Fuji & Tokyo, Japan (3)
It’s time to reflect on the third time I travelled to Japan. A lot of firsts happened on this trip. The two most important are:
I flew alone by myself for the first time.
I got to hang out with Lauren. Well, that was the second time. But it was the first time in a long time.
I landed around 4AM in Tokyo. I had to take the same long ride to Fuji. I reached in the morning, greeted my parents, and had to get ready to go see Lauren. Things were very tense. We had argued a while ago about her talking to an ex-situationship (for lack of better wording) of mine. My apologies, Lauren, for when you see this. It is crucial to this story.
The hotel, very familiar to me, has a very large escalator to go up (or down) to the lobby area. If you choose not to walk down (or up), it can easily last a minute. The first time I saw Lauren, we very awkwardly greeted each other. It was clear tensions were still a bit high.
We stepped on the first step of the escalator headed down.
You still talk to him?
Yes.
I don’t remember the in-between or what led to me asking her that. I only recall the very awkward minute long ride down. We fought over text although sitting right next to each other on some benches. The beginning of my trip already felt disastrous. I wanted to leave. Again, I don’t remember how Lauren and I made everything work. We probably just let it go by and became friends again. Like always. Like usual.
It wasn’t smooth sailing from there. Let me be clear.
Anyway, I met my parents’ friends, Yuki and Hugo. I thought they were both very interesting, and I was quite fond of Yuki. Lauren was preoccupied with Love and Deepspace. Ah, Lauren. I love you so much. We went on a nice long walk. It was freezing that night. I couldn’t feel the tip of my nose nor my fingertips anymore. Being with Lauren felt right. It felt natural. We had no awkward stage of being friends. When we first met back in March, we immediately told each other basically our entire life story within 15 minutes of meeting. We were meant to be.
Lauren and I went to lunch in the hotel one day. Lauren has a plethora of allergies. However, she was able to enjoy a burger. I ate some delicious tonkatsu sandwiches. We spent some time at the track, but not enough for it to be a highlight of my trip. I enjoyed the hotel cafe. Lauren and I sat there and had a long conversation about life, Brian, and ourselves. The night of the 21st, we were off to Tokyo.
We reached our hotel around 8:00 PM. Lauren and I immediately convinced our parents to let us go out. Our hotel was connected to the Toei Oedo line, where we got on a train towards Roppongi. We ended up in Shibuya that night, only returning back at midnight, which would be the foreshadowing of the rest of the trip. The next morning, Lauren and I headed straight for Shibuya. We ended up in the heart of Harajuku where we took cute photobooth pictures together because we are still girls at the end of the day.
It is to be noted now that Lauren and I have very similar types in a male. That’s what makes Tokyo so fun. We can go looking for the same kinds of guys together. As we walked through a small strip near the Stussy Harajuku store, we found many different clothing shops. It is here where we met Uncle Ken, as we lovingly nicknamed him. We also met Riku-kun, a very fashionable (and incredibly tall) worker who used his charm to convince us to spend an obscene amount of money. Sorry, Riku-kun, though I loved our conversations, I truly regret buying that jacket. Lauren loves hers though! It was here our first argument occurred. I will spare myself the pain of remembering and writing it out, but it was a very awkward train ride. So awkward that we sat across from each other and did not look up at each other once. More arguing over text. However, it was as if as soon as we left the train stations, we were back to normal. I took Lauren to Akihabara, which I don’t think she enjoyed very much. However, we went to an Excelsior Caffe where the barista was very easy on the eyes. We sat and rested for a little while. It was 5:30 pm in Tokyo and it was already dark. We got on a random train and of course, ended up in a random place. I recalled being in this area before, somewhere in Asakusa. We took a nice picture that has been in my Instagram highlights for a long time. By 6pm we made it back around our hotel. It was a very complicated walk back to the hotel.
I’ll never forget when a man followed us around the Shibuya station, and although we were angry with each other, we grabbed each others hands, grinned, and ran for our life towards the exit. So, 15 minutes to 8 and we were already back in Shibuya. Lauren had wanted to go to Tower Records. However, we had a dinner reservation that our parents had insisted we needed to be on time for. Lauren’s father is very strict about that kind of stuff.
