In Tokyo for the week

[GP403]

I'm sure you all think I'm nuts but I love this place. In 1989 I started learning Japanese thinking I would get involved in the auto industry, become an engineer and be some sort of liaison to Japan for the big 3.... and then the bubble burst and that was all over. Then 10y ago I was like wtf man why don't I just go already. So here I am on my sixth trip and still love the crap out of this place. No it's not perfect and its got a crapton of issues and my interest has absolutely zero to do with anime or j-pop or any of the other crap that goes on today.

This time I'm basing in the "grannie's harajuku" of Sugamo which is a ward in northern Tokyo. Lots of old buildings and businesses that were spared the '23 earthquake and the WWII firebombing and lots of interesting stuff this direction.

It's always fun to watch the cars here, too. Especially in Tokyo you'll see the random supercar roll by, but its rare to see any American cars. It's mainly japanese cars with a good percentage of Kia/Hyundai and believe it or not BMWs/VWs... But I've seen a few newer Mustangs, Camaros, and even full-size Trucks around over the years. Its fun seeing Toyota, Honda, etc. models that we can't get in the states and be like COME ON I'D ROCK THAT. Like the Honda wagon parked in the hotel parking lot today. An honest station wagon. COME ON sell this stuff at home, guys.

It's 4:15 pm here right now, currently taking a break eating some smoked cheese cheetos and drinking 9% grapefruit chu-hai. I'll put some pix up later, headed out to Shinjuku tonight for some proper sushi and christmas lights fun. My 19yo daughter was like "hey I want to go back" and of course I'm all over that. Landed yesterday (Cripes the flights suck balls, 12h here and 10-11h back)

(And "hurr durr Pearl Harbor" posts will be deleted with extreme prejudice. It's been 80 years FFS move on.)

 

[Streetbu]

Only had a layover in Japan once. I remember wanting a soda. Got change, picked one from the vending machine with a pic that I thought I might like the taste of, and when it was dispensed, it was hot! Freaked me out when you're expecting to pick up a cold can and it's hot LOL

 

[TURNA]

Spy photos tell the real story!!

 

[Jimmy]

I lived there for 2 years when I was in the service. It really is a great place and I assume there is still very little crime. Make sure you climb Mt Fuji.

 

[69hurstolds]

I've always wanted to visit Japan. Just have no idea where to even start to go or what to do.

I've heard to NEVER stand your chopsticks upright into a bowl of rice. Something to do with bad luck or death/funeral or some crap like that. Is that true?

 

[ssn696]

The Navy parked me in Yokuska numerous times and once in Sasebo. I skipped the bars and visited the Tours and Tickets offices on the bases.

On the Sasebo trip, I made the expedition to the Noritaki China factory way out in the countryside. Two trains and a bus past rice paddies. Really amazing watching the top-line dinnerware being hand painted lightning fast by tiny ladies perched on stools. Talk about back-breaking work 8+ hours a day. I couldn't afford much as the yen was really strong in the 1990s.

I met an American teacher on the Yokuska base (at the rollerskating rink - because I'm a geek) who took a liking to me. She lived off-base in a house with tatami-mat floors, rice-paper sliding doors, and bedrolls on the floor that get rolled up into a cupboard each morning. She had a car and took me all over the countryside on two weekends we were parked there.

I saw the big Buddha, the temple honoring children lost in childhood, and hiked in a really beautiful forest, given how densely populated the Yokohama area is. I picked up two soda bottles at one temple. Under a little foil cap there was an orange O-ring set in a groove with a marble held up against the seal with the gas pressure of the soda. When you pressed with your finger, the gas escaped and the marble dropped into a pinched area in the bottle so it did not block the liquid when you took a sip.

When I watched the movie Totoro with my kids, there was one of the bottles in the background. I rummaged in a box and brought one down to show them my treasure.

Enjoy your visit. Gaijin are people too.

 

[Jimmy]

The Navy parked me in Yokuska numerous times and once in Sasebo. I skipped the bars and visited the Tours and Tickets offices on the bases.

On the Sasebo trip, I made the expedition to the Noritaki China factory way out in the countryside. Two trains and a bus past rice paddies. Really amazing watching the top-line dinnerware being hand painted lightning fast by tiny ladies perched on stools. Talk about back-breaking work 8+ hours a day. I couldn't afford much as the yen was really strong in the 1990s.

I met an American teacher on the Yokuska base (at the rollerskating rink - because I'm a geek) who took a liking to me. She lived off-base in a house with tatami-mat floors, rice-paper sliding doors, and bedrolls on the floor that get rolled up into a cupboard each morning. She had a car and took me all over the countryside on two weekends we were parked there.

I saw the big Buddha, the temple honoring children lost in childhood, and hiked in a really beautiful forest, given how densely populated the Yokohama area is. I picked up two soda bottles at one temple. Under a little foil cap there was an orange O-ring set in a groove with a marble held up against the seal with the gas pressure of the soda. When you pressed with your finger, the gas escaped and the marble dropped into a pinched area in the bottle so it did not block the liquid when you took a sip.

When I watched the movie Totoro with my kids, there was one of the bottles in the background. I rummaged in a box and brought one down to show them my treasure.

Enjoy your visit. Gaijin are people too.

I was stationed in Yokosuka. I got to visit Sasebo also I went to Nagasaki while I was there to see where one of the nukes were dropped.

 

[motorheadmike]

Oh please... you just like their little hands and feeling really tall.

 

[81cutlass]

If you don't speak a bit of Japanese, is it a good place to go on vacation?

I have I-don't-speak-your-language-and-am-afraid-to-travel-there-aphobia

 

[TURNA]

Hmmmmmmmmm..............................

https://www.worldofbuzz.com/japan-desperately-recruiting-dont-enough-male-p*rn-stars/