Alex in Motion

My final destination in Japan was Tokyo, and what an amazing city! Initially I planned to visit for a week but then quickly realized there was so much to experience that I had stay for several days more. For the largest in the world city, at about 13.5 million people, it felt surprisingly comfortable. You just need to attack it in districts.

I actually felt sad when it was time to book my exit flight, as it meant the end of some best times on this sabbatical. There’s so much more of Japan I want to explore, such as the islands to the south and the whiskey factories to the north. Places where you need to spend a much longer period of time to revel in the moment.

Having a JR rail pass means traveling by train is significantly cheaper, but it also encourages you to keep moving, to get your full money’s worth. For my next trip to Japan, which will hopefully be soon, I’ll skip the pass and completely alleviate any time constraints. Not that I couldn’t stay longer if I truly wanted; it’s just all good things must come to an end and there are so many other countries to visit.

As for Tokyo itself, it’s challenging to summary the experience in a single post. Here are some highlights.

I stayed in a cost-effective capsule hotel for the entire time. It was modern and very clean, with sufficient privacy when needed and a welcoming common room to socialize with fellow travelers. One evening we all made and cooked dumplings, which made for an tasty and enjoyable time.

A sumo demonstration was something I just couldn’t miss. Apparently it’s rare for even locals to meet, greet and have lunch these wrestlers, so it was a pleasant treat. As a small group, we met two former professional sumo wrestlers who showed us how they trained, some of the warm up and stretching exercises, and then presented some basic maneuvers. Afterwards we were able to ask them questions to learn even more. For example, the reason they stamp the ground before a match is to crush evil spirits.

I also had the opportunity to dress up and wrestle with one of them, and I totally beat him up. He tried to overpower me, but I utterly crushed the 300lbs (135kg) professional and threw him on his big fat ass. It was totally genuine combat and in no way did he let me win. No way.

One experience not to miss in Tokyo is the Robot Restaurant. It’s a hard to explain in a few sentences but basically it’s a show where they dress up in elaborate costumes and fight others in evil robot costumes. It was larger than life and many times the guy sitting beside me and I laughed and asked ourselves, “what… the… fuck?” Even the waiting room before the show was out of this world, with every inch decorated in reflective material. It put Las Vegas to shame.

For scenery, a visit to the Tokyo Skytree was breathtaking, with a 360 degree view of the city from 450 meters above. It’s the tallest tower in the world, and my sensitivity to the blowing winds made it impossible to stay up there for very long. Great pictures on a sunny day though!

There are several districts which can be enjoyed by a casual stroll, from Hachiko, Tokyo’s version of NYC’s Times Square, to Akihabara, the electronic village to the hip, trendy areas of town. Between long walks and the expansive subways system, it was really easy to explore the endless city.

A couple of times I met up with locals and able to enjoy wonderful restaurants that didn’t have English menus. One style of food is called Izakaya, and like a typical foodie, I took pictures of every delicious course.

Baseball is a huge cultural event, so I made sure to attend a game. It was funny to see sections of stadium dedicated to each team, where they sung continuously while their team was at bat. Lots of cheerleaders and mascots were running around doing weird things too. Although I’m not a baseball fan, I made sure to eat a traditional hot dog and drink beer like a proper spectator.

For my last night in Japan, I went to the New York Bar in Tokyo Hyatt. It’s an elegant live jazz bar, made famous for the scene where Bill Murray meets Scarlet Johansson in “Lost in Translation”. Aside from wonderful night views of the city from the 52nd floor, the jazz was smoothing and the food was tasty, albeit overpriced.

Japan’s entertaining culture, delightful food and amazing personality places it into my top 3 countries of all time. It’s a must see for any traveler, and I would be happy to share more details about my experience and provide explicit recommendations.

Here is a compilation of funny, interesting, clever or weird things I noticed while travelling throughout Japan. All of them made me love Japan even more 🙂

Note: Some of these things MAY exist elsewhere, but I haven’t seen them in other countries before.

Even if it wasn’t improperly translated, it’s funny they tell you the differences between running and walking.

 

To secure your vehicle, a locking mechanism rises. This ensures you pay for parking and no one steals your vehicle.

 

Apparently some people have no idea how to use the toilet.

 

The grey plate spins, allowing stationary cars to turn sharply and navigate the tight parking space.

 

Most Japanese vending machines dispense cold drinks (soda and cola) and hot drinks (coffee and tea). This one also serves beer.

 

Rather than use water, which can overflow and cause a mess, they use clear jello.

 

Some restaurants have a kiosk in front, allowing you to order and pay for your meal using pictures with several language options. You then present the coupon to the serving staff.

 

Gas station use fuel pumps that raise to the ceiling, allowing you more options to park.

 

This was too cute; running full speed downstairs to reach to the bathroom.

 

A train map, clearly explaining everything you need to know in an easy-to-read format.

 

What not to do while waiting for your train.

 

Signs indicating traffic direction.

 

Signs indicating how many calories you burn while walking upstairs.

 

What is the guy in the bottom picture doing exactly? Why isn’t he looking down and aiming?

 

Hello Kitty holds up construction bars.

By chance, I arrived in Takayama during their two day spring festival. The town has a well preserved district – which was my reason for visiting – that allowed you to see how people lived many years ago. Thus the festival was a pleasant surprise and unexpected bonus. This also meant finding accommodations was challenging, as everything reasonably priced was already booked and anything close to the city center was overpriced. Without many choices, I ended up spending the night in a love hotel in the next small town.

A love hotel is basically a short-stay hotel where Japanese men take women to engage in sexual activities. The women could be their wives (although unlikely), girlfriends, mistresses or escorts. Aside from the smoke-tingled furniture, framed lights over the bed and a massaging apparatus, the room looked disappointingly normal. I was expecting disco lights, love cushions or other weird kinky stuff. Heck, I couldn’t even find a decent x-rated film to watch on television (not that I’m into that kinda thing – I was just doing research).

The spring festival was very enjoyable, as throngs crowded the narrow streets to watch locals dressed in traditional attire sing, dance and play instruments. Some kids were dressed in dragon costumes, and danced in front of shop owners – perhaps for prosperity. There were also a dozen 200 year old floats with intricate detailing and designed. Each one has a well-documented history are only presented to the public twice a year for the spring and fall festivals, so they were a big deal.

I meandered the streets, enjoying the festival, sampling the local cuisine and store sweets and soaked the positive energy. Another bonus that complimented the good vibe was seeing cherry blossom trees, which were no longer in bloom in other cities.