen a night.

It looks like a lot of those places also offer a discounted rate if you plan to stay long term. We are going to keep that in mind for our trip :)

Living Minimally

Lauralyn and I have been looking at some Gaijin Houses online, and the reviews from various sources are mixed. Some say they are great ways to meet new friends and save money, while others say they are dirty and full of scary foreigners. One thing is for sure though - they are SMALL! Looking online it seems like you can get a room in a house, complete with a cute charinko for less than US $700 / month. Unfortunately, that room is likely to be less than 100 sq ft!

I don't think it will be a problem for us, although that wasn't always the case. Before she met me, and indeed before I met her, we had tons of crap. I had a cushy office job making some good money, and so I spent it frivolously, and Lauralyn, being a seamstress and fashionista had multiple closets full of clothing. After reading Walden about two years ago, which kicked off an integration of simple living into my life, I quickly started downsizing, and I haven't stopped. Right now we have all of our things in our little 150 sq ft room in a 2-bedroom apartment in Portland, OR, complete with folding tables, folding couch and Lauralyn's hand-sewn futon, which we roll-up during the day and then fold out at night to sleep on.

As an electronic music producer and dj, fighting off gearlust is difficult to say the least but with a studio/sewing room/bedroom occupying the same 150 sq ft, I think I'm doing ok. I've been selling off hardware and this week I'm finally putting up my turntables and mixer for sale and going all digital. Combining free software (open source and pirated), its possible to have a pretty dope setup with a minimum of hardware. I hope to be bringing along my handmade Monome and using that for DJing. It's hard to say that hooking up laptops, setting up music and building alternative instruments has much to do with Thoreau's ideas of simple living so I'll title this Living Minimally and talk more about this another day. Time to get some groceries!