Sunny Side Up

Breakfast

I ate spaghetti for breakfast. And what came on top of my spaghetti? A sunny side up.

The night before, after drinking for several hours, I stumbled home in a not-drunk-at-all stupor of jet lag induced fatigue. Seriously, am I a robot? Why didn't I get drunk off of what was probably 6+ drinks? Anyway, I stopped at a convenience store and bought OJ and food. "Food" like heat-and-eat spaghetti.

Meander

I wandered around the areas surrounding my apartment today for many many many hours. It's a nice town with lots of vegetation. There's even a large park area by the river. However, it's still Tokyo, so high rise is the name of the game.

In my quaint little town there lies a quaint little mall: 2 buildings, 11 stories, 3 skywalks, 400+ stores/restaurants, and rooftop gardens.

I needed a bath towel, but the cheapest one I could find was still over $30. Yes, this city is known for it's affluent populace.

The top of the mall had a spectacular view, so I took some photos. Photos like my photo of the day. The restaurants up there look amazing, but are wayyyyyy out of my price range; a meal started at 3000 Yen ($30)... one restaurant had prices over $300 a meal... gotta find me's a suga mommas...

Dinner

Since I skipped lunch to meander, I was deliriously hungry. Hopefully my low caloric intake will prolong my lifespan, as suggested by many research studies.

I stumbled upon a place called "Draft King," which had reasonable prices on food and a nice drink menu.

I ordered the Cajun Chicken Jambalaya and a "400ml glass" of Heineken. The beer cost 600 Yen, which is just over $6. The food was 950 Yen, which is close to $10.

The food was really good. I justified my second beer by the realization that I hadn't eaten lunch, and thus had extra "food money" to spend on dinner.

An American walked into the restaurant and sat down in the table in front of me. I gave him a silent nod, as if because we were both foreigners in Japan, we should somehow stick up for eachother.

Five minutes after his awkward nod back, another American male joined him. The first guy ordered a cosmo... and then another cosmo... and then a beer. Gay? Probably. Does it really matter? No.

But, the whole thing got me thinking...
There's definitely two types of foreigners in Japan: those who are friendly with other foreigners and are down to go out for a drink, and those who are so obsessed with "being Japanese" that they scoff at other foreigners. It's true.

As I walked home with a mild buzz (which didn't make sense given last night's events), I began to contemplate a story I recently read. A close friend of mine had wrote it and submitted it to be entered in the Norton Anthologies. Her story was accepted, which is a big deal.

Anyway, as I walked home, I started a Yes/No conversation with myself. Do you ever do that? It goes like this:

Am I cold? Yes.
Do I wish I brought a jacket? Yes.
Is it a big deal? No.
Am I lost? Maybe.
Am I worried? No.
Do I feel "unsafe" walking home at night? No.
Are other foreigners the people I most "fear" in Japan? Yes.
Is it because they are the most likely to do something rash/stupid? Yes.
etc...

My schizo self convo lasted the whole 20 minutes home.

Guess what came on top of my Cajun Chicken Jambalaya? Yep... a sunny side up.

Tokyo Apartment :: Shit a Rainbow

LAME!

Ok, first and foremost, I'm not sure why I thought this photo would even qualify as "keepable," but I guess I did and it's the only photo I took so... I guess it's my photo for the day.

Move-In

Kaori helped me move in to my apartment today, which entailed picking up my key in Shinjuku, doing paperwork, then lugging my luggage to Futako-Tamagawa. The website said my apartment was a 15 min walk from the station. It took us 25 minutes. The whole ordeal capped at around 4 hours, I think.

Nik :: Shit a Rainbow

In the evening, Kaori and I met with Nik and Miki for drinks. I know Nik from ISU, but this was a first encounter with Miki.

Nik and I split a bottle of Shouchu, which is about 50 proof. I think Nik was pretty drunk by the end of the night, but I barely copped a buzz. Damn Irish genetics.

Nik ordered some food, which was good cuz I hadn't eaten in forever. He ordered squid and cow intestine (cooked and seasoned). These were OK, but not really what I had in mind. Kaori ordered some "nankotsu," which is basically deep fried cartilage. Nankotsu is really really tasty, but since the entirety of my meal consisted of intestine, cartilage, and squid, I had a feeling I would be shitting a rainbow tomorrow.

Tokyo Anonymity

The Black Sea

About 30 seconds from the famous Shibuya Crossing. (photo)

Kaori and I had gotten drinks and dinner at a bar/izakaya up the street and were now headed back.

Jet lag still had me by the balls.

Exhausted, I fell asleep standing up on the train ride home. My rude awakening came as my legs gave out from under me. I didn't hit the ground; I caught myself halfway to the floor.

Silly foreigner.

Tokyo Arrival

Surreality

After about 11 hours on a plane, I awoke from another nap of unknown length. My breath stunk of scotch, vodka, and sleep. The bad taste in my mouth was distracting, but not a priority. My priority was ending the pain in my elbow. I had to kill that little demon... maybe I can poison it with Oxycontin... success!

Time was mocking me. My first "nap" lasted over 4 hours, but only felt like a few minutes. Subsequent naps felt long but only lasted an hour at most. How long have I been on this plane? 8 hours? 5 hours? 12 hours?!

Arrival

Hmmm. I don't feel different... but something has definitely changed.
Wait... why can't I understand anyone...

Yuri & Kaori

After another 2 hours of trains and waiting for trains, I met with Yuri at Shinagawa station. From there, we immediately started drinking (and eating). An hour point five later, Kaori arrived and we had a lovely reunion. Around midnight Kaori and I parted ways from Yuri and made our way back to Kaori's, an arduous hour of crowded trains and lugging luggage.
More to come, over and out.


PS: I'm finally getting my act together; I won't neglect the blog like I did in February and March ever again. I'm sorry baby.