Archive for August, 2014

July 7, 2004 pt1 – Final adventures

Posted by Barniferous in Tokyo, Visitors on August 8, 2014

Today was the last full day of my family’s visit to Japan. It was another scorching hot and humid day. Since we had no set agenda, we discussed possible plans for the day over breakfast. My dad and sister were both looking to go to Tokyo, and my mom was tired, hot, and just wanted a day off.

After breakfast I talked with my sister and my father to find out what they wanted to do. My dad wanted more sightseeing, and my sister wanted to see something fun and do some shopping. My dad was okay with a solo trip, so I decided that I would drop him off near Meiji Shrine and take my sister to Shibuya.

My dad drinks with a stranger
Armed with a guidebook and some basic directions, my dad left the train at Meiji Jingu-Mae station. He was able to find Meiji Shrine and spent some time looking around. After the shrine, he decided to wander around Yoyogi park. At some point he was approached by a Japanese man about the same age who wanted to practice English. They ended up sitting outside together drinking cold beer and talking about Canada and Japan. Remember kids – always talk to strangers!

When he was telling us about it later, my dad was very proud of making a new friend and finding his way back to Hello House successfully.

My sister and I go to Shibuya 109
My sister and I got off the Yamanote line in Shibuya. There are so many things to look at in Shibuya, but the one we focused on was Shibuya 109; the center of young women’s fashion. The 109 building is a famous Shibuya landmark. Since all the stores inside only sell women’s clothing, I had no reason to ever go inside. Not knowing what to expect, we entered the front door.

The building is tall and filled with small boutiques. Shoppers wind their way though the building from bottom to top. Shibuya 109 was the girliest place I have ever been in my entire life. The interior was an explosion of pink, cuteness, and impractical shoes. I think I may have been the only male in the entire building. It was awkward, but my sister had fun looking at all of the clothing and accessories.

After escaping 109, we did some other exploring in the area before returning back to Hello House to meet up for dinner. Shibuya 109 was not really my thing, but when you are in a foreign country you have to try new things!

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July 6, 2004 – Ginza and Sensoji in the heat

Posted by Barniferous in Tokyo, Visitors on August 8, 2014

A hot day at Senso-ji

A hot day at Senso-ji

Today was a great example of why checking weather information before traveling is important. It was WAY too freaking hot.

After taking a day off yesterday, my family and I were back on the train for another day of sightseeing in Tokyo. The first stop was Ginza. We wandered around the area, checking out the high end stores and the iconic Kabuki-za theatre.

By noon, the temperature was creeping above 30 degrees. There are 30 degree days in central Canada in the summer, but there are two main differences between Tokyo heat and Winnipeg heat; humidity and urban heat islands.

The humidity today was in the high 80% range. To compare, the average summer humidity in Winnipeg is around 50%. Humidity in the 80% range feels like walking around with a hot damp towel wrapped around you. This makes a hot day feel even hotter.

Urban Heat Island is term used to describe cities being hotter than rural areas. Tokyo is largely concrete and steel with little green space. The general idea is that heat is absorbed instead of reflected, and plants are not able to cool the air by expelling water vapour. The effect on a hot, humid day is not very pleasant.

We cut our trip to Ginza short due to the heat, but we did make sure to walk as close as possible to the automatic doors of the stores in the area. Every time they opened, we got a frosty cold blast of air conditioning. We retreated to the relative comfort of the subway system, and then moved on to Asakusa.

In my opinion, Sensoji temple is a required visit for all tourists in Tokyo. In my 9 months living in Japan this was my third trip to Sensoji, but it was still enjoyable. I helped my family buy souvenirs for friends and family at home.

We didn’t have the longest day of sightseeing due to the heat, but it was still fun. We were all happy to get back to Hello House and turn on the AC.

(2014 Update) My mom and sister still use the folding fans they bought in the stores leading to Sensoji 10 years ago. I did eventually get to watch kabuki in the Kabuki-za theatre, but not until 2006. Stay tuned faithful readers… stay tuned.

