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Is Kabukicho the largest red light district in the world?
I'm wondering though... are there larger red light districts on other continents? If it's the largest… It's often said Kabukicho is the largest red light district in Asia, and that's easy to believe.
I'm wondering though... are there larger red light districts on other continents? If it's the largest in Asia, shouldn't it be the largest in the world?
I can't think of any city outside of Asia that can top Tokyo in term of size and sexuality on display. For example, the one in Amsterdam is famous but tiny, it's basically one street. If any red light district beats Kabukicho, it has to be somewhere in Asia, right?
And yes I'm aware it's hard to quantify the size of a red light district in strict terms (geographical size? amount of sex workers?), I'm just looking for educated guesses here.
Kabukicho is often called the largest, but a lot of that claim comes from how densely packed it is with host clubs, love hotels, and adult businesses rather than just street-level sex work. The De Wallen in Amsterdam covers a bigger physical area if you count the whole network of alleys and canals, but it feels smaller because it's so contained and touristy. In terms of sheer scale of adult entertainment options, Pattaya in Thailand probably gives Kabukicho a run for its money with areas like Walking Street and Soi 6, though it's more spread out. I'd say Kabukicho wins on concentration and variety of nightlife, but not necessarily on raw numbers of sex workers or geographic footprint.
You're right that it's hard to pin down a definitive answer, but the claim about Kabukicho being the world's largest usually comes from Japanese tourism sources and gets repeated uncritically. The thing people don't always mention is that Kabukicho has shrunk in recent years with police crackdowns and the 2020 Olympics cleanup, so a lot of the old street-level activity has moved into more hidden spots or online.
If you want a real contender, look at the area around Shinjuku's Nichome, which isn't technically part of Kabukicho but bleeds into it. That whole stretch has an incredible density of tiny gay bars and host clubs packed into a few blocks, and it changes the feel of the neighborhood entirely. For raw volume of adult businesses, I've heard the red light zones in cities like Mumbai or Bangkok's Nana Plaza area have comparable numbers, but they operate very differently with more emphasis on direct sex work versus Kabukicho's mix of hostess bars and entertainment.
The biggest difference is that Kabukicho is more of a chaotic nightlife zone where you can stumble into a 5,000 yen cover charge bar or a love hotel without realizing it, while places like Amsterdam's De Wallen feel like a curated tourist attraction. So whether it's the largest depends on what you're counting, but it's definitely the most disorienting.
Honestly, the part people miss is that Kabukicho is more of an entertainment district than a straight-up red light district. Places like Soi Cowboy in Bangkok or the Geylang area in Singapore feel way more focused on sex work, while Kabukicho is like a messy buffet of host bars, izakayas, and shady clubs. So if you're counting just adult businesses, sure it's huge, but for actual street-level action I think some spots in Thailand or even the red light zones in Germany like the Reeperbahn might have more workers packed into their zones.
Where can I find crispy, pan-fried bacon similar to a certain international style?
if u have a costco membership the kirkland thick cut is the move, 4 packs of 500g for around 2500 yen and it crisps up proper in a cold pan. for smaller runs, precce in azabudai hills & the basement at isetan shinjuku both carry imported US & danish brands in the chilled case, just read the label for "thick cut" or "smoked" and not "loin". also worth knowing japanese bacon is often wet-cured so pat it dry before frying or it steams instead of crisping
kaldi coffee farm is hit or miss but their smoked bacon from denmark shows up pretty regular, the 200g pack runs about 600 yen. what actually works better for me is asking the butcher counter at peacock or life to slice the block bacon thick, like 5mm, they do it for free and it crisps way better than the pre-packed stuff. also fwiw cheap bacon crisps faster, the fatty supermarket kind at 300 yen a pack works fine if u cook it from cold in a dry pan and pour off the fat as it renders.
tbh the gyomu super store brand bacon is surprisingly decent for crisping up, its not thick cut but if you cook it low and slow it gets pretty crunchy. the key is the dry cure vs wet cure thing, wet cure steams. also check hanamasa if you have one nearby, they sell big packs of american style bacon thats actually smoked and firm.
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