From Sushi to Red Lights

We it's Sunday the 30th and I've been at work all day in fact i was at work all day yesterday as well sucks i know but it could be a lot worse, at least i get paid for it.
Been i a bit hectic today work is work but wanted to go to the gym afterward and had arranged with the German guys at work to go to a Thai restaurant we had seen the other day, so it was a bit of a mad dash to get back form work, go to the gym and meet everyone by 7.30, but i managed it surprise surprise, I'm not the most punctual person in the world as those that know me can testify.
Anyway we all met up at 7.30 me three Germans and a Polish guy, off we went it's only about 5 minuets from where i live walking which is just as well because it was freezing, not literally but it was cold.
Once again forgot to take my camera so no pictures well not until i get some emailed to me from one of the lads who had one, as you can see have got the photo now it's just took me what seems like weeks to write this.
Seems like I've been going out for meals all week, was invited out a few days ago for some food and drinks with the main site contractor, a company called Shimizu. We met up at the local Isikaya, don't known if I've spelt that right or not but basically it's a Japanese restaurant. Food was great don't know what most of it was lots of fish dishes there was even a great big fish with what seemed like even larger eyes, not for me but they went down well with everyone else.
Now the meal finished at about 11pm, I'd had a bit to drink by then everyone had been getting me to drink Sake as i was the token westerner there. Think they wanted to get me drunk on the local stuff but their plan back fired a bit, yep i was a bit merry but some of them were worse off than me.
Anyway the meal finished and everyone went his own separate way. I live on the East side of the railway station, some would say it's the wrong side of the tracks. No one was going my way so was walking home by myself and thought why not go for another drink, probably a bad idea but you have them when you've been drinking. Now the thing about the East side of the station where my apartment is it's not far from what some people refer to as the red light area of Utsunomiys, i mean there are literally hundred of small bars there, and i mean small bars. The bars all have women in them whose job it is to sit with you and get you to by them a drink now if there is anything else going on i don't know.
So being a bit drunk thought i would go in one and see what it was like, this is how it works you pay about 3,000 Yen to go in for one hour, at today's EX rate that about 20 quid. Once you're in your drinks are free for that hour, if you like to drink it's a good deal as drinks run between 3-4 quid a pop even in regular bars. The girls job is to talk to you and get you to buy her drinks and to stay longer than an hour which costs more money. Japanese guys seem love these kind of bars they must do as there are hundreds of them, you can also sing Karaoke if you want.
You might wonder how i know all this well i have to admit i have been to the odd one before mostly with Japanese guys form work i might add.
So anyway I'm walking through this red light or pink light area on my way home thinking i would check out one of these bars, I've never been in one by myself before, so was starting to think maybe not.
Then out of a doorway pop two girls/women, now one i them I've seen before when walking home and she had always tried to get me to go in to here bar but i never had. In for a penny in for a pound as they say.
Photo does not look great but they were both quite nice from what i remember, my score on the Karaoke though was twenty two a record they said. No one had ever got a score that low before, i know I can't sing but was i really that bad, guess i must have been drunker than i thought to even attempt Karaoke by myself.
They let me stay longer then an hour guess i must have been entertaining them with my singing, yep i did sing more than one song but 22 was my lowest, think i actually got up into the 60's still bad i know but good for me.
After my hour and a half or so was up and i wasn't going to stay anymore but it was quite an eye opening experience, no hassle no problem no pressure to buy drinks, anyway time was up so off home to bed, unfortunately i still had to go to work the next day.