From Argentina to Tokyo: Anime Pilgrimages, Vinyl Hunting, and Twenty Days in Japan🗾

Last Updated on 2026-03-21 by a-indie

“Japan Was Always a Dream”

RAM and Nini came all the way from Buenos Aires, Argentina.

They made a pilgrimage to Hida-Takayama for an anime setting, filled a goshuin-cho stamp notebook at temples and shrines across the country, and flipped through vinyl at Tower Records Shibuya — picking up records by Lamp and Sheena Ringo.

Here, they share the story of their twenty-day journey through Japan.

The conversation opens up into the Argentine music scene and the state of cinema back home, and becomes a warm exchange about what it means to love culture across borders.

Twenty Days in Japan

Participants: yabori (host), RAM, Nini — Illustration: Furidashi Taro

yabori

Alright, I’d love to talk about Japan now. First — why did you both want to come here?

For me it was always a dream. I wanted to visit places I’d seen online and hunt for books and that kind of thing. And since Japan is so far away, it felt like a challenge to push myself out of my comfort zone. It’s such a cool place, and the fashion here is genuinely beautiful.

RAM

yabori

I saw on Instagram that you went to Hida-Takayama — was that because of anime too?

Yes. The anime 『Hyouka』 — a mystery series produced by Kyoto Animation that aired in 2012 — is set in Hida-Takayama. (Pulls a notebook out of his bag.)

RAM

yabori

I’ve never heard of 『Hyouka』. Wait, is that a goshuin-cho — a special notebook for collecting temple and shrine stamps as proof of your visits?

Yes, collecting stamps was one of the goals of the trip. And in Hida-Takayama I also got the stamp for 『Hyouka』.

RAM

yabori

That’s amazing! And it’s not just Hida-Takayama — there are stamps from Ueno, Nagoya, Osaka… like twenty different places!

Yeah. It was a lot of work to get them all, but I loved every minute of it.

RAM

yabori

It sounds like you were in Japan for about twenty days. Did you make a list of places to visit before you came?

Yes, she put the whole plan together. She’s very organized. I’m more of a mess. (laughs)

RAM

yabori

Where did Nini most want to go?

I really wanted to go to Yokohama.

Nini

yabori

Why Yokohama? Is it a sacred place from some anime?

It’s because of 『Bungou Stray Dogs』 — a hugely popular anime set in Yokohama with characters inspired by famous writers. It’s my all-time favorite anime. Because of it I got really into Japanese authors like Osamu Dazai and Ranpo Edogawa — both real-life famous Japanese writers who appear in the anime as characters with supernatural powers.

Nini

yabori

It makes total sense that you’re both into Ranpo Edogawa! (laughs)

And we collected a bunch of plushies too! The red panda is from Ueno Zoo, this one is from Gifu, and we got this one in Shirakawa-go — a village with thatched-roof houses in Gifu Prefecture, a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

Nini

I love 『Crayon Shin-chan』, so I got a Chocobi keychain — that’s the favorite snack of the main character Shinnosuke Nohara, a classic symbol of the show. This one I got from a yokai gacha machine — those capsule toy vending machines you find all over Japan with anime figures and things. And this one is from 『GeGeGe no Kitaro』, and this one is from 『Toro』. We also have a 『Doraemon』 one at home.

RAM

The Most Memorable Moment in Japan

yabori

A backpack full of plushies! Lately high school girls in Japan do the same thing. (laughs) What was your most memorable moment in Japan?

The sheer size of Tokyo blew me away. It’s a massive city, it left me speechless. I don’t remember if it was the first or second day, but when we were going down the stairs to catch the train, there were just incredible numbers of people. I work near downtown Buenos Aires where crowds gather for rallies and things like that, but Tokyo was on a completely different scale. Standing on the train near Shinagawa, looking out the window at the city and those enormous avenues — everything was so big and so intense. I felt an incredible energy. It was deeply stimulating.

RAM

yabori

You hit rush hour! (laughs) Do trains in Argentina get that packed too?

Yes, but in Argentina the really crowded areas are only three or four central zones.

