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Published: June 29th 2009
Whew, what a day. My $45 capsule hotel has been the most luxurious experience I have ever had. But I'm getting ahead of myself, so let's start from the beginning of the day
I woke up at 6 in the morning, and was unable to get back to sleep; my body still thinks it:s 7PM (NY time). Luckily, it turns out that Thierry is also awake, so we decide to get an early breakfast (McDonalds... thank goodness for globalization). Afterwards, we trek through Asakusa, seeing some ridiculous architecture and temples. I threw in a ￥100 coin （~$1） and prayed for a safe trip.
I then checked out, and we proceeded to Shinjuku, which is supposed to have an awesome nightlife. We didn't see anything too great, but just walked around and took in the sights. We got some free ice cream from a street promo, and ate Chinese food for lunch. The area we were in felt pretty tame, at least during the day.
Thierry and I then split up and I head towards Okubo, which has a cluster of Korean shops. It´s a little weird going to a korea town when I'm in Japan, but it honestly
felt so good to be able to understand people and converse with the locals. I had some amazing Korean BBQ. My waiter told me about his experience in japan, and had some recommendations for my upcoming visit to Korea. I also asked for directions to the nearest train station without sounding like a 2nd graer.
As I left, it began to rain in earnest and I pulled out my travel poncho, and forged ahead. I took the subway to Shibuya, to hang out with Japanese teens. The rain started to pour a little harder. Determined to not look like a tourist, I refused to check a map for directions and instead walked in a direction that it seemed everyone else was walking towards. After a short while, I realized there was not a person in sight, and I was walking in the back alleys of the residential area of Shibuya. I was completely lost.
When enough rain has entered your shoes, you start to accept the sloshing feeling when you walk. Tired from walking all day, and a little dispirited by my lack of direction, I spent the next two hours sitting down at various arcades. Being homeless
Asahi Beer hall
The building on the left is supposed to resemble a mug of beer, and the golden flame is supposed to represent the "burning heart of Asahi Beer"(or without hotel to shower/dry shoes) and alone is tolerable when the weather is nice, but very tiring when it is raining.
Sitting at an arcade is one of the cheapest ways to spend time inside in a nice air conditioned place in Tokyo. I also had the pleasure of beating a local who sat down to challenge me! Eventually, I would find the main Shibuya crosswalks (especially the large intersection of Lost-in-Translation fame), but by then I was too worn out and sloshy to really enjoy it.
Next stop was the observatory of a large building in Tokyo to get some tourist shots. I had promised to meet Thierry there, but never ended up seeing him. It was still an enjoyable experience, and afterward I was very excited to find my hotel in Shinjuku.
Once again, I tried my follow-the-crowd navigation style, and once again, I got lost. After half an hour of wandering, and serious consideration of spending the night in an internet cafe, I found my crowded (and full of locals) capsule hotel. Thank goodness! I must have walked at least 10 miles that day, and the water in my shoes was getting to
be very annoying (I later found 10 prunes and 1 blister when I took my shoes off)
This hotel revolves around its sauna, and it was awesome. It's one big public bathroom, but they have a huge tub in the middle that's basically a big pool filled with hot water. I enjoyed the Sauna, then kicked back in their relaxing room, watching Japanese TV with a beer from the vending machine. I grabbed some Gyoza from the restaurant downstairs, then surfed the internet from their business center. It was a great time, and definitely salvaged what was turning out to be a disappointing day.
Tomorrow is singapore!
-Michael
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