When the plane landed at Haneda Airport, a thin layer of mist covered the airplane window, which suddenly condensed into small droplets that rolled down. Through it, I saw the various lights of ground staff nearby and the control tower in the distance. The scene was hazy and dreamy, reminiscent of the Cyberpunk neon I had seen in Ghost in the Shell. Using this as the most impressive shot of this trip as the opening of the article is just perfect.
This is my first time traveling abroad. In the past, I would never have predicted that my first stop would be Japan, but now, based on practical considerations, it seems to be the most suitable choice for a beginner. After all, it's not far, there’s no time difference, the streets are filled with Chinese characters, and the eating habits are similar. However, coming to Japan still gives me a strong sense of being abroad. Although I self-studied a bit of Japanese in high school, I was only at the level of being able to recite the fifty sounds and understand some simple phrases. It’s still quite difficult to listen and speak fluently.
Overall, this trip provided me with a very good experience. Of course, the main reason is definitely traveling with someone I love. Throughout the journey, we maintained the most peaceful mindset and surprisingly did not have a single argument, only immersing ourselves in the joy of exploring new things.
Convenient, Developed, and Orderly Transportation#
We took the airport bus back to Shinjuku, and I must say the experience was really great. It perfectly solved the anxiety of having three pieces of luggage and feeling unable to take the subway. The elderly man at the bus transfer station, with his gray hair and hunched back, meticulously arranged all the suitcases in a line to send them into the bus's cargo hold, which was so detailed that it left me with an indescribable sense of emotion. I didn’t expect this to be just the beginning of my experience with the humanistic culture of Japan.
Once on the bus, the first feeling was quiet. Even though there were tourists whispering to each other, everyone tacitly kept their voices low. The bus drove smoothly without the jarring sensation of sudden stops, and the speed was not slow. My girlfriend remarked that it felt like the cars on the road were driving a bit faster than in our country.
When we stepped out of the bus station, we immediately saw the three large characters for Shinjuku Station hanging across the street. Following the road down the bridge, we saw Musashino Dori. By the time we arrived, it was already quite late, but the restaurants along the street were still open with lanterns hanging. We had eaten on the plane in the afternoon, and by this evening, we were quite hungry. I really wanted to find something to eat immediately, but the three macaroon-colored suitcases still held us back... We stumbled forward, pushing the suitcases, and at every traffic light, we never saw a single person or vehicle run a red light. This consistency was the same in all the cities we had visited.
Our itinerary for the next day was quite busy. In the morning, we explored shopping malls in Shinjuku, in the afternoon, we took photos at Senso-ji Temple and Kaminarimon, and in the evening, we headed from Ginza to Shibuya to ride the sky elevator, essentially making a circle in the city. Although Tokyo's subway is operated by different companies, as passengers, we didn’t feel any difference. As long as you buy a Suica card on your iPhone, you can travel without worries, and there are no security checks at the entrance.
In Tokyo, the preferred direction of travel is to the left, and this is well adhered to everywhere. Standing in the long corridors of the subway station, you will notice the orderly flow of people passing in the opposite direction. When taking the escalator, everyone consciously lines up, leaving a passage for those in a hurry. I should only have seen such good implementation in Shanghai in my home country; I haven’t been to Beijing, but based on my girlfriend's feedback from her recent autumn trip, it seems they don’t have it either, let alone Guangzhou, Shenzhen, and Chengdu.
When we were waiting for the train to arrive, everyone also lined up on both sides of the door, and what surprised me even more was that in almost every city we visited and on every line we took, passengers waited until all the alighting passengers had exited before boarding. While we were on our National Day holiday, the Japanese were going to work. When we left in the morning, it was also considered peak time, and the situation did not change at all.
Vibrant Culture, Interweaving Tradition and Modernity#
After spending two or three days in Tokyo, my impression of this "first city in Asia" is truly excellent. I rarely find a city where I can hardly point out any flaws. Its level of development, modernization, and the high quality of its citizens make me marvel at how happy one could be living in this city.
In Kyoto, I visited many shrines, drew a good fortune at Kiyomizu-dera, passed through the torii gates at Fushimi Inari Taisha, drank the beauty water at Kawai Shrine, and bought a maple leaf amulet and did water divination at Kamo Shrine. Walking along the Kamo River felt like suddenly moving from the bustling city to a peaceful place, where my heart could miraculously calm down in those small wooden houses.
In Osaka, I stayed at the Hankyu Hotel next to Umeda Station. Although the accommodation was a bit old, its location was so convenient that it was easy to go anywhere. I was also fortunate to be among the last guests of this hotel, as it will close for renovation next year after operating since August 1964.
Since this travelogue was not written immediately after returning home, the only things that come to mind now are some shock moments, such as when I ascended the Shibuya Sky Tower, or when I took the bus to Disney and emerged from a tunnel to see the Tokyo Tower and the skyline along the way, or the surprise of being greeted with bows at every point on the first floor of Isetan after waiting in line for a long time to enter, or the maze-like entrances and exits at Umeda Station that made me question my life while admiring the architectural design, and also visiting the only Universal Studios Mario area in the world to check off real-life game scenes. Oh, and I also stumbled into a game arcade before entering the Don Quijote store, where I saw many well-dressed workers or elderly people playing arcade games and fruit machines, which was quite a bizarre scene...
Japan has given me an abundance of joy and unexpected surprises. I am someone who always self-indulgently treats every trip as a cultural exploration, and these novel experiences have had a tremendous impact on me. From the perspective of an outsider, it seems that this small country is in an extremely self-consistent cultural atmosphere. It is so peaceful and beautiful that it feels a bit unreal, as if it could simply hold onto its own stability and happiness, seemingly able to forget everything happening outside of it in the world.
That's all I can think of for now... If I think of more things to write in the future, I will update them here.