Japan 2013: Sushi and the Sniffles
My wife and I returned to Japan for a fortnight earlier this month. The following post is about our holiday, while the next, which should follow on Friday, will focus on the gaming side of the trip (purchases, Akihabara, Street Pass etiquette etc.).
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Our most recent trip back to Japan was a bit different.
Firstly, we were visiting in winter, as opposed to the tail end of summer. This
meant that our suitcases were stuffed full of Uniqlo heat-tech and extra socks,
instead of t-shirts and sunglasses, and we were treated to a whole different
menu than in previous visits (Japan takes its culinary seasons very seriously).
Unfortunately, a mix of cold weather and the powerful germs of a twelve hour
flight meant that the wife and I both spent half the holiday feeling unwell,
battling a cold with MJ, flu-like symptoms. Secondly, while some of my best
friends still reside in Japan, the ranks have thinned considerably over the
last three years, as people have either returned home or moved onto new
adventures, which meant our trip was slightly less social than in previous
years. Lastly, our accommodation was different to past returns. While we did
stay with family for a considerable portion, we also spent time in hotels in
Tokyo and also much further afield. This all made for an interesting and
worthwhile return, but one that was not without its disappointments.
The holiday started poorly, thanks to an awful flight
with Virgin Atlantic. I have done the London-Tokyo, Tokyo-London haul about a
dozen times, but this one ranks as one of the worst. I will eat pretty much anything, but the slop
they served-up was inedible. On top of this, the in-flight entertainment system
was broken, which meant I had to spend far more time staring into space - about
six hours - more than I had originally planned. The one
saving grace was that the flight was only a third full, so there was plenty of
space to stretch out while losing the will to live.
To Virgin's credit, we did eventually land. Japan's main
airport, Narita, is one of the most tourist friendly in the world, at least
among those that insist on taking fingerprints and retinal scans of every
single foreigner that passes through customs. By the time we had arrived at our
destination - it's roughly an eighteen hour trip, door to door - we just wanted
to eat and crash, so the holiday didn't get started until the next day. Once
all our errands were out of the way (booking a short trip, buying pre-paid sims
for our old phones etc.), we spent the first full day visiting our old stomping
grounds in Asakusa, Tokyo. This turned out to be one of the best outings of the
two weeks, as we stopped by the local temple and market, had a few drinks and
did some Puri Kura (glammed-up photo booths). We were the oldest people in the arcade by at least
ten years, but fuck it, we were on holiday!
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A massive lantern |
We ended up in a yakiniku
(Korean
BBQ) restaurant, where they foolishly offered me a ninety minute,
all-you-can-drink menu for ¥500 (£3.50).
My wife was very impressed by my quaffing of eight beers and a small
decanter of sake in such a short space of time. She loves it when I do super
value. This was of course capped off by three hours of all-you-can-drink
karaoke. It would have been longer, but I fell asleep, mic in hand, during a
lifeless rendition of Muse's Knights of Cydonia.
Friday night was a chance to have a few quiet drinks with
a couple of friends, in preparation for the almighty piss-up scheduled for the
following night: shabu-shabu all
you can drink and eat. This is an old favourite, and the only acceptable reason
for visiting Ikebukuro, which is by far my least favourite major hub in Tokyo.
Bloated, rowdy and full of meat, we then headed to karaoke for some nine
man/woman screaming. As any regular will tell you, anything above five singers
soon creates a logjam of song selections; by the time your choice appears on
screen, you probably can't even remember your name let alone the lyrics of the
song you are about to perform. Still, we managed to get in a few classics, and I
even unveiled my first solo, all-Japanese number, Oh My Julia by Checkers,
which some of you may remember from Ouenden 2 on the DS.
The following night was a family affair, as I heroically
drank through a shocking hangover, as it would have been rude not to. A lovely
meal was capped off by, you guessed it, karaoke, where I was schooled in the
ways of Enka
which, for the lack of a better description, is a genre of pop-like ballads
sung in a more traditional Japanese style. I did feel like a bit of a twat
doing Beastie Boys Check it Out between songs from the Fifties, but the more
mature and non-English speaking audience seemed to appreciate it anyway.
Tragically, this was the third and final karaoke session of our trip.
Disgusting.
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Giant Enemy Crab |
A day later, and we were on a bullet train headed to
Matsushima in Miyagi prefecture. Matsushima is located along the same coastline
that was devastated by the 2011 Tohoku earthquake and tsunami, but the hundreds
of pine covered, tiny islands that litter the bay had saved the town from
inundation. We took a boat trip between the islands and then spent the night at
an onsen (hot spring resort). We hired an open air, private bath which looked
out onto the bay, where I spent a good half hour flashing local fisherman and
tourist boats. No onsen trip is complete without a spot of public nudity.
