Rule #1 in Japan: don't talk on your cell phone on the train...

....because it annoys your neighbors. However, if you do answer your phone on the train and there is a herd of Americans on it...we will find ways to point out all the do not answer phone signs on the train while laughing to the point of tears. On the trains in Tokyo talking on the phone is annoying to others so no one is supposed to do it; however, feel free to put your ear buds in and have your phone 4 inches from your face the entire trip. I will never feel bad for spending time on my phone...because after a couple minutes after I send that text message I will be putting my phone down to pay attention to the real world.

Just a small section of the morning crowd...totally forgot my flash was on!

I decided to go ahead and try out a couple of Japanese products and do a little consumer research. First product was a pair of pantyhose I purchased in the shop downstairs. Keep in mind, I'm 5'7"...the average Japanese woman is definitely not that tall. I needed them for some business visits today. The first go around with the pantyhose was successful...honestly the best color I've ever put on that actually matched my skin tone. Second go around gave me 2 runs...luckily they didn't show past my skirt and I ditched them in a train station bathroom. Fail. The second product was the shampoo and conditioner in the hotel. Japanese travel with very little toiletries and it has been staring at me for a few days now. All went well the first couple hours, then my hair started to feel weighed down and gross...ponytail for the remainder of the day. Fail.

Our first stop was across town (I guess, or somewhere in the town, basically inside the city limits) to meet with Mr. Komatsu, the founder of Komatsu, to talk to him about his focus on wanting to educate and encourage peace amongst all and to build a peace center as a haven for people around the world. "History can start with a single man, but a single man cannot make history" ~ Mr. Komatsu

Class and Mr. Komatsu
  

 After our meeting with Mr. Komatsu it was time to get on the train to head to our next location. This was quite the long train ride but it was nice to see how people outside of downtown live. Small houses mixed in with various mini-fields. We left the sky scrapers and men's suits behind and arrived to small multi-story homes and apartments. The trip was pretty long so I took the stroll to the front of the train and watched the driver as we went down the rail. Very interesting to see the hand signals and double checks he was completing as we were driving. It was just him in the front cab and he consistently did the hand signals and checks. When we went past a construction crew, the crew stopped with a flag out to the side and the driver put his hand up and this was the acknowledgement that both groups saw each other.

As we waiting for the bus to pick us up from the train station there were a few sneak cell-phone pictures taken by the students...we wanted to pose and ask them to tag us on Facebook since we were already being posted to it! Then we were headed to Oberlin University to meet with a professor to discuss leadership and management in the global age. Oberlin is one of the universities world wide offering a partnership opportunity with Webster University. I have finally gotten the courage to ask what each kind of food I'm finding in a Bento Box is, even in front of the entire class. I need to have an idea of what I am consuming...I am crossing the line at tofu though...that's just weird. Takes on the taste of everything else. Blech.



 

 

The train ride back we continued to laugh too much and speak too loud. No dirty looks yet but I'm sure there will be plenty others out there. I have learned that no matter what train you're trying to get on just turn around and back in...as long as you don't make eye contact with your peers and back in just to the line you've made it! This evening we went to a little cafe close the to the hotel so we could all be efficient with our time so we could get out tonight! Took bad I reached my exhaustion level and went home already. I did my presentation on the Anti-Nuclear movement groups while at the cafe. Everyone decided to head out to Ropongi but I reached the point of exhaustion (clearly since I'm currently editing this blog the day after), so I decided to stay in while everyone else headed out for some tourist fun. The EBI Filet-o sandwich at the locat MdDonald's down street, wandered into Starbucks for a slice of amazing and light strawberry cake.

Great food and time to sit down at McDonalds with my mom and Vicki to catch up on their day of a great tour and time to enjoy everything. I wish I had gone on their tour today!! Pretty sure I will be making her write a blog then as well! The rest of the class went on a train ride to go out...I am ready for bed! I have to figure out how to get baseball tickets for Saturday evening...another experience! For now I will enjoy my beer, cake and realizing I am typing in the world of reality and as I'm falling asleep typing in the world of Japan (honestly....I wasn't drunk). I also learned that Franzia not only comes in boxes but real glass bottles as well!!

Time for bed...you know you're tired when you start typing nonsense!! Also, I am still not a fan of the music/sounds in the subway station...waiting to hear change falling from the sky! My apologies if things don't make sense...I have reached the beyond tired night...time for sleeping as I finish this beer!