I am documenting here that Lauren spent 28,700 yen in Tower Records Shibuya.
Ginza to Shibuya. I don’t recall when we got to dinner. But I do remember the anger of us at our parents because we couldn’t find the restaurant at all in the little cramped Ginza alleyway.
Ah, I forgot to mention. Lauren and I had been going out under the guise of needing to go to a McDonalds to film for my Japanese project. We did not go to McDonalds even once. We had a delicious dinner, then made up a lie that we needed to go finish my project. Of course, Lauren’s mother knew my Japanese teacher did not call me at 6:00 AM PST. However, my parents defended us, but Lauren had to apologize to her parents for lying.
We still were allowed to go out.
We returned back to the hotel at nearly 1 in the morning. What an adventure.
The 23rd was our last day in Tokyo together. Bright and early we departed our hotel. We visited Riku-kun again. I also managed to snag something from the Stussy store. Joy. Then it was time for our journey to Motegi. Nothing to write home about. The hotel room was incredible, nothing I’d ever seen before. Traditional Japanese family resort style. Giant bed. The actual hotel felt like a horror movie. Lauren and I said farewell to each other after a delicious lunch.
Then I was back in Tokyo. My biggest regret from that trip that I am grimacing and writing is dressing like a bum in Ginza. I wore baggy sweatpants and a hideous jacket. Then my parents gave me an address to meet them at (it was an Indian restaurant) where I waited. I also had the chance to change, thank God, and I bought my mother socks from UniQlo. I worked hard on my Japanese project the next day. I recorded all the videos in my hotel room, not McDonalds like promised.
The night of the 25th, I went to Ginza with my mother. Then, I dropped her back at my hotel and went back to Harajuku to purchase a hoodie from ThisIsNeverThat (and another shirt from Stussy that I ended up not getting). Then we went out for dinner at my mother’s favorite izakaya. The next day, my dad and I walked to McDonalds and I ate chicken nuggets. I went to Don Quijote, my last big purchase where I bought presents and my favorite soju flavor lip plumper. After dropping my bag back home, I went on a very long walk. The crepe place I wished to go to was closed. So, in despair, I found a FamilyMart and bought ice cream. Then, I found a little park to sit in and eat. I continued my walk afterwards. I ended up passing by a beautiful street and sat in front of a river. I don’t know which one. It’s probably important. I contemplated jumping in for a nice swim. Then I left a note tucked in the bench that I’m sure nobody ever found. Then it was time to try and return home (to my hotel). It was a very long journey back as I was in the middle of a very residential area. I passed by a hospital, a group of people trying to go home, schoolchildren, and people on bikes. It didn’t feel real. That entire walk felt like a dream. I ended up back in the hotel and joined my parents in the hotel bar. I went to FamilyMart in the train station and bought instant noodles as well as an egg to eat. Then I went to bed.
The next day, my father COMMANDED (asked) I go out with Yuki to find him a watch. My father wished for a watch. So I said alright. Yuki was very kind and easy to talk to. He taught me a little Japanese and I taught him English slang that all the teenagers were using (type shit, fire). He bought me donuts to try from Mr. Donut (my dad ate all 6). Then I took my parents to Azabudai Hills that afternoon. Then I returned to Harajuku by myself that evening. I went to McDonalds and ate a burger. I took a taxi back to my hotel rather than the train. My taxi driver looked very young and very cute. I asked him how old he was and he was 30 something. Gosh. I also bought some new makeup. Unrelated.
Yuki came to the hotel bar at 9. I had purchased him a small gift from the Tamagotchi museum, which I gave to him. He left at 1 in the morning after we had a lovely conversation.
I left Tokyo the next afternoon. Before leaving, as we drove through the highway, I saw a very large billboard with the word プロミス on it. Promise. What could I promise? To whom? Why? I promise to come back. I promise to be happy. It stuck with me. Promise. I promise that I love Tokyo, my parents, and Lauren. It was a wonderful way to experience all three. Next time I’m in Tokyo though, I really need to eat more Japanese food. Not just FamilyMart. Seriously.
I seriously have nothing to recommend you. Please don’t hate me too much. I did nothing that crazy or new.
Anya & Lauren!