I was so exhausted during my first day in Japan that I barely remember any of it. From what I can recall it wasn't a very memorable day. I just mulled around and tried my hardest not to crash out and fall asleep so I could maintain a decent body clock and function the next day as normal.
The train ride from Narita airport to my hotel in Ueno was interesting. First off, I took the long train which stopped at 26 stops in between where I was and where I was trying to get to. Second of all was the reaction of the locals. Stepping on a train and seeing some 6"4 black dude sat on a seat with a giant suitcase did illicit some very unsubtle reactions. I'm sure I'll go down in Japanese legend in the towns of Yachiyo and Funabashi.
One unnecessary train exchange and a wrong stop later and I was in Ueno, which is where I was staying. Ueno wasn't my first choice of location, as I remember how boring the area was from my first visit. But every other hotel in other areas were booked out. There was accommodation available in Roppongi, but I was not staying there. I'd never stay there. Roppongi is a ghetto. The way that place transforms at night will leave you scared. I still have night terrors from the first night I visited there 4 years ago. I saw an old homeless man's penis, I saw toothless prostitutes, I saw African men trying to make out with Japanese girls who were pretty much in coma's that they were so drunk and I had a prostitute who looked old enough to remember World war 2 grab my arm. She touched me. In my good coat. I threw that shit straight into the dustbin on the way home. These are my memories of Roppongi. WILL NEVER BOOK A HOTEL THERE EVAR!!
After dragging my suitcase through every wrong street in Ueno I finally arrived at the hotel. Drenched in sweat and having not showered in what felt like days, I showered, changed took 5 and then I was off to LIVE Japan as well as one can when they've not slept on an 11 hour flight and just wants to go to bed.
I was feeling peckish so my friend and I went for somewhere to eat. I completely forgot that for the next 2 weeks, communication with locals would be limited and that we'd have to resort of a conversation consisting of finger pointing, gestures and impromptu games of charades. Upon walking into a restaurant I was greeted with the obligatory Irasshaimase....everything after that, I have no idea. There was lots of pointing at menu's, lots of hands, lots of blank stares and lots of Ummmm'ing, Ahhh'ing and Samurai style grunting. After witnessing an 8 star level of difficulty in my friend trying to extract info from the man behind the counter as to what was in the toasted sandwich he was pointing at in the menu, I'd decided to just point to the drink which looked nicest in the poster stuck at the counter and be done with it. I was not in the mood and was low on patience at trying to navigate the minefield of Japanese courtesy and not come off like an obnoxious gaijin. I'd save that all for tomorrow. With the ordeal of ordering our first meal behind us, and prologuing what would surely a become a daily event for the next 10 days, we decided to head onto to Ginza. For no particular reason other than...
The train ride from Narita airport to my hotel in Ueno was interesting. First off, I took the long train which stopped at 26 stops in between where I was and where I was trying to get to. Second of all was the reaction of the locals. Stepping on a train and seeing some 6"4 black dude sat on a seat with a giant suitcase did illicit some very unsubtle reactions. I'm sure I'll go down in Japanese legend in the towns of Yachiyo and Funabashi.
One unnecessary train exchange and a wrong stop later and I was in Ueno, which is where I was staying. Ueno wasn't my first choice of location, as I remember how boring the area was from my first visit. But every other hotel in other areas were booked out. There was accommodation available in Roppongi, but I was not staying there. I'd never stay there. Roppongi is a ghetto. The way that place transforms at night will leave you scared. I still have night terrors from the first night I visited there 4 years ago. I saw an old homeless man's penis, I saw toothless prostitutes, I saw African men trying to make out with Japanese girls who were pretty much in coma's that they were so drunk and I had a prostitute who looked old enough to remember World war 2 grab my arm. She touched me. In my good coat. I threw that shit straight into the dustbin on the way home. These are my memories of Roppongi. WILL NEVER BOOK A HOTEL THERE EVAR!!
After dragging my suitcase through every wrong street in Ueno I finally arrived at the hotel. Drenched in sweat and having not showered in what felt like days, I showered, changed took 5 and then I was off to LIVE Japan as well as one can when they've not slept on an 11 hour flight and just wants to go to bed.
I was feeling peckish so my friend and I went for somewhere to eat. I completely forgot that for the next 2 weeks, communication with locals would be limited and that we'd have to resort of a conversation consisting of finger pointing, gestures and impromptu games of charades. Upon walking into a restaurant I was greeted with the obligatory Irasshaimase....everything after that, I have no idea. There was lots of pointing at menu's, lots of hands, lots of blank stares and lots of Ummmm'ing, Ahhh'ing and Samurai style grunting. After witnessing an 8 star level of difficulty in my friend trying to extract info from the man behind the counter as to what was in the toasted sandwich he was pointing at in the menu, I'd decided to just point to the drink which looked nicest in the poster stuck at the counter and be done with it. I was not in the mood and was low on patience at trying to navigate the minefield of Japanese courtesy and not come off like an obnoxious gaijin. I'd save that all for tomorrow. With the ordeal of ordering our first meal behind us, and prologuing what would surely a become a daily event for the next 10 days, we decided to head onto to Ginza. For no particular reason other than...
- There was a train station around the corner
- Ginza was only 7 stops away