The Flickr Group

What was I to do? I was invited to meet up with some photographers for lunch. Its a great opportunity. There were a couple of problems, (1) the weather was not cooperating and (2) no one showed up for work today.

Lets start with the weather. It has been storming all week and today was no excuse to stop. I was looking out for my camera gear. Should I drive down the street a few blocks so my camera has a better chance of staying dry? Why should I? I have a camera bag and my poncho/jacket with me. There was a lot of cover from the buildings in town. I should be okay.
The second part of the problem was the fact that no one showed up to work today. Everyone was busy doing something for the company. I called my coworker and left a message. The lunch was to begin at noon. It was 11:30 and my coworker didn't return my call yet. I had to inform the group I couldn't make it. I was devastated. I was so excited to go, but since no one was in the office, I didn't know whether I could leave or not. 11:40 came and I got a call.
"Make sure you lock up."
That's all I needed to hear. I grabbed my bag and put on my jacket. It took me about 15 minutes to get to Murphy's and there they were, the Flickr Hawaii Meet group.
I've been trying to meet more people lately and this was the first group where I never felt like the awkward new kid. As soon as I saw the group, Kyle introduced himself to me and made me feel right at home. I smiled and introduced myself. Everyone was ready with their cameras. Cool, an actual photography group that takes photos of each other while discussing about things other than photography.
I got to meet some really cool people. More important than that, I dusted off my camera and started shooting again.

A few months later

Its been months since I've been to Japan and I still find myself reminiscing back to the days I spent in Tokyo. I really enjoyed it there. I look forward to the day I return. (Hopefully, it will be with next summer's group to Osaka)

My friends who have known me for a long time told me that I've changed. And they like the new me. I'm more outgoing and more importantly, I've become independent. I left my parent's house in the suburbs and moved to the "big city," if you can call Honolulu that. It has been hard to adjust to living on my own. Some days are great because I am free to do what I want. Other days I barely get through because the feeling of loneliness sets in. These are the days I'm thankful of the people I met during the trip. All I have to do is get on the phone and call Travis, Stacy, Bev, or Aja and talk. Or I pick up my camera and walk around the city taking photographs. I think about the time we walked through the streets of Ginza and imagine what it would be like to do something similar in the streets of Honolulu. I think about the typhoon and how we didn't even care it was coming.
-A couple of months ago, we had a hurricane headed to the Hawaiian islands and the people here started stockpiling on water and canned goods, you know, the necessities. I'm glad to say the hurricane was downgraded to a tropical depression by the time it got to Oahu. The reason I bring this up is because we got nervous. When we were in Japan, we didn't feel the same way. The typhoon was coming and we just went along with the trip.

I think about it now and I feel somewhat empowered.

City of the Future and The Big Picture

"I'm almost there, I just need to see the big picture." Thats what I said last night when Jason asked for our opinions about the trip. I am almost there. There was only one day left and we were almost leaving. I don't know what I meant when I said these words. I wanted Jayson to think I was actually close to finding what I was looking for. The truth is, I don't think 8 days is enough to find myself here. I'm not sure I can even find what I'm looking for. What was I looking for again? Oh yeah, I'm supposed to find my passion here.

Today was our last full day. There was a catch though...we didn't have Jayson and Yoko leading us and telling us where to go. We were on our own. Between Travis, Vince and I, we had to decide what places we wanted to visit and revisit. We chose to go to the future. First stop was Shibuya so see the what the future of fashion had in store for us. As we walked through the streets of Shibuya towards the famous 109 shopping complex, I noticed TV cameras interviewing young ladies. She wore an electric blue top with a white shrug paired with a denim skirt. She had white leggings on and flats. I am only speculating, but I think they were doing that because they wanted to know how and what inspired her to put together her outfit. Could she be wearing the new "look?" I don't know. We'll have to wait at least a few months to find out. Maybe we'll see her style in the next fashion magazine.

We met at the Hachiko statue to go to Ginza. We used our Suica card, a pre-paid credit card, on the subway and we were commuting like pros. Its hard to believe that only 8 days ago, we were all nervous to catch the subway. Now, its like we've been doing it since we were kids. We got off at Ginza to take a look at the new products Sony was coming up with. Six floors of Sony innovation captivated Vince, Travis, and I as soon as we walked in through the glass doors. There were plasma screen tv's, slim-design computers, and probably the smallest mp3 players I have ever seen all in one building. Each floor had a different theme and each time we moved to the next level, we were surprised at how the Sony team put things together. As we walked out of the doors of the Sony building, we discussed about what we saw and what we wanted. Our final stop for our trip into the future was not very far away, so we decided to walk there. We've been walking all week, so a mile or two is not going to affect us at all.


