Tales of Tokyo

I remember watching Sofia Coppola's Lost in Translation back in high school after it was released on DVD and thinking, "Japan seems like a totally different world.  I doubt I'll ever visit Tokyo."

It's amazing how much things change.

I spent this past Sunday on a whirlwind tour of Tokyo.  Sarah and I hopped on a night bus at 10:20pm Saturday and arrived at Ikebukuro station in Tokyo at 6am on Sunday.  Our friend Aki was one of the 32,000 people (yep, 32,000) accepted into the Tokyo marathon (it's a lottery entry), and our fellow teacher Peter successfully snuck into - and completed - the marathon.  So, that was our reason for making a day trip to the biggest city in the world, but in reality, we spent a lot more time taking in the city than cheering on the runners.

Ikebukuro in the morning.

We started our morning by hopping no the metro before the sun came up and heading over to Bunkyo Gakuin University.  Sarah studied abroad here in the fall of '08 (back in when I was in Ireland), so she showed me around her old stomping grounds.  I know a few other people who have studied abroad here, so it was fun to see the neighborhood that is so rich in CSB|SJU history.  It's like any study abroad location: nothing can compare with the sense of home you feel there.  I mean, I studied abroad thousands of miles away from Japan, but I could just feel how special the place is to so many.  Plus, I absolutely love cities in the morning.

Sarah was at home again!

Nezu Shrine

Nezu Shrine

So many wishes.

We traipsed around Ueno Park (home of the Chinese-rented pandas!) and into the Ueno area of the city before hopping on the metro once again and heading over to Shinkjuku to watch the start of the race.  We spotted both Peter and Aki among the masses of people and enjoyed watching all of the crazy costumes that people donned for their big run: Spider-Man, Mario and Luigi, Care Bears, a ballerina...  I gotta say, though, that of all the places to run a marathon, I think Japan would be last on my list.  People don't cheer!  They are reserved and respectful, even in a city like Tokyo.  Polite clapping, maybe.  But hootin' and hollerin'?  Forget about it.  If I were running (and let's be honest: that's never gonna happen), I'd need support from the crowd. 

This is what Tsu is missing: a nice park in the middle of the city.
Ueno Park

First light on Ueno.

Runners!

Sarah and I continued our tour in Shibuya, which you may all know for its famous scramble crossing.  It's one of the biggest street crossings in the world, and pedestrians flood the streets from all sides when they're given the "walk" signal.  It was pretty dull early in the morning, but by lunchtime, the number of people was unbelievable.  When I pictured Tokyo, that is what I pictured. 

In the crossing

Bird's eye view from the famous Starbucks

We did some shopping at the famous Shibuya 109 department store and enjoyed a long lunch at Dubliners' Pub (Guinness on tap!), but the best part of Shibuya was seeing the Hachi statue.  Before I left for Japan back in July, My whole family and I watched the movie Hachi starring Richard Gere.  It's a dog story, so my dad insisted that we rent it, but every time we tried to, it was already checked out.  We finally got it a couple weeks before I left, and like most dog movies, I ended up crying like a baby.  I had no idea that it was based on true story about a real dog named Hachi who faithfully waited for his owner each day at Shibuya station.  Well, it naturally made the top of my "Must See in Japan" list, and it was really the only agenda item I had for my trip to Tokyo.  Everything else was just a bonus!

Guinness is still delicious.

Welcome to Tokyo.

109

Hachi

After Hachi, we walked to Harajuku, the famously kitsch shopping area, and Meiji Shrine, one of the most famous in Tokyo.  After taking in even more Tokyo culture, we headed across town to meet up with Peter, Aki, and some of his friends for dinner.  Needless to say, they were both in a more than a little pain after the marathon, but they were in good spirits.  Two hours later, we were back on the night bus and arrived in a rainy Tsu City at 6am Monday.

Meiji Shrine

Meiji Shrine

Harajuku

Oh, and I should say something about the night bus: AWESOME. My one Greyhound experience was less-than-stellar (I swore I was going to get some kind of disease from either the person coughing The Whole Time behind me or the seats that reeked of years of uncleanliness), so I had low expectations for a night bus trip, even in the conscientious country of Japan. Well, the bus was fantastic. Three rows of individuals seats filled the bus, they reclined almost fully, and they even gave us blankets! Full curtains covered all the windows, the lights were turned down, and the ride was completely pleasant. It was a fabulous way to travel.
Tokyo is a great city, but not at all what I expected.  It's big and busy, but it's clean and organized and welcoming.  I know part of the reason I feel that way might be because I've already lived in Japan for almost 7 months, so I have a pretty good handle on how things are done around here - kindly, conscientiously, and conveniently.  But I never felt like I could get (too) lost in Tokyo, and I never for a moment felt unsafe - or even much like I was in a huge city.  But then again, I absolutely love city life.  The one thing that surprised me, and honestly disappointed me a little, is that Tokyo is so modern.  I'm used to visiting cities like London and Paris, which certainly have their modern areas, but that are so rich in history you could spend days taking in the historic sights and learning about the city.  Tokyo has its history, of course, and my tour was certainly abbreviated, but after having visited so many historic places in other parts of Japan, I was surprised by how thoroughly modern Tokyo is.  But it's an incredibly lively and livable city.  I can't wait to go back.

Oh, and as far as Lost in Translation goes, Sarah and I actually walked past the Hyatt hotel that Bill Murray stays at in the film.  How's that for full circle?

Ja mata ne!