Ottsworld Travel Experiences » Japan

Photo of the Week – Tokyo

admin — Fri, 26 Feb 2010 07:14:36 +0000

In Tokyo you can find practically anything in vending machines – they are high tech! Walking down the street you’ll find them lined up pimping the familiar and not so familiar! Can you imagine buying beer or sake from a vending machine?

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Budget Tokyo

Sherry — Tue, 18 Dec 2007 07:04:01 +0000

View Tokyo Photography

View Tsukiji Fish Market Photography

View Tokyo snapshots

Since I only had 4 days in Tokyo, and little money left for traveling, I had a challenge – how do you stay in Tokyo on a budget. After months of living a simple life – I think I was up to the challenge. The first big accomplishment was finding a reasonably priced hotel amongst the sea of business travelers on company expense budgets. I was lucky enough to find Sawonoya Ryokan – an oasis surrounded by the old neighborhoods of Tokyo. For $40 a night I stayed in a small room, slept on a straw mat on the floor – but had plenty of comforts such as television, tea, free internet, and a shared Japanese bath. In addition, they served breakfast in their lobby area – western style for $4 and an authentic Japanese breakfast for the same price.

If you are on a budget, then the subway is a must. After spending a day lost in the subway, I became much more at ease with the Tokyo subway for the remaining 3 days. All of a sudden, it all made sense, as I looked around I even noticed English signs that seemed to escape me the first day in my confusion and panic. The subway rides range from $1.60 to $3.00 depending on the distance you are traveling. This is a bargain compared to the one cab-ride that I took which lasted about 20 minutes and cost $25. However, I found that my favorite way to get around was on foot. It is really the way to see neighborhoods and culture and Tokyo.

Photo: Man feeding birds in Ueno Park
Most days I chose one or two neighborhoods to explore. I would take the subway to one and then walk all day around it or into others and then subway home. My walking took me to many wonderful places where I was able to explore at my pace. I learned that if you want to experience ‘old Tokyo’ – then you need to spend time in Ueno and Asakusa. I spent a whole day walking through these neighborhoods to simply watch and understand Japanese life. I started off walking around the neighborhood, the little back alleys sprinkled with bikes and green plants. The first thing that struck me is that there were many bikes in Tokyo – however none of them appeared to be locked up. I knew that Tokyo was safe – but I couldn’t fathom leaving bikes outside not locked up…that seemed ludicrous. I thought for a moment that I had walked into this safe haven utopia! However, after day two and a little closer inspection of the bikes, I realized that they had a wheel lock built in – no separate piece – it was already attached to the wheel and then went through the back spoke. Granted – the locks still weren’t prohibiting anyone from picking up the bike and carrying it away…indicating that Tokyo is safer than most large cities. In addition, I found it funny that everyone rode their bikes on the sidewalks amongst the pedestrians. As a pedestrian, you always had to be on your toes. No one seemed upset or mildly concerned about the bikes intermixed with the pedestrians on foot. It’s not like the sidewalks were abandoned, quite the opposite – however somehow the bikes and people intermixed successfully – a site you really wouldn’t be able to see in much of the world…certainly not in the US!

I wandered into temples in the various neighborhoods – the uniqueness of the temples called me inside. I watched people as they went through their rituals that all seemed extremely foreign to me. I didn’t really understand much of it, but there was definitely a process that was to be followed. I later learned that before entering a temple, there was always a water ‘trough’ with long handled ladles hanging above it. These ladles were used for ‘cleansing’ yourself before entering the temple. Once you enter the shrine, you are to throw money in the offering box, ring the gong, pray, clap your hands twice, bow, and then back away from the shrine. Of course – since I learned about these rituals after the fact – I’m positive that I will go to Japanese hell (banished to karaoke bars) for not doing these things! Hopefully the Japanese Buddhists or Shinto’s will give me a pardon. Many temples were surrounded by cemeteries. I love how cemeteries vary by country and religion, and I had never seen a cemetery like the Japanese ones. There were gravesites all closely placed together, and they were kept up very well. The gravesites were normally surrounded by flowers, and a bunch of tall, flat, narrow sticks with Japanese writing on them. Each gravesite had about 5 to 10 sticks behind it sticking up tall into the air – as if they were reaching for the sky. They honestly reminded me of giant popsicle sticks. From what I later learned – the giant sticks were Buddhist name markers, yet I still never really understood the significance of them.

Next I came to a huge park filled with people, fountains, fall colors, musicians, and lots of birds.