Although the walk to Shiodome was not long, when we arrived, we felt like we were in the future. All of the buildings seemed to go into the clouds. They were made with glass and steel. We walked into one of the buildings and the interior was just as impressive as outside. The design of the buildings was very cutting edge and more importantly, modern. I could have sat in the middle of the area and would have been happy.

We couldn't stay there long because we had to meet back at the hotel to see Tokyo from a building in Shinjuku. It was the big picture I was talking about. There it was, a 360 degree view of the whole city. We could see the lights of the city as it stayed alive at night. As I sat on the sill of one of the windows, I looked to the Odaiba ferris wheel in the distance and took it all in.

We're leaving tomorrow, and I still don't quite know what I want to do. Do I want to be an architect or a photographer? I think that is something I have to decide on my own. Yeah, on my own. I'll start by doing things on my own. And when I'm ready, I'll know what to do...

Old Tokyo continued...

Our tour of "Old Tokyo" continued on to Kamakura. The town we were in, again, was not like the Tokyo we've been enjoying for the past week. It was quiet, tranquil, and peaceful. There was no hustle and bustle that we saw in central Tokyo. Actually, to me, it seemed like the people here were kind of moving in slow motion. I guess you could say I got used to moving around in the big city.
We came here for the temples to study the history of Japan. Our first stop was the statue of the Great Buddha. After "rinsing off," I got to see the largest statue of Buddha I have ever seen. I have never heard so many ooh's and aah's in my life. It surprised me to see the Japanese residents get so excited about the Buddha. This is part of where they live and some of them are seeing this great statue for the first time.

People from all over Japan go to Tokyo to visit. One thing I found very interesting was that people from all over Tokyo come to Kamakura for vacation. Tokyo has everything someone could ask for, and yet, people come here to escape. It got me thinking about the last time I just hopped in my car to take a scenic ride through the North Shore. I remember stopping at Matsumoto's for shave ice and enjoying the life in the country for a day. I guess this experience is similar to what these Japanese people are having.

Throughout our whole day in Kamakura, I kept seeing people's faces light up as soon as they saw the temple or the barrels of sake. And even though the typhoon was on its way, it did not take away the spirits of the people. I think the only thing taken away was the energy of our group. By the end of the day, we took a vote and decided to head back home instead of going to Shinjuku. I was utterly disappointed that our group did not want to see the business center of Tokyo. They say its the Times Square of Tokyo, and I thought I would never find out why. When we got back to the hotel, Jayson got a change of heart and decided to take us to Shinjuku on our last day. I was very relieved to find out we were not going to miss Shinjuku.

The Light and The Shop Owner's Wife

"Turn off the light! Where is that light?" Travis yelled as he pulled the bedsheets over his eyes.
He stopped halfway and realized it was the sun. The sun was out for the first time since we got here. I got off my bed and walked slowly to the window. It was strange to see the sun again. The buildings actually cast shadows on other buildings. The city took on a totally different vibe. The students were also different. When we had our morning meeting in the lobby, everyone's eyes were as bright as the sun outside.
There was no sign of a typhoon anywhere. It seemed like the typhoon threatened the country years ago and now it was just a story from the elders. Ikebukuro was hustling and bustling at 9:00 in the morning. We had time to enjoy a nice and calm breakfast, so we ate at nearby Otooya restaurant. As we were waiting for our food, my chair started swaying back and forth. I thought there was something wrong with my chair, but I was wrong. We were experiencing an earthquake. And just like the typhoon, the people of Tokyo did not blink an eye to it. What surprised me even more was my own reaction to the 6.8 magnitude earthquake. I just brushed it off like it was something insignificant. Maybe it was because we recently went through an earthquake in Hawaii, or maybe it was because I was in Japan and these kind of things happen a lot. Maybe I've fallen into the mentality that no matter what happens here, we can always rebuild. And when we do rebuild, it will be much better than before. Rebuilding grants us the permission to be as creative as our minds can be. But then again, we don't need a natural disaster to be creative. We just have to be. Creative.

