I still can't believe it! Am I really in Japan? My favourite country since my childhood. It's still taking time to sink in.
I was so excited that I could barely sleep during my flight which was bloody 20hrs long. Sleepy and groggy after arriving at Narita International Airport at 10am, I took 2hrs to make it through immigration line and customs. Even though I was dead exhausted, I was smiling from ear to ear.
I hadn't made any plans before arriving as usual. I had decided to take the first two days a bit easy to deal with the jet lag. After all, I'm going to be here for a month. Yes, a month! And I am still not covering all the places I want to visit.
Anyway, as soon as I was done with the immigration and customs, I got my train ticket to Shinjuku without bothering to buy local sim or pocket wifi at the airport shops because they charged double the normal price (a big mistake!).
It took 1hr to reach Shinjuku where I took another 30mins dragging my suitcase while looking for the right metro line to Nakano where my Airbnb stay was located. It was only 3 stops from Shinjuku but it took me one hour to reach due to my exceptionally slow pace with the heavy bag and jet lag. And also for the fact that I was too much in awe being in Shinjuku and seeing the rush around me. Japanese people were going about their business, looking at their phones and I was giving them silly smiles.
As soon as I reached, I was welcomed by the beagle dog of the house owner. It was cute and jumpy but I was too tired to play. All I could think of was bed. To save time, I had bought a bento box and milk pudding from 7-Eleven on the way. The same milk pudding which I used to see in Japanese series called Good Morning Call and drool on.
I didn't want to sleep but my body didn't agree. I gobbled up the tasty bento box and pudding without taking time to appreciate the amazing flavours and hit the bed. I set the timer for 2hrs thinking that would be enough rest. How wrong I was!
Instead of 2, I slept 3hrs. I quickly showered and headed out towards Shinjuku after taking screenshots of the map. No pocket wifi, remember? Since it was already dark, I decided to explore Kabukichō and Golden Gai. Golden Gai is famous for narrow, winding alleys & numerous tiny diners which serve good and cheap food and drinks while Kabukichō is known for entertainment and red-light district.
I efficiently got lost on my way to Kabukichu from Shinjuku station for obvious reasons - A. as soon as I arrived at Shinjuku, I was hit by a wave of crowd, lights and anime sounds in Japanese. B. I had lost my sense of destination and direction while I was walking around wide eyed like a child, aimlessly through the crowd. I crossed the streets because people were crossing. I crossed back for the same reason. I just kept walking with the crowd, looking up at tall buildings with anime ads on them. I was so amazed that I forgot to take pictures.
My intention was to find a pocket wifi asap but after an hour of walking around in every direction and getting lost and disappointed, I gave up. I thought I might as well relax and take in this new environment. I asked a kind looking girl for directions to Kabukichu and to my surprise, she walked me to the street. I thanked her in Japanese with a bow "Arigatho Gozaimaasu" and began exploring the famous entertainment district.
The plan was to just walk around and head to Golden Gai which was right next to it but alas. I managed to get lost again! But this time due to the fact that I had to lose some Japanese men trying to get to me to go to dinner with them. This happened few times and each time I entered a shop to escape. When even that didn't help, I wore my ugly black cap and hid my face while I walked around (always works!).
Kabukichu street has a bright visual effect with anime and hentai display boards everywhere. I was starting to feel very hungry so I decided to leave the exploration for another night. Some friendly locals pointed in the right direction and I found myself in the Golden Gai and it was just like the movies! So surreal!
Robot show that I didn't see
Again, I was so awestruck and wide eyed walking around the tiny alleys between even tinier bars and diners that I forgot to click again. Finally learning to live in the moment. I chose a tiny diner and entered sheepishly, trying not to knock off things and people on the way. I was too exhausted to look and smile at people at the bar. I quickly found a corner seat at the kitchen counter and ordered a beer and some local food that I don't remember.
Detective Conan! Karaoke! Now I wish I wasn't alone.
Japanese people are all smiles all the time. It makes your heart melt. I wish I knew how to speak proper Japanese instead of just the swear words. I was so famished that it didn't take me long to finish all the food and beer. I had lots of Japanese dishes in mind that I wanted to try but not tonight. Tonight was all about cheap food, old school exploration without internet and dodging weirdos. I was sleepless. I was lost but I didn't want to stop.
On the way back, I realised that getting lost multiple times without a map had actually helped me memorise the streets. I easily found my way back to the station and my temporary home. Even though I slept only 3hrs in the past 30 or more hours, I am not able to sleep because I can't contain my excitement about the days to come. I hope I can write at least a bit everyday. But most of all, I hope I am awestruck and wide eyed like a child everyday!
Goodnight peeps!