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July 5, 2004 pt2 – Pachinko and passports

Posted by Barniferous in Greater Tokyo Area, Places in Japan on August 2, 2014

In Kyoto, my father and I went out for sushi and beer while my sister and mother went to McDonalds. By request, my mother wanted to spend the evening with me, leaving my sister and father to have their own adventure.

My mom and I went out for dinner near Mukogaokayuen station. I tried to be a good tour guide, showing off the neighbourhood. We talked about my time in Japan so far and my job, and also caught up on things that were happening back at home.

After dinner my mom wanted to try pachinko. I had played came centre “fun” pachinko before, but had never tried the real thing. No matter where you go in Japan, you are never very far from a pachinko parlour. We easily found one and sat down.

Neither one of us knew what do to with the machine, but a friendly man next to us showed us where to put the money and what to do. We fed in some money, turned the lever and watched as a stream of little silver balls bounced through the machine. In case that wasn’t distracting enough, there were also lights and a video screen. It was total sensory overload, but we really didn’t get into it too much. It was a good experiment for 1000 yen each.

We walked back to Hello House, wondering how my father and sister did with their evening out. When we saw them, they were excited to tell the story.

The two of them went to a restaurant near the station and sat down at a table. The restaurant was one of the convenient places near a station with at ticket machine outside. To order, you insert money, press the button for the food you want, and then enter the restaurant and give the ticket to the waitress. The waitress noticed they didn’t have tickets, and took them outside to the machine. My dad and sister pointed at the food models that they wanted, and the waitress pressed the correct buttons on the ticket machine.

They had a good dinner and conversation, and then got up to leave and walk around the Noborito station area. As they started walking down the street, they heard someone yelling from behind. It was the waitress from the restaurant, running after them with my sister’s purse. With all the excitement about dinner, my sister had left her purse with her money and passport at the table. My sister showed the waitress that the passport was inside, and then offered thanks in English and Japanese.

In some other countries, the waitress wouldn’t have made the effort to help the foreigners who couldn’t speak the local language to order food. And in other countries, the purse would have either sat in the lost and found or “disappeared”. Japan is not other countries. In my short time in the country, I have seen countless examples of staff going above and beyond to provide great service. Thank you, station restaurant waitress! You helped make our evening memorable in a good way.

(2014 Update) My mom and I needed this site, which explains in (sort of) English how to play pachinko.

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July 5, 2004 pt1 – We can’t go to Daiei anymore

Posted by Barniferous in Greater Tokyo Area, Visitors on August 2, 2014

My mother and sister in the kimono section of Daiei

My mother and sister in the kimono section of Daiei

After a few grueling days of traveling, my family decided that they wanted to take a day off and stay close to Hello House. I got a chance to catch up on some relaxing and video games, but my sister wanted to do some exploring.

The week before, I gave her directions to the Daiei department store near Mukogaokayuen station, which was only a 5 minute walk from Hello House. She returned after buying herself a Hello Kitty watch, feeling quite proud of herself because she didn’t get lost.

Today she went to Daiei again by herself. She came back an hour later looking distressed and said “we can’t go to Daiei anymore”. I asked her to explain.

It seems that she went to look at the kimono and yukata section of the store. The sales people came over to help, and before she knew it, she was trying on different fabrics, belts and accessories. “I looked like a princess” she told me, while trying to get through the story.

After trying on several combinations of clothing, the sales people started packing up everything and taking it to the cash register. My sister, who just went to look, had no ability to explain that she was not actually interested in buying. She somehow managed to communicate to the store staff that she didn’t have any money, but her dad would come back to pay for everything. When the message got through, she left the store and returned to Hello House.

Having been in a few awkward situations without the ability to communicate, I could completely understand her feelings. I tried my best not to laugh, and promised that we wouldn’t go back to Daiei before my family returned to Canada.

To the staff at Daiei, please accept our apologies for the confusion. Also, thanks for making my sister look like a princess, even for a few minutes.

 

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