I stayed at the Crowne Plaza at Ikebukuro (traded in hotel points for free nights!), just a block from the second busiest train station in all of Tokyo. This is a very busy transit hub surrounded by plenty of restaurants and shopping. Could see two McDonalds restaurants from the hotel
McDonalds is huge in Japan, nothing like a double cheeseburger with a fried egg on it! Several other American chains are there also, which was disappointing, in a way The influence of America on Japan was quite noticeable, however that's not all bad. All signage and announcements in trains and subways were in Japanese and English. All street signs and signage in most stores and restaurants were also in English.
BTW - Japanese vending machines are awesome