The other side of town...
There were very little cars driving around. Little old ladies stood outside of their cozy stores to smile and wave us in. Most of the people there had a puzzled look on their faces. It was the first time since the day we landed I felt like a foreigner. One thing I noticed about this part of Tokyo was that people made eye contact and smiled at us gaijin. There was a tatami mat maker on the corner of what looked like a street. The owner stopped us to tell us that we were the 2nd group of foreigners to visit his shop in the last 5 years. His wife offered freshly cut oranges. It reminded me of those long summer days growing up in Kalihi.
I'd visit the corner store to spend the money my grandfather just gave me on candy. As I would reach into my pocket to pay for my gummy bears, the shop owner would grab a tangerine from her fruit basket and drop it in the bag. She made sure to tell me to eat the tangerine before the gummy bears. Those were the days of innocence and what my idea of the "aloha spirit" was. 20 years later, a kind, cute, old woman from the outskirts of Tokyo, who probably has never visited Hawaii, offers me an orange to enjoy in the hot sun. I don't think she'll ever realize it, but she gave me so much more than a juicy slice of an orange. She gave me a renewed sense of how people could be. There still are good people in the world.

Building character

We had to move to the next hotel in Ikebukuro. Its on the other side of Tokyo. I was afraid they might lose my bags, so I decided to take my camera bag with me today. I think about it now and realized that I didn't have to worry about my bags. I have been conditioned to not trust anyone. How do I undo this? Should I undo this conditioning?

Kyoo, we travel to the shopping districts. It's still raining pretty hard, but we're here on vacation, a little typhoon (actually, it was a powerful one) is not going to stop us. We went to Harajuku in the morning. This is where all those gothic/lolita girls come out and stand on the bridge. The rain was coming down and none of them were on the bridge. I could see the disappointed look in the faces of the other students. This would have been the highlight of the trip for them.
Instead of heading over to the Meiji shrine with Jayson, we decided to walk down the street to get something to eat. After eating our lunch, we walked down Omotesando street. There are a lot of little boutiques and some high end retailers that line the street. Although most people would go inside the stores, I opted to stay outside to admire the architecture. As I walked down the hill to Omotesando Hills, I realized that the buildings in this area reflected on the personalities of the people who shop here. Every building had its own personality. Everyone who shops here had their own style. I remember Eriko making a comment the other night about the people who live in Tokyo are like robots. I have not been here for very long, but I find it hard to believe that these people are robot like. There are so many different people in Tokyo. During our dinner with the Meijigakuin students, I found out everyone of them was different. How are they like robots? I don't see it.
Back to how the buildings have their own character. Each building has a style of their own. One building was made of traditional red brick and the buildings to the left and right was either concrete or glass. Some were made with steel and I even saw one made with wood. I guess this is one of the reasons why they don't have street names here. It is easier to go by landmarks because each building is different.

Shibuya
I've never seen so many people in one area. As soon as we got to the famous Hachiko crossing, I remembered a scene from Lost in Translation where Charlotte was standing on a corner street looking at the dinosaurs walk across a building. I was standing on that corner today and I saw the building advertising a product. It was just amazing to stand there and marvel at this building. Architecturally, it was a modern building with a giant screen. Again, it had its own character. It was the leader of the Shibuya portion of Tokyo. This is also where I started thinking about how I could be different. How do I make myself stand out? As I walk across the street with a thousand other people, I start to have a feeling of liberation. Suddenly, a loud megaphone with a high pitch voice was yelling into our ears. I looked toward the noise and I saw a girl talking into the cone. I wanted her to stop while we were passing by, so I did something I would have never done in Hawaii to a stranger. I made eye contact with her, waved, and mouthed "hi." She stopped speaking and returned the gesture with a smile. It was long enough for the group to pass by the store.
I can't believe I just did that. I thought to myself. What is it about this place that makes people want to get noticed? Back home, we try very hard to conform, here, everyone is the opposite. Another thing I noticed were the way people in Japan walk. They walk with their heads up. There is a simple explanation to this. All of the information a person needs to know about a building is on a sign on the side of the building. In Hawaii, all of the signs are either on the ground floor or roughly ten feet above. So, in order for someone to find a restaurant, they have to keep their head up.

