A Shoulder to Sleep On

So my time in Japan is winding down. I left Tomoko and Kamakura this morning. I took this opportunity to visit the "big city" so to speak. I headed off to Tokyo early in the morning. It was about an hour train ride to Shinjuku Station where I met Setsuko, another CS member who agreed to show me around town.

Can I just say how wonderful CouchSurfing is? How else could I meet so many wonderful people wherever I go? Setsuko and I went to Kichijoji where we had lunch and had good conversation. Her english was really superb as she works as an editor for one of the large Tokyo newspapers. We walked around a local park and I asked her (tactfully) the question that had been on my mind. What do Japanese history books say about World War 2? What are children taught? As it turns out, not much. Apparently the Battle of Pearl Harbor only occupies a couple sentences in the pages of Japanese history and I find out you'd be hard pressed to get any Japanese veterans to talk about their experiences. I guess if you lose the war, there's not much to say. It makes me wonder how my knowledge of history would be different if the outcome of the War was different.

Anyway, enough of the heavy stuff. Setsuko and I spent most of our short time together trying to track down fridge magnets. If you were hoping I would bring you a gift from Japan, please temper your expectations. Japan, as I have found it, is a pretty poor souvenir place. We couldn't find any magnets so I7m holding out hope that the airport will come through for me.

After Setsuko and I departed, I took the train to meet my host for the evening, Yasuke. He has been studying hard for his German exam tomorrow, but he has still been kind enough to offer me his couch. Er, floor mat. His apartment is very very small. One room, half a kitchen and a bathroom. Very cramped, but hey- this is Japanese style. As I write I'm sitting on the floor with a jug of lemon tea and my new favorite sweet- Pocky. Its the equivalent of a small, chocolate dipped breadstick.

Unfortunately for myself and Yasuke, his test is tomorrow morning so he must leave pretty early. I will leave with him and proceed to the airport where my flight doesnt leave until 5. I guess I'll get a lot of reading done tomorrow. But such is life. I'm not paying anything for lodging tonight so I cant complain too much, right?

My flight tomorrow will take me to Seoul, South Korea. I will be staying two nights with a couple from Canada and then two more nights with a Korean family- all CouchSurfers.

Bits and Pieces

-Krispy Kreme has landed in Tokyo. Word on the street says that you have to wait in line two hours to get your hands on some of that goodness. Setsuko was confused the first time she tried them because, as she put it, "it melted in my mouth!"

-I'm fairly sure I could fill a small bathtub with the sweat I've lost in the past two days.

-Speaking of sweat, theres a bottled water company here called Pocari Sweat. Seriously? Who is going to buy bottled water with the word Sweat scrawled on the side of it? Not this guy. No sir.

-I make a good pillow, apparently. On the train ride to Tokyo today a girl fell asleep on my shoulder. I was really unsure what to do. Push her off? Let it ride? I chose the latter. Probably would have had a different response had she been less attractive. ; )

-Heard from a few different places that Japan was expensive. I would like to change that. TOKYO is expensive. Kamakura was much more reasonable. I kid you not, a Goodwill shirt that says "Ohio State" on it that we would pay $2 for in the US sells for $45 here. I kid you not. Saw it with my own two eyes. Part of it is fashion, though.

Alright, skipping off to bed now. Well, more like rolling across the floor onto my mat. No worries tonight though, Yasuke has AC! Party time!

Until I arrive in Korea...