Ikebukuro

From our train station, the first and last stop in Tokyo is Ikebukuro, so we figured that would be a good starting point for our sightseeing today. We got there at 9am after a half hour train ride. After getting out of the train station, I was very disoriented. Looking at a map was useless because I didn’t know where north was (I told Paola earlier that I wish I had a compass), and there really weren’t any street signs, let alone street signs in English. So I took a guess, and we walked around where there were lots of flashing lights and things like that. Looking in the guide book, it said there was an interesting place called Sunshine Plaza, so I tried to find that. It turns out that where I guessed north was turned out to be south, so we went exactly the wrong way.

However, while going the wrong way, we came upon a Buddhist temple. It was neat to see something that I had seen so many pictures of. This particular temple wasn’t a particularly special one, nor was it listed in our book, but it was the first one we saw up close. There were cars parked outside, but within the campus, and that took away from some of the awe. The doors to the temple were closed, too, so we didn’t go inside. Around the back, however, there was what seemed to be a cemetery, and a caretaker sweeping the leaves. We felt a little out of place since there was nobody else around, so we left before too long.

We tried to look at a map on the street that was in Japanese, but couldn’t make too much sense of it when a middle aged Japanese man came up to us and asked us in English what we were looking for. I told him, and he said that he was walking that way anyway, so we walked and chatted. It turns out that he lived in Seattle for a bit when he was a teenager. He was now taking English lessons with someone, and in exchange he was teaching the person karate. After a bit we had to depart, and he pointed in the general direction of Sunshine Plaza.

It so happens that I misunderstood where to go, and, again, we went in the opposite direction. However, we came to a different train station, so I looked at the map, and given the relation between the two train station, I was finally able to get my bearings, and we didn’t get lost again. However, at that point, having walked so much without already seeing the Sunshine Plaza, I didn’t care to backtrack again, so we instead headed towards our next destination, south to Shinjuku. On our way out of the Ikebukuro neighborhood, we saw the Tokyo Metropolitan Art Space, which I think is a music hall. The architecture was huge and impressive, and if we want to see a classical music concert, it might be there.

Sightseeing in Tokyo - September 14, 2007

We decided that we would go into Tokyo today, and see what we could. We used a travel book as a guide of sorts, but it only really served for the maps. The book that we had divided Tokyo into several different sections. We started with Ikebukuro because the train from our home ends there. We then walked down to Shijuku, and finally to Shibuya. Because today was such a full day in which we were on our feet from 8am to 8pm, I will write several of the interesting details later.

However, there were some important things that I learned. The first is that Nobody, even in the city of Tokyo (as opposed to the suburbs where we live) really speaks English at all. The other important lesson learned was how to ride the subway, which has been called the most efficient transit system in the world, is not the easiest to learn, especially since there are several different companies that run different lines. I also learned that while commuting might be cheaper than driving, it does not mean that it is cheap. All that said, I am not quite sure if the Tokyo system is the most efficient. The third thing that I learned is that fashion is very important to a lot of people. Lastly, taking a shower with cold water is not pleasant.

I will try to elaborate on all of that after I have had adequate sleep.

Day 1 – September 13, 2007

Paola woke up crying today. In fact, she cried more or less through out the night, whenever she woke up. I don’t think she was too much to blame, though, for my own lack of sleep. I woke up several times too, and ended up staying up when I finally woke up around 4 am. To pass the time, I wrote the blog about our arriving in Japan.

Since I was up, I waited anxiously for the sun to rise so that I could walk around and discover my new neighborhood. Finally around 6:30, the sun was up and the sky was bright. I went outside and saw what the immediate neighborhood looked like in the light of day. Unlike the previous night, being able to see everything helped me realize that I was in Japan. I didn’t go very far at all, barely half a block in one direction. There were a lot of people passing by (going to work or school, I imagine), either walking or riding bikes. I liked the town character that seemed to display.

I wanted to let everyone know what my apartment looked like, so I made a video tour of the apartment (it might be a while before I am able to post it online since I don’t have internet access).