Charlie House
I think Japan was trying to tell me something.
Stay...You belong here...

Before I could take in all the splendor of the fashion capital of Tokyo, a small group of us had to leave Shibuya for a martial arts tournament. The ride was a little long, but it was worth it. The tournament was at Tokyo Stadium, home of the Tokyo Giants baseball team. It was the one time us guys could let our testosterone flow freely. Also, it gave me the chance to put my new lens through a tough test. It passed and here are some of the photos taken with it.

About last night...Rediscovering the power of the voice...

Last night, I met Eriko

There was something familiar about her. When we got back to the hotel, she was waiting for us in the lobby. As soon as I met her, I asked if she had a sister who goes to UH. She reminded me of a girl I met last Friday at a Jazz club in downtown Honolulu. It turns out, that girl is her sister. Oahu is too small to contain me. I need to get out of there.
The girls were pretty tired from all the shopping, so they decided to call it a night. We walked across the street to Yoshinoya for a beef bowl. When we were done eating, Vince decided to go back to the room. Eriko had a lot of energy, so she wanted to do something. We venture to the other side of Shinagawa station and saw a bustling night life. There were restaurants, bars, and karaoke rooms all over the place. Sadly though, it was late and they were all closing down for the night. We walk over to a nearby convenience store and I bought us some drinks. I remember Jayson telling us there was no last call for alcohol in the stores.
According to Jayson, drinking in public was acceptable. We thought it would be fun to test his statement. We opened the cans of beer and started drinking. No one cared. No one looked at us funny. Here we were, drinking in public and no one bothered us. It was liberating. Basically, I can get wasted every night if I wanted to. Interesting concept...

The next morning

I woke up early again, 6:00 am, I don't get it. I don't know why I'm waking up so early. I took a shower and went downstairs before Vince and Travis got up. I walked around the hotel and I realized I was losing sight of why I was here. I came here to find my passion, my calling, and the past 2 nights, I was only thinking about how much alcohol I was going to drink. I better be careful...instead of finding something, I could lose myself here.

Akihabara, Ueno, and Roppongi Hills was today's itinerary. I hung out with Jayson, Yoko, Andy, and Barbara while we were in Akihabara. Everyone was mesmerized by the big electronic stores, I wanted to visit the Otaku. Check Mate, the first place we visited, was not a maid cafe. It was a butler bar called Check Mate. Luckily, the employees were all women dressing up as men in anime costumes. It was a cute, little, cozy bar. There were already some people enjoying the women's company. Jayson, Andy, and I sat at the bar and we ordered something to drink. Yoko and Barbara joined us a little later. Jayson also ordered a dish from their special section. When the food came out, the employees began to sing for Jayson. The other patrons of the bar, I think they were regulars, were also singing along. I thought to myself, "They must come here a lot!"
-note-
While sitting at the bar listening to Jayson and Andy talk, I realized something about Andy. He speaks very eloquently. His pattern of speech, the words he chooses, his tone, and the delivery all come together to create something thats almost musical. I wasn't the only one who noticed this. The bartender noticed and she would listen with more intent, even though she didn't understand english, whenever Andy spoke. When he speaks, people naturally listen. It is a very powerful tool to have in social situations. I'm sure he is a great public speaker. hmm...That may be part of the reason why everyone thinks he is the teacher...
-end note-
I forgot what the name of the next maid cafe we visited was. This time it was a real cafe, and there were maids there. I observed how the maids treated the customers. When they were taking orders for drinks or anything else, they made sure they were looking up at the customer. They really know how to make people feel better about themselves. Just this act alone can make a person relax. Jayson wanted us to experience the cafe so he orders a game and tells me choose. I decide to go with Crocodile Dentist. Our waitress was very nice and cheerful. She made the game interesting by making a lot of noise when one of us push down the wrong tooth. I eventually get into it and I ended up enjoying myself. This is probably the reason why places like these are so popular. They bring out positive aspects about people that usually don't show up unless you've known them for a while.

Ueno was a short subway ride from Akihabara. Black market vendors used to sell things here. That is why it didn't surprise me when it looked more like a swap meet than a shopping district. However, the prices of some of the products there didn't reflect on the way the place looked like.

