After a 13.5 hour flight from NYC, I finally made it Japan!!! I landed in Tokyo around 3pm & found Alex immediately after customs and immigration.
We made the commute to our Air BnB from Narita Airport to the Shinjuku district of Tokyo. Tokyo is the largest city in the WORLD, claiming 13.6 million residents! Our Air BnB was in a great location just minutes from the metro.
Alex explained to me some of the cultural do's & don'ts, which I quickly became sensitive to, but am still having to be gently reminded of at times :) A perfect example is the removing of shoes to enter homes/certain rooms. Upon arrival to our BnB, there is a small entry way & then a step 'up' with two pair of slippers at the bottom. This 'step up' is a cultural queue to remove your shoes before entering & to change into the slippers provided. This is very traditional in Japan & it observed in ALL house holds, many restaurants, & even different slippers many be provided to enter the water closet!!!
Our first stop was the Samurai Museum, which was just a quick walk to from our BnB. It was a small museum that boasted many ancient swords, sensei & general uniforms & some of the first Japanese made guns, many of which were modeled after the Portuguese guns but had their own distinct Japanese flair. I learned so much about the history of the samurai & their role in Japanese culture & history! My first public place to have to remove my shoes to step onto the 'tatami mat' which is a woven straw material. It is very hard to clean so it's important to remove your shoes & just wear indoor slippers or socks.
After the museum, we walked through the Shinjuku district & decided to walk into a fried chicken shop! Clearly throwing my vegetarianism out the window for this trip, I ordered chicken fresh to order & ramen. It was SO delicious.
No comments:
Post a Comment