Day 2 – Welcome to Japan!
April 16 - Tokyo
Good morning, Tokyo!
First thing on our agenda for today since we got in so late last night was to pick up our badges for the Starwars Convention. Elijah just about lost his mind over the sheer size of the building and the promise of all the fun and excitement to come. We would never see the place so empty again. The Star wars celebration key art was posted everywhere and the whole place just looked really good. After wandering through the massive convention hall, we came to where we could pick up our badges.
Unfortunately, we needed a QR code
that not one of us could find. After sitting around for 10 minutes looking like idiots, we finally figured it out. We got separated in lines to go to the counter. The girl had us scan but….it didn’t work. Apparently it was a duplicate of QR code and Julie’s counter and Nate’s counter tried to scan at the same time, which made nobody’s work. So after two managers came over to figure out what gave, we finally got our badges, corrected. I’m glad the manager checked because we actually had badges that belong to a JuliLala…ok. So, with badges in hand and merch in arm, we headed back to the room to drop them off and then to the train station!
Breakfast would also be at the train station.
It was a cute little cafe that was more buffet style where there’s little trays that you can pick up and put deliciousness on. We didn’t go crazy… (Okay we did) I was most excited because I could finally eat bread-based products without having to worry about my gluten intolerance. (I’m not really gluten tolerant, just whatever we put in our wheat in America makes me sick) We had to remember that we would be going to this Cafe for breakfast everyday, and that we didn’t have to get everything that looked delicious all at once. (That was really hard)
After eating, we stood outside the pay gate, watching the salary men go in and out (I got us Suica cards for the train, but I didn’t know what we’re doing) so we would have an idea. Spoiler: it was easy. Tap. Wow. Earth shattering. Japan also likes to color code their stuff so I’m here for it. I knew exactly where to go following Google maps because the color’s matched. It was very easy.
Our first train! Everybody said it was super clean but holy cow that doesn’t even begin to describe it. Like…. It’s super clean. Like unreal how clean this is. Most people wouldn’t sit on the floor on a subway train. But I absolutely would.
Our first stop for today was the
Senso-Ji Temple
The weather was perfect. There were a few trees with the cherry blossoms on it and though it was crowded, it’s just a good day. The sun was warm which helped a lot with my jet lag. As we walk through the crowded shops and streets towards the temple, we found ice cream shop so of course had to stop. I was the only one adventurous, and got sweet potato ice cream. No regrets. I know it sounds weird, but it really was quite delicious.
Once we got through the throngs of people we made it to the huge Temple. It was crazy to look at it. The Buddhist temple is the oldest established in Tokyo dating back to 645 ad. My brain just couldn’t comprehend anything that age. It’s hard to remember that Japan is MUCH older than our country, like over 10 times older, and some of the surviving buildings are pretty old too.
Its hard to explain, but the vibe today was just so chill. Nice day, nice icecream, nice tourists. A few cherry blossom trees in the wind and perfect manicured lawns. Such a vibe.
Next stop was the Pokemon Center.
Next stop was the Pokemon Center. After our first successful navigation of Tokyo’s notoriously difficult subway systems (they weren’t that difficult) we headed into the shopping area. To say that it was packed as an understatement. There were so many people. There were also so many Pokémon. We split up and went to come get our gifts and see our things. The time flew by. It was time to then go to the day.
350 floors later - Tokyo Skytree
This is high observation deck at overlooks the entirety of Tokyo. I thought we were late so I rushed everybody but we soon got into line and flew out the smoothest elevator I’ve ever been in in my life. It showed us the top speed we got as we went up. The door opened at floor 350 revealing the skyline that just didn’t seem real. If it looks fake in the pictures, know that it also looked fake around life. It didn’t seem like we were that high up because of how massive and sprawling the city is.
Another trip up. This time up to floor 450. This one had a little ramp that went up to the highest point within the observation deck. Honestly wasn’t my favorite… They had an anime co-op going on which I think I would have appreciated more if I knew what it was. But it was still awesomely cool to be up there.