While weaving through the people and the tiny shops, Travis and I find this temple. This is the second time when a temple seemingly pops out of nowhere. Although it doesn't look like it goes with the surrounding buildings, I got the feeling it belonged there. I don't know why I felt that way. I just did.

Roppongi Hills, a mega shopping, business, movie, and residential complex was the final stop of the tour for today. We had booked a tour of the mini city and waited in a meeting room for the tour to start. We requested an English speaker and it was not a problem to get one. Roppongi is actually the international hub of Tokyo. A lot of people there know how to speak English as well as other languages. Our tour guide, I think her name was Ayumi, gave us listening devices so she wouldn't have to yell while on the tour. We put on the headphones and she started the tour. She had a beautiful voice. When she spoke, I became mesmerized, captivated, and even attracted to her. She was thin, had darker skin, and most important of all, she could understand me when I spoke to her. She was beautiful.
She took us to see Mamon, the Spider sculpture, and Mori Tower. Besides the tour guide, there were so much to look at. Mori Tower was a huge building that seemed to just go on forever. It is the 5th tallest building in all of Tokyo. A lot of time and effort went into the design of this complex. The station "hat" captivates you instantly with its moving screen. The surrounding buildings were designed to compliment the main tower in the middle. The engineers and architects must have had a great time designing this whole place. It seemed like every nut and bolt in the tower served a purpose. Everything here was designed to impress and wow the client. I can only imagine what the rooms and offices look like. The logo was also very modern. For a moment, it took me back to my days when I was interested in graphic design. Although I don't share the same enthusiasm I have for architecture with graphics, I will always admire good design. Everything in Roppongi Hills had good design.

The typhoon was coming and the rain had started to pour. After our tour at Roppongi Hills, we headed back to Akihabara because some people wanted to do more shopping. Instead of shopping, I opt to join Jayson and Yoko to look for a cosplay Izakaya called Cafe BSD (Beautiful Satanic Dining). There was a particular dish that I thoroughly enjoyed in the Izakaya. It was called Russian Meatballs. There were 6 meatballs in a small plate and 1 of those meatballs was extra spicy (karai). We didn't know which one it was, so it was similar to Russian roulette. I was the unlucky (or lucky) one to eat the spicy meatball.
I learned something about Yoko tonight. Some people call this quality stubbornness, but I call it determination. While we were looking for the restaurant, we got lost. While walking down one of the back roads, Jayson finally said, "it is not worth looking for it, we're lost."
Yoko was not having it. She didn't even acknowledge that Jayson was waving the white flag. The rain was pouring down in buckets and she would not give up. She called the restaurant and even stopped 2 guys in a dark alley to ask for directions. We meandered through concrete buildings and little alleyways until we got there. When she found the restaurant, Jayson was so happy, he couldn't stop smiling at her. I was just relieved we were out of the rain.
"Yukkuri doozo" said the waitress, dressed in a purple outfit, as she delivered our food.
It means, to take your time and enjoy. This trip has been going by so fast, the waitress' predetermined greeting made an impact on me. I looked around the restaurant and people were talking, laughing, and having fun. We should all follow her advice especially here, in Tokyo. Take your time and absorb it all in. Yukkuri Doozo!

There is something about Tokyo that you'll never find in any American city. Here, the cars don't have alarms or The Club going across the steering wheel. Every restaurant or retail outlet has an umbrella rack outside the door and people leave their umbrellas outside. When they leave, their umbrella is still where they left it last. There is a sense of trust that is very foreign to me. According to Reid, author of Confucius Lives Next Door, this sense of trust is the social miracle he noticed while living in Japan. It is a society where you can let your children as young as 9 years old catch the subway by themselves, and nothing would happen to them. In America, parents can't even fathom the thought of letting their kids go to the corner store by themselves without worrying. It makes me sad that our society, American society, lives in fear of this sort of thing. If Japan can do it, why can't we?

Fish, Gardens, and Fun!

I woke up pretty early this morning. The alarm was set for 7 am and I got up at 6:30. I guess my body's already adjusted to the time difference. I usually wake up a little earlier than this for work. I think it might be from the drinking last night. And you know what? NO hangover... I don't even feel a little dizzy. Yoko did tell me to drink some Pocari Sweat last night. I guess she was right...I won't question her advice anymore. Ok, I'll try not to question her advice.

