Evaluation time

November 6, 2006 12:49 manila time

so what are the misconceptions about tokyo?

• Less squat toilets than expected.
• Less shoe removing than expected.
• Less bulky school girl socks. I guess that’s passe.
• Some Filipinos complain that Tokyo is too quiet. For a densely populated metropolis, we expect Tokyo to be as loud as Manila. The silence can be disconcerting.

I understand why this would happen. As a densely populated nation, Japan would value private space & politeness. Noise, bumping elbows, & unsolicited conversation is a violation of that space.

Things you didn’t expect in Tokyo:

• For a country that produces cars, there’s very little traffic.
• flyovers. Everywhere.
• no guards with wands in every entrance.
• Whole buildings devoted to a single brand.
• Parking right on the side of an avenue.
• Actual parks in the middle of it all.
• Smoking inside establishments.
• No gum or cigarette butts anywhere.
• 90% of  the men wear suits.
• 70% of women wear boots.
• 90% of women wear knee high stockings, mostly black.
• Tokyo is fashionable.

What are dead-on?

• Schoolgirls in short-skirted uniforms.
• Everything’s expensive.
• Manga cafes.
• Maid cafes.
• Subways to be proud of.
• Sticking your chopsticks upright on your rice IS impolite.
• The japanese will tolerate your poor nihongo.
• Everyone walks.
• Girls will pose with hand configurations ala morning musume.
• Striped socks.

Sayonara, Tokyo, and Domo

I wish to thank the people who made my Tokyo trip a most enjoyable experience:

• aaron p. ~who hosted me for most of my 12-day trip, & introduced me to Densha Otoko
• makiko s.~who acted as my guide, taking me to places i wouldn’t have been able to find on my own. I am especially indebted to her for reserving the Ghibli museum trip.
• Kakinuma-san, shimizu-san, & tomioka-san~jf officers who took care of the delegates
• Gundam girl~for introducing me to aaron & giving me initial tips to surviving tokyo
• bambi~jf manila officer who handled the manila side of the trip
• & chompy~my virtual eyes, ears & mouth over in manila

Going home

I`m finally going home tomorrow. I spent Sunday night in Shibuya to absorb my last moments of Tokyo.

It`s been one heck of a ride. From akihabara for otaku gawking, to Tokyo dome for roller coaster action, to the Museum of Contemporary art to see 20 TV sets showing angles of white narrow light, it`s all been a blast.

Catch you all in 12 hours. 

Hang on

I was planning to go to Ikebukuro when I noticed the Kodokan Judo gym was located 2 stations before it. I immediately got off that station and saw the enormous Tokyo Dome, a baseball stadium. So I started taking reference pics, and what do I see around the corner?

A very tall roller coaster. Striding across a busy city avenue. I just HAD to ride it. 

It turned out the name of the coaster is Thunder Dolphin. I wonder if Lion-O has anything to say about this. The line was unexpectedly short (maybe it was a weekday afternoon), the ticket price was Y1000, and all loose items MUST be put aside. It was just as well I stored my camera in the shelf provided, because that mother was terrifyingly fun.

So THAT`S what falling off 30+ stories feels like. 

The Ghibli Museum

20 minutes from Central Tokyo is the district of Mitaka, home of the Ghibli museum. This place showcases the wonders created by the master animator, Hayao Miyazaki. The top of the compound is guarded by the massive robot from Laputa.

The smell of Tokyo

I mentioned before that I wondered what the smell of Tokyo would be like.

Now I know. I found it in a Manga Cafe.

I…I don`t want to SPECULATE what causes it. It`s beyond a locker room smell, or even a Metro Manila bus smell. But a manga cafe is just what  it sounds like: rows and rows of manga, booths for internet, reclining chairs, and free coffee. I`m on my second cup as I type.

I`m researching good manga art to buy in a bookstore.　The list I made so far:

• tokyo tribes 2 santa inoue
  
• tokyo graffiti
  
• super strike ta-29 yamamoto yohko
  
• buzzer beater inoue takehiko
  
• mataharina moyoko anno
  
• death note
  
• hellsing　kota hirano
  
• tattoo shu akana
  
• island youn in-wan
  
• basilisk
  
• blodod sucker legend of zipangu
  
• old boy garounds jiya
  
• countach haruto umezawa

I paid Y980 for 4 hours of free use of the manga and internet. With it, I`m checking off one of the last of my to-do list while in Tokyo. With four more days to go, I`ll visit the last of the interesting places in this mega-city, and buy the rest of the pasalubong.

Revolving sushi

On Halloween night 2006, I had dinner at a revolving sushi place. If you watched Johnny English get his tie stuck in the conveyor belt, you know what I`m talking about.

Each sushi plate is Y100, with two sushis each. The choices are varied, from tuna, tuna eggs, crab fat, octopus, squid, and lots more. I had  11 plates, including soup and special tuna. The owner asked the customers to eat more than 7 plates, as anything less would be a loss for him. There`s a container for pickled ginger, but no wasabi, as it is already included with each sushi.

That`s a lot of sushi. I wonder if the sushi chefs are paid per plate, as they are in a rush to fill empty spaces in the conveyor belt.

They`re everywherrre!

Before the flight, I was telling Chompy my fears that the `kaunting-tulong-lang-po-girls` would follow me all the way to Tokyo. (The ktlp girls are the ones who approach you on the bus or in the restaurant, hand you a laminated card which says they need help for their tuition, then try to sell you some dried mangoes).

During the in-flight meal, I saw, to my horror, one of the desserts being offered.

Dried mangoes.

They`ve followed me.