Maintaining the 4.0 and garden walks

After a term of being more stressed than I should have been I am excited to say I am maintaining the 4.0 GPA that I definitely didn't think I could ever do! *Sigh* Looks like I will be fully enjoying my summer break before I go back to stressing myself out  and putting more pressure than I should on myself to continue the streak. But on the other hand...I'm going to have to get a drink to celebrate the A!

Today started out bright and early and a line for breakfast 15 minutes after the restaurant opened. Apparently the hotel is getting quite full and is the perfect opportunity to see the Europeans that are visiting and the high school aged Japanese girls and their style. Every girl has an extremely individual style and most of them involve high heels with fun, printed socks and varying degrees of bleached hair.

Onward to the Tsukiji Fish Market this morning during rush hour. Something I'm learning from the Japanese is that no matter how many people are jammed in a subway train...there is ALWAYS room for more. But the key is that you don't make eye contact with the person and you back into the train. If you back in then you can push people back with your backside and your nose can graze the door as it shuts. You also learn that sometimes you just need to take the seat on the subway because you may be on board fro awhile. Well unfortunately the fish market was closed today for a holiday (still trying to figure out what holiday is being celebrated) but the outer market was open. Wandered around and found a variety of fish being sold and some great photo opportunities in the land of bicycles.

 

Took a wander down the street to a garden that I saw on a sign...it's fun to go to places that are listed with an arrow on the streets as you disembark the subway! Onward to the Hama Rikyu Gardens, the home of a 300 year old pine supported greatly by man-made supports. This is a large park with a walking tour available in English via  a traveling/portable  digital player. You can really get a feeling for how close and serene parks are in a Japan with a trip to this garden. The ancient tea houses are surrounded in the short distance by sky scrapers.

 

 

 

 

The afternoon was spent with a couple of case reports and a quick outfit change to business casual we headed to the JRLine to go to Tokyo Station for a meeting with the owner of a venture called J-Seed Ventures, Inc. This was quite interesting and we learned that small elevators will yell at you when you're over the limit and someone will have to get off the elevator. We also learned that glass elevators get a bit warm...especially when you stop at every stop along the way.

 

The conversation with Jeff from J-Seed was extremely interesting, he spent some time in the US going to school for his law degree and the in Silicoln Valley before moving back to Japan. He has started up 19 companies and shared his story with us. During our time talking to him I asked him about women in the workplace and in Japan (this is starting to change) there are two pathes, career, which is dominated by men and support which is tailored the unmarried woman to serve tea. If a woman makes the choice to jump into the career path then that is her dedication and focus. There is no time for focus on children and/or raising a family. We also learned that Tokyo is constantly growing as people move to Tokyo for a job, there are few jobs outside of Tokyo. Education is interesting, the Japanese are focused on learning facts and the how-to's behind all topics compared to the US where we focus on critical thinking and always asking why. There is also a lack of graduate degree work in Japan because employees work their ways up inside of a single copmany, there is minimum incentive for completed and advanced degree.

 

On our way from Tokyo Station to our hotel there were many many stops...I learned the JRLine has it's own music soundtrack....sounds like an ice cream truck gone mad and I'm waiting for some creeped out no-name character to come running out of a hut somewhere to dance and throw glitter. It just amazes me that for something so grown-up like managing and navigating mass transit to an extent be so juvenile.

 

 

 

 



 

The Subway sounds like a slot machine

The rain cleared and the clouds started to go away leaving Tokyo in a bit of a humid and warm state today...so much so that the men dressed in their suits and ties yesterday left the ties at home today and rocked the one button, unbottoned look. I wonder what the exact temperature is that it's then acceptable to take this trend on.

In one of the narrow alleys in Shinjuku

Today started off with a bit of a scavenger hunt/field study in the area taking us through a local convenience store, a bank, H&M and the government building. We spent part of the morning trying to find H&M which was on the other side of the train station...I'm getting really good with this map reading ability again! We got quite a bit of exposure to every day life of a citizen in Tokyo...after this day wow...overstimulation to the max when it comes to advertising, marketing and vocal safety warnings. I don't understand how they become so numb to it all!

200yen for a capsule containing a toy. I got an angry karaoke singer.

Got to walk around the major train station, the JR Line and stopped into H&M in search of a skirt (I know...way to be original and authentic Japanese for a shop) but it's been so humid and warm that jeans are getting a little sweaty and uncomfortable. And then we went to the ultimate uncomfortable place...the elevator of the government building to take it to the top. 45 stories later, a couple of ear pops as well and a very silent elevator ride to the top it was so nice to have fresh air when the doors opened. There is very little extra air circulation here, things get warm and stuffy quite quickly, I'm sure it has something to do with the high cost of electricity. From the top of the building we were able to get a view of Tokyo...endless buildings and so many sky scrapers, never ending really.

