Oh, Japan. The nation of the rising sun. What an amazing adventure, one that I won't ever forget.
My friend Cryssy who is a very amazing and talented illustrator and designer won a contest by designing covers for a magazine called Chopsticks NY. As a prize, she was rewarded with 2 tickets to Tokyo. After sitting on the tickets for some time, she decided to take me to Japan for my 25th birthday. E-e-e-e-e-epic!
Although our flight didn't leave until September 22nd, my trip began the day before. Talk about a lot of traveling. Woke up at 6am, hit the gym, work by 10am, fly from Los Angeles at 9:00PM, arrive in NYC at 5:30AM, 30 min taxi ride to Cryssy's house, hour for her to pack her stuff in my giant suitcase, 30 min train ride into Manhattan, hour bus ride to Newark, NJ, and then a 13 hour plane ride to Tokyo. I had to find time to eat, pack (yeah, I'm a procrastinator), print directions, and buy those annoyingly small travel sized bathroom items because TSA won't let you take any liquid past security over 3oz. I'm definitely not going to try anything with my 5oz tub of hair product. TRUST ME. I'm an upstanding citizen.... or something like that.
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| First glimpse of Japan |
The 13 hour plane ride to Tokyo felt even longer than it actually was. First of all, if you have a choice, do not fly Continental Airlines. They have the most unfriendly flight attendants I've ever seen. I know being stuck in a cramped space for 13 hours, serving people food and drinks can't be fun, but at least put a smile on your face and suck it up! People have choices of which airlines to fly, what brings them back is the service. I don't think one of the flight attendants smiled the entire flight. Anyway, Cryssy and I had the isle and middle seats and there was a gentleman in the window seat. Let's call him Stan. Stan was an incredibly nice guy from Connecticut who was on his way to visit his girlfriend in the Philippines. Talk about a long distance relationship. Stan was also under the impression that if he didn't get up every 20 minutes, he was going going to die from blood clots in his legs. Needless to say, 13 hours of musical chairs was not fun, but alas we made it to Tokyo.
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When it comes to traveling, I'm fairly organized. I had translated and written directions on how to get from the airport in Narita to our hotel in Chuo. The directions were very detailed and self explanatory so as to not run into any confusion. When we got to the airport in Narita, on the outskirts of Tokyo, we decided to not take the rapid train into Tokyo running us about 3000¥ (about $40.00) per ticket. We opted for the slower, local train costing us 1200¥ (about $15) and taking us nearly 2 hours. We made it to our first transfer point at Tokyo station where we looked at the subway map and immediately felt lost.
Holy crap, so many lines going so many different directions. We didn't know where to begin. We were standing there, going over the map and referencing all of the papers I had printed before we left to see if we could figure out where to go. Unsolicited, an older Japanese couple saw our looks of worry and asked us if we needed any help. This was the first taste of the hospitality received while in Tokyo. So many nice people all wanting to help in any way they can. The couple pointed us in the right direction.
Alas, we made it to the hotel, Tokyo Hotel Horidome Villa. I have to say, if you are looking for a cheap, yet nice place to stay in Tokyo, this is great. For less than $70 a night, we were 3 blocks away from the nearest subway station and it was a good hub to get to where we wanted to go. The staff was friendly and helpful. The room was tiny, but if you're flying 6,000 miles to visit another country, you don't spend much time in your hotel room. There are tons of little restaurants within walking distance along with 7-11 and their version of CVS called Family Mart. If you're going to visit and need to withdraw money from an ATM, 7-11 is one of the only places that has ATMs that will accept American debit/bank cards. The minimum withdrawal is 10,000¥ (around $130), but check with your bank before you leave as they will charge you whenever you use your card out of country. Long story short, we loved staying in this hotel and would recommend it to anyone traveling on a budget. Exhausted and hungry, we didn't have to look far for our first meal.
Yoshinoya. Many of you, especially SoCal natives, might recognize the restaurant. Well, kinda crappy Japanese rice and chicken fast food bowls is more like it. Not great, but when I saw it right across the street from the hotel, I just had to try it. Let me tell you, that was a religious experience. I mean, neither Cryssy or I knew what we were ordering. We were looking at the pictures on the menu and ordering. The meal was absolutely delicious. Japanese fast food is nothing like American fast food. No greasy burgers or soggy fries. Everything is fresh cooked with fresh ingredients and the content is way healthier than in the states. I want to say you get a lot more for your money with Japanese fast food also. For 500¥ (about $6.50) you can get an entire meal such as the one pictured below. So much food. One interesting thing I noticed is how fast people eat in Japan. Multiple times, people would come in after us, order their food, finish it (while slurping and making the grossest sounds ever), and leave before I had finished a quarter of my food.
After nearly two days of traveling, I was exhausted and it was time to shower and sleep. Although we left at 11:00AM on Thursday, we arrived 2:00PM on Friday. Saturday was my birthday and we had big plans to go see Sumo and wander around in Ryogoku. Our day of traveling came to an end, and that is where I leave you until the next post. Here are some more pictures from our day of arrival.
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| On the train to the hotel |
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| From the hotel room |
Banksy's popularity and fame has grown since his start, which makes it that much more special that he spent an entire month here in NYC. His website chronicles the art, installments, and shenanigans he was up to during his time here. One of the more well known stunts he pulled was on the 13th of October in Central Park. Banksy commissioned someone to sell his original (and yes, signed) pieces for $60 a pop. People could be seen haggling the vendor down, not knowing that these were the real deal. These pieces are estimated to be worth up to $30,000 each. Banksy's final piece of his New York residency can be seen at 5pointz in Long Island City, Queens. On his website he says "And that's it. Thanks for your patience. It's been fun. Save 5pointz. Bye"