I found vantage points and simply sat and people watched for a few hours throughout the park – photographing some of the locals and many of the birds. Shinobazu Lake in Ueno Park was full of old men feeding birds – which made it feel like a bird sanctuary. The lake was surrounded by the modern buildings of Ueno, giving the whole place a Central Park feel to me. I then went to a market area in Ueno – one of the last authentic goods markets in Tokyo, Ameyoko Market. It was a post WWII black market that had survived the influx of post WWII department stores – this market survived on old style bartering and selling to locals. When I think of Asia – I think of markets. I loved Ameyoko market – it was my first real glimpse of Asia in this very non-Asian feeling city. It was filled with people hawking fresh fish, clothing, spices, and individually shrink wrapped shoes and boots. I was baffled by why the shoes were shrink wrapped (each one separately), but was never able to communicate my question as to “why?”

Street Sushi

I was starting to get hungry again and decided to try to find some place to eat in the myriad of Japanese signs. I came across a shop stall that had many people hovering around it – so of course I was curious. I noticed a big board with pictures of sushi bowls…instinctively I went to look at the pictures knowing they would be my only way of communicating. I stared at the pictures for a while and finally landed upon one that looked like it might be a bowl of tuna sushi over rice. I watched how others ordered and when I got to the front of the line, I pointed to my tuna bowl – and within 5 minutes I was sitting eating sushi and drinking free tea at an outdoor stall with the locals. Everyone stared at me as I was the only tourists sitting there eating – however I received nods of recognition instead of stares of confusion. I was on top of the world. There’s no better feeling than overcoming the unknown and fitting in. I felt invincible as I sat eating my delicious sushi bowl! My sushi bowl was $6 and it was my favorite lunch I had in all of Tokyo…because it was an authentic experience – and it fit my budget!

I walked around the market some more bombarded by colors, sounds, and lights – most of which were coming from the multiple vending machines on ever corner. Not just one vending machine – normally about 5 or 6 lined up – selling any drink (hot or cold) or food that you could imagine. Instead of Starbucks at every corner, Tokyo had vending machines. I decided to become one of the vending community and stopped to get a juice for a $1. After consulting my multiple maps, I took a long walk towards Asakusa.

Plastic Food

Between the two neighborhoods was a stop that was a ‘must see’ for me – Kappabashi-Dori. Kappabashi is the kitchenware shopping district that supplies locals with every imaginable kitchen/restaurant item that you could dream up. Specifically, I was there to see the plastic food models. Japan is a culture that loves their plastic food. In every restaurant window you can find realistic looking food models showcasing their menu. I of course gravitated to the restaurants with food models not only because I thought they were cool, but it was the only way I could order! I was on a quest to see the plastic food stores – so when I got to Kappabashi street and turned down it – I started to panic since there was no plastic food to be found! However – I realized after I went about 4 blocks, turned around and came back on the other side…there were plastic food shops – however they were all on the right side of the street – not the left….crisis avoided! I surveyed the food, in awe of it’s authenticity and even more in awe of the cost. I quickly realized that plastic food wasn’t in my budget…that is if I ever wanted to eat any more real food meals in Tokyo for the remainder of my stay!

Japanese drum

I continued on to Asakusa with a quick stop at the drum museum – which was a bit of a let down – but worth a photo. Asakusa is the home of the famous Sensoji Temple. The temple seems to be surrounded a tourist market selling Japanese crafts and snacks – worth a stop, but I tried not to linger. The temple was where the great people watching was. A large caldron of incense burned outside the temple. The smoke from the caldron is said to heal any bodily ailments – which explains why I saw a woman putting the smoke behind her ears as if it were Chanel No. 5. I finally called it a day after walking back to Ueno, stopping at a tempura restaurant and eating at the little bar for $8. All in all – a very cheap day, but full of great people watching, learning, and photography.

The next day after my early morning trip to the Tsukiji Fish Market, I wandered around Ginza. The area seemed to be peppered with high end stores, an area that didn’t really fit my budget – however I did find a wonderful photography gallery (Kodak Photo Salon above the Leica Camera Store in Ginza) that had exhibits free for the public. I had to search for it for about 40 minutes and then finally realized that I was within a block of it the whole time…typical Tokyo. Next I made my way to the Imperial Palace Grounds. Once I realized that you couldn’t actually get onto the Imperial Palace grounds, it kind of lost it’s interest for me, but I continued to wander the huge park area that was surrounded by a moat and filled with runners (not the moat, the park). There was even a fountain section that was well worth a stop. Next I stopped at the electronics neighborhood, Akihabara – it was as if Best Buy had exploded and reproduced itself into millions of little electronics stores – duty free, and eager to sell. They bombarded you with amplified voices, flashing lights, and techie music. I felt as if I was walking down Las Vegas Blvd. I felt myself heading down the electronic wormhole – I knew I needed a break and a chance to get off my feet – I had been up since 3AM. It was time to find some lunch. I have to admit – I was in desperate need of some food…any food…which is how I landed at McDonalds…but at least it was a cheap lunch! My favorite part of McDonalds was that they had extensive recycling bin instructions – even to the point of a special recycling place to throw your ice and straw…and of course everyone followed the directions exactly…ensuring that Tokyo stays ultra clean and environmentally responsible.