Putt Putt in Tsukiji
Aaah. I think everyone has got to love that fish smell at 9:00 in the morning. As we're walking across the street, a little putt putt vehicle zooms right by us. "What was that?" I asked myself. We go across several streets and I keep seeing those putt putts. We keep walking, then we turn around. What? Yoko went the wrong way. Maybe I'll only listen to Yoko when it comes to having too much to drink...
There's another one!! Putt putt goes pretty fast!
Finally! One of those things get stopped from a street light.
We cross through a warehouse area and we get swarmed by these putt putts. I start to like these vehicles because they're small and it can maneuver through the small aisles.
BEEP! "I think we're messing up their groove," someone says as we're walking through.
People were looking at us like we were not suppose to be there. We walked through rows and rows of fish vendors and cutters. Another one passes by and I see the biggest scallop shells I've ever seen. I thought to myself, "I have got to try the scallops when we eat sushi."
I thought we were going to see the auctions, but Jayson told us it was off limits because too many tourists were coming and the auctioneers couldn't work. I was disappointed, but the mention of food got me off the subject right away. "It is the best sushi I have ever had!" exclaims Jayson.
Did he say the "best" sushi? I have to try it.
The line to Dai Wa Zushi was about 30 people long. I had to wait about 45 minutes in line before I got in. Some people decided to skip sushi and try something else. The restaurant could hold about 20 people. There were actually 2 places to eat. I was lucky enough to get a seat by Mango and Judy. Great! Someone can eat my ebi (shrimp)! I can't eat shrimp because of my allergies. Now I can save face in front of the sushi chef. I have never had uni (sea urchin) before this day. My best friend told me it was gross and she didn't like it, so I never bothered to try. I sat down and ordered the Chef's Special. Basically, the sushi chef makes one of everything they had, almost everything. I pass my ebi over to Mango and tell her she can have it. The chef was very friendly and asked us where we were from. We said Hawaii and he replied, "ah, Kamehameha."
That was the second time someone said his name while we're here. Apparently, King Kamehameha is very popular to the Japanese or they just enjoy saying Kamehameha.
OH wow! This sushi is delicious! Time to face up to the sea urchin. I dip the sushi in the shoyu and place it in my mouth. It is so good! I don't know what my friend was talking about. I ate all of my sushi before Judy and Mango finished theirs. Then I saw it...The scallops.

They were right in front of me the whole time. I had to order one. And what the heck, I decided to get another order of uni. This time, I'll eat these slowly and enjoy them. We still had about an hour left to roam around. I decided to stay with Mango and Judy and we walked around the little shops.

Fresh edamame! Fresh! I've only had pre-frozen ones at home. I wonder if these taste better...They have to be better, they're fresh.

We keep walking and I stop to read this sign:
"Okay! I'll only be injured some of the time." I say as I chuckle to myself.
The translations are so literal here, that signs end up reading like this. We know what they mean, but sometimes its just funny.

When we got done digesting our food, we made our way to the center of Tokyo. Jayson starts his history lesson of the Imperial Grounds.

The Imperial Palace is the focal point of the city. The Tokugawa family was very clever in relocating the capital to Edo, now Tokyo, and built the imperial castles in the center so the family can retain control and at the same time the Emperor can recapture his old glory.
This is a picture of the moat of the Imperial Grounds (behind the people).
We walk into the gardens and I honestly think it is the most peaceful park I have ever been to. There are no kids running around making noise. Before we make our way to the gates, we stop by a statue of a person who exemplifies loyalty, courage, and selflessness.

Kusonoki Masashige is the embodiment of a true warrior. He fought to the death for his Emperor. It is a shame that he has been somewhat forgotten.

We take a little break from walking to take some photos and Travis and I got to eat some ice cream. We then make our way to the palace.

Actually, we can't even get past the gates. I guess others before us were too intrusive so we have to stay outside. Here's the class at the bottom of the hill towards the gate.

-A note on the architecture of the Imperial Palace-
As long as I have been interested in architecture, I have always wondered how Asian architecture achieved that curve at the end of their roofs. I really like how it looks, it gives a house some character.