 

The afternoon session took us to another part of Tokyo via a long subway ride to the JR Line which is the above ground monorail that has no driver. Talk about confusing as to the direction you're traveling, it winds back and forth through out the city with multiple stops. Beautiful views of the waterfront where municiple, industrial, residential and entertainment areas are side by side. We headed out to the Toyota Megaweb displaying a huge assortment of cars and technology. Very popular destination, with the ability to drive a real Toyota car! Haha! I guess in a city where not many own cars this is a big deal!

View from the JRLine

Waterbridge!

Then we wandered across the way into one of the most interesting malls yet, the entire interior was designed to feel like a European Plaza in the evening, fascades and fake sky with fountains. This culture relies so heavily on fantasy with faux environments and cartoon characters on everything, I have a hard time grasping how people live in a world of fantasy like this...hard to believe, even for someone who literally works in a place that brings people to fantasy from reality!!

 

The evening is when things got very fun. We navigated the subways to Shibuya in an effort to see the worlds largest intersection. This is even bigger and more lit up than Times Square. While walking to the center of the neighborhood we spotted a sign for a restaurant and what caught our eye was the sign that said "English Menu". We were sold, walked down the alley and through a sliding door and this is when things took us into an amazing evening. We left our shoes in lockers and walked down stairs to a room with a table and a floor below it that was dropped lower...one of the coolest dining experiences ever! We ordered through tablets and the food and drinks were brought to us. The fun part was hearing and seeing how many locals come into this place and have their own rooms and people coming and going, laughter and joking and running all around in their individual rooms. We saw a different side of the locals than we had been exposed to on the subways and in the streets. Amazing food with a variety of sushi, pastas and lots of drinks!

 

After putting together a dining bill of 23,473yen among 9 people (seriously cheap and amazing food, 100 yen is approximately equivalent to $1.00 right now). We headed out down the street to find the center of Shibuya....you could definitely tell as we got closer. This was just jam packed and so much traffic and people running all around. It was like everything we had experienced that was overstimulating all rolled into one gigantic location....but it felt appropriate for the space.

 

Sadly we had to quickly get on the subway to head back since the trains stop running around 11:30pm, one of the guys in the group and I have become quite the navigational duo with our subway maps! Helps in going on new adventures!!

Japanese Subway Expert

The first full day in Tokyo and we spent it touring various parts of the city and historical areas. What an amazing and exhausting day! Spent the entire day in the mist, packing the Croc slip on dress shoes was a great plan! Too bad my jeans were soaked to my knees though, ah well it was still a great day.

We started out with breakfast which featured quite the selection of a salad bar, rice, hamburgers (mini patties) and then a variety of breakfast foods that we normally see in our world...but good luck finding syrup, that doesn't exist. Don't worry though, the french toast is definitely sweet enough!

Spent quite a bit of time on the subway to and from and back and forth around the city. The map is in one of the first posts I did...and believe it or not, it's all making sense now! Some interesting information that we've been getting used to is that when on the escalator you stay to the left, if you go to the right you better be walking up the escalator! Everyone is so patient though waiting to get onto the left side. The place that you insert your ticket to come through is one of the most efficient operations I have ever seen! You insert it on one side and keep moving because within your two steps you will be able to grab the ticket and exit out the other side and keep going. One of the scariest things is being the last one in the group to the gate and you realize your ticket is no longer where you had it. I searched my bag and wallet and after a couple of minutes found the ticket in a pocket in my jacket. Luckily the security guy let me through to get out and then I found it. In order to get into the trains you have to scan your ticket but the kicker is getting out...you have to scan your ticket again. Talk about feeling helpless!! I wasn't the only one of the day that this happened to...just the first one.
 



In the subway, you wait behind the yellow line and at times have to walk on the yellow line to get around a wall and yes...the trains are pretty close to you! We only saw gates on one route.

Also in the subway stations there is this chirping sound like there is some random bird that got in there. After several stations and several levels down I realized that's definitely not  a real bird...it was a generated bird sound! It's about the only sound you hear though...everyone is very quiet in the subway, especially on the trains. If you think that in the US people are attached to their phones it is even more so here! No one looks up from their phones while on the subway and no one talks on their phones while on the train (talking on the phone is considered rude).

My personal favorite is the symbol for medical issues....a cast and a gigantic needle

Cell phones are definitely interesting as well. I haven't seen so many flip phones since flip phones first came out. Just amazing and even better when you see someone taking multiple pictures of themselves with a flip phone and not getting the right picture. Sunglasses on or off? Smile or serious? See man on the right below....hehe.

