I’ve always wanted to go to a cat cafe, well since I first heard of them at least.  But really, who doesn’t want to go to one?  That’s the real question.  Tokyo has an abundance of them so choosing the right one was tough.  There are all kinds of things to think about when choosing one.

How many cats are there?  What kind of cats are they?  How much is this going to cost me?  Is a drink included?  No?  How much is it then?  How long can I stay there?  Is it going to take me hours to find?  Can I pet the cats?  No?  Why would I go there then?  And of course, how are the cats treated?

After a long search I decided Neko Jalala was the place for me.  They were closeish to where I was staying, a little expensive, had good reviews, and the coolest cats.  I was going with a couple people I met earlier and when we got there we had to come back at two.  It was currently full.  We decided to spend some time hanging out with some owls while we waited.

Well, it was time to go back and we both had our fingers crossed that we could actually find it again.  I am not always the best at navigating cities and Tokyo just really got me.  I could not find my way anywhere there.  I spent a lot of time hoping I was going the right direction.

Good news was, we did find it and we were right on time!  We were instructed to take our shoes off, put our stuff in the little cubby, and go wash our hands and order our drinks (which were not included in the price).

It was time.  It was time to hang out with cats for half an hour.  There had to be around 15 total, but there were a few that I really wanted to see.  They were all sleeping, of course.  They were the Maine Coons.  I LOVE Maine Coons.

If you’ve never seen one of these, it’s like the size of a medium dog.  Okay, maybe not quite that big, but they are pretty huge for cats.  One of the girls working said they were around 10 kilos.  That’s the same as my backpack!  I could have just dumped all of my stuff and carried a huge cat around with me instead.  Talk about livin’ the dream!

After a while of petting cats, or trying to, taking their picture, and watching them sleep (how creepy), our time was almost up.  The Maine Coons were still sleeping and I was getting worried I wouldn’t get to see one stand up.

Fate stepped in and the gray one woke up.  It was a miracle!  A dream come true, some would say.  I finally got to see the Maine Coon in all it’s massive cat glory.  Then it started licking the one next to it.  Cats are weird.  Japan is weird (in the best way) though, so it fits.

If (when) I go back to Japan, I would probably most likely go back here, because look at them!  It was a little pricey, but totally worth it.  The cats were awesome and everyone working there looked like they really enjoyed it.  What more could you want?  Maybe to take one home.  This place is just awesome.

Have you been to Neko Jalala?  What did you think of it?  What about another cat cafe?  Do you want to go?