Off to Odaiba

Enough of the serious stuff, let's have some fun already. To be perfectly honest, I had no idea what Odaiba was. All I remember from the reading was that we had to go over the Rainbow Bridge (pictured below) to get there. I also knew there were lots of shopping centers. There is so much more there than what I thought. We take the Yurikamome, the new monorail of Tokyo, to Odaiba. As we step off the Yurikamome, I get the feeling we've been transported to the future. Is this place still part of Tokyo? The buildings here look like they belong somewhere in the distant future.
"Why don't we have buildings like these at home?" said Beverly as we're taking pictures of the surrounding area.
It would be great if we had something like the Fuji TV building. Who would have thought to use a ball as a design element for a building? I think it looks great!




Jayson lets us loose upon Odaiba. My roommates, Travis and Vince, and I ask the girls, Bev, Aja, and Stacey, what they're going to do. They decide they want to go shopping. We decide to eat. We go into AquaCity to find a place to eat. We find out there's a ramen food court on the top floor and decide to go there. Its the first time we've been left alone, without Jayson to help us out, so we have to do things on our own. Luckily, Vince knows Japanese pretty well. After we burn our tongues with the Ramen, we walk around the mall. We walk into another mall and we see Joypolis. Now the fun begins. We purchase an all day pass and enter the virtual reality gaming complex. It is like Dave and Busters on steroids without the alcohol. There was a half pipe ride which always had a line. So we decide to explore the other 3 floors. We spent roughly 3 hours in the complex and we realized the sun had gone down.
The Rainbow Bridge becomes a spectacle at night. Savvy entrepreneurs take advantage of this and offer a sunset boat cruise. The boat cruise is very popular because I think there at least 20 boats floating in Tokyo Bay when I took this photo.
The Odaiba ferris wheel is a sight to see. It is huge! No, we did not ride this giant wheel. It would probably take about 30 minutes for the ride anyway. We didn't have that much time to waste.

Stroll along Ginza

We left the world behind and within 8 hours, we traveled 19 hours into the future. Setting our watches and clocks was not very hard. The hard part was convincing our bodies it was only 5:00 pm and it wasn't time to sleep. "Congratulations everyone!" Jayson says with a smile as we got off at Yurakucho, "you have survived your first ride on the subway."
I was more impressed with the amount of people in business suits that it didn't make me nervous to ride the subway. We walked for a block and we reached Ginza. As I walked through the streets of Ginza, I thought to myself, "what time do the lights turn off?"
As we pass by the neon lit buildings, Jayson starts to yell, "we have just walked through one of the most expensive real estate in all of Tokyo."
"Oh, thats right, the 'Rodeo Drive' of Japan," I replied.
He raises his voice again, "this building right here is a world famous landmark. It is the Wako Department Store."
I thought to myself, "I could see why this would be a landmark, it didn't look like the other buildings."

Ginza has a lot of modern buildings.

Wako had a European flavor to it.

The architecture here is very different from what we have back in Hawaii. Japan sends their people to other countries to learn about art, architecture, and basically everything else you can think of. When those, I guess we can call them "research specialists" return, they take what they learned and make it their own. When we were walking at the base of the building, I didn't even realize, the building had a European influence. I thought it was just another modern building. I didn't know until Jayson said something about it. We crossed the street and got a better look at the famous Wako Department Store. I could definitely see the intricate details and of course, the clock tower was a dead giveaway. Oddly enough, the highlight of the day was not the walk down the most expensive real estate or the world famous Wako, it was the dinner we had with Meijigakuin Daigaku students.

It was my first time witnessing Japanese tradition in person. As soon as I stepped into the restaurant we were asked to take off our shoes. I thought this was kind of weird because we were in a public restaurant and I did not know how dirty the floor was. It turns out, the floor was actually very clean.
We got settled into our seats and the students started to show up. These three students: Sou, Eri, Yuki, and Haruna (pictured below) were the ones brave enough to sit with me. (Jayson said we had to spread out to make it easier to socialize). We did our little introductions and the dinner began. The first thing these students taught me was the tradition of not pouring your own drink. "This is the Japanese way," Sou stated as he was pouring me beer into my glass.
He then poured a glass for everyone else on the table. When he was done pouring for everyone, I tried to pour him a glass, but Eri beat me to it. If I want to return the favor, I would have to act faster. They were just as excited to meet us as we were for them. They asked us questions they learned in their English classes like, 'how do you like Tokyo?' and 'how long is your stay?'
There was a definite language barrier we had to overcome. So instead of answering with only my English, I incorporated the universal body language to better describe my answers. I have to admit it was difficult at first, but when the drinks kept coming, it became easier. Body language truly is universal.

