What can I say about Tokyo? Simply put, it felt like home.
That isn’t too say it felt like South Wales because two countries have never
been further from each other but it did feel like my London. I only lived in London for two and a half years but every moment
of it was amazing.
London as a city has life and is relaxed at the same time. It’s a confident place that feels like its grown up
over time. It feels like a city that’s
had its crazy teenage stage and is content in its late 20’s.
Tokyo felt the same. Shops looked like they were established; people knew
where they were going and had confidence in how long they needed to get there.
The buildings were old but stupidly clean and you could see the pride its
residence had in their home.
I fell in love the second we stepped onto
the subway.
The airport was a throw back to the 70’s. As my friend put it ‘it’s what we thought the future
would look like in the 70’s’ which is a perfect description. Coming from super doper modern Seoul airport to this little concrete building was a bit
of a shock but then we got the subway and hit real Tokyo.
I’ve
heard people complain about the Tokyo
skyline but for me it looked like it was designed. Each building was well
spaced and picturesque. IT was more like a lovely painting than something I
believed was in front of me.
I liked it but the quirks of the city and
its people are what made me fall head over heels.
Their individual style and differing personalities
made every subway journey a new adventure. The cos-play kids blew my mind with
their detailed costumes and the hipster crowd was elegant in their tailored
suits. There were even a few old men in Hawaiian shirts that made my day.
Korea is still in its very first steps of economical boom so it’s hard to judge but in Korea people have more of a group
mentality. A trend is done by everyone and I mean everyone, men, woman,
children and teens. There are a lot of similar looking people on the streets.
Korean woman are stunning so they are dressed in clothes that enhance this but
it was nice to look at someone and know a little about them from their attire.
I won’t bore you with the actual ins and outs but let’s say there was good food, amazing sights and a
lot of fun had. Sumo is something I’d recommend
to everyone. It involves a lot of pageantry but it was fascinating and a throw
back to exactly how it would have been a 100 years ago (apart from woman could
watch obviously).
I did drag my group to Disney Tokyo which
might seem weird but as an animator and a big kid I have only experience Disney
very young and wanted to have a little childhood indulgence. It was fantastic.
They celebrate Disney in a way only Japan could. Every person was
dressed to the nines in Disney memorabilia. Groups of girls as Minnie, boys as villains
and babies in such cute costumes that my broodiness almost became a problem,
that sounds weird but wait until you see 27 babies dressed in little fat dumpy
duck costumes including little waddling tails and you will get the idea.
I had a memorable and fascinating time in Japan. I’d go back in an instant for a thousand million
reasons that add up to the fact I feel I could be happy there.
If time and money weren’t a problem, I’d be living there right now.
Japan, you felt a little like home.
On a rainy Saturday evening there are few things better than sitting down with a good movie.
The 3 woman end up traveling around America only to discover that they would rather be happy than with a millionaire. (of course!)
