Spring Break 2013: Tokyo!

Welcome back everyone! It's been two weeks since I actually was on spring break, so I apologize for the delay. Last week was very busy with quizzes or tests every day except for Wednesday. However, now I have some time and I would love to tell you about my trip to Tokyo with Nick. Let's get started.

March 18, 2013
Our trip pretty much began at 12:00am on Monday morning because we decided to take the night bus to and from Tokyo. This proved to be a very poor decision as neither of us were able to sleep at all during the 6 hour bus ride. We were able to recline our seats and everything but, as usual, I was not able to sleep in a moving vehicle. We arrived in Tokyo at 6:00 at Shinjuku Station, one of the biggest, if not the biggest, subway stations in Tokyo. We had heard some horror stories about how hard it was to navigate and how even many Japanese people get lost there, so we were very apprehensive at first. That apprehension proved to be unnecessary, as we had no trouble getting on the right train to get to the area where our hotel was. At this point, the positive aspects of our arrival went completely out the window. We looked at a map in the subway once we arrived in Asakusa. We saw the hotel on the map and we thought we knew where we were going. It turned out that we didn't really know where we were going. We literally walked for an hour in the wrong direction with all of our luggage with us. When we finally realized our mistake, we turned around and went an hour back in the other direction to reach our hotel. We arrived at the hotel at about 9:00am and went to the front desk. Check in was not until 3:00pm, so they took our luggage and told us to come back at 3:00. We were really hoping that we might be able to check in early since we were so tired and worn out from all the walking that we had done with our luggage. We sat outside the hotel for about a half hour before we decided to figure out what we would do for 9 hours on virtually no sleep. We ended up going to the Tokyo Sky Tree, which is this ridiculously tall tower that opened either last year or two years ago. It was attached to a shopping mall as well as an aquarium. We walked around for a while, looking at whatever caught our fancy before we decided to have lunch at KFC. I know, more Western food in an Asian country. Anyway, after we ate, we decided to go to the aquarium to burn our last 2 hours or so. It was a nice aquarium, although not nearly as big as the one at the Port of Nagoya. However, there was a very cool thing that I saw while there. They did a show with the sea lions that even became spectator interactive. They brought one of the sea lions out of the pool and had it walk up and down the footpath that we were standing on. It was so close that I could have touched it if I wanted to and if I was allowed. It's always a blast for me to go to aquariums or zoos because I love seeing God's creativity in what He has made. By the time the sea lion show was finished and the penguin show was being performed it was 2:30 and we decided to head back to the hotel. By the time we got there, it was a little bit after 3:00 and we were finally able to check in. We open the door to our room and it was literally about the same size as my individual dorm and there was only one bed. This difficult turn of events made my already volatile emotions that much more volatile. You see, starting the Friday before I sunk into a deep depression because we were on break, just as I did during the beginning of our first break. When we are on break time seems to slow down and the time that is in between me getting to see my wife again seems to lengthen. This reached a fever pitch in the hotel room, to the point where I almost had a nervous breakdown. Thank God that Nick was there and I wasn't by myself. The Lord used Jamie to comfort me and give me peace and He also spoke to me through His Word. The verse in question is 2 Chronicles 15:7, "But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded." This verse gave me much more peace and confidence that this whole trip is worth it and that I have not sacrificed my time and finances in vain. After peace came upon me, I fell asleep almost immediately from my extreme exhaustion.

March 19, 2013
I woke up this morning slightly less exhausted than the day before and ready to do some exploring. I got in touch with Lindsey the day before and we arranged to meet up first at the Pokémon Center store and then go to Akihabara. We got to the Pokémon Center and I purchased a CD of video game music that I really enjoy as well as a souvenir for my brother-in-law. Lindsey arrived a little later and we went back in the store while she did her shopping. There was not much different about this Pokémon Center in comparison to the Nagoya location so I will spare you the details. After that, we got on the train and headed to Akihabara, one of the foremost centers of electronics and entertainment media in the entire world. When we arrived there it wasn't quite as I had expected it to be. It was a huge district with stores everywhere, but it wasn't as big as I had expected, nor did there seem to be as many people as expected. All the better for me because I'm not a huge fan of very large crowds. We went into several stores that had manga, video games, CDs, DVDs, etc., including, my all-time favorite, Book Off. We walked around for a while longer, as it grew darker outside. One thing I definitely noticed in comparison to Nagoya is that people who hand out things outside of their shops are overjoyed to give what they have to everyone, including foreigners. In Nagoya, it always seems that the people are afraid of foreigners so they pretend that we are not there. Anyway, we were hunting for a particular game that Lindsey had been wanting and we were finally able to find it in a store she had remembered she saw the game in last semester. After her triumphant purchase, we headed back to the station to make our way back to our respective lodgings. I looked at the subway map in order to see which line we needed to take and, I'm telling you, it was only a few seconds before I felt a tap on my arm. There was a Japanese man who had seen me looking at the map and asked where we were going and I told him. He proceeded to take us to the proper station, but, all the while I felt like God was trying to tell me that this was a bad idea and I certainly felt uneasy. While he was taking us there he was kind of talking to himself and I also caught the displeasing aroma of alcohol. We got to the ticket machine and I put in my money for my ticket and then Nick put in his. The ticket was 200 yen but Nick only had a 500 yen coin so he put that in the machine and would normally have gotten 300 yen back in change. However, when the change came out of the machine, the man took it and said that he was going to keep it because he helped us and he was tired, so basically we were hustled by this guy and forced to give him 300 yen for his services. Thankfully, 300 yen is only the equivalent of about $3 in America. We just tried to look at it as a blessing for this man, whether it was forced or not. We made it back to the hotel without too much incident and relaxed our tired and weary legs.