Our tour day started with a tour of the Yushukan War Museum in the Yasukini Shrine which is a Shinto Shrine. This is a rather controversial museum in Japan. It displays and memorializes many that are considered war heroes but at the same time some are war criminals. This museum covers all of the wars and skirmishes that Japan had been a part of. So interesting taking us back to the samurai times and bringing us forward. The World War 2 section was very sobering reading the history more in depth from this side of the world's perspective. One item that is extremely hard to even put into words was seeing a kamikaze plane/torpedo. Unfortunately we weren't able to take pictures inside the museum but seeing this plane that looks a bit like a glider and reading it had an engine that ran for 9 seconds after being dropped from another plane so the pilot could adjust on its target was a moment that is even hard to put into words. Many letters to the families from these pilots were displayed as well, hard to even think of writing letters that you absolutely know for certain your family will receive prior to your mission. 

 Mom and me outside of the Yasukini Shrine

 After lunch and the fun of using chopsticks to basically fondue thin slices of meat and various veggies we headed to the Imperial Palace, home of the Emperor and the Imperial family. The grounds started out as a castle and eventually converted to a Palace. Unfortunately we didn't have enough time to go tour the museum but it was beautiful from the side of the moat we were on!

Outside of the Imperial Palace grounds

 

Our final stop for the rainy day was to Asasuka, home of one of the oldest temples in the world. On this location is a Buddhist pagoda and a Shinto Shrine which is very interesting because the Japanese have a belief that while alive Shintoism is to be followed and when they pass they believe that the beliefs of Buddhism will take care of them. Asasuka is also the oldest part of Tokyo and many shops still exist from the time of the samurai. Towards the temple there is the opportunity to buy a fortune for 100 yen (basically the equivalent of $1 right now)...you can get a normal fortune, the best fortune or a bad fortune. Mom got a normal fortune and I, of course, got the bad fortune. When you get a bad fortune you tie the fortune to a rack in an effort to have the exact opposite occur.

 

Me pouting at my poor fortune and luck!

 Mom on the inside of the Thunder Gate. On either side of the gate is the God of Thunder and the God of Wind

On our way out of Asakusa there is a little police house/hut. Outside of this they have posted the number of deaths and accidents involving pedestrians in Tokyo for the day before. The red number below indicates the number of people that died as a result of being hit and the number in black is the number of pedestrians injured by vehicles. For the largest city in the world 99 isn't the worst number for a day but I'll be interested to see what it says tomorrow!



 



Jet lag hasn't seemed to be an issue for me as of yet...hopefully it's not going to bother me in the next few days! Working a crazy schedule has me adjusting pretty quickly :) And a couple of random draft beers are just enough to relax me before it's time for sleeping! The current time in Japan is midnight...the current time at home is 11am. Time for me to call it a night...hope everyone enjoys their Monday...I know I did!



 

 



Time Travel brought to you by Delta

What a day of traveling!! Started the day off by leaving home at 5am on Saturday morning. After 2 flights totalling 16ish hours and a 3 hour layover in LA we somehow made the jump to arrive in Tokyo at 4:30pm...on Sunday. Never going to understand this one, just know that the sun was up the entire time we were flying and I'm going on hour 30 of being awake-ish.

We learned something on our flights today...that Delta has multiple safety videos and they are funny. If you haven't flown on Delta or paid attention to the videos you need to see them. The domestic one can be found here, in this one you will find an accordian being stored as carry-on luggage, subtle outfit changes and a no dancing sign on board. The second one you can find here, and you will find a no squash sign and a bonzai tree being placed under the seat. Literally made us laugh out loud on both flights today and we paid attention to the safety videos as well! May have been the highlight of both flights in all honesty!

5 hours to LAX and then a walk through what seemed as the basement hallways to get us to the next terminal led us to our second breakfast of the day and then some time. Nothing like taking a walk and running into someone you knew from high school on the opposite side of the country from where you went to high school (I also ran into a guy that works for me on the first flight as well). Then onward to Tokyo...longest flight yet. 11 hours and it may have gone a little longer.

The first few hours went by quickly, especially after we realized that beer was free! Two beers and then a full meal within 2 hours of taking off...awesome :) Then the flight attendants start messing with your mind and request to have all the window shades drawn so it was like we had a full meal and then it was night time...even though it was sunny and bright out the entire way. A couple movies and tv shows...attempts at reading a book...some short nap-like moments and wandering around the plane we managed to get to 3 hours left in the flight. Seriously, no joke so antsy and uncomfortable. But they gave us ice cream as a snack and then breakfast before we landed.

