Hey,

I noticed quite a few Belgium learners on this forum and I was wondering how they acquired Japanese novels/manga and the like. Because at the moment I'm doing my reading practice on the computer and this is kind of annoying since it's really hard to find HQ raw manga and I'm at the level where I can comprehend raw manga (e.g. Suzuka) but I need the furigana to quickly look up words which I don't understand (otherwise I don't like reading the manga).

So therefore it would be really helpful and fantastic if some Belgian people on this forum can give me references to shops (or libraries) in Belgium where I can buy raw manga or japanese books (since I'll hopefully reach that level in a few months ).

So I have my fingers crossed and hope to hear from some people soon,

thnx

I don't know about books in Belgium, but there are loads places, that you can download HQ raw manga + Novels. Here are a few sites I use:

http://www.jcafe24.com/ <-Need to sign and get one post, but they have pretty much everything
http://gotlurk.net/ <-Need to use IRC to download

I would imagine it would be quite hard to buy raw manga + novels outside of Japan (Well, without it being really expensive)

Yesasia isn't too expensive, all things considered (at least if you're ordering enough for free shipping); their prices are on par with or a little higher than (sometimes a little lower than) what I remember in Japan. The main disadvantage is that it's all new.

That's for the US site; I know they've got a European branch, but your mileage may vary as to cost-effectiveness.

~J

Hello,

I usually order things from amazon.jp in great quantities. This helps mitigate the shipping costs somewhat. It's especially interesting for manuals, textbooks etc that might cost 45 euros in europe but around 20-30 in japan. They also ship very fast (I received my order in less than 7 days).

[ファブリス]

Hya, I can give you an address or two in Brussel but I really have to run... please bump the topic Belgium evening time tomorrow or Sunday so I'll remember it and I'll try to find the addresses (actually one bookshop I know of and the Cultural Center of the Japanese Embassy also has a large "bilbliothèque" where you can borrow stuff for free! And a well know Japanese learning magazine all issues with the Audio CD's can't remember the name right now *runs off*).

bk1.jp is another good bookstore in Japan to order from. I prefer it to amazon, because you get shipping options, no added cost to shipping, no handling fees, a point club, gift certificate promotions, coupons, etc. I find it's a better deal. They ship worldwide. The site is all in Japanese, with no English help, but that's part of the Learning Experience.

The last few times I've ordered, they've been running a promotion where if you buy 10,000 yen or more of books, you can get a 1,000 yen gift certificate. I've gotten 3 of those already. The downside is that they show up randomly and expire in a month, but if you have a backlog of books you want and you're patient, you can save money. Also, if you can't read Japanese well enough, you won't know where to click after ordering to get your gift certificate! So there's incentive to study right there.

ファブリス : thnx, that would be awesome, can those places be easily reached by train and metro (since I live in the province Antwerp)??
The library sounds also very interesting.

bombpersons : I'm definitely going to check those sites out

[ファブリス]

Hya hotkiller

"Super Store Tagawa"
This is like a bookshop in the front, and they have loads of manga, learning books, magazines, and literature of all kind.

Further at the back in the entrance hallway is the entrance to a small store where you can buy all sorts of Japanese food, snacks, etc.

http://maps.google.be/maps?ie=UTF-8&q=ta...d&z=14&t=m

Then there is the Japanese Cultural and Information Center in Brussels.


Check out their calendar. They have 1 movie each month which is free. The main hall entrance there is always some kind of exposition. Right at the entrance near the doors there is a bookshel where you can pickup free copies of a beautiful magazine called "Nipponia". It's in French, but if you like Japan you will certainly like it, huge colour photos. Then there is a large library where you can borrow books, videos, DVDs and CDs, magazines. I can't remember if there were mangas. You can even ask them to send you that "Nipponia" magazine they'll take your address and mail you the magazine for free.

Unfortunately I heard the Tagawa is going to close soon (nobody to take care of it after the owner died or so I heard).

ファブリス : That "Super Store Tagawa" also looks really interesting but I got two questions about it:
1) How are prices there?
2) Is there a metro station near there?

Thnx anyway, I'll probably go there somewhere this month.

When my japanese reading skills improve, i'll certainly go have a look at that information center. Anyway, I don't look around for stuff here in Belgium, I order most things online or look for a download whenthere's no other way. I just keep my eyes open on what other people advice and search online. There was a store in Brussels that sold lot's of anime and manga, but it was mostly in french. A couple years ago that DID help for my french though don't know if it still exists. It was somewhere near 'het muntplein' or so.

[ファブリス]

@hotkiller : prices are ok as far as I remember, their main customers are the Japanese community from Brussels.

Metro: your best bet is from metro "Lousie", its at the end of the main yellow axis north west in that google map I linked to, from the pinned Tagawa Store. Some trams will turn right into avenue de Charlerio, so your best bet is to walk from Louise until the main junction, and wait there at the next tram stop. That way you can jump on any tram coming and they 'll take you along Avenue Louise and you go down 2 or 3 stops later, near "chaussée de Vleurgat". If you have loads of $$$ there is the nice Tagawa Restaurant nearby too

ファブリス : I don't have loads of money so I'll make do with the manga/Japanese book store

And thanks again

Hotkiller, if you are interested I have got piles of Kokoro, V Jump and Weekly Shonen Jump lying around in my library. I go back to Belgium every so often and can easily post them.

See the list there: http://spreadsheets.google.com/ccc?key=p...A&hl=en_GB

Michael