The Rising Sun

Meiji shrine

Well, its been a long time since ive done any blogging recently, but ive decided that im going to start in the hopes that i can use it not only for my own past refernce, but so that other people can have a little idea of what i was doing when i was overseas.Anyhow in this entry im going to write about my flight to japan, and my observations about japan. its going to get a bit confusing because later im going to talk about how i got to my flight in the first place, but here goes.


Arriving in japan at the time had been the most fortunate event of the past few days, and realizing that they were now behind me, i was relieved. but getting off the plane i realized the raw efficecy of the narita airport. the airport although lacking in architectual spelendor is one of the best set-up airports that ive been through. this all granting the large size of the airport itself.

Anyhow, after arriving in the airport i went through customs who decided to check my bags (always helps being on a warning list) and they let me go through. but he informs me on the airport policy of cameras in the immigration areas. so i take off my camera while he inspects my bags, and after he is finished, i go on my merry way(not realizing that i had left my camera there. then i make a logical plan in my mind, i need money -> internet -> transportation -> sleep. so realizing what i had to do, i go to the information counter, and ask for assitance, afterwards heading to the ATM machine. at the atm machine, i was quickly befuddled by the atm which was all written in japanese kanji. then astonished at the fact that all but one of the machines(thank you western union) would only dispense 100,000 yen bills ($100USD). there i meet a middle aged gentleman from oregon who is serving his tour in japan, who after departing his words of wisdom upon me, also has to disembark. after getting money i decide to use the coin-op internet terminals (1$/10 min) to get steve's contact information. then i work my way back to the information booth, and there i discover that the lady at counter is meticulously cataloging a newer model camera.... a camera that happens to look just like mine... a camera that just happens to be mine....

it seems that fate itself isnt without a sense of irony, but this is merely a philisophical observation ive made and has no significance with the story

ironically i happened to find my camera without actually realizing that i had lost it in the first place. so i tell the lady that it is infact my camera, i turn it on, and display a pretty picture of myself. she gives it to me, and a form.... and im on my way to yokohama. home of the famous gaijin that ill mention numerous times later.

So first i make a phone call to steve telling him that im going to be heading his direction, and inform him about yumi's proposal to let me stay at her house. which i wasnt confident enough in to actually dump my plans with steve in the first place. then i buy my ticket, and the ticket lady informs me that i have to run my ass to the terminal before i miss the next train.

while im on the train, and it makes its way from narita airport, i see the relevation that "Gee look wilderness.... rice fields... in japan... who would have thought?". also in the train i decide that since its going to be a two hour ride, i better try to enjoy myself... so i engage myself with as many conversations with japanese as possible, hopefully ill learn something that will be able to impress someone eventually. what ive noticed throughout my trip is that japanese tend to keep to themselves, unless given the right motivation. it seems that a train during rush hour will be quiet. but yet a certain "gaijin" being myself, can cause a large amass of conversation, by simply trying to be nice and inquisitive.

finally one japanese businessman decided that he would help me find my friend steve in yokohama, after the realization that i have no fucking clue what im doing. so once i got to yokohama station, i realized that i had lost steve's phone number, i had inadvertantly left it on my boarding pass which i had left on my seat(coincidentally on the seat closest to the door farthest to the front of my car) when i was getting my baggage off the train. so he directed me to a cyber cafe, where i used the internet for no more than 5 mins, and the bill became no less than 600 yen WITH COUPON!!!

after proceeding to call steve, and getting confused on directions around a gigantic mall in central yokohama. i start to start more converstion with the man, and i realize that he was actually intending to go to a baseball game that night later... which i find out was because today was his birthday... and he wasnt due to meet any friends that day... so i felt real appreciation for this man, who had gone out of his way to help me so much. after 30 mins of waiting in the cold for bad directions, i had really wanted to do something to repay his kindness, but he politely declined, and decided to head off to the baseball game after having a quick conversation with steve.

then me and steve made our way to his apartment in a hurried pace, the reason being that we wanted to meet one of his good friends named kev. so after what would be a nice warm-up on any other day, we arrive in the apartment of steve and etsuko. but once we arrived, knowing that we had planned to go see kev, it happened to be that etsuko wanted to have dinner with us on my arrival. knowing that we couldnt do both at the same time, steve had to make a decision to either blow off kev, or etsuko. and although the decision was hard, we ended up heading to the bar, to meet kev.

by the time that we had actually gotten off, time was against us, so we were in store for another quick run to see if we could possibly get to the bar on time, and after being (i think a little bit)late we meet kev, and have a beer. myself being exausted from what would now become the 4th straight day of travelling, was exausted, and i mostly watched as kev and steve had a discussion about a party the night before, and a particular girl that had attended it. another discussion about the nature of japanese alcoholic drinks quickly permeated as the sub discussion of the night. finally kev, who strangely reminds me of someone else i knew (my instincts tell me a pot smoker i knew from CCC), had to go, and me and steve made our way back to his place.. now late at night or what appeared to be due to the change of sunset from the tropics to japan.

so as we make our way back to the apartment, steve teaches me a little about japanese vending machines... appears that japanese have sophisticated vending machines for drinks every couple hundred feet, but no food vending machines anywhere. that, and they also have vending machines for porn, panties, cigarettes, liquor, and anything else thought fathomable.

when we got to the apartment, we tried to be as quiet as possible, because steves roomate etsuko was sleeping. etsuko who is a fourty something year old carrear woman, is steves roomate, she is an outstanding woman, not only in character, but in personallity, her personallity eminates an aura that draws attention. but as quiet as we tried to be, we still ended up waking her up. but graciously enough, she decided that she would treat me and steve to some Sukiyaki, which is roughly comprised of: meat, grayish noodles, tofu, soba-ko noodles, which is fried in sweet sake (mirin), and then dipped in raw eggs. and at the same time i got to partake in sake for the first time.

But before she could cook us the sukiyaki she had to get things prepared so she suggested that i try the japanese bath tub. a japanese bath tub is not quite like an american one. first to use the tub, you shower, clean, and rinse yourself in an adjacent shower first, then your allowed to enter the tub. the reason being is so that the same water(which often times contians a cocktail of special minerals and oils) can be used several times without having to be replaced. the tub itself is about as large as an american size tub in length and width, but twice the depth, and is also electronically controlled to create the users optimum enviroment.

just so happens that i cant read any kanji... so therefore, im again completly befuddeld on how to use the darned thing. so i decide.... better to ask steve what buttons to push, then to try for half an hour, or better yet mess anything up. so i yell "Steve how does this thing work?", and that leads to etsuko trying to get into my room (with me naked) to show me how to use the tub.. "let me in, and ill show you how to use it?" she says. "ummm (confused) im sorta naked..."i reply. then she tries to reassure me of her honest intentions by casually responding "oh no need to be shy.." "im naked" i reply in defiance. by that time i think steve inteviened and reaffirmed to her the importance of my "no" answer. anyhow, with only 4 large buttons and two up/down buttons, i figured out how to use it, and took the bath for 22 mins until 11:15pm.

anyhow, after the sake, the sukiyaki, the onsen, i was feeling pretty good. and the pain that was in my shoulders from my previous blistering pace, were finally begining to subside, i also happened to borrow steves laptop that night to upload my pictures to my fotki, and watched part of the movie zataochi(the blind samurai) before finally snoozing

(next day to be posted later)

Shibuya


Shinjuku