With my genitalia no longer on display, we sat down to a
slap up dinner. I lost count of the number of courses that appeared on our
table, including a whole crab, which is the most confusing of delicacies for a
child of land-locked countryside. I did my best with the provided scissors and
scoops, and even sucked down some brains, but I can't say I understand all the
fuss about boiled crab. As per usual, I made a point of eating as much Japanese
food as possible throughout our trip, scoffing everything from tonkatsu to raw
horse meat, and avoiding western food at all costs.
Unfortunately, we both started to feel rather unwell come
the end of our stay at the onsen. We should have probably just headed home the
next day, but we decided to make the most of our time in Tohoku, going ahead
with a pre-planned day of sightseeing. We took a long journey on a local train
to Hiraizumi, which is home to a number of temples, including UNESCO World
Heritage Site Chuson-ji. There was snow everywhere and I was drugged up to the
eyeballs, but it made for an interesting detour, albeit one that nearly killed
me.
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Taking in the cultural highlights of Hiraizumi
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Back at the in-law’s place, the next three days were a
complete write-off and more than a tad depressing. The local area was not ideal
for us, and being ill did not put me in the best of moods. It is a typical
over-flow town for a larger city in Chiba, full of old buildings and older people.
It is just far enough away from Tokyo that a very small but constant minority
will openly stare when they see a non-Asian guy walking down the street, which does get on your tits after a while. The hour
long train commute from home to the tip of central Tokyo, including three
transfers, was enough to put us off visiting the city while feeling under the
weather. Aware that we were just wasting days shivering in front of the TV, we
decided to be proactive and move to Tokyo for the final three nights. We booked
a business hotel, which was small, clean and affordable, and perfectly
situated, just a two minute walk from my favourite place in the city,
Akihabara.
Relieved of the inconvenience of long train journeys, and
both starting to feel a bit better, we made the most of our final few days in
Japan. As much as I love to see the in-laws - that's not sarcastic by the way,
as they really are lovely and always make me feel very welcome - we should have
moved out much earlier and spent more time in Tokyo. Although a croaky throat
meant that karaoke was a non-starter - what a fucking waste - we were better
able to catch up with friends in the evening, without having to worry about
last trains and falling asleep on loop-lines. Our location also meant that I
had plenty of opportunities to raid the local video game shops, the fruits of
which I'll share in my next post.
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Tiger Uppercut! |
We took a short day trip to Kamakura, an old capital of
Japan, just south of Tokyo. Located by the sea and surrounded by hills, it has
a unique feel, almost European with its long, straight avenues and boutiques.
However, it all becomes very Japanese once you visit the temples and other
sites of cultural interest which are scattered throughout the city, the most
famous of which is the Daibutsu, a giant bronze Buddha dating from the
thirteenth century. It is really quite impressive and instantly made me think
of Sagat’s stage in Street Fighter 2, which I'm sure was the architect's intention. We visited a number of museums and places of interest
in Tokyo on our final day, topped off with some last minute game purchases, a
pint in our old local and then some tasty ramen.
While the trip could have gone more smoothly, it was still
great to see family and friends and spend time in my favourite city. The
excitement of that first extended weekend, and the freedom and convenience of
the final three days made the trip more than worthwhile. As far as our
long-term plans, the fortnight offered closure while also serving to confuse.
It is clear that we have both moved on from certain aspects of our life of old
- I resided in Tokyo for just over four years from 2005-2010 - and that it
would be a huge mistake to move back and expect to pick up where we left off. I
also felt more detached from Japan than ever before, and was more critical of
things that I had been willing to overlook in the past. However, my love of
Tokyo has not diminished. It is a fairly ugly metropolis, especially in the
winter, but it has all the character in the world and continues to surprise, almost
nine years after my first visit.
I don't know when we'll next be back in Japan, but I have a feeling that it won't be any time soon, at least not as visitors. We
would probably need something tangible (the promise of a job etc.) to draw us
back as residents and give up what we have in England. That being said, Japan
is just as much our home as here, so we will never completely rule it out. On top of emotional ties, the lack
of karaoke satisfaction during this latest trip already has me pining for the
authentic Japanese experience, so perhaps we will be back sooner rather than
later. I wonder if Virgin is doing any last minute deals?
Thanks for sharing. Sounds like you had a great time despite getting sick. One of these days I will head back to Japan. I was planning on going in the summer but ended up getting a new job. Looking forward to seeing what you picked up.
ReplyDeleteYeah, definitely glad that we made the trip back. Think I have just about recovered from the jet-lagged cold!
DeleteLet me know if you ever visit Japan. I'd be happy to give you some ideas of where to visit.
Cheers