Amazing to get to Tokyo and not feel like we were being stranded. Everything has a subtitle in English (at least around the airport and some menus), it was quick to get through immigration, baggage claim and then through customs. Then on the bus to the hotel! The scenery reminds me a bit like Kentucky but with rice paddies and Japanese writing. So basically it's green and hilly and pretty :) Caught a glimpse of Tokyo Disneyland because I was so busy noticing the transportation station for Disneyland that I missed Cinderella's Castle! We were dropped off at Keio Plaza Hotel in what is considered the heart of Tokyo and quickly taken to our room! And the adapters are not completely necessary as the outlets are polarized...haha!

Met up with my class tonight and we wandered a few blocks away to a nice little coffee and drink bar for a couple of beers to unwind and meet with a few classmates while sharing funny travel stories. Tomorrow is a big day of traveling and touring the area as a big group!

Power Adapter Stress

Weeks of getting ready and finishing homework and projects have finally come to an end. Turned in my presentation about Anti-Nuclear Demonstrations that are held weekly in Japan (well they were, and now they may not be...we'll find out if we run into a demonstration a week from tomorrow!), turned in questions and comments for Mr. Komatsu of Komatsu Energy and took my final exam for one of the most aggrevating classes I have taken yet (well....maybe not as aggrevating as Finance but it sure was close!). Feeling good with a trip to WalMart done to buy random stuff as well...yes...I felt good about going to one of the single most stressful places in the area.

However, with all the big projects to get done who knew that the one thing that would relieve my stress more than anything would be seeing two power adapters that my dad had found out in his shop. Power in Japan is different from here and from Europe (which most people seem to have adapters for, my cell phone even had adapters for anywhere but Japan).  In the US we have 120V, in Europe it is mainly 220V, in Japan it's a mere 100V. After many days of googling adapters and looking at Amazon.com and various home improvement stores with no luck finding the illusive non-grounded, non-polarized adapter (wow...that seems real safe) I finally gave up and decided there have got to be plenty of Americans who go to Japan and have to pay buku-bucks for an adapter and I will join the club.

And then I learn about the holy grail that is currently residing in my mom's carry-on at my house...two adapters that take safely grounded and polarized plugs and turns them into dangerous two prong plugs (well maybe not that dangerous but it sounds good and dramatic). I instantly felt apprehension disappear and feel a lot better about being able to be able to plug my computer in to keep this blog going...well that and do some homework as well while in Japan.

So hooray for my dad and hooray for him taking the time to look through one of his many sheds at home to find these two sweet treasures!!

"I hope they work" - Mom

Yes...I then went to test them. They work. Whew! Don't worry, I have double checked and see now that many outlets in Japan are now polarized but it is possible to run into the non-polarized type...that would be my luck had my dad not find these little antique treasures.

Countdown to travel....less than 36 hours. I will enjoy the rest a single Tylenol PM is bringing me for tonight.

Medicinal fun

Nothing like realizing a week before traveling that there are forms to be filled out and prescriptions to be checked to ensure the moment we get off the plane in Japan and go through customs that my mom and/or I won't be immediately arrested. That just doesn't sound like a fun way to experience a foreign country! #newatthis

In the meantime, making steady progress on each item that has to be completed for school before taking off next week! Unfortunately, steady progress means I'm working on one thing for about 30 mintues and then I'm easily distracted by something else and have to force myself back to one activity. This high degree of ansty-ness is not going to do me any good while traveling. My lack of attention span probably isn't helped by the graphic and wording at the top of the study guide for my final exam either...

That's a lot of color and stuff...then add don't panic to the end of it? Because my mind wasn't racing already from this collage of stuff and the thought of having to buckle down and study? Yea....ok...awesome.
One of the most interesting things has been putting together papers to read about bullying (ijime) in Japan...for as polite and courteous the culture appears, bullying is a significant issue in their country among youth since the 80's. Keep your eyes open on this one, I will be posting more about this when we get back from Japan.

And now, the subway map for Tokyo...lots of colors to take my attention to yet another thing! This appears to be just about as confusing as a map of transportation at the happiest place on earth. Take a bus, to a boat and then depending on what time it is and how late the parks are open you have a couple of choices ahead of you to get you back home. Clear as mud? Perfect :) Maybe we approach this as a choose your own adventure and we all come back with different experiences.

In other random news...sumo wrestling may be an activity we get to go see :)