March 20, 2013
Today we decided to go to Tokyo Disney Sea and Lindsey decided to join us again for the festivities. We agreed to meet her there since she would be going there earlier than us, however, we ran into some trouble along the way. The directions I had gotten earlier to get to the theme park were actually the directions to get to the corporate offices in a completely different area. So we had to get in touch with Lindsey to find out how to really get where we needed to be. We spent so much money in transportation today just because we got lost so much. We intended to get there at 11:00 but ended up getting there at 12:00 because of the snafu. We got on the Disney shuttle and I could just feel my inner child getting so excited because I had never been to any Disney theme park in the United States, so I had absolutely no idea what to expect. We walked into the park and I was amazed by what I saw. There a huge fountain that was a scene from Fantasia. I of course had to take a picture in front of it. We met up with Lindsey and then walked around taking in all the sights. The theme park was broken up into several different areas including areas based on Aladdin, The Little Mermaid, Indiana Jones, and Atlantis. There also areas that had themes based on regions of the world such as America, Italy and Mexico. We had lunch at a restaurant in the Mexican town area because a taco sounded like a pretty good idea. I ordered a fried chicken and I will tell you that it was not a taco, it was in fact a fried chicken wrap with salsa in it. I understand that authentic Mexican food is probably minimal to nonexistent in Japan, so it was not a surprise, but it still tasted good. We walked around after that in the Aladdin area and took a bunch of pictures, including one of me hunched down with two thumbs up by a fake camel that Lindsey was riding on. Priceless. We decided to go to a show next. I don't remember the name of the show exactly but it took place in a jungle and involved a lot of acrobatics. It was very beautiful and superbly artistic in form. There was so much going on onstage that it was hard to keep track of everything but it was excellent. Afterward, we returned to the Aladdin area and got on a the Magic Carpet ride. I was literally almost too big for this ride, as the safety bar barely stayed in place when it was lower onto my legs. It was a tad uncomfortable and just another testament to the fact that Japan was not made for tall people. We walked around some more and encountered a lot of Disney characters along the way, including Abu, who ran up and give Nick, Lindsey, and I all hugs. We went to The Little Mermaid area and played around in the kids area inside the "undersea" castle. It was so much fun to know that I was having as much fun as the kids were. Then we went to the Atlantis area to get in line for a ride based on 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea. This ride puts you in a submarine that goes under water and encounters all kinds of creatures and dangers. This was so cool because it actually appeared like we were underwater because there was actual bubbles that could be seen outside the windows. I don't know how they do it, but those Imagineers are pretty good at what they do. We went to America Town in hopes of seeing a couple of shows but they were already completely full. The reason was because that day was a national holiday for the beginning of spring, so there were many more people there than would usually be there. We decided to go grab some food for dinner. We went to this restaurant in the Atlantis area that had pan noodles, fried rice, and other such delicious things. That fried rice was some of the best that I have ever had, especially because it didn't have any onions at all! I also had some cheesecake, which I very sorely miss, by the way. Then we decided to go on one last ride before we would make our way out. This ride was one of the highlights of the entire day. We all sat in chairs that had seat belts built in that we were to wear. Basically, the ride simulated being in a storm chasing airplane that got buffeted by the wind and rain. It totally felt like we were actually in an airplane because we were getting jerked around all over the place. At the end of the ride it even simulated a crash. Some of the pipes in the makeshift aircraft were broken and we got sprayed with water from the leaks in the exterior of the plane. We finally had a crash landing but we were safe. What a great ride! As we exited the ride it started raining outside and people were in a flurry to get undercover. We made for the gift shops, as I wanted to get a postcard to add to Jamie and my travel collection and Lindsey wanted to get a puzzle. As we were finishing up our shopping the highlight called Fantasmic began. It was essentially a walk through Disney's history and I started to feel overcome with emotion. I don't look back on my childhood with a lot of fond memories but Disney was something that I always loved and found joy in. It was one of the few bright spots from my childhood and, thus, it holds a special place in my heart. I was almost moved to tears and it was at that moment that I rediscovered my love for Disney. The show was full of pyrotechnics and Disney characters and classic songs that just made you want to sing. Nostalgia is truly a beautiful thing. After the show, we headed back to our lodgings once again. Unfortunately, we ran into travel problems again as we got stuck in Tokyo station trying to figure out which train we needed to take to get back. Other than transportation frustrations, this day was by far the best day of the trip. 

