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Kingdom of character
From quirky cafs and.. mangA porncubicles.. to beer served from.. backpacks, its easy to .. go gaga in Tokyo, Japan..
WORDS: kelly irving

hat is your blood type? asks Lady Gaga. Its an odd question, especially coming from a pop star Ive only just met. Everybody knows their blood type in Japan. Like me I am A, like the real Gaga: patient, intelligent and, um, conservative. She strikes a pose la Marilyn Monroe, gives me a wink and lights up her boobs like shes a Christmas tree. Spiderman runs after her, followed by two vampires, a pumpkin, a panda, some little green men and another Gaga dressed in lace. I wasnt sure what to expect on my arrival in Tokyo for a few days stay. But Ive just discovered two things: 1) When someone asks what your blood group is, its like saying, What star sign are you? and, 2) Ive unintentionally landed during Halloween which, here, has a distinct local spin and it seems everyone in Roppongi, Tokyos nightlife nerve centre, has gone a little Gaga. In fact, since the pop diva urged fans to come back to the city post-earthquake and tsunami in 2011, she has become somewhat of a national hero and an apt one. Out there yet enigmatic, gregarious yet shy, the Poker Face singer with the big personality sums up this mad metropolis to a tee.

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The japanese go wild on the streets of tokyo; why shouldnt you?

Positive Cash Flow From Day One.

Since its inception after the Reserve Bank Reforms in March 2009 ATM ownership continues to hit all the right keys.
Owning a fleet of ATMs, has become a well known business opportunity since Own Your Own ATM launched in March, 2009. Many of our clients have diversified their portfolio and are now enjoying 20% p.a. returns that an ATM business provides for the life of the agreement. It is possible to use your ATM income to subsidise a large investment portfolio and not hit the serviceability wall, allowing you to make further investments in the future. Unlike a term deposit, where you are liable for tax at the first dollar of interest earned, ATMs being plant and equipment, can be depreciated to offset transaction income earned. Many clients have bought ATMs within their self managed super or pension funds. Instant income - you will be paid calculated from the very first day you purchase your machines. Buy in cash or borrow with property equity and pay down your non tax deductible debt on your home faster. ATMs are brilliant for saving, as returns compound when monthly payments are deposited into a savings account.

mad must-dos
1. Eat soba and drink sake at Gonpachi in Nishi-Azabu
Its the restaurant that inspired the location of Uma Thurmans fight with The Crazy 88 in Kill Bill: Volume 1.

2. People-watch at Jingu Bridge

Head to Harajuku on a Sunday, particularly around Yoyogi Park, to see cosplay (costume play) in full swing from gothic Lolitas to dancing Elvis rockabillies.

3. Sleep in a comic book caf or manga kissa

Rent a cubicle by the hour each comes with all the manga porn you can handle. Find them close to train stations, especially in Akihabara, Shinjuku and Shibuya. Youll pay around $4 per hour or $25 for the night.

BUSINESS HOURS ATMs TRANSACTION FORMULA

0 -783 transactions $235 per month 784 + calculated at $0.30 per transaction
Site Name Serial Number Total Transactions Total Monthly Amount Due

World of weird
After a heavy night out on the sake, I spend the next few days finding out what makes Tokyo tick. Its a sprawling city with quirks on every street corner, from the district of Akihabaras gizmos, gadgets and cat cafs, where people pay for petting time because many Tokyo apartments forbid tenants from having animals, to its shops dedicated to local girl pop group AKB48, with 87 members a Guinness World Record. Perhaps strangest of all are Tokyos cutesy-poo maid cafs fantasylands for nerds. Women in frilly frocks, knee socks and cat ears sing songs and make desserts as you sip sake. Its not seedy. Guys bring their girls. Businessmen go at lunchtime. And for the ladies? Butler cafs. Foreign men with slicked-back hair serving sambos and calling you Princess.

These private ATMs are placed in a variety of convenient locations throughout Australia. You own the Automated Teller Machines and experienced national ATM deployers place the machine in the site and manage it. ATM income is directly deposited into the account of your choice. Legal agreements state the deployer must
PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OFTeban S.

4. seek out strange vending machines

They dispense everything from umbrellas to eggs, canned ramen to hot chocolate and live crabs to, um, schoolgirls used underwear (though peddling pants this way is now banned, you can still find them for about $20 each).

Luna Park Sea Lake Foodworks Caloundra Caltex Hazelbrook Bowling Tumbarumba Bowling Club Wardell Liquor Northhampton Supermarket BP Childers Grand Old Crow Hotel

KIC090600143 KIC090600146 KIC090600147 KIC090200014 KIC090200004 KIC091200001 KIC090300074 KIC091200002 KIC090200028 KIC090300065

2,002 1,282 705 471 472 556 813 1,123 490 842

$600.60 $384.00 $235.00 $235.00 $235.00 $235.00 $243.90 $336.90 $235.00 $252.60

5. Get hammered with the salarymen at an izakaya

At 5pm, white-collar businessmen let loose on their beer money until they are literally sick in the streets. Join them at a cheap, old-school drinking den called izakaya in Ebisu, Shibuya, usually on a Thursday (payday). Budget about $2.50 per draught beer.

cover all costs for parts and maintenance, insurance and payment processing for the life of the agreement. ATM owners are paid a minimum 20% p.a* or $.30 per transaction, whichever is higher, paid monthly.

