I guess it's Thursday now. I arrived in Tokyo around 5pm and found my way out of the airport. I was surprised at how empty it was. Saw hardly any other people around. They do the same thing as Frankfurt, though, where there's a million ups and downs for no apparent reason. Security was tight, requiring two fingerprints and a photo to get your visa. They're wise to not show it to you.
From there it was the trains. Getting a ticket was easy enough, and the lady circled my train change on the map. So I just sat there and watched for a name I recognized. She neglected to mention the dots on the map are not actual stops, but GROUPS of stops. So the one I wanted wasn't four down, it was some large number down. It was so hard to stay awake and watch for the stop. A nice old lady saw me studying the map and "helped" me by confirming what the ticket lady had circled. But it was still a nice gesture.
Took me a while to figure out the train change. There really are three levels of trains, so even though you're on the right side of the tracks, you may not be on the right level. Then I missed my stop because the directions to the hostel said there would be 5 of this name, but there wasn't. I though it would be easy to hop on one going the opposite direction and go the one stop. I was wrong. Had to let 5 trains go by until there was room to get on.
The trains remind me of Germany's. They look similar (wouldn't be surprised if they came from the same place) and seem to run under a similar level of efficiency. Two things Japan has over Germany, though: multi-level tracks and nice people.
So I'm at a hostel now, and it's a pretty nice one. It's clean, comfortable, and cheap, your three basic requirements. It's nicer than staying at a hotel because you're surrounded by people from around the world. And that makes it fun. I'm exhausted, but trying to stay up a little while longer to get on this timezone. I think I'm going to go get some pictures so I have something to supplement my post with tomorrow. I have the day to spend around the city before my flight in the evening. I'm going to try to get a lot in, so I should probably go to bed early.
But I'm alive and successfully knocked out "phase 1."
1 comment:
Hey! glad to hear you made it. Can you see now why I couldn't really explain how the trains work? They are easier to try to figure out as you go through them. You must have hit rush hour on that one train. I am surprised they didn't try to cram you in with everyone else! I hope you are enjoying Tokyo. BTW, the warm towels on the plane are a traditional Japanese thing that they do. If you go to a great restaurant, they will give you the same thing.
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