Afterwards, I was able to convince Paola that we should go for a little walk towards the train station to see what we would be passing everyday. Nothing much was yet open, but we got an idea of where to go without getting lost. We went to a small market and got some food and other things that we needed. Since we knew that our luggage would be delivered between 9 and 12, we wanted to be sure to get home in time, and so we did. We looked over all the introductory paperwork that the company gave us, and we realized that we should go to the local community office to get the paperwork started for our alien registration cards. So we had a plan for the day.

Having been awake for so long with such little sleep, I went back to sleep. I woke up some time later, and a few minutes later the delivery guy with our luggage came. We decided that the best thing to do would be to leave the luggage for now, and take care of our alien residency papers. We took a bus to the office, which wasn’t so far from our home, but in the opposite direction from the train station. I told Paola that after we were done at the office, I wanted to walk back home to check out some of the stores that we passed during the bus ride.

The gentleman who helped us fill out the paperwork spoke little English, and I spoke little Japanese, but between the two of us, we were able to fill out the papers completely. I was happy with the progress I was able to make with my Japanese. Paola said that the whole process took longer than she expected, but we were done within an hour.

On our walk back home, we stopped at a great supermarket that was close to home. They had a lot of complete lunches made for, what seemed to us, very inexpensive prices; the same sorts of lunches would have cost at least twice as much in New York. We were excited, and picked out something to eat, despite the fact that neither of us was very hungry. I insisted, though, claiming that we should eat a little something anyway since it was lunch time (about 1:30).

When I paid for lunch, Paola realized that she did not have her passport with her. This only aggravated her more than she already was (she had still been crying a few times earlier that day). I tried to convince her that it wasn’t that big of a deal since we had already registered with the local community office (which we just left, and had a certificate saying so). We decided to walk the path back to the office to see if she had dropped it somewhere along the way. We got all the way back to the office without finding the passport. For a moment we hesitated going inside and asking if they had found it because we were embarrassed that we were just there, and had already lost a passport. We had our Japanese dictionary with us, and I rehearsed what we would say. I started to tell the lady, and she interrupted, telling us that she had the passport.

She then gave me a map to go to the local police office (I can’t really say that it was a station) and told us how to get there. Paola was amazed with my Japanese ability to figure out what was being said, and where we needed to go. Before I left, I made sure that I understood what the word was for the place we were going; I did not yet know that it was the police station, but merely the “koban.” I had initially misheard the word as “kabo” and asked to be sure. I was lucky that I asked because the first place that we went to was not the right place, so I asked where the “koban” was. The lady told me that it was around the corner. If I had asked where the “kabo” was, she would not have understood me, and everything would have been lost.

We got to the “koban,” when I immediately realized that “koban” must mean police station (or office). The old man behind the desk did not speak any English, so we had to get by with the little Japanese that I had studied sporadically over the last few months. Everything went as smoothly as could be expected in such a situation. The officer even complimented me on the very limited Japanese that I knew. After we left, Paola extended the compliment, and told me how awesome I was for having navigated through the whole situation. So I felt as proud as a man with a 30 centimeter penis (metric system in Japan). This also reassured Paola that there was some control that we had here in this new land. She didn’t cry for the rest of the day.

We went back home and unpacked our luggage, and put everything away. We were both very tired from walking so much today (back and forth from the office after losing the passport, and then even further for the police station). However, I insisted that we go out and explore the neighborhood some more. We walked all around, but couldn’t find an internet café. We did find several small and inexpensive restaurants, and another inexpensive market. We got some food from the market, went home, ate, and fell asleep.

I felt like we got a lot accomplished in our first day, despite the fact that nobody here speaks English at all (which betrays many of the English signs all around the neighborhood). It made me confident in my Japanese, and only makes me want to learn more. Even more, Paola assured me that she always needs a couple of days to get adjusted to a new place and situation. I am counting yesterday as a day, so I expect her to be cool by tomorrow.