Sportsmens Hotel

Hit em up
The best way to get an insight into a city, however, is through its sport. In Japan, thats baseball. At Jingu Stadium, Ive been lucky enough to score tickets to a local game thats on par with a preliminary final. Its between age-old rivals the Yomiuri Giants the New York Yankees of Japan and local underdogs the Yakult Swallows. Ussah, ussah hi gora, hi gora! The usually reserved Japanese spill forth, like a collective volcano erupting. The chanting is loud, melodic. It is being conducted like an orchestra by a man standing on an upturned milk crate, blowing a whistle through a megaphone.

Total Amount Due

$2,993.00

In times of market volatility, a portfolio of ATMs can provide a steady income stream and potentially solve your cash flow issues

6. Pass out in a capsule or rent a room in a cosy love hotel

Depending on how 5) goes, youll either wind up alone in a room that resembles a locker or youll get lucky and go to a love hotel. Look for -genzaka the heart symbols on buildings in Do (Shibuya) and Kabukicho. Itll set you back $40 minimum for a short stay, $100 for the night.

This portfolio of 10 business hour ATMs cost $140,000 plus gst.

* Example: a business hour machine costing $14,000 ex gst, the annual return is $2,800 or $235 per month. Returns continue for the life of the agreement.

www.ownyourownatm.com.au
Disclaimer: Information provided is not intended to be Tax, Financial or Accounting advice. We recommended to obtain independent advice from your own Tax, Financial or Accounting Professionals as individual tax or financial positions may vary.

Contact us to receive further information at

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July/August 2013

PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF MaiDreamin

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The guy squeezed in next to me is Wayne, a veteran of the sport and an American expat whos spent most of his life in Japan. He has barely missed a baseball game in 42 years. This is the best part, he says as he opens up a pastel-coloured umbrella that joins a tide of translucent brollies swaying in the breeze. A fan got so worked up once, he started waving his brolly, says Wayne. Now, we all do it even when its not raining. I never witness a mid-game spat, on or off the field, despite the fact that beer girls come to my seat and serve full-strength alcohol from vacuumcleaner-like kegs strapped to their backs. Yet Im told the Giants performance has been held responsible for everything from the recession to the nations high suicide rate. Even the previous owner of the Swallows Hisami Matsuzono has publicly declared hes a shameless Giants fan.

GET THERE
Qantas flies from Sydney to Narita, Tokyo, from $1,980 return. qantas.com.au

MORE INFO
tcvb.or.jp jnto.org.au

PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF Yasufumi Nishi

Sing it to me
Soon afterwards, Im sinking a beer with OJ the villager Nigerias answer to Bob Marley. He came to Tokyo to be with his Japanese wife. Were downstairs in his bar: a seedy joint inappropriately named Paradise Island thats in the heart of Kabukicho, Tokyos red-light district. I am a big star! OJ announces, pointing to his chest like I might have mistaken him for someone else who isnt in here. Let me play something for you. OJ starts the turntables rolling and then picks up the mic: I went to the airport, yo-o-o-oowah and it was huge I ran out of Africa thinking that Tokyo was the best Tokyo, Ive discovered, is full of personality and personalities. Here, it doesnt matter who youre trying to be or what your blood type is. As the original Lady Gaga once said: You have to be unique, and different, and shine in your own way. Yep, this city certainly blows your boxed-in Western mind.

7. Party at a themed bar, caf or restaurant

From maid cafs to karaoke clubs, there are plenty of peculiar places to party in Tokyo. Like The Lockup in Shibuya: think recorded screams, handcuffs and $6 cocktails with head-scratching names like Human Experiment.

8. Get naked with strangers in an onsen

Join the locals in just your birthday suit at a hot springs or onsen. The best ones are just outside the city: Ooedo Onsen Monogatari, for instance, costs $10 for four hours of communal soaking.

Ussah, ussah ... hi gora, hi gora!

PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF Shimizu

9. Go to a baseball game
Sports hero Suishu Tobita once said: Baseball is more than just a game. Through it one learns the beautiful and noble spirit of Japan. The main stadium is Tokyo Dome but its easier to get tickets at Jingu Stadium. The season runs from April to October; unreserved seats start from $10. japanballtickets.com

10. Time your trip so you get to see a festival

The weirdest of these celebrations is the Kanamara Matsuri or Penis Festival in April, where people carry large phallus-like shrines through the Tokyo streets. Why? To protect them from sexual diseases, of course.