Skyscrapers are free to look at!

Upon my last day in Tokyo, I decided to go see how the other half lives…the ex-pats. Roppongi. As I stepped out of the Roppongi subway – I knew that I had entered a different world….all you had to do was look up. The buildings were massive, shiny, steel fortresses – protecting the ex-pats from the rest of Tokyo. I did find it funny (and very nice) that there were more English signs in this area of Tokyo than any I had experienced before…in addition – there was a Banana Republic…the real sign of western infiltration. I wandered up the hill and to the Mori Art Museum. I decided that I should include a bit of refined culture into my Tokyo experience.

The museum wasn’t cheap – $15, however it did include a

ticket for the Tokyo Tower and the view that went along with it. I love contemporary art, so I decided to splurge – and I can say that it was well worth it. The art was fascinating, strange, and generally thought-provoking and the view was spectacular. As I was looking at the amazing view, a class of teenage students on a field trip came through the tower and museum. I could have watched them interact for hours…phones glued to their hands, big stuffed animals dangling off the phones, and constant giggling…teenagers seem to be the same all over the world.

I had to race back and grab my bags to catch the long train ride to the airport for my departure. On the way I stopped as a road side stand and bought some sushi for $8 – I had to have it one last time, plus a stop at a vending machine for a drink. As I sat and ate my last Tokyo meal, I took an inventory of my time in Tokyo. I covered a lot of ground – 9 different neighborhoods, I ate with the locals, I ‘mastered’ the subways, I ate for under $10 for nearly every meal, I relaxed in Japanese baths, and I saw the local markets (from the past to the present) – I felt like I had really seen Tokyo, in my 4 short days. Plus, I proved that you can see Tokyo for less than $60 per day (including lodging) and have an amazing time…which is a real bargain!

Fishy Business – Tsukiji Market, Tokyo

Sherry — Sat, 15 Dec 2007 17:00:31 +0000

Frozen tuna lined up for inspection

For all Tsukiji Market Photography – click here!

The alarm went off at 2:45AM – I got up disoriented and thought…why do I do this to myself? Yet as my eyes adjusted to the overhead light, and I got up off of my floor mat, I reminded myself that this was the whole purpose of my trip here…this early morning adventure. I know that the best experiences seems to happen in the dark, so I put on my warmest clothes, and my waterproof running shoes, armed myself with my cameras, lenses, flash and a backpack. Made sure that I had my little hand written note in Japanese to give to the cab driver, and I took off out of the Ryokan and out into the dark Tokyo streets to find a cab.

3:00AM: The sheet of paper worked it’s magic – the cab driver knew exactly where to go and he did just that – at the speed of light on the virtually empty Tokyo streets. I held on during the wild ride, becoming more coherent each time he slammed on the breaks. I watched the meter tick away Yen as if it were seconds on a digital clock. I made it to the corner in record time by 3:30AM, and slid out of the cab…”Arigato!” I made my over to the meeting spot, I was 30 minutes early so I decided to go upstairs and try to buy a cup of coffee without speaking Japanese which would most likely take at least 30 minutes. As I was halfway up the stairs I heard someone yell “Sherry-san!” . I stopped and looked and there he was – my fish guide for the morning, Nakamura-san.

Nakamura-san had been providing weekly tours of the market for a number of years. He had a wonderful command of English, a degree in economics, and had spent 12 years working in the Fish market for one of the big wholesalers. I had hired him to show me the ins and outs of the ‘Wall Street of Fish’ – Tsukiji Fish Market in Tokyo. Sure – there are many places that do Tsukiji Market tours; however Nakamura-san offered a unique experience that the other tours didn’t – a real behind the scenes look at the business. Most tours start at 5:30 to see the tuna auction, however we started at 3:30, and spent 3 hours touring around the ground watching the unloading of the fish, the prep, inspection, auctions (fresh tuna, frozen tuna, sea urchins, and live fish), the middle men market, the butchering, and finally breakfast on the market grounds. As long as you were willing to get up early, you could see everything – and most importantly to me – you could photograph everything!