Our New Home

We woke up in the morning of September 11, did what we had to, and packed up the cars with our luggage. We had so much stuff packed that we had to take two cars. My parents drove one car, and Paola and I were in the other. We had decided that my parents should follow me to the airport, and that we should stay together since airports can be a bit daunting. That plan was put to shambles as soon as we got on the freeway. Almost immediately, we were separated, and I got very nervous as to how we would meet up again at LAX airport. After all, the airport is big, and I wasn’t certain that my parents would remember that our flight was on Northwest Airlines. That being the case, I couldn’t be sure that we would meet up with them, and collect our bags that were in their car. There seemed to be nothing that we could do, so I just drove.

About forty-five minutes into the drive to the airport, Paola luckily spotted my parents. Somehow, they had gotten ahead of us. It didn’t matter to me how, because we now found them, and we would be able to get our luggage before checking in. Things always just seem to work out.

The plane ride actually took less time than was planned, only 10 and a half hours. I don’t know how I did it, but it went pretty smoothly. Before getting on the plane, I thought that I would go mad before we landed. That did not happen, so all went well with that. Likewise, customs and immigration were easy to go through, and there weren’t any lines, or anything, so it went quickly (unlike my experience at JFK airport in New York).

Once through customs and immigration, someone from our company was there to meet us. He took our luggage to a delivery service, and then rounded us up with about forty other cattle who had just gotten in. We landed at about 15:30 local time, but our bus was not scheduled to leave until 18:30, so besides getting a welcome packet and its contents explained to us, we sat around for about three hours.

I thought that someone would escort us during our commute to our home, but that was not the case. We took a two hour bus ride to a Kowagoe station closer to our home in Saitama. Paola slept through most of that. After the bus dropped us off at a train station, someone was supposed to meet us there to take us to our home. We had to wait for about fifteen minutes before someone came; the waiting made us a bit nervous. I thought that if worse came to worse, based on the maps in our welcome packet, I could get us home. We were about to call the main office right when Tony showed up. He took us upstairs to the train, and we were on our way. The only thing that was a surprise was that we had to pay for our own train tickets from there. It was only about 500 Yen, but I consider ourselves lucky that Paola had such small change because I had understood (apparently wrongly) that the whole commute from the airport to our door would be taken care of. All the same, things worked out. It was only four stops or so before our stop, so all went easy from there.

However, once the train got to our stop at Tsuruse station (a good name, since I will be living there), we had to walk for about ten or fifteen minutes, which was a bit much with the stuff that we were carrying (the delivery service only took two pieces for each of us).

It was during this walking that it finally felt a little bit like I was in Japan. On the bus ride in, I could see lots of buildings and hotels and things, but so many of the neon signage was in English. One lot even said, “Used cars for sale.” But now that we were walking through the streets, I could see the more delicate details of the local community. We passed more than a few sushi places, and all of the signs I saw were in Japanese. One interesting thing is that there really aren’t sidewalks; basically we just walk on the side of the street. This made walking with a suitcase a little challenging, as I did not want to be hit by any cars. It also did not appear that it would be an environment conducive to daily jogging; we’ll see what I can do.

When we finally got to our apartment, we were relieved and ready to go to sleep. Tony showed us around the place a little bit, and showed us how things work. Now, Tony must be at least six feet tall, and he had to lower his head at every doorway in our apartment, and I can easily touch the ceiling with my hand with a short hop, so it seems a bit small. I guess it will work for Paola and me, though. I also thought that it was funny that Tony told us to take off our shoes when we walked in, which is customary in Japan, but since it is our home, shouldn’t we be able to choose which customs to adopt? (To be sure, I think that it is a custom that we will adopt.) He showed us the new futon mattress that we lie on the floor to sleep on. After figuring out how to turn on all the lights (there is still one that doesn’t work), he left.

It was nice to meet Tony. He told us that he will be the person who begins to train us for our job next Monday. Even more, Paola is going to be working at the same branch as he does, so we have already met a person whom we will see frequently. He left his phone number and told us to call if we had any questions before Monday.

