Sup Japan
DIDJA KNOW I’M IN JAPAN?!?
An opportunity came up with work a month or so back, and with Japan being pretty high on my to-go list, I jumped on it! After all, we are a Japanese-owned company, so it’s not surprising that sooner or later I would get invited, but I wasn’t expecting this soon, and without much warning! Sooooo the blog reading began…
My Grand Plan:
Eat EVERYTHING - #1 Goal
Run and/or bike each city I visit (what’s new)
At least SEE Mt Fuji (out of season for hiking unfortunately)
Get overwhelmed by the transit system (bound to happen, might as well manifest it)
Ride a bullet train or two (see what kinda G’s they pull)
Peep for some fall colors (as they fade in MN)
Now that I have been here about a week, I am proud to say I am executing to plan nicely! I actually only have viewing Mt Fuji left and I can probably see it from the train on my way back to the city (not exactly what I meant with that line item, but it’ll do) :D
I am here for a total of 2 weeks - the first week being mostly work and the second week being mostly FUNSIES. Here is where I’ve been so far:
Note: the map is showing “drive time” vs train time and almost all of my travel has been train time! A LOT of freaking train time. Basically, I had the trains down after Day 2 because of my travel to our site up north for work - what a drag it was to get there and come back the very NEXT afternoon. Woof - that was a LOT of miles; let’s just say I’m very thankful the bullet trains go 200mph.
And after about a week, my sleep schedule is starting to regulate. When you are on the opposite side of the world, expect your body to be effed for a few days. Impressively, I went from 2:30AM wake-ups on day 1 up to ~5-5:30AM wake-ups now on Day 5&6. Now trying to hold steady at that because I love mornings and early bedtimes! The only downside is Japan is NOT an early bird-type country. Most coffee shops don’t open until at least 9am (many 11 or 12 honestly), and if your hotel doesn’t have breakfast, it’s very tough finding food aside from 7-Eleven or Family Mart before 11am. Even in central Tokyo which was mind-blowing to me.
The only real unexpected crisis was around my very poor packing, disappointing myself with this one. I was getting ready for Day 1 of work at our northern facility when I realized I didn’t have my work pants. I distinctly remember taking them out of my bag the morning I left, thinking they were a different pair of pants, but clearly not double checking. My next options was essentially sweats of some type; I didn’t even bring jeans!!! So I went to work looking like a fool, but everyone in Japan is too nice to say anything and I work with all men and no stores were open and I made a big dumb mistake that ended up not being a very big deal (so I don’t think…). But I did end up shopping at the train station on my way back to Tokyo for a new pair of work pants for the next couple office days.
As mentioned, I packed horribly for this trip. It’s fall here, like in MN, but maybe a couple weeks behind or at least not as cold. I for some reason was expecting fall to be warmer here…oh, and Japanese people dress very well and also pretty conservative, so crop tops and leggings just aren’t really “in” here. I wouldn’t say they aren’t acceptable, but you definitely stand out hard in them. So tips to self: bring a pair of jeans (dumb), pack a warmer jacket (not just zip-ups and sweaties), bring at least one dress / nicer outfit, leave the crop-tops and shorts at home.
Other observations I’ve made so far:
People smell nice - which is good because the trains get real full during rush hour #butt2butt
Bidets; bidets, bidets, oh my! The only places I have NOT seen the toilets bidet style is 1) on the movong train and 2) the temple bathrooms - actually surprising!
Mostly, things flow in the opposite directions I.e. cars drive on the opposite side of the road, people walk on the left & walk faster on the right, bikers stay left, etc. Strange to get used to and then right once you think you get used to it, the rule is broken and the arrows tell you to walk on the right - wtf ?!?
Japanese books are read vertically.
80%+ of females are wearing tan trench coats. Neutral colored, shin length, with a belt.
Tights - every female has tights covering any amount of skin showing. I hate everything about tights. But I bought some because I didn't want to offend and feet are offensive in Japan. I would rather run 4 hrs a day than have to wear tights under every pair of pants #notforme
Feet are a big deal here. But in a bad way - like they are seen as very dirty. ALWAYS have socks on because some restaurants and places have you take your shoes off and bare feet are not liked. Oh and if you travel like we do clipping shoes to the outside of your bag, maybe consider a new strategy for this visit!
Don’t pack socks with holes in them - time to throw those out (noted).
If you are doing something offensive but don’t know it, people probably won’t say anything. The culture is super respectful and appears very nonconfrontational.
All hotels I've booked thus far have "smoking rooms" as well as trains have “smoking cars”.
The culture seems very private, except for in the hot baths (onsens) where you are in a sea of other naked women (or men if you're a man - they seem to still use biological gender vs chosen gender).
Restaurants and cafes open VERY late - if you are an early eater, make sure your hotel offers breaky or stock up at Family Mart!!
Once you get used to the public transit, it’s more of an annoyance than anything. Especially tranfers!! #nopatience
The smallest bill is around $7 equivalent. Anything smaller comes in coin form, all the way down to 1yen which is about $0.006 USD (money conversaion trick: move decimal left 2 and multiple by 2/3)
Costs seem somewhat cheaper than the US generally, but also there are many higher end expensive places. Food seems slightly cheaper, lodging maybe a bit as well?
Masks - still very much mask culture; i do not miss these.
English is not as prominent as I expected it to be.
The FOOD has been fun tasting and observing
Contrary to what people warned me about, I do not really feel like the locals give a shit about me being there, which I prefer! I do feel like a minority because of course I am and am surprised by the lack of white tourists (not mad about it), but I had people warn me about stares and I just haven’t really felt it. Tourism also just opened up in Japan 2 weeks ago! Up until the last day or two in Kyto, I had hardly seen a single person with a hair color lighter than mine (unless purple count??) since I’ve been here!
I am mostly staying in hotels this trip because the hostels are mostly these tiny single “capsules” and I really like my own spaces these years. BUT I will say, staying in places without “main hangout spaces” does get a little lonely. I miss sharing these experiences with my babes or travel friends <3 The life of solo travel here!
Quote I'm trying to embody this week:
It has always been enough to be a part of the natural sequence of things -Where the Crawdads Sing
Some random pics I have enjoyed taking this past week of nature and stuff - full city explanations and fav spots coming up!!
Peace, love, and vote Ramen for president!!
yo’ girl Jen
Ps) I'm at the laundromat and just started pushing buttons and started the washer without my clothes in it…and there is no cancel or stop button. So I just watched and waited until it was done and started it again. That’s $6 I will never get back #LOL