3:30AM: Since I was the only one touring with Nakamura that morning, we took off early and made our first stop at the temple outside of the entrance to the Fish Market. He explained the Japanese temple rituals to me and said a prayer for our safe tour. I thought this a bit odd at the time,it was simply a fish tour, it seemed pretty safe to me. However, once I set foot in the market, I understood why safety was something worth praying for…else I was going to end up as fish market road kill in the crazy vehicle traffic speeding around. He pointed out the large statues/monuments at the temple that were donated by some of the successful middle men – a long history of fish tradition. I kind of liken it to the bull statue outside the New York Stock Exchange – a symbol of finance, the Egg statue at the fish market temple was the symbol of Fish prosperity.

We entered the ground of Tsukiji Market and immediately I was on guard…one has to be extremely aware as you walk the grounds else you will get run over by one of the many speeding vehicles carrying fish – or at the very least yelled at in Japanese. I’m not a morning person, so luckily the my earlier speeding taxi ride prepared me for a bit of the chaos. There are trucks backing in to unload tuna, as well as a barrage of small, fast vehicles that seem like go-carts. Add to that bikes, and men pushing wheel barrels along the wet fish filled ‘roads’. No matter where you go – you always seem to be in the way. Tsukiji Market is a perfect example of vertical integration (I can’t even believe I remember this term from my Economics classes years ago!). It includes the suppliers, shippers, inspectors, middle-men (buyers), and customer. To top it off near the outer ring of the fish market is the market that supplies the people who work in the market – they sell knives, fish hooks, rubber boots, and finally – sushi. This is a complete society around selling and moving fish. This market employs 6000 people, yet there are about 50,000 people in and out each morning. On average, 2,000 tons of fish are sold daily, and annually the market brings in aprox. 5.5 Billion US Dollars…yes – I told you it was big. It is the largest fish market in the world – which is probably why I felt dwarfed as I walked about it.

4:00AM: We first stopped in the shrimp market – they had just received shipments and the inspectors and middle-men were out looking at the product. Next we made our way to the tuna area in time to watch them unload trucks of frozen tuna into a staging area. The tuna looked like huge tuna popsicles to me. They were unloaded off the frozen truck by a man that kicked them out of the back of the truck where they would land 5 ft. below on a rubber tire to soften the blow. From there a man with a large handheld fishhook drug the tuna popsicle to the staging area where they were lined up in straight lines. The men inside all had hooks as they arranged the fish and methodically cut the tails off the fish so that the middle-men could see the quality of the meat. A man with a kettle of hot water would pour it over the frozen fish in order to thaw their outer skin so that people could survey the quality of the fish. The middle-men were stalking around looking at the day’s take and determining what they wanted to bid on and how much the tuna were worth.

Next we moved on over to the fresh tuna staging area. The tuna were massive, ranging from 400 to 500 pounds. I’ve never seen such huge tuna in all of my life. I watched at the men primp and ready the fish for the auction – as if it were in a pageant. Each had a number and some writing that provided information about what country the boat was from that caught it as well as what waters it was caught in, and the weight. Once again, the tail was cut off in order to see the quality of the meat while another man would go around and mark any imperfections on the fish with a red wax. I asked Nakamura-san why the country information mattered, and he indicated that the Japanese fishermen normally caught the fish that went for the highest prices. Conversly, the Chinese fishermen had lower quality fish. The whole thing just made me laugh as China continues their ‘poor quality’ reputation – even in fishing.

5:00 AM: We made our way to the sea urchin auction next. These little slimy urchins are a big ticket item in Tokyo – a small 5 in by 7 inch box (about an 2 inches deep) will sell for about $150. They use the urchin to put on the top of sushi rolls – something that I’d never tried before, but would before I left Tokyo. I watched as the bell rang and all of the men yawned, got up and moved towards the bleachers prepared to bid. The auctioneers were on a pedestal, and seemed to be as animated as playing a game of charades. Next we made our way to the live fish auction – a very full and active auction. First we walked around and watched the fish being inspected. I was in awe of the men that could simply reach a hand into the water container and simply pull out a fish with his hands…this seemed to be a good talent to have! We came across a bin of live fugu, otherwise known as pufferfish- a deadly, toxic fish if prepared the wrong way. We talked to one of the men standing by the fugu and he showed off his fugu preparation license to us – a license that is in high demand. Only people with a license can be allowed to prepare the rare and expenseive fugu, and there are only a few people that have a license. He said that he had to be re-certified every year. I chuckled as I thought about who in the world would want to be a certification judge – it quite possibly may be the worst job on the planet…think of all the people that don’t pass the fugu preparation test…deadly!

