I also found Tokyo to be much cheaper that I expected. However, I was staying with a Japanese friend who knew where to go. When we wanted to eat, he led us into a book store, to eat at the noodle shop on the second floor. And when we wanted to shop, he led us into a noodle shop with a book store on the second floor. Separate unrelated businesses are often stacked, and without a local guide, a foreigner has no hope of even finding half the shops.

Some noodle shops employ vending machines. You press buttons to order your main dish, side dishes, and select eat-in or take-out. Insert your money and it prints out a receipt that you take to a human employee who prepares your meal fresh. A hot steamy beef bowl costs about 350 yen, and an entire lunch can be had for less than $5US.

One more thing about money, Japanese mostly use cash. I never saw a local resident use a credit card. Many stores accept credit cards, but don't be surprised if the clerk has to dig out the scanner machine from under the cash register and dust it off. It's best to stick with cash.

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