This is the first in a three-part series countdown of my Top 15 moments in Japan; a look back at some of the funniest, unique, and treasured moments I could only experience in Nippon! My account may not be able to do them justice but I will try my best.
15. Shopping for a shaver. Only in Japan can you find six or seven floors of pure electronics! The options were endless but I really wasn't in the market for anything in particular. Daigo-san, Hiro's friend who met up with us, just recently landed a new corporate gig and wanted to check out some electronic shavers so he can look clean-cut every morning. So off we went to the first floor, leaving Hiro to fend for himself in espresso machine land where he would was eventually assaulted by a two year old girl. The selection was quite extensive. Daigo inquired with the salesperson behind the wall display. We could only see him from the nose-up. He blurted something in Japanese and recommended an $80 shaver. It was my turn and I asked Daigo to ask on my behalf what he would recommend. After having not shaved since leaving the US, my beard was pretty thick. From behind the display wall, eyes open wide and in a sharp tone, the salesman exclaimed something in Japanese, eliciting a huge laugh from Daigo. It didn't take long for me to realize he was pointing to the big gun ... the top of the line shaver that looked more like a transformer than anything else. Eight blades and the size of my two fists, combined, the decepticon shaver cost over $400!!! It was big enough to shave my entire face in one or two swoops. We had a good laugh about it but I thought I'd save my money for the duty free shop ... or maybe I just decided to stick to my old school gilette razor.
14. Encounters with familiar art in an unfamiliar place. This one is for Liz! One of the very first people I've ever met up with abroad, Liz took the train into London from Leicester and accompanied me to the Tate Museum in November of 2007. Outside was one of Louis Bourgeois' creations, Maman. Liz commented on how she's encountered these spiders multiple times and gets that eerie creepy feeling. Fast forward to Japan in 2010. Walking through Roponggi Hills, I was surprised to run underneath one large spider. Pretty impressive to have such large artwork by one artist spreadout across the globe. No pictures of me poking the eggs this time around...
13. People watching on the subway. It was my last night in Japan, and after seven days of train and subway use, the experience remained a novelty. For one, the trains were always "on time" , although I remember the shinkansen being a minute behind at one point. Aside from the timeliness, the train culture is quite different from the US. The silence within the train cars were deafening at times. Though I was using my inside voice, I always felt like I was an obnoxious yank yelling at the top of my lungs at a bar on a Friday night. I was secretly waiting to see some semblance of disorder ... mischief. After running through Tokyo to catch the last train back to Kamakura, a drunken business man stumbled onto our end of the train. He was a goner. Eyes rolling, asian glow at 100% and non-stop movement from side to side and front to back. One hand was clutching onto his briefcase and the other was desperately trying to open the door into the conductor's cab. I was amused and so was everyone else. Amusement turned to awe and into worry when the man started balancing himself as the train moved along the tracks half bent over. Was he going to hurl? fall over? or worse ... hurl and fall over on me? Despite his drunkenness, he managed to get off at one of the stations without asking where he was. Was that his stop? I'm not sure.
12. Crossing the world's busiest crosswalk. You've probably already seen it. Perhaps, not in person, but you've most likely already seen it. It's been in a number of ads especially those for communications, networking or something about time. Shibuya crossing is the world's busiest crosswalk. Everyone pours in from all directions in this massive intersection. Any hint of slight hesitation could mean getting separated from your party. I didn't even realize how busy it was when I first crossed it until I saw it from above. I think the trick is to just walk with purpose and confidence ... much like a freight train. Because, in all reality, who would want to walk across the path of a freight train?
11. Flowing with the masses at the train stations. Coming from Boston and the frustration I have with the T, you can understand how I would be extremely impressed by the Japanese train system. What do you mean by I can actually look at the schedule and expect it to be correct? You actually know how long until the next train comes? That's too much to expect, no? Apparently not! The Japanese people are highly dependent on their public transpo system to get them around. It was pretty evident why they would depend on it. Mainly because it's dependable but frankly, it was probably the easiest way to get around. There seemed to be train stations everywhere, especially in Tokyo. And every train station is busy! But it was orderly and everything flowed.
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