5:20AM: The live fish auction was geared up and ready to go. Five auctioneers stood on a platform in front of wooden bleachers full of yawning men wearing baseball hats with blue placards on them. The blue placards indicated that they were approved middle men that worked in the market. The bidding began – of course I understood none of it in Japanese! However – I did understand the activities – hand signals, frantic writing on notepads, gavels hitting the platform – it was fast and furious!

5:30AM: It was about time for the grand-daddy of auctions to begin – the tuna. We rushed over to the fresh tuna auction. As I entered the big hanger, I realized that this was the first time I actually saw other tourists…they had just arrived now – and I had been there for 2 hours already photographing all of the prep and watching the inner workings of the market. I knew then, Nakamura’s tour was worth it. The fresh tuna was auctioned off by a walk around auction. One auctioneer followed by a bunch of middlemen carrying clipboards and flashlights (to better inspect the tuna). As you would expect, the auctioneer was animated in his actions, voice, and body language. I was mesmerized by his personality – it really looked like he enjoyed his job – often laughing and smiling…just another day at the office. Nakamura told me that the first fish sold (and presumably always the best fish) was sold for a mere $15,000 US. Yes – you heard that right. I stared at the expensive tuna and thought about how it cost me more than my first new car – a Ford Escort. I thought about how this was the middle man price – then it had to be cut up and sold in smaller chunks to restaurants and grocery stores, and by the time I paid for it – it was only a small piece of that $15,000. For any of you that wonder why sushi is so expensive – well – everyone needs their cut and if it already starts at $15,000 you do the math. I really don’t believe there is a ton of mark up on sushi any longer!

Video of the fresh Tuna ‘walk-around’ auction – click on arrow to view:

6:00AM:
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I watched the men as they loaded the 500 pound tuna on a wheel barrel type cart (click on photos above for detail). It took two large men to drag the dead, but expensive, weight onto the cart – back breaking work. We followed the cart into the wholesale market area where they butcher and sell the fish to restaurants, grocery stores, and other buyers. You may wonder – how do you go about butchering a 500 pound tuna …with a big sword/knife and about 4 men. The men all worked together in unison to quarter the fish and work around the bones, a true art. I looked around the busy stalls – everyone bringing back their goods from the auction and butchering, shucking, scaling, and preparing. It dawned on me that this was the first time in the last 3 hours that I saw a female in the market. The females tended to be the bookkeepers and would do all of the money collection for the wholesale stand. I guess they know that women need their beauty sleep – or maybe pulling around 500 pound tunas isn’t considered women’s work – regardless – they definitely had the posh job in the market since they didn’t have to show up for work until 6AM!

6:30AM: We walked out of the wholesale area (pictured below) leaving all of the shucking and butchering behind. We crossed over the busy ‘highway’ of quickly moving vehicles busy loading outgoing trucks and ended up near a row of little sushi restaurants on the premises of the market. It was officially the end of my wonderful tour. Now it was time to eat breakfast…sushi. I love sushi, and there was no way I was leaving the largest fish market in the world, in a country that is the home of sushi, without eating some. I bid goodbye to Nakamura-san and sat down for a treat – the freshest sushi I had ever had in my life. For $18 I was able to enjoy soup, tea, 8 pieces of sushi (including that expensive sea urchin) and a tuna roll. I have no idea what half of the fish was that I was eating – but one thing was for sure – it was delivered, bought, and butchered only a few hours ago.

7:00AM After breakfast, I went back outside in the market and walked through the rubber boot vendors and knife vendors – salivating over the beautiful cutlery. I stood around and watched the trucks getting loaded for a while and then finally decided that I had seen the best of what there was to see. As I made my way out of the market complex dodging the vehicles, I saw many well-rested tourists coming into the market with their cameras. I couldn’t help but feel sorry for them as they missed the best parts of the market – the part that happened in the dark of night.

The market is a must see in Tokyo – to learn more about Nakamura’s tours – visit his website at http://homepage3.nifty.com/tokyoworks/TsukijiTour/TsukijiTourEng.htm

Photos: Me at the Fish Market, eating sushi breakfast! (click on them for larger images)

Underbelly of Tokyo

Sherry — Wed, 12 Dec 2007 01:20:05 +0000

Tokyo Subway - Super clean

For the ‘best of’ Tokyo Photography – click here!

For snapshots of the subway – click here!

