Finger on Tokyo's pulse

Summer heat getting to you? Then perhaps the ice bar in Tokyo is for you. Tables, counters, chairs, glasses, and just about everything else is made from ice. The whole place is kept at a bone chilling -5 degrees. It's not cheap, and reservations are in 45 minute slots, but its a cool way to escape the humidity. Tokyo has a whole host of bars, with plenty of quirks amongst them. For an interesting selection of them visit Watashi to Tokyo blog and the unique Tokyo restaurant section. Right now, this blog is one of my favorite reads on the net. A Japanese person with their finger on the pulse of Tokyo.
For all you want to know about restaurants, bars and nightlife in Hiroshima, you can't get much better than the Get Hiroshima webpages. Hiroshima doesn't pretend to be Tokyo. No ice bars here. But plenty of unpretentious places to cool down and quench that thirst after a hard day's work.