Next up in our blogger interview series is Abram Plaut from Yo! Japan. Here, he tells us about shopping for pet beetles and secondhand underwear in Tokyo, what his dream day with the perfect bank balance would involve, and a restaurant in Shibuya specialising in meals with mayonnaise as their main ingredient:

Qype: Can you tell Qypers who you are and what you do?

AP: I’m from the San Francisco bay area but I’ve been living in the Shibuya ward of Tokyo for over six years. I majored in Japanese at the University of Arizona, and while studying abroad here during the summer of 2002 realized that I definitely wanted to come back and live in Tokyo. I taught at a private Japanese high school for over three years but now I sell sneakers on the internet. I buy them in Japan and sell them overseas, mainly to collectors in the U.S. I used to be a big time sneaker head so I kind of just know the different markets and which shoes I can sell for a profit. I’m also currently working as a teacher at a private school that trains students who want to become flight attendants. Overall, life is good.
Qype: What prompted you to start your blog, and what elements do you think have contributed to it becoming so popular?

AP: I started my blog so that I could basically share my life with friends and family who don’t get to see me on a regular basis. It kind of organically morphed into what it is now.

Qype: What are your favourite spots in Tokyo for taking unusual photos?

AP: I take most of my photos just walking around on the street. It’s Tokyo, you never know what you are going to see. I take my camera with my 80% of the time I leave home.

Qype: What would your perfect Tokyo day consist of (let’s assume it’s a perfect day weather-wise, and transport is working perfectly, and you have a perfect bank balance).

AP: Perfect bank balance? If you have money Tokyo is one of the greatest places in the world. I’d eat lunch at Sukibayashi Jiro, the famous 3- Michelin star restaurant which known to have the best sushi on the planet. Follow that up with a day of shopping at boutiques in Omotesando and the Isetan Department store in Shinjuku. Throw in a mid-afternoon massage or spa at some posh place, then dinner at another 3- Michelin star restaurant, Quintessence in Shirokanedai. I’d end the night by renting out an entire club in Shibuya or Roppongi and throwing some kind of buck wild party. Not too far-fetched, right?

Qype: What’s the most unusual place you’ve found in Tokyo?

AP: For me the weirdest places are specialty stores that sell unusual items. Two examples- stores that specialize in selling pet beetles and stores that sell used women’s panties (with a Polaroid of the wearer attached). There are also restaurants that specialize in one ingredient, such as raw horse meat or whale meat. There’s a place in Shibuya that specializes in mayonnaise- seriously, every dish on the menu uses mayonnaise as a main ingredient.

Qype: What’s the most under-rated place in Tokyo? And the most over-rated?

AP: There are some real cool spots on the Chuo line west of Shinjuku that don’t get much love. For starters- Kichijoji, Koenji and Nakano. They all have their own kind of underground scene and are great places to walk around and get lost. The most overrated for me is Roppongi Hills. It gets hyped up but basically it’s dull and uninspiring.

Qype: One interesting fact Qypers might not know about Japan?

AP: When people think of Japanese food they immediately think of sushi, but in reality sushi makes up just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Japanese cuisine. In fact there are many Japanese people that don’t like sushi or raw fish at all. The most common and basic Japanese food is probably onigiri- a rice ball wrapped in seaweed.

Know a blogger you’d like us to interview on your behalf? Just let us know in the comments if so!