There are 32 million people living in Tokyo. 8 Million of them ride the subway every day. That turns into about 3,000 people on each train. No wonder why most of the time you feel like a sardine and it often takes a white gloved ‘subway conductor’ to squeeze you into the car before the doors shut. Not only were they a great way to travel across the massive city at a reasonable price, but they provided quite a lot of entertainment for me as I kept my mind busy comparing and contrasting the Tokyo metro with other subways around the world.

The first thing that stood out to me was that Tokyo is a clean city, ultra clean. You could do the ‘white glove’ test anywhere and it would pass, hell – you could even abide by a ’15 second’ rule if you dropped your food it was so clean – even in the subway. It was a far stretch from the New York subway that was my commuting vehicle for 3 ½ years. I’m not sure where they put all of the homeless people and the artistic entertainers in the Tokyo…because they weren’t in the subway. I’m used to associating the subway with an underground dark, dank, dirty, rat infested hole. So when I came down the functioning escalator to the heated platform – I was shocked to find recycling bins, helpful live attendants, and speaker systems that didn’t sound like the Peanut’s Gang teacher.

Riding the subway provided some of the best people watching around. I would sit and amuse myself watching all of the locals around me commuting, and construct conclusions about the people, the subway, and the culture. I concluded that 7 out of the 8 million commuters wore a shade of black, navy, or gray – leaving a bit of a gloomy glow. Photo: A busy station stop in Shinjuku – sea of people!
However – among that black you would often see a pink stuffed animal sticking out of someone’s pocket…a cell phone ‘charm’ (I would call it a cell phone pet from my perspective). Sure – we have cell phone charms – but it was if someone took a stuffed teddy bear and hung it off their phone – the phone danglers were huge and multiple. I watched kids and adults, men and women, whip out their phones with their dangling stuffed animal at the end, not ever fully understanding the functionality of it. Lord knows that it was too big to fit in your pocket, but there was some draw to the dangling furballs. I guess the obvious one is that they wouldn’t easily misplace or lose their phone!

Another thing that stood out were the stations guards/conductors. There were always multiple conductors at each station, dressed in crisp uniforms, carrying an amplified microphone, and always wearing white gloves. These white gloved men were the keepers of order on the subway – they ensured that people waited in organized queues, and that the maximum amount of people were squeezed into the car in order to efficiently keep the system running on time. By the way, the subways runs about 98% on time – a miracle considering the amount of people. I would just sit there and let trains pass just to watch them do their job – amazed at the orderliness moving masses of people.

I’m not really sure what Tokyo locals do at night – but whatever they do – it must not include sleep. I say this because no matter what time of day, at least 50 % of the subway car was sleeping. I’m not joking – I actually conducted little surveys when I would ride a car – counting the number or awake people to dosing people. I couldn’t find any commonality among the data – young, old, blue collar, white collar, men, women – they were all sleeping. The strangest thing is that somehow, miraculously they would wake up in time for their stops. I started to wonder if their cell phones were somehow connected to the train schedule and would set off a little alarm at their stop and wake them up. It actually seemed like a feasible explanation after you see the amazing functionality that a Japanese cell phone holds!

The Tokyo subway system should be given the award for the most forward thinking subway I’ve ever ridden. They not only had recycle bins all over the stations protecting the environment, but they also had escalators and elevators at the stations making the whole system elderly friendly. Finally – they even had special ‘women only’ cars that they enforced during the rush hours. Considering you were shoved into the cars during the rush hours – a woman only car seemed liked a brilliant idea!

Photo: Subway map and ticket machines
After stumbling through the first day of confusing signs, maps, and Japanese ticket machines – I came to love the subway. I realized that there was much more English than I originally thought, I learned how to understand our direction and what station stops were coming up next, and I even learned how to finally buy a transfer ticket at a ticket machine! That feeling of going from total confusion to understanding it is priceless. But most of all, I was able to see a slice of Japanese culture that you will never see from a taxi – the underbelly of Tokyo.

Lost in Transition – Tokyo

Sherry — Mon, 10 Dec 2007 21:02:45 +0000

Japanese Wooden Dolls

For the ‘best of’ Tokyo Photography -click here!

For all snapshots of Day 1 in Tokyo – click here!

This is it – the last stop before I hit the US, one last hurrah – and I chose to do it completely on my own…solo…what I want to do, when I want to do it. No tour company, no friends, no sister, no travel book….just me, with a camera, an internet connection and an immense amount of patience. It had been a while since I had been completely solo, so it was quite a transition for me to make again. Not only was it a transition to be solo, but it was a transition to be back exploring some place new again since I had spent the last 20 days in Singapore, now considered my 2nd home.

