Welcome to Japan!

Arrived at Japan via Narita International Airport yesterday at about 5pm Japanese time. Made it through customs and to my hotel in Shabuya with minimal trouble. Despite being exhausted after the flight, and despite not getting to my hotel until nearly 9pm, I couldn’t wait to go exploring. The cool thing about Tokyo is that it is truly an all-night city. This was a weekday, past 9pm, and there were still shops and restaurants open on every street I saw; too cool!

I didn’t think about this until I got here, but this is the first place I’ve ever been where I truly couldn’t fit in no matter how hard I tried. Now I’ve traveled all over the world… throughout Europe, Central America, Australia… but everywhere I’ve been before Japan, I could easily pass as a local if I tried. Even in Mexico and Costa Rica, if I wore sunglasses and didn’t talk, people would approach me assuming I was a local. But not in Japan. I look very different from everyone around me, and it is very noticeable. So why am I writing about this? Because I never really thought about how terrifying this experience can be. As soon as I got on the train realized I hadn’t seen another person who looked anything vaguely like me since the airport, I kind of had a mini freak out moment. For no logical reason, everyone suddenly seemed very hostile-looking. I was terrified to speak to anyone or even look at anyone.

Luckily, however, I quickly found myself in a situation where I needed help: I needed to make sure I was on the correct train. I gave the international gesture for complete helplessness to the girl sitting next to me (puppy dog eyes, of course), pointed to my Tokyo rail map, and started talking. Her reaction completely calmed me down: she seemed genuinely excited to be talking to someone in English! Not only did she ensure me that I was on the correct train, but this interaction also gave me the courage to start talking to other people.

This brings me to my first of several GENERAL IMPRESSIONS OF JAPAN (based on just a single day’s time in Tokyo: The Japanese in general are super excited to talk to a Gaijin (ie, “stupid white boy.”) I’m not exaggerating when I say this… If they know any English, they will literally knock each other over to be the person who gets to help the Gaijin. Let me give you an example… after I got off my first train and walked to the next train station (getting lost along the way, of course), I accidentally made my way into the office of the more expensive of two rail lines. As soon as I started speaking in English, about 5 workers ran up to the counter, crowding around the teller I just happened to approach. I explained where I was trying to go and on which rail line… and this teller jumps up, runs to my side of the counter, and asks me to follow him. He then proceeds to walk me over to the other ticket office (which is kind of his company’s competitor company). He then shows me how to buy a ticket, shows me where to get on the train, and tells me where to switch lines. I was completely blown away by this… and I can’t even tell you how many more times in the past 24 hours Japanese people have gone completely out of their way to help me (and yes, I’ve needed a lot of help… hah!)

Okay, some more, and hopefully briefer, GENERAL FIRST IMPRESSIONS OF JAPAN (based on just one day in Tokyo):

Tokyo is the first city I’ve ever been to where I’ve felt completely safe while wandering down random alleyways. Not only will you feel comfortable doing this, but you’ll pretty much be forced to if you want to see even a fraction of what Tokyo has to offer. Most of the restaurants and bars seem to be these intimate little places tucked into sidestreets and alleyways that may only see a car occasionally.

Rice in Japan tastes significantly better than any rice I’ve ever had in the US or anywhere else. And I’m just talking about plain old white, steamed rice.

Japanese bathrooms are TINY! But tiny in a not realy uncomfortable way… more just tiny in a funny way.

Tokyo’s public transportation system is AMAZING. I’ve traveled to many of the biggest cities in several of the most prosperous countries in the world, and I have never seen a public transportation system that runs as flawlessly as Tokyo’s. First of all, you can get anywhere in this huge city by taking a train (buses not really necessary in my experience thus far, but I’ve also heard that the bus system is good.) Second, everything is presented in multiple languages. Every train I’ve been on at least has digital displays and voice announcements in both Japanese and English, and some even include Chinese and other languages. Trains seem to really leave on time, and they also seem to come very frequently. I generally hate public transit because I consider it to be expensive, dirty, and unreliable, but I really like Tokyo’s public transportation system thus far.

