2 days in tokyo, no sign of bill murray

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2 days in a country is not enough time to generate a fair assessment of a place but life isn't fair so here goes. most of my 51 hours in Tokyo were spent wandering around, something i have come to be a master at. Tokyo is divided into 23 self governed wards and i hit up a few. Shunjuku was by far one of the most crowded, overly lit up spots i navigated. it felt like Times Square, squared (after Giuliani took office and the sex shops shut down). it was pure sensory overload. full of giant lit up signs, horribly large crowds and an unusual amount of gaming spots. not to state the obvious here but the Japanese sure do love their games. there were an uncountable amount of gaming parlors full of adults, many business men, who sit chain smoking and playing games that involve dropping tiny silver balls into the machine. i would have stayed in them longer to observe but they were unbelievably loud. i'll keep stating the obvious by saying that the country has impeccable design and an amazing attention to detail. individually saran wrapped apples, Bose speakers throughout the airport and cute japanamation cartoons on the plane that make an emergency exit look down right adorable. of course i came in contact with many things that i am not used to, people donning surgical masks being one of them. i would say one of every 25 people had on a surgical mask. i assume it is to avoid other people's germs and also prevent their own germs from infecting others though this hasn't been confirmed.

i also checked out Shibuyado, an ubber trendy area where Tokyo's teens unleash their fashion fury. every person at 109 Shibuyado (the mall) was a size 2 (or smaller), impeccably dressed sex kitten. tiny jean shorts, thigh highs and high heeled boots were rampant. even the hippest cat from the boogie down Burg would have felt average. bumming around in my over sized jeans and sneakers (and they were not even my kangaroos😞 ) i felt like a mid-westerner dropped into Bryant Park during fashion week. the back pack didn't help either. i was beginning to wonder if it would really have been all that impractical to have packed my white patent leather heels and flat iron. to compensate i am going to renew my subscription to Tokion magazine when i get back to the states.

overall i was more than happy to get the hell out of Japan. everything seemed too linear and perfect for my liking. i landed in Bangkok around midnight, totally loving thailand. more on that later.

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Photos

men at work
an electronic man warns japanese drivers of construction.

Comments

[paul]

SWEET!
this is super well written kathleen! and fun to read...nice work

[mark lilly]

Yay!!
very cool to hear your words and think of you in asia. be well!!! sending all kinds of love and smiles, m

[Janet]

I feel like I'm there!
K, I can't wait to read more. This was the first account of Japan I've read that wasn't completely positive. Reading about the supercute fashionistas made me giggle aloud. I'm sure I would look like an oaf in their midst. I still want to be a little bird on your shoulder. A charming anime bird, but a bird all the same.

[amelia]

surgical masks
People wear the surgical masks if they are sick or have a cold. It's considered polite to do so, thus you avoid getting other people sick. I also know people who wore them after eating something stinky like roasted garlic, to prevent people from smelling them. :)

[Erica]

thank you
I was thinking the other day that I wish I could have escaped with you....thanks for the great words and images.

[Ray DeCandia]

Hi Kathleen. Love your insights, spoke to Kelly. Hope you make it to Laos for Xmas. Please be careful. Miss you. The DeCandia Family