Akihabara maid cafe, electronic shops take virus measures to protect 'pilgrimage site'

TOKYO -- Akihabara, the famous electronics district in the capital's Chiyoda Ward known as a "pilgrimage site" for anime fans and otaku as well as maid cafes, is bustling with people again after the coronavirus state of emergency was lifted -- but things have not returned to normal yet.

It was on May 28 and 29, after about a month of closures, that I visited Akihabara. A month ago, shops selling merchandise based on amine and manga and electronics stores had closed their shutters, and the area was enveloped in silence with no visitors in sight.

At the Ichibanboshi-gekijo branch of a maid cafe called Pinafore, which is situated in an office building facing a narrow street, four waitresses welcomed me in cute high-pitched voices.

I was first sprayed with disinfectant. Though the cafe is not very large, the tables are spread apart and the windows are left open for ventilation. The waitresses are not wearing masks to let customers see their faces. Instead, the cafe asks that customers come wearing masks.

Everything has changed since the cafe took preventative measures to avoid the "three Cs" of confined spaces, crowded places and close contact with people in the fight against the novel coronavirus. Cosmo, 21, a waitress at the cafe, says she is "happy to directly interact with customers."

The cafe was one of the many stores that closed in response to the state of emergency declaration. It reopened in mid-May, and made it a rule to serve only around 10 people at a time during its two-hour operating time, and for customers to make reservations ahead of time. It plans to integrate with another branch store nearby in June and do away with such self-imposed restrictions.

The 50-year-old store manager said he has hopes that "customers will gradually come back as many people are returning to the streets of Akihabara."

Meanwhile, electronics retail stores have seen customers gradually returning. Many of them have placed masks and disinfectant in front of their stores. After the state of emergency declaration, sales dropped to about 10% compared to that of the same period last year at Tsukasa Musen's No. 3 branch that sells electric tools and other equipment. However, the store says that figures are getting back to normal after the state of emergency was lifted.

"What we need now is for foreign tourists to come back," said the 40-year-old store manager. For shops like this, their lifeline depends on inbound foreign visitors.

From the customers who sanitize their hands before entering stores, to employees who try to attract customers by wearing ninja costumes or school uniforms, no one wants Akihabara to go empty again -- which may be why everyone seems to be searching for a new lifestyle to prevent the spread of infections.

(Japanese original by Ryotaro Ikawa, Tokyo Bureau)