RAM

yabori

In Tokyo the crowds overflow everywhere.

I thought Argentina was really densely populated, but Tokyo completely exceeded my expectations.

Nini

I looked it up once and I don’t remember the exact number, but apparently the entire city of Buenos Aires could fit inside Tokyo about eight times over. That was a staggering fact. It really is a giant city.

RAM

Tower Records with Takita-san

yabori

By the way, I heard you went to Tower Records in Shibuya with Takita-san. Did you buy anything — CDs, records?

Yes, we bought a ton! The first time I went was with Takita-san, and that day I got the vinyl of 『Yume』 by Lamp, and also the vinyl by Kaede from Negicco — 『Aki no Wakusei, Heart wa Night Blue.』 — a singer-songwriter connected to Lamp. And I also picked up 『Muzai Moratorium』 by Sheena Ringo.

RAM

I bought the vinyl for 『Kiki’s Delivery Service』 from Ghibli. I also got some K-pop vinyls. And I went to the pre-release listening party for 『The Mountain』, the new Gorillaz album, which I absolutely love.

Nini

yabori

Oh right, you mentioned you’re a Gorillaz fan!

Yes. I wanted the Japanese edition vinyl of 『The Mountain』, but the record store said they didn’t know when it would arrive. Since we were leaving for Argentina soon, I didn’t want to risk it and let it go. I ended up going to Tower Records and buying the standard edition vinyl instead.

Nini

yabori

Understandable. Are there record stores in Buenos Aires too?

Yes, but CDs are incredibly expensive. With the money we spent buying all these vinyls in Japan, in Buenos Aires we’d probably only be able to afford two.

Nini

Yeah, it’s really expensive. And there are no big stores — just small record shops. On top of that, buying physical music isn’t really common anymore… it’s a shame, but it’s just so pricey.

RAM

yabori

So Buenos Aires does have record stores, but they’re already more expensive than Japan to begin with.

Right. And the CD shops in Buenos Aires mainly carry local music.

Nini

Exactly. To get CDs by international artists, the system often works like this: the customer places an order, the store buys it from Amazon or wherever, and brings it to you. It’s more of a middleman between the consumer and online retail than a store where you can walk in and browse thousands of albums.

RAM

yabori

I see. So from an Argentine perspective, the stock Japan has and the pricing for physical music is pretty remarkable. What kind of music is most popular in Argentina — international stuff like what you’d find on the Billboard charts?

No, I think people in Argentina really value local music.

Nini

Yeah, though it depends a lot on the generation too. For example, my mom is 64, and in the 80s when she was in her twenties there were some genuinely incredible artists who went on to become legends. So that generation grew up listening to local music on the radio. A lot of people still love those homegrown bands and artists, but over time international artists became more well known and started getting more airtime. There are still very popular local artists, but compared to the dominance of international acts, there might be a gap.

RAM

yabori

Understood. Is the Argentine indie scene pretty active?

Right now there are some truly incredible indie bands and a really cool scene is forming. The Argentine scene is producing genuinely great music.

RAM

yabori

I don’t know many Argentine artists, but lately Pacifica has been selling out their Japan tour and getting really popular here. Are they well known in Argentina?

Not that much. Pacifica is actually better known outside Argentina.

Nini

yabori

Really?

I’ve been to see local indie bands live quite a few times — it’s a small community where you always end up seeing the same faces. I think Pacifica actually has more of a following abroad than at home.

RAM

yabori

What’s the local rock scene like in Argentina?

It’s very active right now, I think. People say a lot of bands emerged after the pandemic. Some play festivals like Lollapalooza. In February, when My Chemical Romance came to Buenos Aires, it was a massive event. A band called Nenagenix opened for My Chemical Romance and it caused a huge buzz. There are a lot of cool bands with shoegaze influences, and also bands with math rock influences.

RAM

yabori

Opening for My Chemical Romance is a huge deal.

