Turned Japanese - Part 1

I recently returned from Japan and showed off all my photos on Facebook. However, some things need more explaining than a mere caption so here it comes. I will try not to turn this into a Robert Jordan-like story like my previous travelogue on London (Not to speak ill of the dead but Jordan was mentally and financially draining his fans).

The 14 hour flight to Tokyo was not too bad. When I first flew to Hong Kong as an 11 year old, an equally long haul, it was torture. Now, with less of an urge to run around, the flight has become a source of relaxation. As an adult, when else do I have the luxury to sit around for 14 hours, watching movies or reading a book, sleeping whenever I feel like it, and eating without having to cook? The only hitch came during landing when cabin pressure caused my head to feel like it was about to implode. My brain throbbed for days afterwards.

The Japanese food we consumed, for the most part, was cheap, convenient and carb-heavy. At our local convenience store, it was not unusual to find fresh set dinners, ready to be microwaved, for about $6CAD, featuring udon noodles with a side of soba noodles accompanied by a garnish of a bit of meat and pickled vegetables.

Our breakfast of choice was onigiri: balls of rice covered in seaweed with a little surprise in the middle. Well, for most Japanese consumers, it was no surprise since the ingredient was listed on the packaging. Joe and I relied on the calorie rating to guess what we might find. The highest caloric rating usually equalled salmon.

When we did splurge, the food was excellent. The sushi at Tsukiji Fish Market was so fresh that it melted in our mouths, and in one instance, moved. Our favourite, the fatty tuna, is featured in the photograph to the left.

Tokyo was everything you would expect: very busy at all times of the day but especially at night, very clean, and lit up with neon. What I did not expect was the level of courtesy everywhere. For such a bustling metropolis, the citizens are surprisingly polite and helpful. English is not widely spoken, even in Tokyo, and yet, the language barrier did not discourage strangers from going out of their way to assist us.

An especially touching experience of Japanese helpfulness was when Joe and I boarded the wrong bus to our onsen ryokan (hot spring hotel). We missed our stop and started getting worried. The bus driver spoke no English except to say, "Wait" everytime we tried to ask. In a panic, I tried to communicate with the other passengers. They talked amongst themselves until one of them came forward to ask in simple English where we wanted to go. They then converged on the bus driver to ask for an explanation. It was then relayed to us that the driver intended to drop Joe and me off at the correct stop on the drive back. We were relieved but probably looked a little pale. As the other passengers got off at their stop, they passed some pastries along to us and the bus driver - something to help us feel better, I suppose. We waved to eachother as the bus drove away.

If mere strangers can be so kind, you can only image what customer service is like in Japan. Local burger chain, Mos Burger, looks like a normal fast food joint but after ordering your food, you are given a number to place at your table where your food will be served to you. More shocking was the takeout service. An employee will carry your order to the door for you then bow (!) as you leave. At most retail outlets, including convenience stores, there were more employees than you would expect and all of them were eager to serve. The whole experience made me bitter on my first day back in Toronto, when I stood at an empty check out counter for more than 2 minutes, waiting for the cashier to notice me then waddle over.

To be continued...