First Day In Japan

 

I stepped off the plane buzzing with a 1000 different emotions. I should’ve been completely exhausted from the 14 hour flight with almost no sleep but anxiety was drilling through my body and an alarming rate. I've never step foot outside of America by myself. Anything could’ve happened in my mind, and I was horrified at the thought of being mugged so soon and my adventures. But as I walked into Narita airport to find my way in Tokyo, I was greeted with the best service customer I’ve ever had. Not only did they speak English, and told me how to get into town, but they printed out directions to my hostel for me and even told me which bus to take!

 

Soon I arrived into the busy metropolis known as Tokyo. What a wonder of technology and efficiency! And so very clean. It seemed as if there was not a single piece of trash to be found anywhere. Nor where there any trash cans. Apparently a group of radicals several years ago left toxic gas bombs in a trash bin in the subway, nearly killing many innocent people. After that, the city decided it was best to just remove almost all trash cans to avoid this happening again. There were several days that I stashed my empty sushi cartons into my bag and carried them for hours at a time before finding a receptacle.

 

After dropping off my very heavy bags (never packing like that again) at my Airbnb, I headed out to Akihabara to appease my inner geek. With starry eyes, I happily wandered around electric town gleefully gawking at all the PVC figures and arcades. Never before have I seen such a huge collection of toys so niche and so beautifully displayed. Isles full of clear display cases hosting a myriad of anime characters embodied in plastic were begging for me to open my wallet.

Where I come from, there’s a very small demo graph that goes to these stores. That is if you can even find them. But here it seems like everyone was represented. My favorite sight was a couple walking hand in hand holding huge Gundam kits.

 

At the time my Understanding of the Japanese language was very limited (it still is). And so I eagerly started talking with sales clerks as best I could. It was extremely difficult and I could hardly say anything more than that I could only speak a little Japanese. As I said see you later to the clerk, he gave me quite a Bizarre look and said goodbye. It turns out, most people do not make small talk at all with those that are working. In fact it’s quite common for people to say nothing to the cashiers at the convenience stores. No hello, no how are you, no thank you very much, no have a nice day followed by a “you too”. Just silence.

At the end of my trip, a friend told me how to say "Take care" which is one of my favorite sayings. But she warned me not to say it to anyone I didn't know. So sad. I highly suggest that if you visit Tokyo, that you try not too feel guilty or rude about saying nothing. But do keep a smile on your face and maybe a gentle nod of the head (don't do a bow).

 

While there are many arcades, most of them have the same games. Crane games called UFO catcher’s, rhythm games, fighting games, online squad games, and card games can be found in almost every single arcade. The crane games can make up an entire arcade at times. I did manage to find some that have more classic style adventure or shooter games, but they were mostly found in retro themed arcades. Arcades aren’t even really a thing in America anymore so I’m not going to complain anymore. It was really cool to see some of these machines in action. One of my favorites to watch, because I couldn’t read any of the instructions on how to play, has you piloting a Gundam inside of a cockpit. Also the squad based games seems like they would be extremely addicting as per evidence of the membership cards that are required just to play. But knowledge of Japanese is required to understand the stats another mechanics. You can probably find a translation online if you have the patience for that.

Be sure to double check your money when you’re exchanging coins to play. One time I thought I put ¥1000 into the machine to get back 10 ¥100 coin’s. As I picked up my change and started to walk away, somebody stopped me. “Sorry!” He said, as he thrust ¥9000 into my hands. That’s almost $90 USD I almost lost! And this man could have easily taken it but instead returned it to me with a smile. What kind of world is this?