Yeah, there are some bands doing really interesting things. For example, Naima — I love them — they don’t have many releases yet but they’re a fascinating band. And Hannie Schaft put out a truly incredible album last year and they’re making really original music. There are also a lot of bands that haven’t released their debut album yet. There was one band we both loved, but unfortunately they broke up.

RAM

yabori

That’s a shame. By the way, Nini, you mentioned you wanted to see the Twenty One Pilots film in Japan — did you manage to catch it?

Yes, it was an incredible experience. So much better than cinemas in Argentina. The sound was spectacular.

Nini

The Difference Between Argentine and Japanese Cinemas

yabori

Are Japanese cinemas really that different from Argentine ones?

The sound quality was what impressed us most. While we were waiting for the film to start, a man appeared on screen and started beatboxing. At first we had no idea what was going on, but then we realized he was doing a demonstration of the sound technology. It was very immersive and really cool. And the food at Japanese cinemas is so much cheaper than in Argentina. In Argentina, cinema food is outrageously expensive — more than the ticket itself. What a large popcorn combo costs, you could buy about two and a half tickets with that money.

RAM

Exactly. That’s why we always buy food outside and bring it in. Buying inside is a fortune, so going to the cinema becomes an expensive hobby. We use subscription services that give us discounts, but if you go with a big group without discounts, it really adds up.

Nini

yabori

I’d love to ask about the future. When you finish your degrees, what would you like to do?

When I finish I want to make my own films. And someday I’d like to live in another country, because the future of cinema in Argentina isn’t very promising…

Nini

Over the past two years the government has cut funding for national cinema and it’s caused a lot of controversy. As a result, many films are no longer being produced, and cinemas are losing funding too.

RAM

yabori

So because the Argentine government doesn’t really support cinema, you’re thinking about making films somewhere else.

Yes… I want to go somewhere that’s more friendly to film production. There’s no real public interest in indie cinema, so when it comes to film, Argentina just doesn’t have a future for me.

Nini

You can’t generalize entirely, but in Argentina local film tends not to be very valued. People only get proud when a movie gets nominated for an Oscar, but generally there’s very little interest. A few months ago we went to see an indie horror film not knowing it was the premiere, and there were about fifteen people total including us. As we were leaving, a woman was saying “thank you,” and it turned out she was the lead actress. She was right there, but the audience wasn’t really paying her any attention…

RAM

yabori

It sounds like the film landscape in Argentina is pretty tough. What about RAM’s music — the plan is to keep balancing work and music, right?

Right now I just launched a new music project called real&tangible and last month I released a song. I want to keep making music with that project — I have plans to put out an EP and I’d like to document the whole process. I don’t know when I’ll finish my degree, but I want to keep making music at my own pace. Studying composition right now is about getting more tools for my own music. And software development is a field where I feel comfortable — I love computers and I can work at my own pace. So when I graduate, I’d like to find remote work from wherever I happen to be, while continuing to make music and write.

RAM

yabori

Do you have any more concrete idea of what kind of work you want to do in the future — or is this still the stage where you’re starting to figure that out?

Something connected to music, or to making my dreams real. Ideally I could do that within a software development environment. Working on something I’m passionate about — making video games also sounds like a lot of fun. But I don’t have anything specific defined yet. For now I want to keep making music, keep learning, and explore what I’m actually capable of.

RAM

Editor’s Note

The moment that stayed with me most from this conversation was RAM’s story about an indie film premiere in Argentina.

Only fifteen people showed up, and the woman saying “thank you” at the exit turned out to be the lead actress. It’s a story that makes you laugh and ache at the same time.

And yet the two of them keep making music and dreaming of film.

That directness came through the very first time we met.

Argentina and Japan are worlds apart, but it was a reminder that people who love culture in the same way exist on both sides of the globe. (yabori)

BELONG Media Editorial Team
A music media outlet covering indie rock and beyond, from Japan to the West and across Asia. Publishers of BELONG Magazine, a roots-rock themed music publication with 26 issues to date.

In 2021, BELONG guested on J-WAVE’s SONAR MUSIC. In 2022, the English-language sister site A-indie was launched.

The editorial team runs primarily on shoegaze and dream pop.