07/19 - Getting Around

They call it luggage,

for perfectly good reasons.

More here in Tokyo

Make haste Shinkansen.

To Nagoya, and beyond,

“Hasta la vista.”

This morning I had a successful apartment inspection and said goodbye to my home since May 1st. I'll miss the loft, since hanging out up there always satisfies the kid inside me that never had a treehouse, the clean lines and simplistic design, the powerful shower and the way you can basically get the entire bathroom wet, and the glorious, heavenly air conditioner that makes not fainting regularly possible. I won't miss the minuscule kitchen that makes it difficult to cook anything, or how there is hardly any furniture and certainly no comfortable furniture, or banging my head on the washroom door at least three times a week.

I headed out with an astonishing amount of bags, that made my apartment inspector wonder if I was crazy or just freakishly strong, and met my dad so we could walk to the train station. It was definitely on the arduous side, thanks to my ability to overestimate how much a non-Sherpa human being can carry and because of the absurd humidity. I said goodbye to my "dear old dad" part way through the train journey and met my favourite Calgarian in Tokyo, Clayton, at Shimokitazawa station. I dropped my stuff off at his place after a trek through the hipster community he lives in, and then had a much needed regroup and shower at his apartment. 

Feeling rejuvenated, and like a baseball player who had been swinging a weighted bat and now feels unfathomably powerful swinging a regular one, I set off with one measly backpack to head to Shinagawa Station and catch the Shinkansen, or Bullet Train, down to Nagoya. 

The train was a bit late, which is rare for Japan but seems to be much more common with the Shinkansen. While waiting, I was entertained by some other passengers waiting for the train who looked pretty cool, but also completely ridiculous. It was a guy and girl, both with outrageous style. The guy had about a foot tall mohawk and the girl was wearing a full matching bright floral-patterned outfit, complete with a matching bucket hat. On the Shinkansen, I had a reserved seat and it was definitely the lap of luxury compared to the trains I've traveled on around Tokyo the last 11 weeks. I enjoyed a beer with a snack and took in some scenery before it got dark and I spent some time enjoying my book. It felt like a very short journey, as in less than two hours I'd made it the approximately 350 km to Nagoya. Once at the sprawling and elegant Nagoya Station, I walked through a mall to get to the Subway line to head two stops over to the popular area of Sakae. When I walked outside I was pleasantly surprised to see Nagoya TV Tower, nicely lit up, and some other nice urban scenery. Strangely, the vibe of the city immediately felt different to Tokyo. Some of my Japanese friends had told me this was the case, but I didn't expect to notice it myself so easily. 

I met my good friend Yoshi in Sakae and we headed to his apartment, which is situated under a massive billboard of Arnold Schwarzenegger. I dropped off my stuff and he changed out of his work clothes before we went to grab some supper. He took me to the most famous place for Nagoya chicken wings. Apparently Nagoya is known for its chicken wings and they did not disappoint. After eating we headed to a night club, my first trip to any such place in Japan. The place was massive, with six floors, including a locker room in the basement for you to store your stuff. The different floors had different music styles, with many types of dance music and one hip-hop floor which was my favourite. With your entry you got four drink tickets, which Yoshi wanted to use entirely on Jaeger Bombs, since the price of the drink didn't matter for each ticket. The biggest drawbacks of the place were that it was absolutely packed, was filled to the gills with cigarette smoke and closed at 1 AM. After the place shut down Yoshi and I headed to meet his friends at another, much smaller venue. To my complete surprise, when we entered the place I saw the outrageously dressed duo from the Shinkansen on stage playing to a crowd of energetic fans. It was awesome!

By the time Yoshi and I got back to his place I felt like I'd been awake for days. It definitely didn't feel like the same day that started with the mundane act of an apartment inspection. 

Today's second haiku features lines from movies that are all super popular in Japan. It's interesting seeing how popular certain aspects of American or Western culture become so big in Japan, while other popular artifacts are completely ignored. Lord of the Rings, or Rord of the Lings as some of my students spelled it this term, is the inspiration for the first line. Since the Shinkansen travels so fast I thought it worked to use Gandalf's line which inspires his horse to travel great distances with great speed. The second line is a reference to Buzz Lightyear's line "To infinity, and beyond!" I love how popular Toy Story is in Japan, as it is a personal favourite. Buzz is everywhere, and he would be at home in the futuristic confines of the Shinkansen, and under the space age design of the illuminated Nagoya TV Tower. The final line is a reference to the Terminator himself, since Yoshi happens to live under a massive Schwarzenegger billboard. He says his area is a bit dangerous, but how can you not feel safe with a forty-foot Arnold protecting your building.