13 May 2007: morning, from the Tokyo/Chiba train

[more randomness from the back of an old e-mail....]

I really like Tokyo. It's without a doubt the biggest city I've ever been in, and it's SO...open. Bustling, but calm; it doesn't seem as frenzied as New York does. And there's so much neon and so many skyscrapers. I love it.

I'm amazed Charles found me at Tokyo Station last night. It was RUSH HOUR on Saturday, for crying out loud. Pretty awesome. I guess I expected to see more non-Japanese people in Tokyo- and I have, but nowhere near what I thought the numbers would be. I still stand out like a sore thumb. I AM glad that I'm short; tall foreigners must have an even harder time here. I wonder if Japanese visiting San Fran or New York have a weird culture shock at seeing all the diversity.

I'm in love with the Japan train and subway system, especially since I keep comparing it to the Spain one. There is really no contest. At all. I actually DID end up setting my watching by the train arrival times, and it hasn't let me down yet. And it shouldn't. There is no reason a train system should have delays- it's not like you have to worry about traffic on the tracks or anything. But anyway, it's very easy to find your way to and from trains. In Tokyo Station it's kind of harder because that station is just so BIG- but eventually you find what you're looking for.

My rail pass is wonderful, speaking of trains. I should try to figure out how much I have saved by buying it (it cost me $378, and I get unlimited train travel for two weeks). I'm PISSED that they took my shinkansen ticket tonight, though! It had so much souvenir value!

Today I get to go see part of a Marines game and a Giants game. I need to buy Liza a Giants souvenir, and Steve a hat.

Oh! We just went by all these practice fields with little kids running around playing baseball! Cool!

I wonder if it's hard for Charles here- if he's still treated like a dumb American even though he's lived here 7 months. He took us (me, his friend Boris, and his gf) to this omelette (not really omelette, but that's the closest approximation) place last night. I can't handle omelettes. Seriously, Spain destroyed my appetite (which wasn't huge to begin with) for them. I mean, I ate it, because it's horribly rude to not clear your plate here, and it was waaaay better than tortilla espanola, but oh man. No more omelettes.

I wish I had more time here. This is such a speed trip. Granted, I'm pretty much here with one purpose, but I wish I had more time in Tokyo, in Hokkaido, in Kyoto especially (and I haven't even been there yet!). I guess I'll just have to come back- probably after I learn some Japanese. I'm amazed Charles thinks it's this huge deal that I know 5 characters. I personally think it's pathetic.

I have to get a new camera body. I don't care if it's $500 or whatever. I can't have it like this. [note: on day 3, the LCD screen on the back of my brand-new camera cracked...so for the rest of the trip I was shooting pictures while completely unable to see what they looked like, whether they should be deleted, and how much space they were taking on up the memory card. It was less than fun]