Once we made it down we got back into Tokyo’s Subway system and made our way to
Akihabara.... Electric Town.
We went during the day so none of the lights were on, but it still had plenty of spark to it. The streets were crawling with anime, manga, video games, gotcha games, electronics…. Anything and everything. Made our way to a Don Quijote (affectionately known as Donki), which I knew was going to be overwhelming by all of the articles I read, but I was not prepared for the sheer amount of stuff that was in this store. There’s nothing in the US I can even use to compare it to. It’s like a flea market mixed with Walmart mixed with a Mexican street market mixed with department store.
We only made it up to floor 6
before we turned around. You heard that right. Floor 6. There were eight of them. I was so overwhelmed that I didn’t even take pictures. (I know, but I swear I’m not lying about this place)
The aisles were just big enough to get a body through so watch out if there was somebody else coming your way. It was confusing, glorious busy and wonderful. Feet before turning around and heading back. We went back into the subway station and went to catch the next train. The instant we got on and I knew I done goofed. It was going the wrong way! But it was only one stop so, it didn’t make too much of a difference. Took the train out to our final stop for today…
Yokozina Tonktatsu.
This is what I had been looking forward to probably the most. Sumo dinner! We arrived a little early, but they soon opened the doors and lit The fires for our hot pot. The Doyles are pretty adventurous with our food eating, but we had saved hotpot for specifically for this trip since none of us had had it before.
t’was. AMAZING. The blend of flavors and veggies and mushrooms we couldn’t even identify. Soon, the lights went dark. One of the chefs introduced himself and the other chefs that flashed on the screen (all retired sumo wrestlers) and someone in the back whooped and was carrying on. Finally, our two wrestlers came out in full (or I guess, less) regalia and much fanfare.
One of them (Aoki) was SO SILLY. just over the top and fun. The lady of the house came forward to teach us about the history of sumo and how it has played today. She explained the rules and what you can’t do (by demonstrating it, much to Aoki’s dismay) and told us how they stretched and practiced.
One of the ways they practiced was by standing in form and pushing each other to the side of the ring. And they needed volunteers. Nate had been talking such a big game about being able to push one of those guys, so obviously he jumped at the chance. He could finally push a sumo wrestler!
Narrator: He in fact, did not push a sumo wrestler.
Once Kuma planted his feet, I knew he wasn’t going anywhere. Nate pushed and pushed, and finally, Kuma released and let himself be pushed across the ring. We laughed and applauded and the lesson went on. Next, it was time for a match. Now in sumo, they don’t have weight classes. During matches, they just wrestle whoever and whoever has the most wins by the end is the winner. So this match would have been standard. Now, Kuma was absolutely bigger than Aoki, but Aoki was older and had more experience.
It was a good match….and also scary since we were so close to the edge. I had seen someone in the videos they played earlier get yeeted into the crowd. A couple of times, Kuma came close. But he powered through and ended up winning by knocking Aoki off balance.
So, now it was our turn to wrestle them. Of course, Nate wanted a rematch, so he got back in line. Many other dudes who I’m sure also bragged to their friends about beating a sumo wrestler also jumped in. And the children too. Spare the children!
They did not. The kids pushed and pushed and the sumo wrestlers would just take it for a minute before either spinning the kids around or holding them over their heads in triumph. It was so ridiculous and fun. (they would eventually give in and let the kid push them out of the ring)
And then it was nate’s turn again. Again, Kuma would not be moved and took it for a bit. But now, Nate knew the rules and wrapped his leg around. I could see Kuma go from playful to serious and sumo switched on, and he bear wrapped Nate and carried him to the edge. After a bit more jostling, Nate finally
lost. You guys, he lost.
He came “close” but he ended up putting his knees on the ground. So no, this isn’t a cinderella story. He lost. But we all had good fun. After we left, we had a peaceful walk through the streets of Tokyo back to the train and our hotel.
