Well I’ve been hard at work here recently but I did have a memorable time with friends a short time back. Generally I work weekends but last month I took Sunday off and travelled to Fukuoka city on Saturday night with my British workmate Lawrie and his two friends Matt and Ross who were visiting from Scotland. Fukuoka is only 45 minutes from Kitakyushu by train and has the reputation of being a party city. Upon boarding the train we ordered several rounds of Asahi Dry (beer) for the journey and as the smooth draught sent its first tingles of warmth through our bloodstream we knew it was going to be an exciting night.
When we got to Hakata Station, Fukuoka, we took the subway to the nightlife district - Tenjin. As soon as we reached ground level again we had our first view of the area. The first thing I noticed was that there were lots of young people on the streets chatting enthusiastically or moving purposefully towards the many bars or nightclubs in the city. This is in direct contrast to nearby Kitakyushu which, even on a Saturday night, often appears to have a lack of youthful vigour. Most of the action going down in my town: Kokura seems to involve large groups of businessmen in suits stumbling around the seedier areas from strip to hostess bars (a bar where you pay to drink and talk with attractive women) and girls standing around looking beautiful trying to entice them in. I think the young people are either gambling in a Pachinko Parlour, going out in large groups to Izakaya’s for dinner, or … maybe in Tenjin!
There are half a dozen red-hot spots in Tenjin which are generally packed with patrons both Japanese and Western. You will usually pay a cover charge to enter these clubs which will cost around 1500 to 3000 Yen (20-40 NZ$) and includes free drinks. The bar we chose was the humorously named “Happy Kok”. This club was full and had a massive dance floor with an illuminated stage above it. I found out later that this was only for female dancers, or at least that’s what they said as they escorted me off it. We paid 1500 Yen (20 NZ$) at the door and this entitled us to free drinks for the rest of the evening. The numerous patrons at the club were having a fine time and there were people from many different countries in Asia as well as Japan and the West. Most could speak English which was good and allowed us to meet lots of people. Although the “Kok” was shoulder to shoulder at times, there was no aggression between revellers as we so often get back home when it’s busy. People seemed intent on having fun and there was a great vibe in the air.
After several hours and perhaps a few too many bourbon and colas I somehow managed to get separated from my friends at the end of the night. The next thing I knew it was around 7am and I was having ramen noodles for breakfast in a Restaurant with three rather lovely Japanese girls. This was definitely a first but I wasn’t complaining. After a hearty breakfast I thanked my hosts and made the long journey back to Kokura. I finally arrived home exhausted at 9am after a few directional hiccups. I will be sure to return to Tenjin again soon though!
When we got to Hakata Station, Fukuoka, we took the subway to the nightlife district - Tenjin. As soon as we reached ground level again we had our first view of the area. The first thing I noticed was that there were lots of young people on the streets chatting enthusiastically or moving purposefully towards the many bars or nightclubs in the city. This is in direct contrast to nearby Kitakyushu which, even on a Saturday night, often appears to have a lack of youthful vigour. Most of the action going down in my town: Kokura seems to involve large groups of businessmen in suits stumbling around the seedier areas from strip to hostess bars (a bar where you pay to drink and talk with attractive women) and girls standing around looking beautiful trying to entice them in. I think the young people are either gambling in a Pachinko Parlour, going out in large groups to Izakaya’s for dinner, or … maybe in Tenjin!
There are half a dozen red-hot spots in Tenjin which are generally packed with patrons both Japanese and Western. You will usually pay a cover charge to enter these clubs which will cost around 1500 to 3000 Yen (20-40 NZ$) and includes free drinks. The bar we chose was the humorously named “Happy Kok”. This club was full and had a massive dance floor with an illuminated stage above it. I found out later that this was only for female dancers, or at least that’s what they said as they escorted me off it. We paid 1500 Yen (20 NZ$) at the door and this entitled us to free drinks for the rest of the evening. The numerous patrons at the club were having a fine time and there were people from many different countries in Asia as well as Japan and the West. Most could speak English which was good and allowed us to meet lots of people. Although the “Kok” was shoulder to shoulder at times, there was no aggression between revellers as we so often get back home when it’s busy. People seemed intent on having fun and there was a great vibe in the air.
After several hours and perhaps a few too many bourbon and colas I somehow managed to get separated from my friends at the end of the night. The next thing I knew it was around 7am and I was having ramen noodles for breakfast in a Restaurant with three rather lovely Japanese girls. This was definitely a first but I wasn’t complaining. After a hearty breakfast I thanked my hosts and made the long journey back to Kokura. I finally arrived home exhausted at 9am after a few directional hiccups. I will be sure to return to Tenjin again soon though!
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