We were finally alone in our new apartment. Even though it is small (about the size of an apartment in Manhattan), I really like it. I was about to tell Paola this when I turned to her and saw her crying. I was worried that she would cry because she does not adjust quickly to changes. I did what I could to comfort her, but she assured me that she just has to get used to it. I am sure that she will be fine in a couple of days. For myself, I still don’t quite yet have the feeling like we are in Japan. Of course, I haven’t gone out or done anything other than get to our apartment via a bus and train ride followed by a little walk. Actually, right now, to me it sort of feels like a little Japan neighborhood in a major American city like New York or Los Angeles. That said, I can’t wait to get out there and explore today. We have to go to a store and pick up food and other things like soap and towels, so it should be fun navigating through that. All in all, I am sure that things will find a way to work out like they always do.

Leaving for Japan

(A photo I took of a surfer at Newport Beach)

I am leaving for Japan tomorrow. I don’t know what I feel, or even what I am supposed to feel. Friends have asked me if I am nervous, or anxious, or excited. Perhaps I am feeling all of those things. I think that the one thing that keeps crossing my mind is disbelief. I keep asking myself, “What is going on?” or “What the hell?” Moving to Japan is something that I want to do, but in the last 29 or so years before last April, I never thought that I would be doing this. (Well, a few times it did cross my mind.)

It seems to me that the surfer never quite knows what wave will come, but goes into the sea, and at some point a wave comes, and he just rides.

Things I did in Los Angeles over the last month or so

I kept complaining that I was bored while in Los Angeles. At some point along the way, Paola told me over the phone that I should stop being a baby. Now, looking back, I could list the things that I did during this time off.

-I saw Beethoven’s 9th symphony performed at the Hollywood Bowl.
-I went the Thousand Steps Beach in Laguna Beach.
-I showed Paola Disneyland.
-I dressed up as a pirate with Dan and ‘Riss (one of the few parties we hit).
-I spent time with my parents.

I think it was a good time spent in Los Angeles.

Photos, from top to bottom:
My folks; Me, Dan, Maria, and Riss as Pirates; Me and Paola at Disneyland; Me in a cave at 1000 steps; Hollywood Bowl.

Visa Problems

We hit a snag last week with my visa application. For whatever reason, the folks on the Japan side of things took a while to file the first step of my visa papers (which is called the Certificate of Eligibility). Paola got hers through without a problem, despite the fact that my papers were filed at least a week before hers. She was ready to go, waiting for my papers to get filed so that we could go to the Japanese Consulate to get the visa in our passports.

Our scheduled departure for Japan was Tuesday, September 4. I called the company that we were going to be working for to see if the Certificate of Eligibility was sent to them yet, seeing as how our flight was soon to leave, and it would take a couple of days at the Japanese Consulate to get the visa once all of our papers were in. The gentleman on that side said that they had not gotten the required papers yet, but expected them any day. However, seeing as how it would take an extra day to get the papers to me, he suggested that we send our passports to him so that he could file everything with the Japanese Consulate in Boston, with whom he was friendly, and the whole process would be go through much faster.

After sending our passports, and having the gentleman go the his local Japanese Consulate, he called us back telling us that he was unable to file the papers, and that we would have to file them in person. He said that this was irregular, and that he was usually able to do this (but not anymore, apparently). So, after sending all of our papers back to us, we went to the Los Angeles Japanese Consulate and filed all the necessary papers, and now on Wednesday, September 5 we are ready to pick up the final visa, a day after our initial plan for departure. That said, our flight to Japan was delayed a week because of all this.

I needed an extra week in Los Angeles anyway. Now that our leaving is less than a week away, I am starting to get a bit nervous, or anxious (I don’t really know which, perhaps both, or perhaps neither; in any case, it feels weird). I remember when I first heard that we would have to be waiting an extra week before leaving, I was indifferent, trying to stay cool about it. Then I was a bit frustrated because I was excited to go, plus I was getting bored of being in Los Angeles (I have been here for more than a month, living with my parents, in the home of my youth). Having been bored in Los Angeles, I realized that I was being rude and mean to my parents, who through it all, were taking it better than they should have. So, gratefully, I have a week to remedy that situation. It would have been a shame if I had left for Japan, not to see them for at least a year, on such a bad note.