Despite the fact that everything is small and compact in Japan, their domestic airlines give you more leg room and more comfort than any US carrier I’ve ever flown on. I’m writing this blog post on my flight from Haneda to Okinawa, and I’m flying on a Japanese airline called Skymark. I got a discount plane ticket. Not only was it cheaper than a US ticket would have been to go the same distance, but the seat gives me more leg room than I’ve ever had on a plane before (excluding flights where I sat in an exit row.) The plane is clean, and the stewardesses are super nice (one heard me speaking English on the phone—I was actually cursing out my credit card company for putting a block on my cards even though I told them I would be travelling internationally, which is another story altogether—and came up to me just to talk in English with me.) Why are US airlines so expensive and yet so shoddy in terms of amenities and service?

Japan doesn’t really offer separate accommodations to non-smokers. Every restaurant I’ve been to allows smoking, and I haven’t seen a “non-smoking” section yet. Many states in the US have banned smoking in restaurants, and even in states that haven’t, I never sit in smoking sections, so this was very weird to me at first. In fact, in one restaurant I confused an ashtray for a bowl… luckily I noticed someone smoking a few tables down before I tried to put food in it!

The Japanese love pork. During my first meal here, I had to draw a picture of a pig and put a big “X” over it, and draw a picture of a chicken and give the waitress a thumbs-up. She was able to point out one item on the menu that was just chicken; big chunks of fried chicken. (And I must say, it was delicious!)

The Japanese love vending machines, maybe even as much as they love pork. I went into a restaurant for breakfast today, sat down at the counter, and looked over at the waiter. He gave me the craziest look… and it took me a second (and watching someone else order their food) to understand why. Basically, this restaurant had a “vending” machine near the restaurant entrance. The machine had pictures of different meal options on it. You were supposed to put in money, push the buttons to choose one or more meals, take the ticket that the machine spits out, and then give that ticket to the waiter when you sat down. It sounds a bit weird, but it is actually a really ingenious system… it means that the waiter doesn’t have to spend as much time because your order is already written down and payed for. I really like it because I hate handling money after I wash my hands… money is dirty, I wash my hands right before I eat, and I don’t want to touch money right when I’m about to eat or have just finished eating.

And lastly, Tokyo made me realize that I don’t necessarily hate rain. Now I might come to regret writing this if I happen to find myself in the middle of a monsoon in the coming months, but let me explain… During Berkeley’s rainy season, rain generally equates to “cold,” “discomfort,” “want to stay inside,” and “pure evil,” in my opinion. In Japan, it is currently nearing the end of the rainy, and my first night in Japan was marked by a slow but steady drizzle (the same kind of rain that generally plagues the Bay Area.) But because it was warm, this rain was actually quite enjoyable… the rain was calming, it made the air smell clean, and it just made exploring the nighttime streets of Tokyo even more fun. So thank you, Tokyo, for helping me remember those WARM rainy days that I grew up with in Mississippi. And Berkeley, if you’re reading this… please take a freaking hint.

Okay, that’s enough for now. I haven’t been taking many photos, but I’m planning to start doing that when I get to Okinawa and flip the “tourist mode” switch. Just to let you know what I’ll be doing in the coming days… I’ll be in Naha tonight, and in the morning I’m taking a ferry to Tokashiki Island (ferry is the only way I know how to get there, and it only runs like twice a day, so I’m guessing this island is fairly remote.) I’ll be staying at a beach hotel there for a couple of days, just relaxing, taking in the sun, and oh yeah, going scuba diving for the first time ever! (very excited about that). After a couple of long days in tropical paradise, the plan is to take the ferry back to Naha and catch a flight to Fukuoka. I’ll explore Fukuoka that night only and the next day begin making use of my Japan Rail Pass (which you should look into if you ever plan to come to Japan.) The train will take me to Hiroshima, Osaka, Kyoto, and then back to Tokyo (stopping for a few days in each city.) I’ll try to update you regularly throughout my trip!