Japan 3 - The first two things to like about Japan

They got their shit together. Everything works.

Ever been to every hotel in North America that promises wifi and you get some trickle shit-ass brain-burning will work now, but not in a few seconds internet connection?  In Japan everything works. In Japan everything is organized. Our hotel room in Tokyo is outfitted like an apartment with a carwash-like toilet with a hot wax feature and four different remotes for the entertainment system. Modular furniture with ergonomic design. Practical spatial and storage systems. It’s like everyone did their homework here. Everyone read the manual and followed along in school.

It’s Saturday here, Friday back home – we managed to get quite a bit of sleep and are just putting ourselves together for the day. My guess is we do a few walking tours of the area that Daniela has outlined. With this place so well connected digitally it is making it easy to stay connected and utilize GPS for the massive labyrinth of streets and alcoves that define Tokyo. Shinjuku is a district in Tokyo and Daniela informed me that nearby there is a sort of red light district. We walked a little bit last night to search for Ramen but it was a cloudy one due to our 24 hour travel marathon to get here. We arrived at the Toronto airport at 11am on Thursday and got to our hotel in Shinjuku at 7pm Friday evening (6am Friday back home).

So I could sit here and write all day but I need to get the hell out there and see what’s going on. So far things are off to a great start – but I am sure we will encounter our share of challenges before this trip ends. The digital translators help a lot when it comes to wanting to say something to someone – but I do wish we could communicate better with these people. I really wanted to be able to express how great the Ramen was last night rather than repeating one generic canned phrase. But you get by with what you can and do your best.

More soon – time to fire up the camera gear and get outside.