A few of the students started to walk around and mingle with us. Ai (left) was one of the students who visited my table. She was fun, outgoing, and she could speak English pretty well.
I decided to follow Ai's example and walk around.
Sou followed me with a bottle of Sake and two cups. He showed me how to offer people drinks. Give the cup to the person, start pouring, and say "doozo doozo," and the person responds "domo domo."
Very easy and to the point. I like it. We then set up a challenge for each other to go and meet at least three more students from each other's school. I'm glad we did this because we got to meet some interesting people. Sou got to meet Sharon and I met Naoko.

Travis and Jun join our table for a little fun. These Japanese students sure know how to have a good time. Jayson did say that when it is time to be serious, they're serious. When serious time is over, they let loose.

We bid the students farewell and our first night comes to an end. We take another stroll down Ginza and the streets are just as lively as how we left it a few hours ago. Our bodies were exhausted, but the streets just kept on flashing their neon lights. Does the city ever go to sleep?

Problem leaving Hawaii

"We're practically there!!"
That is what Travis said as we stepped onto the 747 of JAL. To be honest, I didn't have the same enthusiasm as he did. Actually, I was surprised I got on the plane. Last night, I could not sleep at all. I just found out that Panda Travel spelled my name wrong on my boarding pass. I don't understand how they could have done that. Every document I gave them had my name spelled out correctly. They spelled it Charles, its supposed to be Charlie. I called a friend of mine and she said I need to get it fixed or they won't let me board. Another friend said not to worry because I paid for it and they have to let me check in. I thought to myself, "I hope they let me on the plane."

As soon as I got to the airport, I met with the group and told Gavin, a former student of Jayson, what had happened. He told me to go to the check in counter and tell them my problem. I was still nervous about it. The counter person smiled at me and fixed it right away. "Wow, that was quick." I said.

As we were getting checked in, the final student of the class, Stacey, arrives. She came from Maui and had never met anyone in the class. I decide to introduce myself to her, Travis did the same. In her email to the class, she said a lot of people thinks she is a Japanese tourist. She does look like one in a way. She looked shy and a little intimidated. Maybe the people from Maui weren't as assertive as I was pretending to be. I think I might have scared her.

While we were waiting for our plane to arrive, I saw an old acquaintance from high school. David was on his way to Japan for a wedding. We talked and he told me about Tokyo and the wonderful places I should visit. I scrambled to write down every word he said so I don't forget when I arrived. He got me excited again. Anticipation is one of the best gifts you can give someone who is going on a trip. He gave that back to me. Thanks David.

It didn't really hit me, that I was in Japan, when the plane landed. It wasn't until we got to customs and I could not understand what the officer was saying that I started to think, "Oh that's right, I'm in Japan."

As the sliding doors to the main terminal opened, we finally saw Jayson and Yoko's smiling faces. "Hi everyone" said Jayson as he greeted us, "how was the flight?"
We all put on a smile and said, "It was great. The best part about the flight was that no one was on it. Oh and the food was soooo good."
It was true, we all had a row to ourselves. And the food were actual meals. It was probably one of the best airplane rides I had.

So, here I am in Japan and the search has officially begun. What is in store for us? I don't know. I'll have to find out.

Oh man, I'm sweating a lot! They weren't kidding when they said it was going to be muggy. Ugh!

Before the search

What is it about Tokyo that entices the young people? Last week Jayson, my professor, said something interesting, "young people go to Tokyo to find themselves."
When I first signed up for this class, it was just to go to Japan. Things were happening in my life and I just thought going away was a good way to escape from it. As the months turned into weeks and now hours from the moment I walk off of the plane into a foreign land, I am finding out that I am doing this not only to escape, but to find something.

I've been going to school for so long and I have been jumping from major to major. I have an idea of what I want to do, but I have to choose something. Right now, my two choices are photography and architecture. Easy right? Why don't I just take photographs of architecture? Thats what I used to tell myself, but I want to make portraits of people. I don't like taking pictures of inanimate things. Also, I want to make sure I genuinely enjoy what I do. This leads me to state what I am searching for.

I envy those people who love what they do.
You can see it in their eyes and hear it when they talk.
Its passion.

I want it

I'm gonna find it