Profile
Blog
Photos
Videos
Konichiwa!
Before we could start our Japan experience, we had a little "incident" at the Los Angeles airport. We have heard many stories about LAX before from friends that had their own experiences, so now we feel that we can tell our own story. Maybe we should let you know that we talked about this a few days before we left but agreed that it will not be a problem. Well, we were wrong! We arrived in LA with plenty of time to check-in, get something to eat and stretch our legs before the long flight but it all changed when they told us at the check-in counter of Malaysian Airlines that we require an onward or return ticket in order to fly into Japan. After going back and forth with them we had no other choice than booking an onward ticket. We settled on a date (August 26th) and booked a flight from Osaka to Seoul. This wouldn't be complicated but Sabrina's laptop was in her backpack which was checked-in and Ann's tablet had almost no battery left anymore. The internet connection was really crappy and the airport computer broke down 3 times just when were about to put in our payment information. In the end we paid $15.- for 1 hour (of which we only used 25 minutes) to get into a "Lounge" where we had an actual computer and could print out our documents. It's just funny that we had to pay per person and they would not let Sabrina in to check on Ann. In the end we barely made the check-in, couldn't get any food nor stretch our legs. However, we had a great flight crew, yummy food on the plane and considerably a lot of space.
11 hours and an aching body later we arrived at Tokyo Narita Airport. Luggage arrived and customs was easy (we still think that we could have made it without onward ticket). We made our way to the hostel through Tokyo's underground system with slight initial difficulties and were happy to sleep in an actual bed after 40 hours.
We spent the next days eating oishii food (especially lots of sushi), adjusting to the Japanese climate (hot and humid), getting our Indian Visa organized, visiting temples and shrines and meeting great new people. Instead of boring you with a lot of details, we just point out a few interesting facts:
- It's the cleanest city we have ever seen considering how hard it is to find a garbage bin.
- Everyone follows the rules: If you're supposed to walk on the left side, EVERYONE is walking on the left side.
- Every Japanese is proud of their culture.
- Lots of people and not much space.
- Pale is the trend even if this means to cover up everything at 34 degrees.
- Tokyo has more Neon Signs than any other city in the world.
- etc.
We went to the, we call it "Pray for a boyfriend" shrine where we were shown the right procedure at a shrine with washing our hands, throwing in 5 Cents (the coin for good luck in Japan), bowing, clapping and ringing the bell. So lets see what the future brings.
We were also told our fortunes but no matter if it is a good or bad fortune they ensure you that everyone is in charge of their own future.
We met Kaoru and Noriko during a summer fest at a temple who made us feel so welcome like they have known us forever; and Tomoko who owns a Cafe called "Kneten" (kneading in english) and sells German cakes, cookies and pies after working 3 years in a bakery in Munich. Miyuki and Toshi (2 Japanese girls who worked at the Post Hotel in Canada) spent the day showing us insiders like dressing up for a photo machine, bringing us to a fireworks (which got unfortunatelly cancelled because of heavy rain falls) and telling us lots of background information. Thank you everyone for lasting memories!
Next to our amazing daytime experiences we had a rather extraordinary and creepy sleeping experience. We decided to stay for 2 nights in a typical Japanese Capsule Hotel (not just because the rate was only 15EURO per night). Arriving at the Hotel we were welcomed by a sweet old lady who offered us tea and candies. Once we got to our room, all we could see was a big, yellow box with curtains - a hole according to Ann's mom!!! Overlooking the creepy atmosphere and the ancient amenities we ended up extending our stay by one night.
For the next few days we will enjoy some more of Tokyo and sorrounding before heading of to see the rest of Japan!
Cheerio,
Ann & Sabrina
- comments