Transitions are never easy, and I had to be reminded once again that the first day is always the hardest in a new country – and it gets better and better after that. Everything is so new the first day, transportation, food, safety, location, cultural differences – it’s really exhausting and can be frustrating. The key is to not let it get you down. It’s so easy for people to get frustrated at the newness, and the unkown, but you just have to stick it out past day 1 and it will get better, easier, and more familiar. I personally think that’s why many people (ahem…Americans) are actually afraid to travel…but I can save that topic for a different post! You need to embrace the differences, yet even for a seasoned traveler like myself, I still have to be reminded that day 1 is always a struggle.

Tokyo provided some additional challenges for me – mainly the language barrier. Sure, everyone told me that it would be difficult – but I went in with my normal attitude that all it takes is a smile and you will eventually find someone that will speak English…not so in Tokyo. There is really just the bare minimum in English…which basically means that some of the subway maps have English on them. I was really stunned at how little English there was around Tokyo, and even fewer people actually speak it. The part I found amusing is that everyone would speak Japanese to me as if I understood. Granted, I didn’t expect them to speak English, but I found it funny how they would speak whole paragraphs in Japanese looking right at me, expecting me to respond – and clearly I wasn’t Japanese. Maybe I should take it as a compliment that they thought I might understand! At the restaurants and shops that I went into – the people would all great me in Japanese and rattle off a number of sentences, and I would just look at them and smile without understanding a single word. They would continue to with sentences in Japanese, and I would nod and smile, not having one idea of what they were saying. The good thing is that you would be surprised how much you actually do understand based on the situation…I might not of understood what they said – but I know they were greeting me, or asking me if everything was alright, or to come back again, or to have a good day – I always answered with a smile and a nod – my one universal language.

Photo: Sawanoya Ryokan Room
I arrived under the cover of darkness – my least favorite time to arrive in a new country, but I made it to my hotel fine after a long train ride from the airport, and a taxi. I found this great ryokan, a traditional Japanese Inn, where you can experience living in the Japanese culture. In a ryokan you can experience the elements of Japanese culture and customs; living in a room with a straw mat flooring, changing into a typical yukata robe after taking a hot spring bath and sleeping on a futon put down directly on the floor. Sure, this all sounds pretty luxurious…but, you have to remember – I did a ryokan budget style, but it was well worth it! I stayed at the Sawanoya Ryokan, and it was hands down one of my top 5 hotels/hostels I’ve stayed in the world…for only $40 a night in Tokyo…not too shabby. I had my own little room with a sink and a shared bathroom. There were two traditional Japanese baths located on the main floor that were a delight to use. . In this ryokan they assumed you knew nothing about Japanese culture, so they provided you lessons. They provided ‘directions’ on how to take a traditional Japanese bath which includes sitting on a little stool and washing off, then getting into a hot tub of water to soak…pure bliss There was also a very detailed diagram of how to prepare and drink Japanese tea in your room. The owner took me around the Inn and told me where I was to wear the provided slippers, or no shoes at all. I could have used some more lessons on how to use the toilet though…there were more button and gadgets on that toilet than I’d ever seen…all in Japanese of course! However, it didn’t take me understanding Japanese to learn that the toilet seat was heated…talk about ecstasy!

Photo: Old Tokyo neighborhood
The owner also provided maps and information about the subway, the neighborhood, and generally was a wealth of information – I felt confident about my ability to conquer Tokyo when I talked to him …then when I stepped out the door and down the block, out of the comfort of English, that confidence quickly went to hell! Everywhere you look – the signs are in Japanese, I had no idea if it was a subway entrance, a restaurant, or a gentleman’s club! In addition to the map he provided me, I had two other maps that provided various amounts of detail on the neighborhoods and the subways and trains. You would think that this would be enough…but I was still constantly lost. One map didn’t have enough detail, but it had point of interest on it. One had detail, but no points of interest. One had subway exits, and but no street information. After standing staring at the signs in the subway with my 3 maps trying to figure out how much money I had to put into the Japanese machine…I was about ready to call ‘uncle’!

Photo: Shibuya Crossing
My first day was….well…difficult. I decided to go to the big populated glitzy areas of Tokyo first – so I head off on subway to Shibuya, Harajuku, and Shinjuku. I took the subway cautiously – hoping that I was going the right way. Luckily I did find my stop, and was bolstered with confidence from my first successful subway ride. I came out of the subway to be greeted by swarms of people, amplified voices and glaring mirrored buildings. Tokyo is an assault to the eyes, kind of like India minus the poverty and sheer amazement of oddities. Instead, Tokyo is stimulus overload. Loud speakers beckoning you to come inside, lights, videos, a bombardment of images and color…it could easily give you a headache. I simply stood at Shibuya crossing (where about 5 streets meet), and watched the busiest street crossing in the world. Over 200 people cross with each light, a sight to see – and this was at 11AM, not even close to rush hour. For fun, I actually walked into one of the many pachinko gambling complexes and it was like nothing I had ever heard before. The decibel level of the noise of the machines made my ears bleed. It was smoky, and colorful lights were going off everywhere – People stared like zombies into the machines, it was actually rather depressing – but to each his/her own.

