It's go, go, go!

  Tokyo, Japan
Saturday, July 16, 2005

I think that travel comes from some deep urge to see the world, like the urge that brings up a worm in an Irish bog to see the moon when it is full
- Lord Dunsany

The Controlled Madness
Konnichiwa from Tokyo. We made it here after a fairly jarring flight from Dublin last Tuesday afternoon and,

01 Hello Japan!

thanks to being able to sleep on the plane (a rarity for me), we had just enough energy in us to last the rest of the day and evening. And energy is what's needed for Tokyo, especially in this summer heat. And what a place. It's pretty much everything I expected it to be. It has all the stereotypical characteristics of any big Asian city; it's messy, is plagued by seemingly incessant noise, often clogged with bumper-to-bumper traffic and packed with 12 million people squashed into minute apartments. But it also has enough temples, backstreets

02 Nijubashi Bridge at the Imperial Palace

and tranquil gardens with neatly clipped bonsai trees and carp fish ponds to help you escape the madness.

In many ways Tokyo is also something of a modern-day utopia. Trains run on time, the crime rate is hardly worth worrying about, shops and vending machines provide everything you could

03 Yasukuni Shrine

need (and many things you never thought you needed) 24 hours a day, people wear the coolest fashions, eat in fabulous restaurants and party in the hippest clubs.

First-time visitors should be prepared for a massive assault on the senses; just walking the streets of this hyperactive city can be an energizing experience. Expensive? Of course it is. It's Japan. But we were surprised by how affordable

04 Tokyo Dome

many things are. Cheap-and-cheerful izakaya (bars that serve food) and noodle shacks far outnumber the swanky restaurants and many of the city's highlights are even free: a stroll through the hyperactive, neon overloaded areas of Shibuya and Shinjuku, around Asakusa and the major Buddhist temple Senso-ji; a visit to a tranquil wooded garden - you don't need to part with lots of cash to explore this city, although the more you have the better.

The Points
We spent a good 4 days seeing all Tokyo has to offer. Tomorrow we head north on the bullet train to Nikko before getting back to Tokyo for the train west to Kyoto. I've attached a few pictures that better detail our experiences in Tokyo so make sure you check them out. But here are a few things I, as a first time visitor in Tokyo, noted (I'm updating this having left Japan and these points are valid for the rest of the country as well as Tokyo).

1 Japanese people are so hospitable; where they ever got the reputation for being reserved and, almost, afraid of foreigners I'll never know. Yes, I heard that on more than one occasion.

05 Shibuya

2 Convenience and efficiency are the Japanese buzz words. Convenience stores are legion as are vending machines. Find one that doesn't work and I'd be shocked. Also, everything from restaurant service to the aforementioned army of ever-present vending machine is frightfully efficient; all forms of transport run with military precision and on time. Best not be late for that 18:30 train, because come 18:35 it'll be gone. Seriously.

3 Bowing really is contagious. Even as a clueless foreigner you will find yourself bowing when interacting with the Japanese. Even when buying everyday items in a corner store. No need to over do it however. Just a gentle nod of the head is fine.

4 Forget the temples, the Tokyo Dome, or even the Palace. The number one tourist activity in Tokyo? People watching. Street level Tokyo is an assault on all senses and for some

06 Senso Ji

reason the one of the first things I noticed is that the navy business suit rules. 90% of men on the move have a briefcase of some sort, a dark navy suit, a white shirt and a God-awful boring tie. It must be an unwritten rule of business in Tokyo to dress as such. Wanna stand out? Go for it... go wild... buy a non-white shirt... and a wacky tie, assuming there are such things in the country.

5 Forgive this generalisation but Japanese women, on a whole, are attractive.... but not as attractive as Koreans. Now there's a statement I'm sure my Korean friends will love to hear.

07 Happo-En Gardens

6 Everyone crosses the roads at designated places and times. Yep, there may be no traffic to be seen (unlikely) and the road in question might only be a 10 foot wide laneway but it will have a pedestrian traffic light and nobody dares to cross without the safety of the little green man holding their hand. This, in such a hyperactive city, struck me as very weird. J-walking must be a hanging offense over here? I couldn't believe how obedient the Japanese are on this one.

7 In such a modern country I was surprised to learn that English is not widely spoken. This especially surprised me in Tokyo (while English isn't widely spoken in Korea you at least find a few English speakers in its capital city, Seoul). But like anywhere with a language barrier all you need to get by is the universal language of a smile and plenty of patience. Sometimes speech is so overrated. In Kobe we managed to find a capsule hotel, check-in, stash our bags and get directions all without a word of English... just hand signals and smiles.

08 Hungry Carp

8 The Japanese are a clean race and seem to make great efforts at looking their best all the time (wacky fashions aside). People in the shops buying milk were impeccably dressed and women on the subway will spend an age looking in their personal mirrors doing their makeup and tending to whatever imperfections they might see on their face. At home we call that being vain but over here it's par for the course. I wonder what they though of my dirty feet in my flip-flops after a day touring the city. And as for litter. In such a busy place litter is unheard of and you'll be doing well to find a public bin.

9 It's hot over here this time of year. Makes for tiring days.

09 Bonsai

10 When you walk into a restaurant all members of staff, including the kitchen staff, will greet you, in sync, with a chorus of Japanese.

11 Even at the cheaper end of the scale the accommodation standards in Japan are high. Very high. And if like us you're on a budget you'll probably be staying in Roykan: traditional Japanese style inns which come complete with Japanese style clothing, bathing facilities and meals. It's a great way to feel all Japanese (assuming that's what you want) and to get the most out of your trip. We loved all the places we stayed but we got especially lucky in Nara where we found ourselves staying in a beautiful room in an old, creaky Geisha house. It doesn't get more authentic than that.

12 The Japanese have a love affair with Hawaii. There are shops selling all things Hawaiian (t-shirts, mugs etc). We knew there was some affection between the Japanese and Hawaii because we actually commented on the vast nunbers of Japanese tourists on the streets of Waikiki when we where there some years ago. I find it sort of ironic really considering the warring past.

13 All the tourists in Japan seem to be Americans. God only knows why. And it's good to know they are as loud and standoutish (is that a word?) in Japan as they are in any

10 Shinjuku

other country they visit. I should note here that I actually like Americans but there is no getting away from the fact they, or at least the 10% of them who have passports, are loud.

14 The only things the Japanese know about Ireland is it's near England (at least they seem to know it's an independent country, something a lot of other nations have difficulty understanding), we all drink Guinness, eat oysters (don't know where that came from) and serenade each other with Danny Boy. Oh, and they know it's cold and it's the home of U2 and Roy Keane.. I guess it's a combination of the Worldwide appeal of Manchester United and the 2002 World Cup. They never heard of the Corrs or, luckily for them, Westlife. No mention either of shamrocks, leprechauns or pots of gold.

Moving on
So that's it from Tokyo. Next up? Nikko. The bullet train here we come.