TokyoTime

A few days ago I returned from Tokyo, meaning that after a little over three months in Japan, I finally was able to make it to the city that so often is thought of as the epitome of the country.  It was Golden Week, an annual spring lineup of unrelated-yet-conveniently-consecutive Japanese holidays, such as “Emperor’s Birthday” and “Children’s Day,” for example.  Just for your information pleasure, this slice of the year is as opposed to autumn’s Silver Week, a different lineup of unrelated-yet-conveniently-consecutive holidays.  I must say it's a great set-up.

But anyway, there’s a statue right outside of Tokyo’s Shibuya Station (right before the corner of the prominent Shibuya crossing) of a dog named Hachiko.  The story goes that during the 1920's loyal Hachiko would patiently wait in this exact spot each evening to greet his owner as he returned home from work.  The dog and man kept up the practice for a good length of time, joyfully reuniting at the exit of the station at the finish of each day.  But one night, when Hachiko was waiting in the same spot at the same time as always, the owner never showed.  The man had suffered a cerebral hemorrhage and passed away, but this was unbeknownst to the dog.  And so Hachiko continued to wait right where his owner had met him so many times before.  He came each evening for nine years—until his own death crept upon him.  Today, many people use the Hachiko statue as a prime meeting spot for their family and friends.

While not half as dramatic or valiant, my trip to Tokyo did turn out to be a little like Hachiko’s famed experience; we were expecting something that ultimately was a no-show.

That statement above may be a little harsh; it may sound like we had an awful, miserable, agonizing vacation in which there was absolutely zero about which to get excited.  But that is certainly not even remotely close to the case, so please do not get the wrong impression.  Overall, Tokyo has a lot to offer, and we definitely had a great stay.  We were able to see and do a lot, reaching a good number of the city’s distinct districts.  Visited districts included Shinjuku and its lively streets, 

Harajuku and its dynamic fashion,

Asakusa and its old temples,

Shibuya and its famous crosswalks,

Ueno and its grand park,

Roppongi and its foreigner-filled sidewalks,

(Didn’t actually take a picture here.  Awkward.)

and Akihabara and its abundance of electronics. 

We were even able to make a day trip to the nearby city of Yokohama. 

But despite all that each of these places had to offer, and despite the fact that we did enjoy each of these things individually, the biggest “wow factor” we experienced in Tokyo was the fact that we were not too “wowed” at all.

Through movies, TV, magazines, what have you, Tokyo has been shaped as a cutting-edge, eclectic, overall booming metropolis.  We envisioned a land with significantly more than what we have already experienced—ya know, the works: so many lights it’s blinding, so many people it’s intimidating, so many videos plastered on the sides of buildings that we wouldn’t know where reality ended and fantasy began.  Maybe there would even be hovercrafts involved.

But the bar at which we set our expectations for this city before embarking on our trip did not take into account the fact that we have already been submerged in much of the “eclectic” Japanese culture and ways for a good portion of time now.  Because we neglected to think that one through, the city that was supposed to have it all oddly turned out to be like a familiar Shania Twain song…

“Oh-ooh-oh…That don’t impress me much.”

Yes, that may be a harsh line, but again, please do not get the wrong impression.  It’s not that Tokyo isn’t great and all; I swear!  The point is that the timing of the trip drastically altered our view toward everything we saw, which is the interesting part.  As we should have anticipated, a lot of the things that make people ooh and ahh at Tokyo—the cultural differences, the random machines, the atypical food, etc.—are vastly aspects of Japan in general, including of course the Kansai region I’ve been inhabiting for the recent months.  And Tokyo even seemed to even be watered-down in some of these respects because of its big city, global nature. 

I can’t—and won’t—say everything Japan has become the norm for me; that is simply untrue.  But I can say that I’ve reached a point where I’ve become used to certain things, no matter how out of the ordinary I may have viewed them not too long ago.

One more time, I just want to rehash that I did have a wonderful Golden Week, due to a great city as well as the great company (shout out!).  Tokyo is hoppin’ in many regards, and I in no way suggest that Tokyo is a waste of time to visit, totally overrated, dreadfully deceiving, or anything of this sort.  I know I would have reacted differently to everything if it was my first stop in Japan, and so a part of me just wishes I could have seen it with a fresh pair of eyes.  I’m sure I would have gasped and gaped and marveled at every little detail, just as I had here by Osaka, and just as we witnessed so many other Tokyo tourists doing.  It was very amusing, really.