March 21, 2013
Initially, we were planning on going to visit Mt. Fuji today, but because of all the walking we had done the previous 3 days, our legs were quite sore. That said, we just went back to the Tokyo Sky Tree to do some souvenir shopping for our families. Other than that, we pretty much just chilled at the hotel the rest of the day so we would be in better shape physically for what the next day had in store for us.

March 22, 2013
Today was our last day in Tokyo, as we would be taking the night bus back that evening. After checking out of the hotel and leaving our luggage there, we decided to go to Shibuya and walk around. Now Shibuya is known for something called Shibuya Crossing. The best way I can describe this place to you is to tell you that it is basically like Times Square in New York. There is this massive crosswalk that has a giant screen at its center with buildings sprawling out all over. I can truthfully say that I have NEVER seen so many people in my entire life. This place was absolutely packed just like Times Square is. There were so many people to the point where it was almost overwhelming. When we got past this area, the crowds thinned out considerably and it became a little more comfortable. As usual, we walked into stores that looked like they might be of interest to us and that was about as far as it went. Nick and I aren't really shoppers so, to be honest, Shibuya wasn't all that appealing to us. We realized that and decided to return to Asakusa to visit a couple of places that we had yet to visit, but not before I picked up a little something for my mom. We returned to Asakusa and visited 3 places: Sensoji Temple, Asakusajinja Shrine, and the Grand Kaminarimon Gate. These three structures were all in the same location and the are all religious in nature. They deal with both Buddhism and Shinto, a uniquely Japanese religion. I was intrigued by the architecture of these buildings, they were quite beautifully constructed but I couldn't help but feel a heaviness there. There were statues of Buddha everywhere and it was just so sad to see so many people coming to worship a god that doesn't even exist, when the real One True God is waiting with His arms wide open for them to come to Him. I just want everyone to receive the free gift that I have been given from God too. Within this area there is also a very large shopping area with over 90 shops called Nakamise. These shops sell all kinds of things including traditional Japanese items. I found a tapestry that had a famous Japanese painting on it that I really liked but I decided to wait to buy it until I saw what kind of tapestries Osu has. The reason being Osu is a lot closer to where I'm staying and they might have different things. So the quest for a house decoration is still underway. When we got hungry we decided to go to a Japanese Denny's. We both ordered a dish called omelet rice which was an omelet over top of rice that was shaken in a ketchup sauce. It might not sound very appetizing, but it was so good. The flavors worked together beautifully and I can say beyond the shadow of a doubt that Japanese ketchup is way better than American ketchup. We finished up our dinner and then went to Baskin Robbins for some ice cream, which was really good. We took a little walk to burn our last half hour, then went back to the hotel to pick up our bags and made our trek back to Shinjuku. We made great time and got to Shinjuku early but later came to find out that we were in the wrong meeting spot. We were looking around for the people that worked for the bus company we bought tickets from but we weren't able to find them. We had about 10 minutes before the bus was supposed to board and leave and we were freaking out a little bit. We both prayed and the Lord led us to where we needed to go and we made it in time. Then we began our sleepless drive back to Nagoya and I got back to my dorm room at about 7:00am on Saturday morning.

So there you have it. That was my trip to Tokyo in a nutshell. Even though there were some parts of the trip that were extremely difficult, it was absolutely worth it. However, given the choice between Nagoya and Tokyo, I will always choose Nagoya. I now appreciate Nagoya more, especially for the sweet simplicity of the subway system here. Nagoya, I will never complain about you ever again! Thank you all once again for continuing to follow my posts and sharing in this journey with me. I will have a new post up very soon so stay tuned! Until then, everyone take care and God bless!