I walked from neighborhood to neighborhood with my 3 maps in hand and my camera around my neck. Unfortunately the street signs were generally not in English either, which led me to stop every other block and re-look at my maps in vain. I walked around Harajuku – the teeny bopper Japanese hangout. It was as if Miss Kitty, Little Bo Peep, and the Wicked Witch of the West had all come together and morphed into Tokyo fashion. Yet it was strangely reminiscent of San Francisco to me…people that simply wanted to stand out and make an impact. Supposedly on the weekends the neighborhood is filled with young Tokyo teenagers trying to stand out and outdo each other. Unfortunately I was there on a Tuesday – and they were all behaving themselves in school, so I was unable to get any photos of the ‘freak show’. I moved on to Shinjuki, as I had read about a recommended tempura restaurant in the neighborhood, so I decided to challenge myself by trying to find it. Little did I know that after 2 hours of looking for it – and probably within about 2 blocks of it – I finally gave up. I’d had it. I was probably walking right by it for all I knew. I even tried to stop someone and ask them where it was, but that was a lost cause too. I was tired, hungry, and fed up. I wondered how anyone could ever figure this city out! I finally stopped at a tempura place that had pictures I could point to for dinner – and it was fabulous – maybe it was meant to be. However, for all I knew – maybe I was eating at the place that I was looking for all along!

The sun went down at 4:30 which completely threw me for a loop since I had spent most of the last year in the tropics where the sun sets around 7:30PM. It felt like it was 8PM and it started to cool off. I had read that you could go to the Tokyo Metropolitan Government building to see the view from the top floors for free…which fit into my budget – so I armed myself with my 3 maps and made my way towards the tall buildings in Shinjuku. The people had come out in swarms – it was how I remember Times Square at 6PM…crowded and crazy, but times 2. The amounts of people were massive and I was swimming upstream towards the office buildings as they were trying to make their way to the subway. I made it to the Government building, and the view was spectacular. That was really the first time that I was able to get a feeling for how big Tokyo really was.

My whole body hurt after walking around lost for the last 9 hours, so I decided it was time to head back to my part of town. No problem, there was a big subway station in Shinjuku. I entered the station and was immediately transported in my memory bank to Penn Station in NYC. However, this was far worse because I didn’t understand any of the signs! I found a little pillar that I could squeeze up against, take out my maps and try to figure out where in the hell to go. I made it to the ticket machines and that was the end of the line. I was once again lost. I looked at the maps in Japanese and had no idea where I was going. I could see where I needed to get to, and I could see how much it cost, but I couldn’t figure out how to buy the ticket because it included a transfer to another line and there were no options for that on the ticket machine that I could find or understand. When I clicked on the transfer button, everything on the screen turned to Japanese – so I wasn’t getting anywhere very fast. They apparently didn’t expect tourists to make transfers! I must have stood there and stared at the ticket terminal and my maps for about 5 minutes when I heard a voice….a voice that rose above the footsteps, and the background noise of Japanese. I heard English!!!!! A young British man asked me if I needed any help! Yes, yes – I do need help!!!! I love Brits!!! As we figured out how to get my transfer ticket (an unknown to him too), I learned that he was a seasoned veteran at the Tokyo subway… he had been in Tokyo for 3 days…practically a local by now! We were both going in the same direction so we rode the train together for a few stops until we had to part. It was so nice to speak to someone for the first time all day. Up until then I had just smiled, nodded, and pointed….that was it. Now I was sitting here having a conversation…bliss! He gave me some great pointers about how to read the maps in the subway and figure out which way to go, etc. It’s amazing what a difference a few days makes.

I got back to my ryokan that night, relieved to take off my shoes, put on my sandals and robe, take a Japanese bath, and make a pot of tea – Japanese style of course. I reveled in my accomplishments of the day – basically that I had found my way back to my ryokan. As I reflected on the whole day, there was certainly frustration, but there was also elation at surviving, which is why I like traveling solo. You have to enjoy the small victories when you travel. Tokyo is not easy, it requires patience, and understanding. Sometimes you have to realize that being lost isn’t necessarily a bad thing.

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