Tokyo's Pet Cafes
Tokyo is a BIG city. A big, crazy city with A LOT of people, many of whom live in teeny tiny flats that don't allow pets. Ergo the boom of the "pet cafe" where you can go to drink a cup of tea in the company of cats, rabbits, goats and even owls. It's kooky and it's totally Japan. I love them!
One thing that struck me about Tokyo, that I wasn't expecting, is the noise. It's SO LOUD! There is noise coming at you from every direction and the visit to this peaceful cat cafe in Shibuya was a really welcome respite from the bedlam that was raging just outside the window. This place was so quiet it felt more like a church than a cafe...in a good way. Cats are Gods to us crazy cat ladies after all.
The first cat cafe we visit (yes there was more than one) was Hapineko. After a day of wandering around I just wanted to sit, drink some tea and pat some cats. It took us a while to find this place (thanks eventually to Google Maps) but when we did I was in HEAVEN! SO. MANY. CATS!
Our visit to Hapineko cost about $15 for an hour. That includes patting of all the cats can you find plus a hot (or cold) drink and a little snack. A friend of mine worried that the cafe would be kinda dirty and we'd be drinking and snacking amongst dirty little, stinky cats (clearly, she's NOT a cat person) but I can assure you this place was CLEAN! Like a whole new level of clean I've not encountered before. Mr Sheen would feel like a dirty old man here.
Miraculously we left after an hour rolling around on the floor patting cats with not a skerrick of cat hair on us. Not one bit of fluff. There was no "catty" smell at all -- all of the cats went off to a "secret room" to do their business ...I think a lot of them actually snuck in there just to get away from the humans.
Truth be told, most of the cats were asleep - but that makes it all the more easy to pat them. A few were awake and were running around...but mostly it was Zzzzzzzzzzzz for these fur babies.
The second cat cafe we visit is tucked away in Harajuku - it took as over an hour to find this building and we only ended up here as the Bunny Cafe across the corridor was full and there was a 90 minute wait to get in. WHAT!?
I think this place is called Chuumonnnoooi - but it's Japan so in reality I have no idea what this place is called....let's call it "the place across the hallway from the Bunny Cafe that is really hard to find".
We had a massive Lost in Translation moment at this cafe and ended up having to pay more than we thought for our 30 minute visit, plus there were no drinks/snacks (I think this was extra...but really, who knows)? Anyway, we're here to pat cats and not eat/drink. All up we paid about $7.50 for a half an hour (each).
One thing that struck me about Tokyo, that I wasn't expecting, is the noise. It's SO LOUD! There is noise coming at you from every direction and the visit to this peaceful cat cafe in Shibuya was a really welcome respite from the bedlam that was raging just outside the window. This place was so quiet it felt more like a church than a cafe...in a good way. Cats are Gods to us crazy cat ladies after all.
The first cat cafe we visit (yes there was more than one) was Hapineko. After a day of wandering around I just wanted to sit, drink some tea and pat some cats. It took us a while to find this place (thanks eventually to Google Maps) but when we did I was in HEAVEN! SO. MANY. CATS!
Our visit to Hapineko cost about $15 for an hour. That includes patting of all the cats can you find plus a hot (or cold) drink and a little snack. A friend of mine worried that the cafe would be kinda dirty and we'd be drinking and snacking amongst dirty little, stinky cats (clearly, she's NOT a cat person) but I can assure you this place was CLEAN! Like a whole new level of clean I've not encountered before. Mr Sheen would feel like a dirty old man here.
Miraculously we left after an hour rolling around on the floor patting cats with not a skerrick of cat hair on us. Not one bit of fluff. There was no "catty" smell at all -- all of the cats went off to a "secret room" to do their business ...I think a lot of them actually snuck in there just to get away from the humans.
Truth be told, most of the cats were asleep - but that makes it all the more easy to pat them. A few were awake and were running around...but mostly it was Zzzzzzzzzzzz for these fur babies.
The second cat cafe we visit is tucked away in Harajuku - it took as over an hour to find this building and we only ended up here as the Bunny Cafe across the corridor was full and there was a 90 minute wait to get in. WHAT!?
I think this place is called Chuumonnnoooi - but it's Japan so in reality I have no idea what this place is called....let's call it "the place across the hallway from the Bunny Cafe that is really hard to find".
We had a massive Lost in Translation moment at this cafe and ended up having to pay more than we thought for our 30 minute visit, plus there were no drinks/snacks (I think this was extra...but really, who knows)? Anyway, we're here to pat cats and not eat/drink. All up we paid about $7.50 for a half an hour (each).
(continued)
http://www.theadventuresofmisspiggy.com/2014/03/tokyos-pet-cafes.html
http://www.theadventuresofmisspiggy.com/2014/03/tokyos-pet-cafes.html
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